DJ Marky is one of Brazil’s most successful exports, outside of nuts and their infamous waxing technique… of course. He was discovered after fellow Brazilian Patife called the UK promoters of the Movement to see if he could use the name in Brazil. V Recordings head honcho Bryan Gee flew to Brazil with Edo Van Duyn to see a scene they weren’t really aware of, and caught Marky playing at the now legendary Love Club. “Incredible, for here was a DJ who hardly spoke any English, lived 5,000 miles from the drum and bass mecca [of London] and still managed to inject more energy, enthusiasm, originality and creativity into mixing drum and bass than anyone we’d seen before,” said Edo in a recent interview.

Marky gained his music knowledge in the way many DJs do – through family and working in a record store. “There was a really cool radio station that I used to listen to when I was a kid, that used to play old funk and proper hip hop tunes,” he says, “but mostly I got my musical influence from my Dad and his vinyl collection.” The vinyl bug must have rubbed off, as Marky worked in the Up Dance record store which was vital in determining his tastes. “When you are working in the record store you have a lot of tunes from different genres that work for you. Maybe a techno track or a house track, something like that. But I remember when the first set of jungle records came in and I was hooked!”

It’s clear from talking to Marky that he loves Brazil, although at first his meteoric rise did cause some little problems. “At first, I won’t lie, it was hard,” he says of learning English. “I hadn’t had to speak it all the time like this before so I had to learn and learn fast, but having management there to support me and help me out was great and it helped me get to terms with it much quicker.” He also likes the fact that although he rose quickly, he’s still grounded in Brazil. “Yeah I got quite big in UK and Europe but I spend most of my time in Brazil so I can escape, and that time is golden to me.”

Hailing from drum & bass hot spot Adelaide, we are sometimes spoiled for choice when it comes to top class jungle talent, but the first time Marky played here he blew people away. His energy, his skills, and his scratching – a skill not too often seen at dnb shows – all shattered preconceived notions of how drum & bass is supposed to be played. However, on his last visit, on the back of a long festival tour, his performance wasn’t so spectacular, as there was only a little bit of scratching. But Marky realises that expectation and anticipation has it’s toll. “It is hard because everyone expects you to play the best set you have ever played, and honestly I try and do that every time I play,” he stresses. He also says the lack of scratching was simply an equipment thing. “Most drum & bass raves now will use an Allen & Heath mixer because a lot of people use it and it has effects, but they are very hard to scratch on. It can lead to disappointment which is why I have got some new tricks in my sleeve to make sure everyone remembers this tour!”

Marky’s production is just as well respected as his DJing. He’s made tracks with fellow Brazilian XRS, and as an outside I was wondering how it worked. “We shared the work when we were producing together. I used to bring a lot of the samples to the studio and XRS would be really good at laying it out then we would both build the tune together. It was a really good partnership,” he says. More recently, he’s been collaborating with Bungle, who he reckons; “[is ] gonna be massive next year! He is young but so talented it is unreal! Also,” he adds, “I have done a few new tracks with Makoto and Total Science. In the future it might be nice to collaborate with someone like NuTone or Logistics for something a little bit different.” Those should get the dnb juices flowing!

Finally, whenever Marky is asked where his favourite place to DJ is worldwide, he immediately answers Australia. “The people are mad for it!” He exclaims. “Whenever I play in Australia I get a wicked reception and they just love the music. That is what I like when I visit somewhere is seeing people who are purely music lovers. Yeah it helps that there is a DJ there that they know, but really, they just want a good night out and want to listen to quality tunes. My kind of people!”

Marky tours Australia this New Year, be sure to be front and centre to witness the Brazilian drum & bass vibe for yourself!

Dec 28 – Sydney, Home
Dec 31 – Adelaide, Stardust NYE
Jan 1 – Melbourne, Eat The Beat
Jan 1 – Perth, A Day At The Deen