Copius Exclusive new mix for Now Then
We're immensely proud to launch our new lockdown mix series with this tour de force from Sheffield-based producer, MC, DJ and Northfield Records boss Copius.
His mix contains 19 unheard, unreleased and exclusively mixed tracks created over the last decade, which he's dug out of the vaults especially for us. We asked him how the mix came together.
Tell us a bit about how you approached this mix.
Ha, well... I'd always considered a follow up to Blind Man's Maze (released independently in 2011), and have toyed with a solo EP here or solo LP there but never fully committed. Some of these tracks I'd been sat on for as long as nine years man, it's nuts. I'd just never found the right fit in that project or venture that I was currently focusing on at the time, and they just got put in the backburner. When lockdown kicked in I decided to finally get my act together and organise my hard drives into some sort of order and in doing so, I unearthed some real gems in projects.
It blew my mind. I'd been self conscious for a long time about what people would think about my work (because there's some pretty dark stuff in there) and had a real dip in confidence from 2014 to 2018. I was in a really bad place and needed to make a change for the good. My Soundcloud and pages got hacked and I lost all my work online so in 2019, I set about making amends and shedding all doubt and wore my heart on my sleeve. I grieved through depression and channelled all the sadness into music; The Bitterest Truth Is Better Than The Sweetest Lie was the most honest and self healing project I've ever undertaken. I tore myself down in an EP and laid it all out for the world to see. It changed everything. That EP gave me belief in my ability again and I realised I still had it in me so when I came to finally organising my files, it literally lit the fire under me again and off I went down the rabbit hole. I renamed, remixed and bounced 26 tracks that day.
Tracks like 'The Chairman', 'You Wanna Battle' and 'Shy Away' are from 2011 and the rest on this mix are much more recent - 'Ink and Tears' featured on The Machine Vol. 7 in March 2020, although originally created in 2017.
So I had a playlist finally, 25 to 30 tracks and in two hours one sunny afternoon I went through the lot and rerecorded everything. It turns out I hadn't lost all these rhymes after all and they came out relaxed and pure. It was time. The idea to drop it all in a mix actually came from you Sam, you planted that seed in my head a few months ago and I had toyed with the idea of D'n'B or trip-hop but this just clicked and really deserved it. I set about spending a day or so solidly editing the tracks to a standard and then set about mixing them into a live set.
Who are some of the MCs who appear on this mix?
So, Soul (Alex Crawshaw) and BruceIsDead (Bruce Partin) both appeared on my first album Blind Man's Maze in 2011 on multiple tracks and are two I have so much time for on many levels. Alex was originally a drum'n'bass emcee who I lived with way back when and we did loads together. I owe a lot to Alex for having a rapping buddy and someone to write with. That thing is so valuable. It goes beyond words and something I will be forever grateful for. Bruce has one of the dopest flows I've ever heard and I've worked with him extensively over the years. He's from the US and is super sick and am pleased to share we will be putting more out in years to come. We're not done yet by a long stretch.
B.Lowe is an artist I've never met but have collaborated with over the beauty of the internet, again from the US - a dope emcee with so much style man, I love his flow and delivery and am really happy to finally share this track too ('Ringo'). It's a wordwide exclusive as many of these are. Franz Von is one of Sheffield's finest emcees and is not only a lovely guy, he's a really amazing emcee. Franz knew exactly what to bring on 'Just Be' and it's a collaboration I've been sat on since 2017 so it's nice to finally share it (sorry guys!) Know it's been loooooong.
How has your relationship to music changed since the lockdown started?
It's elevated my focus to an unbelievable level to be honest, both listening and producing, because of the radio show I'm constantly being fed new music, which, in turn inspires me in many new ways. Lockdown has forced me to pre-record a two hour show every week which is like producing an album in ways. It's upped my production game ten fold and this might not be what everyone wants to hear but for me, lockdown has been a blessing in disguise.
I've upped levels in months in all areas and feel like I have this energy now to complete any goal I set myself. My relationship to music continues to grow daily and when I see others succeeding and pushing themselves it gives me great pride as I'm now in a position to help those also. It's a cycle that keeps giving and it's not only the glue that holds my life together, it keeps me entertained and busy also. I'm just happy to have a go-to hobby which I enjoy tremendously.
Tracklist
- C.O.W (Copiusbeats Ft. Copius)
- Book Shelf (Copiusbeats Ft. Soul)
- Ink and Tears (Copiusbeats Ft. Copius, Soul & Devon Francis)
- A Lone MC (Q-Tip "Let's Ride" Beat Ft. Copius)
- Habituated Synonyms (Mute Speaker Ft. Copius & Nev)
- The Chairman (Audiodoctor Ft. Copius & Last Words)
- Come Down (Micall Parknsun Ft. Copius)
- Ringo (Ringo Ruffsoul Ft. Copius & B.Lowe)
- You Wanna Battle? (Otee the Dirty Scoundrel Ft. Copius)
- Street Lights (Monma Ft. Copius)
- Eagle Eyes (J Dilla "The look of Love" Beat Ft. Copius)
- Shy Away (Zifhang Ft. Copius & Soul)
- What a Way to Make a Change (Copiusbeats Ft. Copius)
- I Wish (Nymano Ft. Copius)
- Human Nature (Unknown beat Ft. Copius & BruceIsDead)
- First Light (Tesk Ft. Copius)
- Running Home (Jkbeats and Copiusbeats Ft. Copius & RYX)
- Just Be (Copiusbeats Ft. Franz Von & Devon Francis)
Extra credits
- Soul - Alex Crawshaw
- Nev - Claire Crawshaw
- Last Words - Michael Curran
- BruceIsDead - Bruce Partin
- C.O.W - James Owen on bass.
- Running Home - Ed Chester on Bass & Mark Williamson (Villholm) on Guitar.
- Just Be - Ed Chester on bass, Bert Rogers on Congas, Harry Poxon on Trumpet and Trombone.
- All tracks recorded, arranged and produced by Copius.
