FYI.

This story is over 5 years old.

Music

NORTHMIX: Jeff Dougler & Balu

"Silky-smooth, hi-def, funky, jazzy, jackin', ‘Guetta-free’ house music"

Ottawa isn't exactly known for its parties or dance scene. People joke that our nation's capital is "a colourful city—all shades of grey." Yet, beneath the levels of federal government, beyond the suburbs and schools you can find one helluva groovy DJ/production duo, Jeff Dougler & Balu. Over the last several years the two have received support from the likes of DJ Sneak and Derrick Carter, among others, and made a claim as the go-to duo for classic Chi-town vibes.

Advertisement

THUMP: How did you first start collaborating?
Balu: We met each other back in 2008 when I was a resident at Heaven Nightclub in Ottawa.I got to know Jeff more as he was a recurring DJ and a close-knit member of the Heaven family. I knew he was making tracks on his own under different aliases and thought to myself, Yeah, this is someone I can work with.

JD: I knew of Balu many years before I knew him on a personal level. He was that upper echelon DJ in the Ottawa scene, a guy you couldn't touch behind the decks. So, when he asked if I wanted to sit down and work on a few tunes with him, I jumped at the opportunity. It's funny looking back thinking that something that was only supposed to be a few studio sessions together worked out to be an unbelievable partnership over the past seven years.

The two of you have produced numerous singles and EPs. How do you work in tandem in the production booth? Can you explain the process?
JD: We approach building each track based on what we have going on in the session. Sometimes it's a dirty drum loop that Balu has put together or a loop of a sample that jumps everything off. We learned that sometimes it's better to trust our guts than our brains.

Balu: More times than not we argue about the sound of a clap, though.

Many of your productions feature clever use of samples. How do you find the samples and how do you know the right one to use?
Balu: Samples are found anywhere you go these days. You could be waiting in line at a Starbucks or driving in the car and hear something that makes you shout "I need to house that." I go through life with a 4/4 rhythm in my head. If I hear something that makes me want to put that beat to it, I immediately know that we have a winner.

Advertisement

JD: Shazaam is our best friend. Technology has undeniably made it easier for our workflow. Just like Balu, I'm constantly hunting for tracks to play and samples to chop. For me at least, I try to find samples that aren't obvious or easily recognizable. Personally, there's a sense of pride in finding a diamond in the rough, plucking the sample and skewing it into something new and unique.

You've self-categorized your style as "silky smooth, hi-def, funky, jazzy, jackin', 'Guetta-free' house music". What drew you to this specific style of dance music and what is it about Chicago/jackin' house that you love?
Balu: The thing about jackin' is that you hit a bunch of different crowds, with different tastes in music in one go. House music is the universal music spoken and understood by all, right? I feel that you can add life with a boom-tis-boom-tis! "Guetta-free" is a guarantee that you won't hear any bullshit.

JD: When I was introduced to proper house music, I knew this was the music I was meant to do. It hit me in the chest like a fucking sledgehammer. There is an innate, organic rhythm that comes from Chicago/jackin' house that can't be found in any other genre of dance music.

What's one thing about the current scene that you love, and one thing that you hate?
Balu: The thing I love is that proper house music is starting to get the respect it deserves. Everyone knows that music is cyclical, so it's nice to see house slowly climbing back into the charts. What I do not love is the lack of knowledge and, to a degree, respect for music that was noticeable only ten years ago. It's shocking sometimes to think that even with all the technology and information available to us today, people actually know less about music than a house head did back in 1999. I mean, how is that even possible?

Advertisement

JD: The one thing I love with the current scene is the sense of community. In the house/jackin' community, we know producers from all over the world that we admire and respect, and we are able to keep up date with them on both a personal and professional level. There's very little ego I find. On the negative tip, the one thing that I personally can't stand is people who get into this business to be a name, a face. The music is secondary to their need of recognition.

What are your thoughts on the Ottawa dance scene? Do you feel the "underground" scene is growing?
Balu: It's come a long way, but it's not where it needs to be. The underground scene is on the rise for sure. Unfortunately, Ottawa is mostly a pub/country bar/Top 40/hip hop city. There are only a handful of clubs in the city that are believers in the house music format. It's inspired me to host more events and throw more parties. There's definitely a market for it now.

JD: Much like what Balu said, there are only a handful of venues and people committed to putting on good shows and exposing people to different music than what is available commercially. Ottawa is a far more conservative town compared to Montreal or Toronto. There are people, like Balu, who've been committed to educating the Ottawa crowd on proper house music for over two decades.

Explain the sounds you bring to this NORTHMIX.
JD: We approached this NORTHMIX with the same mentality we bring to all our sets. Keeping it hi-def, funky, jazzy, jackin', and absolutely Guetta-free. Something old, something new, something borrowed, and something Balu.

Advertisement

What's next for JD&B?
JD: We've been working on our feature album for the better part of six months now, and pushing it through our own imprint, Pozativ Recordings. It's been a privilege to work with talented artists such as Rise Ashen, Trevor Walker, MC Straightedge, and Greg Howlett on it. That will be coming out later this year.

Balu: Recently, we finished off some new tracks that you can hear on the NORTHMIX. One of them is a remix for Demuir's big hit "A Woman's Worth," which will be available soon on Mark Farina's Great Lakes Audio label. The other is a slow-mo disco cut available on Editorial now. I'm also excited to announce that I am starting up a new production company called BE (Balu Entertainment).

Northmix: Jeff Dougler & Balu by Thump on Mixcloud

Jeff Dougler & Balu is on Facebook // SoundCloud