AFTER celebrating 5 years in the business last December, Sense Traxx have firmly cemented their place in underground house music.
The Essex-based imprint haven’t taken their foot off the gas in 2018, 3 consecutive parties in 3 months, one of which had Sidney Charles as the headliner and another was their debut label showcase in the capital. This Friday 13th April they will be returning to London and Shoreditch Platform for a night of ‘house, disco and good times.’ We caught up with label boss Simon Birkumshaw ahead of the show to discuss their recent onslaught of releases, parties and everything in between.
Si, great to chat – it’s been an incredible 2018 for you so far. If possible, can you tell us your highlights?
Thanks for speaking with me, I really am overwhelmed with the responses and support so far this year. A brand-new year full of ambition and challenges, but I feel like we have really started strong. We are only 4 months in and seems like we have done so much already. Highlights for me would be the launch of our party in London at Shoreditch Platform. I knew it was going to be a challenge, but with the response and feedback we got from our last event we are excited to be back there this Friday. Also, our Ibiza parties which have finally been confirmed, I also enjoyed our party in Feb with Sidney Charles
Photo: LarryJ (fb.com/larryjdotphotography)
Your tagline is ‘House.Disco.Good Times’ – is this more or less what went on at your first London event? Can you tell us about the night?
I would like to say that we think it is important to try and create an identity and stand out from the rest, although we appreciate there is a big selection of parties and events out there. We do our best to give people the best experience, therefore the tag line pretty much hits the nail on the head.
After the successes of the last event, what will you be doing differently this time? Is it more of the same or are you adjusting the formula?
We have changed up the DJs just to keep it fresh, swapped it around with a few of our other residents. For us right now we really are working hard on growing our profile and name and ensuring people get the very best of us. We are aiming to keep consistent, so people hopefully will become part of the new movement we are pushing – people who share the love of partying and enjoy quality House, Disco and Good Times.
As well as the parties you’ve also had a big year of releases. Currently you have Nelson’s EP out, an amazing 2-step package, what have the reactions been like to this so far?
Nelson is a producer who we asked for some music from and he kindly sent over a folder of tunes. We snapped up pretty much all of the tracks and have spread them across the rest of the year. This first release has been received very well in the underground, but like many trying to introduce and get people to check something out that’s new and that they may not have heard before is a challenge. However, we are very pleased with the feedback we have received from our followers.
Are there any future Sense Traxx releases you can tell us about?
So many exciting things – events in Ibiza and London coming up. We also have some high-profiled artists joining the roster, which is going to be a big look for the label. We are working on some other interesting and exciting new projects and as always more great music.
You’ve achieved so much in the last 5 years, where would you like to see Sense Traxx in the next 5 years?
I would like Sense to become a benchmark label for producers and quality house music. I appreciate it takes time to grow a brand and establish ourselves to the masses, but with the vision we are trying to achieve I feel that we could make it happen. It feels like we are on the right path, it’s just a case of continuing to work hard and hopefully gain the support of others as we climb the ladder. In the past 10 years there has not been many labels that have broken through off the back of being just a record label and most of which have got large figure heads promoting them or they have huge investments. The fact we are doing it alone and perhaps not having some of the benefits others gives us confidence that we can make our dream become a reality.
Catch Sense Traxx at Shoreditch Platform on Friday 13th April. Head here for more information.
