L.D (LEON.DAY@SKY.COM)

The most talented and creative producers can often be found lurking in the background – J Dilla for example – and Leon Day aka L.D. is not one to buck the trend. Brought up on a diet of rootical reggae blasting through the bedroom floor on a Sunday morning in Peckham, south London, it is of little surprise that the reggae sampling, clashing breakbeats and hyper energy of jungle, and more recently the weighty grooves of dubstep, would dictate his life’s path.

The 27 year-old first heard the sounds that would change everything at the age of nine. Exposed to the sounds of Jungle through various tape packs brought back from raves by his cousin, it was only a matter of time before he was introduced to turntables and mixing records. It was this that inspired him to go to college and take up music technology, yet it was a painting and decorating job that actually got him his first break, leading him through the door of Transition Studios in 2003. “I knew a guy who worked at Transition called Paleface (Ghost and Crazy Cousins) and he got me to do Jason (the owner’s) decorating. That was my first kind of introduction and Jason was like ‘ah he’s into music and painting and decorating, OK fair enough.’ That was back in 2003.”

Watching and learning as a vast array of clients from Darren Jay to Jah Shaka and Natasha Bedingfield came through the doors, Leon learnt the increasingly rare, dark art of sound mastering under owner Jason Goz careful mentorship, cutting his teeth on 10” dubplates for dubstep producers and DJs Distance, N-Type and Digital Mystikz, eventually graduating to 12” dubs and mastering. From this vantage point, he could view the evolution of dubstep through regular exposure to the mutating sounds coming from the constant flow of artists coming to get their upfront dubs cut.

It was during one of these sessions that one of the scenes leading artists, Mala (DMZ), heard Leon’s first original production “Clock Watching” and instantly charted it. From here Jason resurrected his old Ringo record label and released it, with Skream’s mix of “ Assumptions” on the flip. Once firmly on the dubstep map, things began to move. His next production, “Swing Dat Skirt,” garnered strong support from DJ Chef and N-Type on Rinse FM. He collaborated in the studio with Kode9 on “2Bad,” leading to further release on the flagship Hyperdub imprint and it’s internationally acclaimed compilation “Hyperdub 5.” He also collaborated with Clue Kid on “Guerrilla Warfare” [Ringo] to pioneer the first bridge between dubstep and old school jungle. He’s released on respected stables Soul Jazz, Dub Police and Sin City as well as remixing avant-garde indie darlings Animal Collective. You can find his deft grooves on the definitive This is Dubstep vol 2 & 3 compilations.

Bookings worldwide have since come about (Australia, USA, N ew Zealand, Finland and Croatia to name a few of about 15 countries…) but it takes a certain calibre of person to get their very first dubstep DJ date at the scene’sbiggest party. Going back to back with DJ Chef at DMZ 2nd Birthday in 2007 was a baptism of fire: “I had to pull myself together and be like, ‘right this is my chance, I can’t miss it’”, he says. “I saw the line up and it made it worse”. Playing alongside established peers Kode 9, Skream, Hatcha, Benga and Plastician, LD showed little fear, opening with one of the most insane mixes of the night, still talked about in hushed, revered tones by dubstep connoisseurs. As the intro of Benga and Walsh’s “Panic Room” was building, LD switched the mix into “Flames” by Benga. As they reached their drops the place erupted, and the rest is history.

Taking the momentum out of that jaw-dropping mix like a stone fired out of a slingshot, LD has barely looked back, with international DJ dates and more releases on the horizon , such as his remix of Jamaican reggae star Jah Cure. In a side development recently he worked for Rob Papen Ltd creating fiendishly mesmerising new synthesizersounds and has been taken on as an official producer for Propellerhead’s Reason, the studio suite of choice for many dubsteppers. As 2011 unfolds, LD very much retains his own sound d rawing from his roots: drum pan sounds of Jamaica resonating throughout, flashes of soca drums, subtle tribal nuances, and the ghost of jungle reverberating in the warm, pulsating sub bass. It seems now is very much the time for LD to make the transition from behind the scenes and into the limelight.