The Skream and Benga Interview

© Meranda Carter

As I walked up a crowded staircase on the weekend of Halloween I passed by some familiar faces: Skrillex, Zeds Dead and others. This event had by far highest level of security, because backstage was only people in this industry. I had the pleasure to meet up with some of the pioneers of the genre you've learned to love. Skream and Benga. Their  last night on tour would end in LA. This is what I picked from their brain. Skream likes to talk first as he grabbed my questions from me.

Croydon: If you could work outside of EDM who would you work with?

Skream: Prince.

Benga: Jamiroquai.

Croydon: What is your family's musical influence when growing up?

Benga: Mom and Dad didn't listen to music, my brothers were MCs so UK garage jungle.

Skream: Jungle and my mom loved disco, and my dad.

Croydon: What did you guys make before making dubstep?

Benga:It was called dark garage.

Skream: No, it's such a hard question to answer because we didn't make garage but it was referenced to dubstep.

Benga: What he's trying to say is we made it first.

Skream: No, no we made tunes. But people called it 'ragage' which sounds like a sexual disease. The question has been asked the whole tour, what did we do before dubstep, we didn't, we got tagged as dubstep.

Croydon: Benga, you have have an album due in April?

Benga: Ya how does everyone know about it?

Skream: Leaked 3 tracks.

Croydon: What's your guys' take on moombahton?

Skream: I love it, we've been playing it. Porter Robinson, Dillon Francis, few others that I don't even know because Dillon sends me the records.

Croydon: You gonna make some?

Skream: I'm going to, but it might not be any good.

Croydon: How do you think drugs have influenced Dubstep?

Skream: Dubstep have not influenced a fuck all, in England is a thing called methadrone, it makes you stink and fucking sweat, drugs are getting shit and more shit each year.

Skream: Nothing influences the music we make.

Skream: It's like the start of dubstep again.

Croydon: Would you compare what Skrillex is doing to dubstep?

Skream: Of course, it's 140, it's half-time.

Benga: It's got mental basses.

Skream: He's done what we did to fucking UK garage. We took it and made it our own. He's done the same.

Croydon: What do you think about genres?

Benga: There's only two types of music only: good music and bad music.

Skream: Gababacore.

Croydon: What's next for Magnetic Man?

Benga: New album, new tour.

Skream sings: "There's a party in my tummy so yummy so yummy yummy"

Croydon: Is Yo Gabba Gabba your favorite children's show?

Skream: I don't watch children's shows.

Benga: Yes you do man.

Skream: There is a channel in England called baby T.V. and I can't watch anymore because it gives me flashbacks. The fact I've taken hallucinogenics over the years, it gives me flashbacks, like festivals in San Bernadino or Santa Cruz walking around in our boxers with naked people.

Croydon: Who are your favorite club teams?

Benga: Barcelona.

Skream: Benga's is actually Arsenal.

Benga: I never supported them.

Skream: You had the tops.

Skream: I was Crystal Palace, music stole my football career.

Benga: I supported Man U when I was younger, Ryan Giggs I used to be a left winger.

Skream: You're right footed.

Benga: So, I used to be ambidextrous.

Croydon: What are your favorite tunes at the moment?

Skream: "Dismantle–Computation (VIP)", "Grumblx–rumble", The Frim called "High Technology", it was a free track, it's fucking ill.

I release music for the fun of it "mooonnnney"