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Calibre (musician)

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Calibre
Calibre playing in his hometown of Belfast, Northern Ireland in February 2019
Calibre playing in his hometown of Belfast, Northern Ireland in February 2019
Background information
Birth nameDominick Martin
Also known asLoose Dragon
OriginBelfast, Northern Ireland
GenresDrum and bass, liquid funk, downtempo
Occupations
  • DJ
  • musician
Years active1995–present
LabelsQuadraphonic, Creative Source, V Recordings, Soul:R, Signature Records, Br:nk

Dominick Martin, better known by his stage name Calibre, is a Northern Irish drum and bass music producer and DJ from Belfast. He is highly regarded for his influence on the liquid funk style of drum and bass, which was partially named after his distinct production style.[1][2][3] He primarily releases his own works through his personal label, Signature Recordings,[4] but has also released on labels such as Hospital Records, V Recordings, Creative Source and Soul:R.[5]

Many of his productions–some of which were unreleased at the time–became synonymous with liquid funk due to DJ Fabio playing most of Martin's productions on his BBC Radio 1 show, Liquid Funk, and at Swerve club nights (originally known as Speed, which was co-ran with LTJ Bukem) in the early 2000s.[2][3] Beginning in 2007, some of these unreleased productions would be released under the "Shelflife" series of albums alongside other works by Martin on his personal record label, Signature Records.[6]

According to UKF, none of Martin's productions have been officially remixed by other artists.[7]

In 2019, Martin was awarded Critics Choice in the Drum&BassArena Awards 2019.[8]

Career

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Martin started producing drum and bass in 1995, after being inspired by artists such as Goldie and LTJ Bukem. His first single was released in 1998 under the now-defunct Quadraphonic record label,[9][10][11][5] which was closely associated with U2's The Kitchen nightclub located under The Clarence Hotel.[12][13] During this time, he gave a tape demo to LTJ Bukem, who never sought an official release after reaching back out to Martin.[5]

Through Quadraphonic, he came to the attention of drum and bass DJ Fabio, who signed Martin to his record label, Creative Source, and later released his debut album Musique Concrète in 2001, named after the musique concrète compositions of John Cage, who he was influenced by while attending the University of Ulster in Belfast.[11] Although 21 songs were chosen for the final release of the album, 300 songs in total were created by Martin.[1]

In 2003, Martin was commissioned by Warner Music Group for a remix of "Put That Woman First" from Jaheim's Still Ghetto album (2002). Despite Jaheim's disapproval of the remix, 1,000 limited-edition white label vinyl records were pressed with permission from Warner due to the underground popularity garnered by the remix. In 2023, the remix was included on a compilation album for purchase on digital storefronts.[3]

In 2005, he released Second Sun, which is considered to be Martin's best album according to Beat.[14]

In 2019, a remix by Martin was included in an extended play of "Swan Song" by Dua Lipa.[15]

Discography

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Albums

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Year Title Record label Release date
2001 Musique Concrète Creative Source 25 September 2001
2005 Second Sun Signature Records 24 October 2005
2007 Shelflife Signature Records 1 October 2007
2008 Overflow Signature Records 1 May 2008
2009 Shelf Life Vol. 2 Signature Records 18 May 2009
2009 Shine a Light Signature Records 16 November 2009
2010 Even If Signature Records 12 November 2010
2011 Condition Signature Records 3 October 2011
2013 Spill Signature Records 20 May 2013
2013 Valentia Signature Records 15 July 2013
2014 Shelflife 3 Signature Records 19 March 2014
2016 Shelflife 4 Signature Records 26 February 2016
2016 Grow The Nothing Special 23 December 2016
2017 The Deep Signature Records 31 March 2017
2018 Shelflife 5 Signature Records 29 June 2018
2018 4AM ThirtyOne Recordings 16 November 2018
2019 Planet Hearth Signature Records 29 November 2019
2020 Shelflife 6 Signature Records 1 May 2020
2021 Feeling Normal Signature Records 26 February 2021
2021 Shelflife 7 Signature Records 24 November 2021
2022 Double Bend The Nothing Special 02 April 2022
2023 Shelflife 8 Signature Records 19 April 2023
2023 Rudy Signature Records 10 October 2023

EPs

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Year Title Record label Release date
2003 Just Fine Creative Source -
2006 Late Night Squeeze Signature Records 24 April 2006
2006 Corner Dance Signature Records May 2006
2006 Deranged Soul:R 23 October 2006
2008 Roundhouse Signature Records 11 September 2008
2008 Don't Mind Signature Records 22 October 2008
2010 Judgement Day Samurai Red Seal 7 June 2010
2011 Hummer Samurai Red Seal 29 August 2011
2012 Renaissance EP Footprints 19 November 2012
2015 Strumpet EP EXIT Records 18 May 2015
2015 Fourfit EP Soul:R 31 July 2015
2015 Dreamz Dub EP C.I.A 18 September 2015
2015 Break That EP The Nothing Special 18 January 2019
2019 Cowper Street EP Signature Records 5 July 2019

References

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  1. ^ a b Jenkins, Dave (3 June 2020). "A lesson in liquid with Fabio". Drum&BassArena. Archived from the original on 6 March 2024. Retrieved 6 March 2024.
  2. ^ a b Jenkins, Dave (9 March 2020). "Why the current revival of liquid drum'n'bass is so refreshing". www.redbull.com. Red Bull. Archived from the original on 6 March 2024. Retrieved 6 March 2024.
  3. ^ a b c Kicks, Whisky (23 October 2023). "In Conversation With Fabio". UKF. Retrieved 6 March 2024.
  4. ^ Signature Recordings; Resident Advisor
  5. ^ a b c "In Conversation with Calibre ; fabric London". www.fabriclondon.com. Retrieved 6 August 2024.
  6. ^ Muk, Isaac (21 April 2023). "Calibre releases new edition of archival 'Shelflife' series". Mixmag. Retrieved 6 March 2024.
  7. ^ "Calibre: Meet the man who's never been remixed". UKF.com. 21 March 2014.
  8. ^ "Drum&BassArena Awards 2019: The Results". Drum&BassArena. 10 December 2019. Retrieved 6 March 2024.
  9. ^ Host, Vivian (May 2004). "Short Circuits: Calibre". XLR8R. No. #77. XLR8R Magazine. p. 95. Retrieved 5 March 2024.
  10. ^ Baird, Patric (15 August 2008). "Dominick drums up an act of a first-class Calibre". Belfast Telegraph. Archived from the original on 6 June 2011. Retrieved 6 March 2024.
  11. ^ a b "Calibre biography - AllMusic". AllMusic. Retrieved 6 March 2024.
  12. ^ Wynne-Jones, Steve (14 February 2019). "The story of U2's legendary The Kitchen nightclub". 909originals. Retrieved 7 August 2024.
  13. ^ Hickey, Shane (5 April 2002). "There's just not enough heat in Bono's Kitchen". Irish Independent. Archived from the original on 3 July 2024. Retrieved 7 August 2024.
  14. ^ "Calibre". Beat Magazine. Archived from the original on 7 August 2024. Retrieved 6 August 2024.
  15. ^ "Swan Song (From the Motion Picture 'Alita: Battle Angel') [Remixes] – EP by Dua Lipa". Apple Music. Archived from the original on 6 July 2021. Retrieved 6 March 2024.
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