Spooky Bizzle Shares a Grime Mix and Talks Kanye, Raves, and His Secret Steel Drum Past

Let’s not make it complicated: If instrumental grime is what you want, Boxed is where you go. Since 2013 the London-based club night and collective has catalyzed a potent alloy of new and old grime flavors from its flock of talented artists. Think square wave shelldowns, cheeky R&B flips, weightless textures, and in-your-face strings (hoe).

One of the scene’s brightest is veteran DJ and producer Spooky Bizzle. Spooky predates Boxed by a decade—a massive file of free tracks he compiled in 2012 traces his grime resume all the way back to 2005. Like anyone with years of work under his belt, Spooky’s built up a lot of core strength: he surpassed his peers in his tracks' athletic brutality. His career-highlight 300-sampling "Spartan" (2010) sounds like its about to climb the Empire State Building and start snatching planes, and Wiley could barely keep up with his juddering system-failure instrumental on “Step 16.” He started DJing on pirate radio stations when he was 14—his mixes aren’t for the meek.

Case in point: Spooky's playing at Boxed’s second birthday party this Friday at BLOC in London, and he made us a mix to celebrate. It’s a brash hour-and-change of hype-ass tunes best consumed, in his words, in a “padded environment.”

We caught up with Spooky over email for a quick chat about the mix, his career, and his thoughts on Kanye and Drake’s recent anglophilia. Spoiler alert, he’s unimpressed.

Tell me about a song in this mix you have an interesting or particularly close connection with?
Jawside's bootleg of "Invasion" does it for me tbh. New school twist on a grime classic. Couldn't have done it better myself.

What's the best environment for listening to this mix?
A padded environment.

When did you first start DJing? How did you first encounter pirate stations?
I first started DJing aged 13 scratching vinyls on my mum's hi-fi or my dad's turntable. Mashed up plenty of his needles. As for pirate stations I was listening to them since I was eight and managed to convince my mate to get me on as a special guest on his show at 14.

Describe one of the most memorable gigs you've played over the years.
Me and Novelist in Berlin last November with his boy Murkilla.

Thoughts on all this Kanye and Drake grime stuff?
Flash in the pan.

What's your favorite tune of your own?
"Spartan." Closely followed by "Baby."

Tell me about a few tunes that made a big impact on you growing up.
"Rip Groove" by Double 99 did it for me. I bought the Satellite release in the silver sleeve and found "Happy 2 Be Deep" on the flip side. Two gems on one record. 'Nuff said.

Tell me about the first club nights you went that had a big impact on you
FWD>> at Plastic People did it for me. Meditating on bass weight. Always left with my ears ringing.

What up and coming MCs do you rate right now?
Jammz, MicTy, The Square, and YGG to name a few.

What's a song you play out that's always guaranteed to destroy the rave?
There's one garage mash-up by Moony that does the job.

How do you compare the energy at raves now compared to further back in the day?
Less tension & more about good vibes. So I'd say positive energy.

What's something people don't know about Spooky?
I used to play steel drums.

If you could make one universal commandment that everybody in music/nightlife would have to obey, what would it be?
Don't be a douchebag.

Grab tickets for Boxed Second Birthday party here.

Ezra Marcus is not a douchebag. Follow him on Twitter.