10:19am Thursday 26th August 2010
By Graham Moody
There's a building in Whitehorse Lane in Thornton Heath that, to the untrained eye, looks like any other with a bit of blue paint splashed across on the front.
To those in the know though, it's been the hub of the dub and dubstep movement not only in Croydon, but also the world, for the past 25 years.
For this house is home to Mad Professor, aka Neil Fraser, and his Ariwa record label which has been pioneering dub since the Prof set up his first studio in his front room in the late 1970s.
"It has been great here, we have managed to make quite a few hit records and worked with a lot of top people," says the 55-year-old, who launches a new monthly dub night at Croydon Clocktower next Wednesday.
"We started in Croydon in the 1970s in the front room of my house in Grange Road.
"It was with equipment I built myself as in those days you couldn't buy the decks, you had to make them yourself.
"Now you can just go to the shops and buy the software.
"After a little while Ariwa got a bit noisy for the neighbours - the guy next door described it as being like a drum kit next to his bedroom wall.
"We had a lot of letters from the council telling us to stop the noise so we moved to Peckham for four years and then returned in 1986.
"This time I used the back room for about six months before moving to Whitehorse Lane where we have been ever since."
Fellow dubsteppers Skream and Benga, who recently joined forces for top 10 smash I Need Air under then name Magnetic Man, are also from Croydon and it is this connection between the town and the music that Mad Professor wants to celebrate at Dub Club.
"Croydon has always been associated with dubstep and there have been several acts and stars from the area," he said.
"We want to give the dubstep acts from Croydon a chance to play their music and also alert the public to what is going on.
"We have played all over the world from New Zealand to Australia to New York, Brazil and Japan but last year was the first time we have played in Croydon, doing a gig for Black History Month at Fairfield Halls in October.
"But Croydon is getting on board now, hence the Dub Club.
"We will have different acts every month and there are lots of guys who are quite keen on getting involved and experimenting in their own way."
Croydon's Dub Club, Croydon Clocktower, Katharine Street, September 1, 8pm, £12. Call 020 8253 1030 or visit croydonclocktower.org.uk.
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