The Best Moments of Baby Doc & S-J

The Best Moments of Baby Doc & S-J *
While Trade remains the common denominator behind most of the second wave of hard house, Baby Doc and S-J remain key figureheads in the music's original conception. Regulars at the notoriously hardcore Sunday morning club since its birth, the pair not only partied with the club's inner circle, but produced many of the tracks that came to symbolise Trade's hard, banging style. 8 years on many of their original Trademates are international DJs (Pete Wardman, DJ Dag, Trevor Rockliffe) and even more of them are releasing records on their new independent label Arriba. EJ Doubell Madame Friction and even Trade boss Lawrence Malice are just some of the Trade affiliated names releasing records on Arriba over the coming months.

The pair have also been romantically involved for seven years, exhibiting a rare, and happy(!) equilibrium (certainly compared to most in the dance business). Skrufff's Jonty Adderley caught up with S-J in the couple's Shoreditch studio last week as they prepared to take their acclaimed live show on tour.

Skrufff: How did the two of you first meet-
S-J: "We were working for different bands in a studio complex and the first time we met was in the kitchen area of the studio, when we were each making a cup of tea. Then, one week later, we both went to Club UK and we discovered that we both knew each other's friends. I'd been kicking around for two years but had never actually met Quinn, before. It happened at the Final Frontier night. I used to go there religiously every Friday night - you had to be there."

Skrufff: What were you doing at the time-
S-J: "Nothing - disco dancing (chuckling). No, I was working with someone else as a singer. Quinn and I agreed to meet the following weekend. At that meeting he played me his records and I just thought 'Wow', this is the kind of music I love already.' We hit it off straightaway and got on brilliantly over everything and I thought it was a good opportunity to sing on his records (whispering conspiratorially, as Quinn works on a squelching synth sound in the background). Quinn's music has so much space, so I felt like I could really be creative and be able to write more."

Skrufff: How long did it take you to realise that your relationship was special-
S-J: "Straightaway. It felt really weird -it was complete love at first sight and that hasn't changed. There's electricity between us that I can't explain - I've never had it with anybody else- and I'm unlikely to have it ever again (laughing). It was a coincidence that we met like that but there was no introduction- it was all about magnetism."

Skrufff: These days you're a production duo, how do you split the musical roles-
S-J: "It's not so defined, I sometimes write the riffs, though I don't do the basslines. Normally, Quinn comes up with the groove and the beats and I write the verse and chorus over the top. Then he'll construct around that."

Skrufff: You seem to be making records these days for the entire cast of Trade originals, why are you so closely linked with the club-
S-J: "I think it's because most of the tunes we've written have been Trade tunes, and Trade's always been about a certain energy. We're all drawn together as DJs and artists because we're all creating that energy. We all get that goose bump feeling at the same time, I guess. The DJs at Trade are also really creative, they're all trying to create journeys and experiences through their sets. Certainly at Trade and DTPM they all love what they're doing and they're all trying to create a massive night out."

Skrufff: How did you choose the selection for this Best Of compilation-
S-J: "We chose them chronologically (by date) and picked the best tracks from each year. We also asked our friends and DJs we know which ones they liked. We feel that this record is a bit of a time piece and before we move on from that sound we wanted to put them out collectively."

Skrufff: Do you think the< Tags

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