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Corey Smith, also known as Subfiltronik, is an esteemed dubstep DJ/producer based out of the U.K. A pioneering trailblazer of the riddim subgenre, the renowned talent has paved the way for many in the landscape. Over the years, the Manchester native has been featured on various imprints the likes of Buygore Records, Circus Records, Disciple, Never Say Die, and many more. He’s also graced the decks at venerated nightclub venues and events such as Sydney, Australia’s iconic Chinese Laundry nightclub, Santa Ana, California’s Yost Theater, and Paris, France’s Redlight, to name just a few.
Learning how to craft relentlessly unyielding beats from a very young age, the musician eventually took his passion to the next level and pursued a degree in it during his undergraduate studies. Blending different styles together in his signature brand of dubstep, the multifaceted creative force has released tracks featuring influences from hip-hop, R&B, drum and bass, and drumstep. Subfiltronik’s recent tracks from 2020 include his remix of UZZI's ‘Longboi Pit’, ‘Too Tough’, and his collaborative hit with Aweminus ‘Subminus’.
We have had the pleasure of interviewing them and this has been the result.
Do you remember any album or concert that has changed everything?
When I first saw Circus Records, Malaa, Coki & Jakes play a set in my home town. It definitely change how I made music and perform live myself.
Since you got into this professionally, what did you miss the most nationally, internationally and on the contrary, what helped you the most to grow, even to believe in yourself?
Haha, well I wouldn’t say I had the most confidence in myself because I seen a lot of music that was so good, I thought to myself how could I get myself at that stage in music production. So I sticked to what I was good at and try to do something different each time. What helped me get better at music production was listening to other music genres such as hiphop, grime, bassline “4x4 niche or ukg”, trap, garage, reggae/ bashment and funky house. I’ve taken different elements and stuck them altogether to generate new ideas into my projects, even if it was just vocals it would give me more ideas.
How is the music scene living in your city with this murky pandemic situation?
To be honest, there is no riddim dubstep scene in my city. There are some events that would hold an original dubstep night once or two times a year. But for the drum and bass & house scene, it’s pretty much still going but not as much as we wanted it to be.
What are your favorite places to hang out in the city?
Not much places to be fair as you know the pandemic got some of us being isolated from community events, before all this I use to go and hang out at my friends house or catch a movie in my town centre, before I use to skate and go out into nature or in a park.
Have you had time to focus on making music, spending time with your family, or planning future projects?
Since the pandemic started I was able to focus more on future projects and to spend more time with family, its been really hard getting motivated as I’ve been away from shows for so long as it is one of my sources of inspiration.
How was your last project born?
My last project was made on Reason 11 which I do for all my projects, I have other daws but only use them for resampling or adding effects that reason don’t have. I have made I few projects but can’t really say anything about them just yet. For my last project that I have worked on and put up on Soundcloud called ‘The Plug’ the main synth came from a kick drum being resampled with a synth on top.
What do you want to convey in this work? What is the concept behind?
The concept behind ‘The plug’ was very simple actually I wanted to flip a bass sound out of a kick drum when I did I was looking for a vocal that fits with track when I came across a sample pack which had some vocals in it and I picked one that said “flip it” which I’ve done with the bass sound I thought it fit nicely but I wanted to add more elements to the intro I also found a phone call sample which was really nice and came up with the idea to have double meaning to the track.
As for your studio, what is your setup currently made of?
Throughout the years I have went through loads of equipment, I had a proper music studio years ago to myself that I use to rent out but now it’s gone I focus my main music at home.
My studio setup consist of 2x Yamaha Hs7’s, Focusrite Scarlett 2i4 audio interface, M-audio keystation 49e, Akai MPD 218 drum pad, Lauson Vinyl Recorder, Alesis Alto Mixer ZMX122 FX with 8 channels, 2x Benq HDRI monitors 27inch and a discontinued Innogear microphone.
What's the one team you'll never get rid of, no matter what?
I would say my home team Manchester United football club. I know, I know, you call it soccer.
What would you say is the definition of your sound?
I define my sound as unique, raw, dark and hard hitting, something to keep you blood rushing you know.
What was the last record store you visited and what did you get out there?
Reflex records is a music store I use to go to in my hometown when I was a teenager, I use to look at musical equipment and browse through old school vinyl. I didn’t really get vinyl from the store I usually buy them online as it was more cheaper than buying it from a store itself. The last vinyl I bought was ‘The infamous Mobb Deep album’ & ‘The Pharcyde - Drop Single’