Presented by our guest interviewer, Ellis May.
For more than three decades, Balaphonic has been the space where drummer, percussionist and producer Danny Ward lets rhythm lead the way. Rooted in jazz but shaped by Manchester’s cultural mix, his music moves freely between house, Afro Latin traditions, dub textures and leftfield dance ideas. What drives him is curiosity, connection and a deep respect for the global lineages that inform his sound. In this conversation, he reflects on the evolution of his craft, the joy of collaboration and the liberating creative shift that reshaped his work during lockdown.
What first shaped your instinct to move between jazz house Afro Latin rhythm dub and leftfield dance music rather than stay in one lane?
I am first and foremost a drummer and percussionist, initially inspired by jazz music. One of the aspects of this that has been most exciting for me has not only been to explore the roots of that music and how it influenced all that came after it, particularly in terms of Black American music, but also the roots of where that came from, initially travelling through Africa and the Caribbean and into the colonies, mainly through the slave trade. I have done this through studying some of the instruments involved but also by a continual search for records and music which describe and have been influenced by that journey. The more I have done this the more I have started to join the dots and understand more about the roots of some of these styles of music. You start to hear the connections.
Looking back to your early Dubble D and Moodymanc years, what parts of your musical identity have stayed constant and what has evolved the most?
As much as I have explored various influences and sounds I have always been conscious of trying to represent both myself and where I come from not only in a musical sense but also a political one. Manchester is a melting pot, a wonderfully diverse city which boasts many cultures and communities, but on the whole, despite retaining their own identities these communities mix, eat and often party together. As such you always have heard a mixture of styles in the clubs, something which is carried through by DJs such as Mr Scruff, Luke Una and hopefully people like myself today. It is also a progressive city, the birthplace of the Suffragette Movement, the Co-operative movement, Trade Unions, Socialism and more. We have a culture of respect but also irreverence and so whatever I have done musically I have always tried to shine it through that lens, sometimes overtly, sometimes a little more subversively, but I would like to think that has always been a constant. In terms of evolution I would definitely like to think that I have become more accomplished in terms of my overall production sound and quality and my ability to get my musical ideas across. I have certainly never stopped studying and striving to improve my skills, knowledge and ability as well as my setup. I am not sure if the music is any better or if it resonates more with people, I have never really been anyone’s flavour of the month, but that is something which is definitely out of my control.
How has playing drums for artists like Fila Brazillia The Pharcyde Rae and Christian and Horsemeat Disco shaped the way you approach rhythm in the studio?
I have to credit or blame Steve Cobby of Fila Brasilia for a large part of my development as an artist. When we first met, after asking me where I was intending to go with it all, I had lofty ambitions of becoming a touring bebop musician and bandleader, he told me to just make some music which sounds like you are a drummer from Manchester. An epiphany of sorts which perhaps goes some way to explain how I arrived at the answer above. In terms of working with the artists you mention, and many others across different genres, I think it was when I really started to focus on groove and sound primarily rather than virtuosic playing as a drummer. Indeed a catalyst for a lot of that initially was producing and releasing drum breaks for DJs and producers alongside a very dear old friend and incredible engineer, Danny Evans of Elbow, and in more recent years my output as Dubble D and Moodymanc. The more I work on records and play live with people the more I understand the value and importance of creating the right rhythmic and sonic framework to give the musical ideas space to shine. It is more often than not focusing on the simple and the positive rather than trying to dominate or impress. Not always as easy as it sounds for me.
What emotional or creative need did Balaphonic fulfil that your other aliases did not?
Initially I started the Balaphonic project when I borrowed a balafon, an African version of a xylophone, from a great friend and musical accomplice over the years, John Ellis. I decided that I would write some music which started from ideas that came from jamming ideas on it because it was an immediate way to create grooves that had both percussive and harmonic basis woven into one. It felt more organic to me than flapping around on a keyboard, I am a fat fingered fuck. It was also a move towards letting recorded acoustic instruments dominate the drums a little more and to apply what I was studying in terms of Brazilian and African and Afro Cuban rhythms and patterns a little more overtly. It is something which I had always been conscious of doing through my Moodymanc output but I had come to a point where I was in a much better position recording and production wise to do this effectively.
What shifted creatively for you during lockdown that gave Balaphonic fresh momentum?
I had started to get more DJ gigs where I could explore the connections between these rhythms and sounds albeit mainly in a house or dancefloor setting and as such I was still primarily producing the tracks with this in mind. I very luckily had a few stints playing in Bali on the beach thanks to a great friend and brilliant DJ, Damian Saint. This was also where I first really spent time with Phil from NuNorthern Soul and started to understand what he and the label were all about, and this really focused me more towards a concept of a sound which might also translate to other settings. This output was mainly released on my own Well Cut Records. During lockdown however, due to the lack of dancefloors, clubs or even beach parties, particularly in Manchester, I started to think to myself, well if none of that exists and there is no immediate need to satisfy any of the parameters of tempo or time signature, what might the music sound like if I apply the same production values and just see what comes out? Initially that meant revisiting some existing tracks and stripping out or re-recording the drums and percussion as on tracks like Sunflowers in Dub or Disorganics, but then coming up with fresh grooves in different time signatures such as Udders in five four or Six Fingers in six eight. I had no immediate expectation of these tracks being records or releases as such, it was really just for the love and fun of it, but this unlocked a huge sense of liberation and creativity which has stayed with the project ever since. I did also make some Moodymanc stuff in the period, did a breakbeat and rave release under the name Autotelica and a hip hop instrumental and beats album as Vault, but all of these were very much fed by the energy of making those Balaphonic tracks and that sense that it did not really matter what happened with the releases in terms of success, although I did obviously want people to hear them, but that the process itself was all important in terms of personal satisfaction, something that I had not really felt since I had first started making beats in earnest about twenty years previously.
How do you balance dancefloor energy listening room detail and worldwide rhythm when writing for Balaphonic?
That is something which I am definitely still working on, but technically there is something about recording acoustic instruments in a room through nice microphones and good pre-amps that will give an immediate quality which is a great basis to start from. I have a modest setup relative to many but a nice vintage AMEK desk with Neve designed pre-amps and some good microphones which I primarily use, but also a huge collection of percussion instruments that is ever expanding. However, one of the most creative tools at my disposal has always been my record and latterly music collection. I find that it is generally through listening that you learn and understand, and particularly if you want to make great records it is important to listen to great records, but also understand what it is that you like about them and try to work out how that sound was created, regardless of style or genre. As a collector and a fan it continues to be a beautiful part of the journey, but also as a DJ I am constantly searching for new music that turns me on sonically and emotionally. This is often way more relevant than the particular style or subgenre, particularly in terms of mixing. I think the result of that is to start to understand, without slavishly copying, how you might like to reference or reinterpret these qualities and balance them in your own music. This is something I feel I am getting more fluent at, though I have not mastered it at all, but the fact that you have picked up on that feels very encouraging. Thank you.
What was the guiding intention behind Organic Matters?
Whereas Resolution Revolutions really came about with me and Phil working together to shape a record from the collection of tracks that I had been working on through lockdown, I had a little more focus on tailoring the tracks on Organic Matters towards a record which had a journey once the initial ideas had taken shape. The difference in this respect, and as a result of the previous record, was that I felt even more liberated in terms of not being tied or steering things stylistically towards a particular sound, vibe or genre. I felt free to approach the collaborations as well as the solo tracks by really listening to the input of the other artists or the instruments or ideas I had started to explore and allow them to lead the direction of development rather than any preconceived outcome. As such it was a very organic process and hence the name of the project starting to galvanise through its development. Of course, that meant going down a few avenues that did not immediately lead anywhere, but that is as important in many ways in shaping the final record into what it became.
How did releasing on NuNorthern Soul influence the way you approached this record?
Phil was incredibly invested in Resolution Revolutions from the get go. He immediately got it and as mentioned above helped me steer the tracks towards a finished record without necessarily making demands on the style or direction which did not feel wholly appropriate and the reaction we got was quite overwhelming for me to be honest. I have always enjoyed and admired the diversity of music on the label, but also that it all coexists as a harmonic whole, a reflection of his taste and vision as a DJ as well as a curator, but also testament to the quality of the artists and music involved too, and I would like to think that is what made it such a good home. It really made me feel grateful to connect with a label and audience that was open to and interested in different sounds and styles but that was discerning enough to understand how it all fitted in. In terms of approaching this record, as mentioned above, it gave me confidence to experiment, allow ideas and the direction of the music to develop organically, but also be quite resolute and assertive once I felt we had gained the necessary clarity.
What draws you to collaboration and how do you create space for other musicians within your rhythmic framework?
I think that first and foremost that comes back to the drummer thing. Our prime role is to support the music rather than dominate, and that involves listening carefully to and supporting the other artists and musicians that you are accompanying. I think it is why so many drummers make great producers and engineers. I have always been lucky to work and play with so many great musicians in a live setting so when it comes to the studio it is a role which comes naturally. Also as a drummer I am fully aware and in awe of the harmonic ideas, understanding and complexities of the musicians around me. I have a strong sense of melody but not the immediate skills or vocabulary to express it, and everyone who has collaborated on this project has brought that and way beyond. I feel grateful, flattered and honoured that I am sharing musical space with these incredible artists. Robin is an old friend who I love very dearly. He is the most incredible musician and I have been gigging in jazz rhythm sections for many years. His sense of rhythm is impeccable, as is that of harmony. Indeed he is world renowned as a composer and arranger and has a musical knowledge which runs deeper than deep. He has great technical mastery but it is always used in the support of the musicians around him rather than as a vehicle to showcase his chops. I initially sent a rough groove with a semi melodic balafon and thumb piano loop in for him to play with, and what struck me about what he came back with was how simple but poignant and strong the motifs he came back with were. He also created some beautiful textures and ideas around groove. We are both big fans of the jazz pianist Ahmad Jamal and there was definitely a vibe of this about the phrases for me, as such it steered me towards some of those records, doubling his phrases with a new and much loved xylophone but also the balafon. The balafon has its own specific harmonic scale and he had written in a way which accommodated this. I had also had a Pharoah Sanders hypnotic spiritual loose groove in my head and this made me think of some of Alice Coltrane recordings too. I asked Robin if he could provide some harp in reference. What he came back with launched the track into the stratosphere for me.
What did Flora Purim and Diana Moreira Booker unlock in the reimagining of Switch?
We initially wrote Switch for my 2005 Dubble D album Reachin Out. The vocals were initially recorded by Flora and her daughter Diana over deep jazzy samba influenced beats which we developed from there. I had been approached by a couple of significant artists about remixing the track over the years but for one reason or another they did not come off and it had been ever present at the back of my mind, so as I was working on the tracks for Organic Matters I decided to approach the vocals as I had some of the other collaborations and started to listen to them in isolation and allow them to suggest the musical direction. I really heard them grooving in seven four, in some ways much more naturally than the original four-four over which they were recorded, so I started jamming along on drums to build the groove as it sounds now on the record. Much of the drum and percussion tracks are long single takes of playing layered on top of each other with the aim of letting the groove subtly breathe with the dynamics and emotion of the vocals rather than tie them down, even though the harmonic base of the groove is quite static. In retrospect, I am sure that the seven-four is a direct influence of the great Brazilian drummer and artist Airto, Flora’s husband and Diana’s dad, of whom I am a massive fan. He has recorded various tracks and songs over the years in that time signature. We have actually released a couple of edits of club classic tracks of his recently under our Old Mervue Edits project, which I do in conjunction with my Irish DJ partner Anthony Collins.
How did Joe Botham’s guitar lines shape the emotional tone of Balaventurers?
Joe has been developing a live solo show under his Baleardelica guise for some time which is truly wonderful. He is out playing festivals and gigs this summer which are well worth looking out for and has an Adventurers of the Love Generation concept album project which I have played on forthcoming. I booked him in the early stages for a One Tree Island party that I have been involved with over the years and the riffs that build Balaventurers were part of that show. I was captivated at the time and grabbed him straight after to see if he might be up for using them as a basis for a track. Once in the studio I started to build the groove and riffs around them but started to sing melody lines, initially with the intention of replacing them with some sort of keyboard or other. I did this late at night, singing very quietly into the microphone. The notes are long so it required a lot of deep breathing which sent me into a really hypnotic dreamy trip like state. It actually really reminded me of some Ayuhascan ceremony recordings that I had mastered for a friend who had been living in Peru and as a result of that, and the fact I am not first and foremost a vocalist, I decided to keep the looseness, perhaps more politely humanity, of it all as I made pass after pass. It took me to think of some of Brazilian guitarist Baden Powell’s albums, of whom I am a massive fan. Overall I would like to think that trippy dream like energy comes through in the track, but also the honesty humanity and simplicity of the choir.
What conversations or shared ideas led to the emotional core of Life of Strings with Katya Gabeli?
I have known Katya as an online friend for many years and have always been a little in awe of her talents, not only as a musician but in that she combines playing violin with her DJ skills. Over the years we had chatted about collaborating on a track but I had never quite felt I had come up with anything that might merit it. Eventually she sent me the main string themes and melodies that became Life of Strings and I was immediately inspired. As with Robin I was really impressed with the simplicity and strength of the ideas, but also the heartfelt raw emotion and dynamics of the sound. I really wanted to preserve and complement the raw and very honest acoustic of her instrument and again it made me focus on finding the right sounds to achieve this. Katya’s initial concept was for this to be a very electronic piece, and tempo-wise it fitted that range but sound-wise steered me in the opposite direction, sorry Katya. We have actually talked about a much more stripped-back electronic version or doing more in that vein, so watch this space. Despite that there is definitely a nod to that with the four on the floor root to the groove, albeit consciously to feel more like a driving pulse than a dominant kick. This is a track that really took its final shape when completing the album with the xylophone and hand percussion adding the support mood and sound which I felt placed it perfectly in the journey.
What story did you want Boxfresh and Home to tell as the closing pieces of the EP?
Boxfresh was built around a beaten-up old tongue drum, a kind of wooden box with slits cut into it. There are some beautiful examples to be found but this is sadly perhaps not one of them. It had sat on a shelf for years after I had bought it cheaply off eBay, hoping it might be a little more resonant and musical, but in the spirit of every drum is beautiful, which I am learning more and more, I recorded some grooves on it and let them lead the musical way forwards. Everything was tuned to its slightly wonky tonality which gave the whole track a kind of drunk feeling to my ears. A lot of the percussion sounds were played and recorded to sound like splashing. It might sound weird but I wanted it to have a kind of watery feel. I sang the longer melodic themes as with Balaventurers but buried that under synths, which I tuned to the box. I was thinking of a soundtrack feel, even a big open western scene, a desert in the rain, and I actually had a mental subtitle of drunk cowboy song when writing it. The splashing was further augmented by an Udu, a clay pot drum, half filled with water and tipped to create pitching and pitch-bending effects, which you hear more prominently in its short solo section in the middle of the track.
How do you decide what should be played live and what should be programmed when building your percussion and rhythm structures?
I often start with a live click and quantise it to set the groove. I love live performance but also appreciate the beauty of programmed precision. Upgrading my setup let me record longer takes and tighten them subtly so they breathe but still lock together. Certain electronic sounds carry emotional weight for me, so when I use them, it is intentional.
How do you think about the relationship between melody and percussion when composing?
For me, they are completely intertwined. Rhythmic interplay suggests melodic ideas and vice versa. I think in terms of frequency relationships rather than strict theory. Melody and percussion resonate together in a way that feels organic to my drummer ears.
What role does experimentation play in your studio process across Dub, Deep House, Jazz, Afro-Latin and Balearic influences?
Everything starts as an experiment. Sometimes it is a concept, sometimes just playing for fun until something sticks. Some ideas stay sketches, some become releases. The joy is in exploring and seeing what happens. Mixing requires a different headspace, but that balance is part of the process.
How does your grounding in jazz and broad musical knowledge shape the flow of your DJ sets?
I love dynamics and light and shade. Jazz symmetry influences how I mix and choose tracks. Improvisation is key. I never plan sets but organise music so I can respond to the room. Mixing genres works when each track connects musically to the next, even without beatmatching.
What do you hope people feel when they hear a Balaphonic track in a club compared to hearing it at home?
In a club I hope they feel the energy and sense how it fits into the bigger picture. At home I hope they feel the love positivity and attention to detail. Context changes everything but the intention is always joy.
After three decades what still excites you about connecting with a dancefloor?
I love dancing and I love people. When music moves me and others at the same time it becomes something transcendent and healing. It is one of the best human experiences.
Where do you see Balaphonic heading next?
I want to keep blending instruments and styles and refine the techniques. I am excited to DJ more and play listening focused gigs as well as club events that explore global grooves.
What new musical cultures instruments or collaborators are inspiring you at the moment?
I am digging older Brazilian jazz and contemporary bass driven music, plus African sounds. A Sikh friend’s party sent me into Bhangra edits. A John Handy collaboration with Indian classical musicians inspired me too. A friend gifted me tabla which is sparking ideas even if I will never master them.
What do you hope listeners understand about you and about rhythm driven music when they explore the Balaphonic catalogue?
I hope they hear the bigger picture, the respect and personal journey behind it, and the love and positivity. It is all about movement dancing and joy.
Release: August 14
Download Organic Matters from Bandcamp
Balaphonic Instagram
NuNorthern Soul
You must be logged in to post a comment.