As a performer, Bass Kleph aka Stu Tyson, exudes a sense of clear enjoyment, grinning as he drops the bass and savouring the hold the music takes on his audience. This love for dance music has taken him from drumming in a rock band to making Beatport hits and doing shows around the world. He’s been in the industry for around a decade now, currently running Vacation Records from his Los Angeles base, touring extensively and producing and remixing electro and house bangers like I’ll be OK and Shakedown. Describing his journey from teenage drummer to global DJ, Tyson makes note of the breakbeat scene of the ‘90s that got him started.
“In 2003 I put my first record out, after getting hooked on dance music in about 1998,” he says. “I was playing in rock bands early on as a drummer – nothing really grabbed me about dance music until I heard breakbeat, like The Chemical Brothers, The Prodigy and Squarepusher.
“I was like, ‘Wow, these drums are amazing, I’ve gotta check this out and learn more about it!’” he says. “Then I progressed into house music and never looked back.”
Tyson had been honing his production skills on the sidelines while drumming in three-piece band Loki. “The band broke up in 2001, and I could have joined another band, but I really believed in dance music so I gave up the drums which I’d been learning for 12 years, sold them, my cymbals, cases and studio gear and just knuckled down writing tracks.”
He’s since moved through various dance genres but always with a focus on bass and making music that gets a club crowd moving. “From breaks I moved into fidget house, then to electro, tech house, traditional house and I’m back into electro now and bringing in a bit of a tech house twist,” he says. “I really like the Flume kick drum stuff and big, chunky sounds like W&W; those guys are really rocking it for me.”
Bringing a bag of new tunes and remixes on tour, along with his signature drum machine, Tyson says his new home in America has been a great to him so far, with a multitude of professional opportunities coming his way.
“I’d been touring here for a few years before I moved permanently, and the shows are always amazing,” he says. “I had the opportunity to move over here, and I thought it was the way to go, for the incredible shows and being able to collaborate with other artists, and I can always come back to Australia and play.”
BY TOM KITSON
