Bitzer Maloney Mixx
Jack Tomson AKA Bitzer Maloney played for us at Mick’s Garage a few years ago - b2b with Jon K and it absolutely popped off. The guy’s passion for good music is really exciting, he’s committed to keeping the scene going and we’re buzzing to be including him on our Origins Tapes.
We first began hearing about Jack during the student years in Manchester. Back then Jack ran a night with some friends called Hi Ku and was known for booking an eclectic selection of artists such as Mike Huckaby, Luke Vibert, DJ Fett Burger, Telephones and Andres to name just a few.
More recently, Jack’s an NTS and Limbo Radio regular, and a resident of the popular White Hotel where he has been running a party called Bakk Heia since 2016. This has seen him host a fine selection of people from Tolouse Low Trax, Trevor Jackson, Truly Madly to Ivan Smagghe. The party has also more recently given way to record label - Bakk Heia Records.
Jack’s built a solid name for himself up north and his sets are known to include some wonderfully weird electronic sounds that keep your ears guessing. He’s also quite fond of the closing sets where he finds himself playing to packed out crowds at a respectable 8 AM.
The mix gives us a snapshot of that style, and it takes you on a journey from the warm and ambient, deeper sounds that keep ya cosy on a colder Autumn day, to the more peculiar electronic dance floor heaters later on. It’s a mix that’s kept us on our toes!
Hey Jack! Nice one for spending the time on the mix and sorry it’s taken a while to put it up! First off, how’s the year been with you and how have you adapted?
Hey! No worries, time is fluid now that we are in the end times hehe. Nice one for hitting me up, good memories of that B2B with Jon K! This year has been pretty fucking horrendous hasn’t it? I suppose I have adapted in the only way we can - keeping friends and family close and concentrating on important things like buying ridiculously good dance records and eating cubensis mushrooms. It’s odd, but i feel like my appetite for dance music has almost increased since lock down started. Despite the fact that we no longer have any way of sharing these records with each other en masse, they still hold their potency and remind me that things are worth living for.
It’s been a hard time to be involved in music, and even more so if you’re financially reliant on the music industry too. Where do you see things going where you are and how are you and other local promoters feeling towards the situation?
Jeeez! Big question that could require a long answer. Will try and keep it concise. I’m in a very lucky position of being in full time employment outside of the music world. My heart breaks for all the extremely talented artists, DJs, dancers, promoters, club promoters, sound/lighting engineers and bar staff that are on the bones of their arses right now. I went to The White Hotel last night for a final *social distanced* drink and what I came away feeling was this: The community still loves each other, we are still ‘viable’ and we are all still united by our common love for music. This isn’t going to change, so I guess we'll just have to find a way through it. It’s not looking good though is it? One of my main worries is that the people who have financial safety nets will be ok, but the many who relied on music full time aren’t going to be able to survive. Meaning many will simply not have the time and resources to continue producing their art as they will most likely be toiling away in some shite job they don’t give a fuck about. And that is a crying shame. But the bottom line is, people's desire to share and enjoy music isn’t something that is going away, and the Tories have never given a shit about nightlife culture anyway, so we must support each other in any way possible till this shit storm subsides.
Tell us about Bakk Heia, obviously none of the normal parties recently and with most things on hold, but where do you see things going when you can run them again?
Starting to seem like a distant memory now! I dream about that first party back daily. Imagining putting on the first record to a dancefloor of people actually dancing, looking at all my friends hugging each other, brings a tear to my eye haha! Bakk Heia was always just an opportunity for myself and some friends to get together and share in the age old tradition of communal frenzied dancing. Your crew are always the best DJs anyway, so in the future, maybe bypassing headliners in light of cheap entry and local action? To be honest at this stage I would happily listen to a sine wave for 6 hours straight if the lights were flashing and people were moving.
Great to see you busy with the record label, we enjoyed including your first release in some of our sets. Describe the new tracks and what you have planned in the future?
Nice one! The label has been keeping us going creatively. We were very hesitant to release the last one (BH003) as the main run arrived in the first week of April, 2 weeks into a national lockdown. We felt like peoples appetites for club music might have subsided due to the apocalypse and there not being anywhere to actually play the record outside of bedrooms. But as it turned out, it sold better than our previous releases, so that was a nice surprise. The next one is by the same fella as the BH001. My old pal Johnny (Schuttle). We just received the test presses and they are sounding fucking great! 4 tracks of esoteric dance music inspired by Resident Evil 1- 4, Abe’s Exoddus and The Dark Crystal. Should be out late November so keep eyes and ears peeled. Looking to the future, we are keeping it in the family as our label mate Jorg Kuning has a basically endless supply of ridiculous heaters which need to see the light of day. We are open to releasing other people’s music though! So if you are reading this, send your demos over :)
Finally, talk to us about this mix. You said there are some forthcoming Bakk Heia records in here?
Yeah that’s right, in the end it’s only got the one forthcoming bit, Ekt - Schuttle, which is the B1 on BH004. Although it also features Jorg Kuning’s ‘Spirals’ from our last release, BH003. The mix is the culmination of the last few months of digging. Many of the tunes featured have been discovered and enjoyed whilst exploring the endless possibilities of the mycelium network. It is therefore suitably psychedelic and is intended to be enjoyed as such. Honorable mention should be given to All Night Flight Records in Stockport, which is hands down the best record shop going right now, Jean Baptiste, for penning the best dance track ever written and my local park, Highfields in Levenshulme, which has provided various nights worth of spiritual nourishment in these anxiety inducing times.