2010 has been a fantastic year for James Boyle, better known as Breakage. He’s released his second LP, Foundation and remixed artists from a vareity of genres including Massive Attack, Florence + The Machine, Clare Maguire, Plan B and Shy FX.

His album was one of MistaJam.com Deputy Editor Sam Moir’s favourites of the year so he caught up with him to discuss how he got into music, his album and plans for the future.

What was the first time you heard a d&b/dubstep record and thought this was what I want to make?

The first d&b record I ever heard that really got me into was Shy FX’s Original Nuttah. That was the first tune that really caught me whereas Dubstep was more a mix and it just did it for me.

And then the progression to making it?

It was just natural, I actually played guitar and I went to a school called the Brooks School and part of the music course, we learnt how to use computers and my friend made a d&b tune and I asked, ‘How did you do that?’ because I was listening to it at the time and I didn’t really know how to make it so he showed me. I didn’t really know much about the computers because I was never really paying attention because I didn’t really know that’s how people made d&b. He schooled me up on it. He showed me what to do and I made one then another and another. I kept on going round people’s houses because I didn’t have a computer myself.

Back in those days when you were just starting out, what did you want to do with your music?

Nothing really, I just wanted to make some tunes, I thought it would be nice if I could make a career out of it but I never actually thought it would happen. There was no goal at the end of it, just fun. It still is.

So it’s been over a decade now?

That was well over a decade ago. I started making d&b 14/15 years ago but I was messing about with my cousin’s set up and used to go down with about 12/13 mates trying to understand how to make dance music in general. I just didn’t know what I was doing.

Fifteen years is a long time, do you have any highlights?

Signing my first sleeve, that was definitely a big highlight that came out on Reinforced, it is something you will never forget for the rest of your career.

The Valve crew, apparently, use So Vain to test the soundsystem which is nuts because someone like Dillinja is the king of bass pretty much. I look up to him and he uses my tunes to soundcheck.

Thirdly, being able to work with Shy because he’s took me under his wing and helped me out so much.

Foundation featured collaborations with Roots Manuva and Donae’o to name a few. Did it mark a culmination of your influences and styles over the last few years?

Definitely, that’s what it’s all about, my own influences. It’s about the music that I’ve come from and the music that I’m into now and even the styles of music on there are more of a representation where I’ve come from as producer, where I am and where I’m going as a producer.

Hence the name, the foundations of my music.

When you started the album, did you have a road that you wanted to take it on?

It did change a lot, it’s taken a long time because even if I had a million tunes, without that structure of some kind, it would never have been an album just a collection of tunes I made.

Once I come to the conclusion of that concept for it that’s when things started. I think it took me about a year to figure what I was doing and where it was going and then it took another year after that until I finished it.

Did you have any special moments whilst making the album?

The special moment would definitely be the guitar solo on Speechless because I remember sitting there with the guy who done the solo and I looked at Donae’o and he looked at me and we both started laughing because it’s the most epic guitar solo you have ever heard and it was exactly what we wanted, we just wanted something huge and we both started cracking up.

I wish I could have done it myself except I hadn’t played guitar in so long and it would have been the worst guitar solo ever.

Do you have a favourite tune from the LP?

The first track, Open Up because it sets the tone for the album and I made it at a time that I’d just got the structure for it and I was messing around with how to put it all together. It represents what the album is about. From that tune, you can see what’s coming, not 100 per cent but like a trailer.

What are you thoughts on the dubstep movement?

I know there’s people out there who say, “It needs to stay underground,” but if the music is good then why should it? If you’re making good music and, as a producer, you want people to like your music and to put it out there to the public for people to enjoy it so more and more people to start getting into what you do and the style of music that you’re involved. It’s great.

What’s the next thing for you?

The same thing as always, making more tunes. I’m touring quite a bit at the moment but I love it. It’s a lot of fun to just go out because when you’re making tunes you’re stuck in your studio and you never really see the reaction that your tunes get.

Unless I’m working, I don’t really go out much, I’m always working on tunes but to go out and play one of your tunes that you made, even just to see people dancing to it, let alone when you play a tune and people go nuts, just to see people dancing to it is a lovely feeling.

That’s the best part of DJ-ing for me. You get to know your audience so much better than just sitting in your room and what I said about not compromising my music, you definitely get an understanding of what works and you get a better understanding of your music.

Related Links | Breakage on MySpace | Follow Sam on Twitter