Electronic music has reached an electrifying place. Many producers are constantly testing the boundaries by blending the sounds of groove, techno, bass, house, funk and countless other styles to create new and exciting musical forms, thrilling fans and inspiring other producers within the same genre. Bodhi, a DJ duo of Olly Howells and Luke Welsby, epitomise exactly this as they fuse dance music with groove and funk sound which has proved popular as ‘Imperfection’ reached nearly 650,000 plays on Soundcloud and their take on The xx’s ‘Angels’ was listened to just under 2,500,000 times. Her Campus caught up with them to learn a bit about their roots, their musical style and get an insight on upcoming projects.
Hi guys! How did the two of you meet and what made you decide to create Bodhi?
We started hanging out through mutual friends and hitting the same nights in Cardiff. It wasn’t too long after that we realised we had similar musical interests and decided to write some tunes together.
How long have you been interested in making music and what kicked it off?
We’ve both been interested in making music from a young age – throughout school & after we were in various bands. It wasn’t too long after going clubbing regularly that we swapped the instruments for a computer & a set of decks.
Why did you decide on ‘Bodhi’?
It was a name that Luke came across. Bodhi is a Buddhist term that translates into English as enlightenment or awakening.
How would you describe your sound?
Soulful house with groove based foundations
And who/what would you say has had some influence your musical style?We take influence from all styles of music. Outside of the realm of house we look to soul music from every era whether that be jazz, disco, funk or blues. Also hip hop that emerged through sampling all of those old soul records.
What do you believe are three key ingredients to making good music?Be opened minded to all types of music; constantly experiment, and make your music-making environment as comfortable as possible.
How difficult would you say it is to emerge as a recognised producer in this genre?I guess it is more difficult right now as the current climate of dance music is probably at its highest peak. Which is a good thing overall, but also makes it more difficult for newer artists to poke through with a distinctive sound as there are so many other producers trying to do the same thing.
Who would you say your current favourite producers are and why?Floating Points, Theo Parish & Andre Lodemann. All 3 create different forms of electronic/house music but they all know how to really work a track and take you on a journey. Listen to ‘Arp3’, ‘Summertime is Here’ or ‘Where are you now?’ to be taken away on a musical trip!
What has been your most memorable gig to date?Playing ‘I Love Techno’ festival last year in a massive aeroplane hanger in Belgium was pretty insane. And the previous 2 years we’ve played a smaller festival called Klamme Handjes in Amsterdam which has been great. It’s fun to play an evening set in the sunshine and the Dutch crowd are always on point.
What else do you do when you’re not producing music and playing gigs?We tend to be back in Cardiff hanging with our friends listening to music and going out to other people’s shows. We are also big football fans, Cardiff (Olly) & Liverpool (Luke).
Finally, what do you have in store for the future music-wise? We have a 3 track EP coming out later this year on Berlin Label ‘Exploited’ which we are excited about. There are a few remixes still yet to surface. We’re also working with a number of vocalists at the moment but those tracks won’t see light until next year. Watch this space!
For more of Bodhi, check out their Facebook, Twitter and Soundcloud.
Edited by Sam Carey