Cover Story: 20 Years of Shogun Audio

Friction walks in. He’s finishing something on his iPad before tucking it away with a friendly greeting, a little hoarse after just getting back from a big USA tour. K-Tee appears at the same time from a different entrance, and we get seated around waters and ginger tea. This morning, we’re in business mode. There’s a late-summer sun peaking through the glass panes and reflecting off Regent’s Canal. There’s an ambience of 11am café chatter and clatter. The conditions are ripe for a deep dive on the last 20 years – the different eras, the good times, the challenges, and the community that keeps making it happen. We pull in our seats as I hit record, and I ask them: Let’s start from the top… 

2004 marks the point of origin for Shogun Audio. Founded around a decade after jungle and drum & bass first took root, the label sits among that second generation, reinforcing the bedrock laid out by the likes of Renegade Hardware or Metalheadz. Harking back, it was a bubbling scene of originators and inspired newcomers – and among that rising cohort were a couple of fresh faces in Ed Keeley (Friction) and Keir Tyrer (K-Tee). 

Emerging as one of the most talented DJs in the genre, and with a string of music on labels like Dillinja and Lemon D’s Valve, or Doc Scott’s 31, Friction was quickly becoming sought after from promoters and ravers across the continent.

Amid all the surging talent, labels, and commerce, drum & bass was growing in new directions: More sub-genres establishing, super-clubs emerging off the back of new licensing laws, and DJs gaining celebrity-like fame and fortune – the table was set and those in the industry were filling their plates. While Friction could have continued to dine like the rest, with offers of exclusive deals from top labels, he had a vision that was too strong to ignore. 

“What do you think of ‘Shogun’” Ed posits one night in the pub. “Yeah, that’s pretty cool mate, why not give it a go?” replies his eventual business partner Keir. Then comes the logo: the shape of a human figure in Japanese typography style – designed by Stewart Procter AKA SP:MC, the future voice of some of Shogun’s biggest tracks and most memorable nights.

The origins are a patchwork of connections, favours, and friendships – and the first release continues that thread. Jay Frenzic, the original owner of ATM Magazine, worked with Ed on a music fanzine. The connection led to Shogun’s first release, as Jay was able to get the samples of ‘R-Type’, the classic jungle tune produced by Jo in 1993. The two worked on a remix together, and lo-and-behold, Jo approved it for release 001 on Shogun Audio, along with the original. 

A killer logo, concept, and first release wasn’t where Ed stopped. He found a natural talent in A&R. With the help of employee number two Dave Kennett (one half of SpectraSoul), working from his lounge, and communicating via. AOL instant messenger, Ed struck gold left, right, and centre with early tunes from Break, Noisia, and Commix. However it was sub-label SGN:LTD, a space he started for up-and-coming artists, where the signings of some true label legends would be made. A young Alix Perez & Sabre’s ‘Solitary Native’, SpectraSoul’s ‘Tempest Dub’, and Icicle’s ’Time To Remember’ would all mark the start of something special not only for the label, but for the genre at large. 

With things taking off, the workload began to take it’s toll. Dave lent a hand in those initial years, but the label needed more rigour. At this time, Keir, who’d had some releases with the label already and a strong friendship with Ed, came to him with a proposition to take the label to the next level. Keir would provide a seasoned background in marketing and business, combined with a passion for the musical direction that Ed was taking Shogun. “It got to the point where we were releasing so much, and Keir came in to help that business side of it … I knew he knew the music, he’d been making tunes for years”. The dynamic became an immediate win for the label – evidenced by the releases and events to follow… 

It’s 2008. Subwave’s techy, rolling 12” ‘Think / Indigo’ marks the 21st release for Shogun, and the first release under Keir’s tenure. It sits near the start of a 5-6 year era cherished by many, and truly led by Shogun. With solid foundations across their roster, Ed and Keir began to focus further on artist nurturing, and encouragement of bigger projects – this led to a string of era-defining releases including one of the most memorable drum & bass albums of all time: Alix Perez’s deep, cutting-edge 1984. With tracks like ‘Forsaken’ still getting played regularly in 2024, this album does more than stand the test of time, it continues to set a standard young artists aspire to. It also neatly presents many of the underground styles at the time – the maturation of liquid, the popularity of dark and glitchy drum & bass, and the innovation of the autonomic and halftime sounds. 

Following 1984, came two more crucially impactful releases: starting with Icicle’s Under The Ice in 2011. Shogun became known for this minimal, technical sound, and Icicle is the leading culprit – driving the genre forward and breaking the boundaries of music production in the process. The Icicle brand was cold, calculated, and vast. And much like Perez’s ‘Forsaken’ (but in the complete opposite style), Icicle’s ‘Dreadnaught’ gets the exact same love more than a decade later. 

Then it was SpectraSoul’s aptly titled Delay No More the following year. Which Ed coincidentally had just been re-listening to “It’s crazy how SpectraSoul used to be able to manipulate a sample and create a real emotion from the track”. SpectraSoul were leading the modern liquid drum & bass sound on tracks like ‘Sometimes We Lie…’ and of course getting stuck into more fringe sections of electronic music on ‘Away With Me’ and ‘S.O.U.R.’. “… it’s an unbelievable bit of music. I think it actually doesn’t get the credit it should. 

Beyond the albums, you’ve got countless classics from across the sub-genre spectrum that define this moment in drum & bass: Spor’s ‘Aztec’ (2009), Total Science & S.P.Y.’s ‘Gangsta’ (2010), Rockwell’s ‘Full Circle’ (2010), and the ‘Evolution’ series – which were always a buy-on-sight, loaded with four killer tracks apiece. Around the world, in those late-2000 to mid-2010 years, there’s not a chance you could’ve attended a drum & bass night and not heard dozens of these tracks. It was domination. 

For the lucky ones living in London and the UK at the time, it was the label nights at The End which brought it all together – showcasing the forward-thinking, 360-degree style that Shogun became famous for, and still retains in 2024. Ed recounts “I couldn’t believe it when we got The End … it really kick-started the Shogun brand from an events point of view … and our events really set the bar high.” And once The End was forced to close its doors, the nights moved into Cable. “When I look back on nights there, they were unbelievable. Everywhere I go around the world, so many people still talk about Cable.”

Shogun events had huge power in the way they brought cohesion to all the various branches of sounds that were coming out, providing both familiar and fresh experiences to the crowd. But it was all presented as the sound of the label – amid smoke, red laser lights, and a great-big Japanese-inspired logo that only has one translation: This is Shogun.

Shogun and its roster have always leaned into experimentation: from Rockwell’s IDM-influenced rhythms, to GLXY’s dabbles in UK garage. While it’s not forced, it’s not a coincidence either, it’s a product of Ed and Keir’s management – providing artists with a platform to express their artistic desires on their terms. From the size of the project, to production techniques, to musical style, to artwork and supporting assets – there’s a mutual trust between label and artist. Art comes first, but a gentle guidance of marketing savvy and business backing from the label is always present. This is how the classics are reached: creators create, labels nurture.  

The anchor of such an incredible legacy allows for this artistic flexibility among newer signings. In conversations with Shogun’s current roster, an unprompted red thread of admiration for these classics emerges. Sustance, for example, takes big inspiration from the previous era: “… I grew up listening to Shogun tunes – old Icicle and old Alix Perez. I feel lucky to be part of something like this. For the drum & bass I generally like and produce, it’s more minimal, stripped back, soulful sometimes. When it’s not soulful it’s techy but in a sort of ‘less is more’ way. Definitely inspired by that early Shogun sound.”

Pedigree keeps that standard of excellence high across the modern Shogun catalogue. But it can’t all be the same as before. This is a very different world, where adaptation is a necessity. “Evolve or die” says Keir when discussing some of the challenges the label has faced. He recalls their distributor calling him up about “this new Spotify thing” and whether he wants to get involved. Ed remembers it too: “I was thinking, man, we’re never going to make any money out of that. How are we going to live?”. But the experimentation ethos prevailed. They leant-in early as Keir recounts the story, astutely describing the financial dynamics of traditional vinyl distribution versus streaming. “Today you don’t get the big up-front lump, but you get paid for the rest of your life for the copyrights on those songs”. But the mastering and marketing costs remain up-front, creating a cash-flow and immediate return on investment issue. It was their lean-in approach though, that allowed for these woes to be largely avoided and certainly overcome by now, while labels that hesitated continue to feel the pain in full. 

Keir catches himself and jokes “that’s actually quite a boring financial conversation”. Aware that he could go on for hours, the conversation switches focus. 

The events landscape is another area of substantial change. The End and subsequently Cable fell victim to the classic, capitalist case of more profitable redevelopments. But these were just two of many discarded venues, then Covid eventually joined the (anti) party and added gasoline to the fire. With events providing such a glue to what Shogun was all about, they stood to lose a crucial part of their business and marketing strategy. But again, being entrepreneurial was the modus operandi. A decorated corner of their Brighton office became the genesis of Shogun Sessions during Covid – streamed globally, providing an outlet for the label and a bit of light in the dark for fans. It wasn’t a new idea, but the execution was a cut-above. Views and streams were trending upward, the feedback was good, and it was becoming known as the ‘boiler room of drum & bass’. 

As Covid restrictions were lifted, what was a closed door affair suddenly became open to the unshackled public, and the Shogun Sessions concept was taken to a new height. Still bringing the best DJs and MCs in the genre, still live-streamed and recorded, but now with the energy of 300-plus ravers in the room. Shogun were not only back hosting events, they were giving artists an elevated platform to showcase themselves locally and globally – with one of the major success stories being Lens’ November 2023 set with Tempza. Keir recalls it as a special moment for the series: “She went viral off the back of it. Suddenly there were clips everywhere raking up tens of millions of views. And we were like ‘oh shit ok, when this goes, that’s what it could be’. Yeah, her set was a really cool moment”. 

It goes back to what Shogun are always trying to achieve – setting their artists up to maximise their abilities, be themselves, and get in front of an audience that loves what they do. “… whether it’s a viral YouTube video, or releasing an album like 1984, that’s the way the business has grown. Whatever is right for the moment in time.” Keir and Ed welcome the new technology, the new conventions and norms, and they use it to their advantage. 

As streaming eventually became the dominant mode of consumption, Shogun adapted to the new way of releasing music. Music discovery now comes from playlists and algorithms, so releasing a few singles followed by a 12-15 track album often means so much gets lost in the machine or skipped amid dwindling attention spans. Drip-feeding more singles and growing their roster, Shogun’s release rate has skyrocketed as a result “It took 4-5 years to get from first release to number 21, to now when we’re doing almost a release every week”. 

Combined with more opportunities to release, comes more tracks being sent to the Shogun inbox – further enabled by the lowered barriers of entry to music production. With Pete (Deadline) now on board as Head Of Music, he, Ed, and the rest of the A&R team tackle the job – finding and nurturing new talent and maximising the output of the roster. As quantity goes up, quality remains uncompromised, and their ability to reach multiple ends of the sub-genre landscape is only enhanced. The past decade has seen the label hit the target on a range of new names and sounds. From Emily’s Makis’ instantly recognisable vocals, to Javeon’s soulful R&B-inspired lyrics, to Duskee’s steezy-smooth bars – the modern voice of Shogun is in outstanding shape. Each of these talents, alongside IYAMAH, Zara Kershaw, Catching Cairo, and too many more to name, hop on tracks across the release schedule to provide more of that Shogun glue. 

While singles are the new normal, there is room for tradition if that’s the vision. The beloved, full-length albums did not stop in the Perez-Icicle-SpectraSoul era, they inspired others to follow. “Part of what we can do with our artist-centric approach, is give artists the freedom and the structure to write albums like Delay No More, or the Technimatic albums, or GLXY’s Research & Development. We’re here to support their vision and make those things happen for them”. 

That support couldn’t be more evident than with Pola & Bryson’s 2021 album Beneath The Surface – 15 tracks including 6 singles of their patented ‘liquid sculptures and big boy rollers’, woven together by a detailed concept, and finally packaged up in a beautiful box-set. The album is a journey through styles and feelings, and marks a crucial release among this iteration of the Shogun roster. It’s got the characteristics of a classic, with tracks like ‘Friend’ and ‘Under’ keeping a long shelf life. 

Even though the marketing and distribution are beefed up for the modern era, the inspiration from the classics is evident as Jack (Pola) muses on the responsibility they have after eight years with the label: “To suddenly find ourselves in that position, where it’s now our job to take the reigns, was a bit daunting. But it’s been exciting. And a very proud experience”. 

Presently, the label is firing. A dynamic roster of highly talented and adored artists, one of the best event series in the world, and an approach that’s risk-taking but backed by an incredible legacy. 20 years in, Ed and Keir are just as passionate about presenting listeners and ravers with their ever-evolving brand of drum & bass. They have a deep understanding of what this music means to people – how casual listeners can be transformed into D&B heads. They’re constantly making tweaks and decisions to strike the balance between continuous improvement and respect for the heritage. 

As we discuss the commercialisation of the genre – and how that’s accelerated in recent years – there’s acknowledgement that Shogun does contribute. But that’s not a negative thing as they see it, it’s part of that journey so many listeners will take to eventually dig deeper. That’s why there’s such emphasis on a range of sound. “If you listen to ‘Phoneline’… brilliantly produced liquid drum & bass with a vocal and topline and catchy melody. That’s one end. And then on the other end, we can release a naughty little underground Sustance tune. And people don’t think that’s weird … those are the boundaries for us…” . As purists themselves who love all sides of the genre, Ed and Keir are hyper-aware of the dangers of selling out. But once again, commercialisation is a macro-environmental factor that’s going to occur whether you embrace it or not. “Yes there will be some absolutely horrific drum & bass that comes out of it [commercialisation], but you’ll also get people to come into it, and then find people like Sustance or GLXY”. They don’t moan about change, they embrace it and find a route to make it work for them. 

Tied to the commercialisation conversation is the globalisation of drum & bass, another area Ed and Keir are optimistic about. There’s a confidence from the two, that the label and wider genre are too established, the roots are too deep to lose that underground pulse. “I think we are all ready for it, we’ve been talking our whole lives about ‘wouldn’t it be amazing if this thing went global’. Well, every time we’ve got there it’s like ‘ooh, it’s a bit scary’. But now, 30 years in, it feels like ‘yeah, we’re ready’”. 

The future of music is hazy at best – changing exponentially from the culture, to the technology, to the way it’s experienced. No label or artist is immune to the uncertainties. But with what Ed and Keir have built, coupled with their relentlessly positive approach, they remain in position to keep adding moments of lore to drum & bass for another 20 years and beyond.

We depart the café and make a short walk over to meet the rest of the Shogun roster. On the agenda is a photoshoot. As each artist rolls in, the theme of community (touched on throughout the interview) emerges  – it’s hugs, hearty handshakes, and lots of laughter. They eagerly discuss each other’s next projects, tours, and reminisce on some of the summer’s festival moments. Ed and Keir’s life’s work is all here personified. Jon (GLXY) reinforces the notion: “We’ve kind of all grown up together. We joined about a year after Jack [Pola] & Harry [Bryson], and have been friends with them for ten years. It’s just like, everyones just come together. It’s beautiful man.” 

The lunch spread has been mostly devoured, and as the shoot wraps up, the vibes are too good to end it there. A rooftop in Hackney, on potentially the last truly hot summer’s day of the year kept the discussions rolling. “They’ve always just held me like family. Shogun, to me, is community and family” says Emily Makis after grabbing content for an upcoming song. 

Fresh off her single ‘Be There’, intended for the 20 Years of Shogun compilation, IYAMAH reflects “What does Shogun mean to me? It’s definitely community. It’s like-minded, genuine people … It’s really nice to be part of this thing. Shogun are just like the kings of cool. It’s weird because there’s so many artists, but they have such a universal similarity when it comes to sound. A super well-produced fusion between clean and dirty”. From old signings to new, from the founders to the newest members of staff – the Shogun ethos permeates. 

Calling it a day, the 20 Years of Shogun celebrations certainly don’t stop there. The 20 track compilation has just been released in full, including a limited-edition box set, vinyl, and coffee table book – shaping up to be another classic VA output. And events are scheduled throughout the final weeks of 2024 – where Ed promises something particularly special for his set with SP:MC + guests at Troxy, London. One last look back at the Shogun team leaves me thinking; there’s way more to come.