Evil E - Full Send Zine

Stephen Bedford (aka Evil E) has been a stalwart of the dance scene since the late 80’s. Birthed in music with nights at the infamous Hacienda and Birmingham’s Institute, he’s personally witnessed the evolution of the genre and its many modern components. Finding drum and bass in the 90’s changed his perception of the world, but a stroke a couple of years ago, was, perhaps, the biggest game-changer. His (nothing short of) heroic journey is an inspiration to many and he was kind enough to take part in a ‘no-holds-barred’ interview with Full Send recently to walk us though his very personal oddessy.

WARNING: This interview may actually inspire you to get up off your arse and DO something!

How are you?

I’m fine thank you. I have my good days and bad days due to my health issues

What was it like at the Hacienda? Who did you watch live there (or was it DJ nights?).

The Hacienda opened my eyes to a whole new world of music that i didn’t know about, I’ve always been into my music, Chicago House and then acid house but the Hacienda was something else .We used to go every Friday night spending up to 3 hours in the que just to get in. We mainly went to see Sasha and Graham Parks and Mike Pickering. I met Mick Hucknel and a few of the lads from Happy Mondays and Primal Scream there as well.

Who was your inspiration from that time that first got you hooked on dance music?

My inspiration back then to want to learn to and become a DJ was Sasha

What was it like playing your first gig at that time? Must have been a dream?

My very first event was at Windson Green community Hall back in 1989 in front of 250 people The music had just started to change and split from house to techno and hardcore with the emergence of R&S Records , Network Records, Warp Records , Production records , Ibiza Records , Moving Shadows , Kickin’ Records, Outer Rhythm Records to name a few which back then were all white labels or dubplates . The pure adrenalin rush from playing in front of a crowd was unbelievable and at that moment this is what i wanted to do

You’ve seen dance music change over the years, but what’s the beats that really stand out and stood the test of time?

For me it has to be Jungle music that has stood the test of time and you’ll never beat that sound of the amen beat and the rolling reggae baseline

The big sound systems really started to evolve n the early 90’s when was the last time you stook your head in a bass bin and lost control?

Yes the rigs have changed over the years but I can honestly say I’ve never stuck my head in a bass bin. I’ve stood in front of the bass speakers on many occasions just to feel that rolling jungle baseline rumble through my body.

Who are your stand out artists from the evolution of jungle and dnb?

Stand out jungle/dnb artists for me to this day past and present have to be Tim Reaper, Dwarde, Kid Lib , Sully, Dub One , Dead Man’s Chest, Coco Bryce, tommy De Ross (FFF) 4am Kru , and still making tunes to this day Blame, Pete Cannon, Nookie, PFM

How did it feel to get your first release out there?

It was a fantastic feeling to get my first release back in 2020 after being away from the scene for 24 years with a track called Afterlife, I tried to bring the vibe and feeling of the 90’s into modern day music.

Where did the Evil E name come from?

My name actually comes from all of my friends from when they used to listen to me practicing, I’d always spin the record back every once or twice while mixing tunes on two or 3 1210’s and they would shout out DJ Evil E spin the record back three times and so the name stuck DJ Evil E

Can people mix on wax anymore or is it a dying art?

Yes, there still a mass amount of people that still mix vinyl either on live streams or at events and a lot of people still do buy vinyl rather than a wav or mp3 but yes I’m afraid it is a dying art and I don’t think it should be but with today’s technology all music is so much easier to access and mix together

You took a break from the music scene following the birth of your son, how twitchy were you swapping from nightclubs to nappies.

It took a very long time to get used to not DJ’ing on a Friday and Saturday nights but i still kept buying and getting sent vinyl and just mixing at home but family always comes first before anything with me and being able to provide for them with a stable carrier was paramount to me.

You got back into the scene in 2019, what’s the biggest differences between your first flirt with the music scene and now?

The biggest difference between back then and now is the amount of DJ’s there are and fitting to get through that door to break into the scene . Whereas back then there were no more than 40-50 of us in the jungle/dnb scene and it was so much easier to get noticed and break through.

Billy Joe out of Greenday actually insisted (allegedly) at a recent gig that the band wouldn’t carry on playing until all the mobile phones were put away! Should mobile phones be banned from raves (venues in general) and kids be forced to actually enjoy themselves while they’re in the room?

Very controversial question. Back in the day we lived for Friday and Saturday nights the music and scene was our release and outlet, we lived in the moment, plus on all the flyers back then it always said no cameras or photography equipment allowed. we have our memories, today’s generation is all about social media and taking videos and photos of that moment in time instead of living it like we did, my own personal preference would be no phones, listen to the music feel the atmosphere live in the moment and those memories will last long than a photo or a video.

You’ve hit the Juno Charts a few times since your return, did that make you feel vindicated?

Yes, I’ve had some really good success in the Juno charts with every release reaching the top 20 or top10 with 6 no.1’s. I’ve never done it for the fame or money or to even get noticed, I do it because I love the music I produce and the satisfaction it gives me when someone personally messages me saying I’ve just bought you single or ep and your tunes are fire. I just love for people to hear my music and nothing else matters as far as I’m concerned.

The Badman Sound EP is pretty fire bro, did that get you some serious attention?

My Badman Sound EP hit no.3 in the Juno charts and was no1 in the DJ charts and no.1 in the year end Juno DJ charts which I was over the moon about but can honestly say no one really took any notice not the top jungle labels or the top jungle DJ’s but that doesn’t matter to me I don’t do this for them ,fame or money I do it for me and I’m happy that people enjoyed my tunes enough to buy them as there are so many underrated jungle producers out there that don’t even get the exposure that I have in the charts.

Who would you like to collab with in the future?

I would love to collab with Blame or PFM , Slr and her husband the innovator or Dwarde and Tim Reaper as that is the two genres of music I produce jungle and intelligent dnb.

You had a stroke in 2021. How has that affected your life? What changes have you had to make?

The stroke has changed my life completely, I now suffer from complex neurological symptoms including seizures and it has also caused brain damage which effects all aspects of my life, I’m basically having to relearn how to live my life again just in a different way. I attend a place called Black Country Headway twice a week and they are helping me massively with this, every day has to be planned, I have stickers on every draw and wardrobe telling me what’s in there. I have step by step lists in the kitchen so I can make a cup of tea or coffee or toast and have step by step list of how to do things when I produce songs so as I don’t get confused. I’ve been back into hospital every 3-4 months with seizures at which point they just keep upping my medication to control them the most recent was in January where I spent three days in intensive care. On a bad day my brain completely shuts down and I can’t walk, talk or even wash or get dressed without help, so on the good days I make the best of it and try and do as much as I can be it producing or even just vacuuming and polishing around the house. I can no longer drive or have any independence at all I rely totally on my wife and family.

Great to see you still pushing your sounds out through TikTok, how’s that going for you? Are you drawing in new fans?

After the stroke I had to reteach myself how to produce music and DJ again and now my only outlet for my DJ’ing is TikTok and when I’m on I get very high numbers and asked every time how do you actually do it . I’ve only been on there for 10 months now and I DJ on a radio station called BassBox Radio every Sunday 8-10pm but haven’t DJ’ed on there since January due to my health but are hoping to get back on there soon health permitting.

Are you still able to produce music or are you mainly DJing online now?

I mainly produce now as and when I can. It takes me up to a month now to complete a tune ready for mastering or to send to a label. My friend who runs Dropzone label, Steppa Gee, who used to be in Silver Bullet back in the 90’s and be on the good looking records label helps me a lot with my music so as it sounds right and everything is where it should be, without him I wouldn’t be where I am now with my producing and has been doing this since my stroke.

Having been through what you have, what’s your best advice to anyone who wants to pursue a career in music?

Be prepared for knock backs and rejection but never give up always listen to people who give you feedback and work hard at your craft and always improve on your last attempt because this game is unforgiving. As an artist or a DJ don’t be a follower and play or make the same music be different stick out from the crowd be the black sheep in the flock of white sheep. Be an innovator not an imitator.

We think you’re an inspiration, what’s your message to other people going through recovery like you?

You will have your good days and bad days, cherish those good days and live them to the fullest and thank all those around you that care enough to be there and look after you.

What’s in the pipeline?

Over the next few months I have a 2-track release on Jungle Tings Audio and a few releases on Soultribe music and are in the process of making my next few tunes for release on DropZone. We have a compilation album coming out hopefully summer time with a collaboration between 3 labels so far to raise money for Black Country Headway as they a charity run organisation where I attend twice a week and all the money raised from the sales will be going to them to create a new garden area for people such as myself and others who are a lot worse than myself to learn how to pot plants and take care of them amongst other things for the garden area such as seating and other things.

WARNING: This interview may actually inspire you to get up off your arse and DO something! Time to meet Evil E...