The Slyde

First up is Robin 12Tree, who originally hails from Wiltshire in the West Country which may account for his love of good cheddar… He was in his first band at the age of 14 called Impact (questionable band names were to be a recurring theme in his brief rock career). After a brief spell in Nottingham playing bass and guitar in bands Sex Planet Venus and Vampiros Lesbos (who later went on to become cult rockers Six By Seven) Robin moved to London, signing to Regal Records as 12Tree and releasing 'Back In Town Again', 'Club Bastard' and 'Izzy Was A Groover', with further releases on Tummy Touch Recordings and Positive Vibrations. A spate of remix work followed for acts such as Looq, Moloko, Jean Jaques Smoothie and even the legendary Shirley Bassey under the names 12Tree and Pigs In Space. There was also a collaboration with Linus on VA Recordings, and production work for a diverse selection of recording artists and writers including Shaun Escoffery, Lee Dagger, Bond, Antony Teasedale, Richard O'Brien, Roberto Mello, Reverso 68 and Cantoma. In 2001 Robin began to produce tracks for Bolshi Records under the name Special Branch, releasing the 'Its Good To Toke' EP and 'Tune Your Station' as T.C. Sensation, partnered with long time Wiltshire cohort Marcus 'Cheeko' Cheke.

Partner in crime Jason Laidback was an accomplished scratch DJ by the tender age of thirteen - a result of passionately tuning in to Tim Westwood's seminal hip-hop and electro shows on pirate radio back in the day. His new found passion for the beat progressed to bunking off college in favour of time in the studio, and eventually resulted in Jason getting a contract with the label Big Life. He then went on to remix chart-topping hits such as De La Soul's '3 is the Magic Number' and Naughty By Nature's 'O.P.P', and toured the UK on the back of his club hit, 'A Juicy Red Apple'. With his philosophy that “old hardcore tracks sound like early breakbeat”, Jason developed his unique breaky sound, releasing two well-received albums on Bolshi - the second of which won Best Dance LP of the Year 2002 on Amazon.co.uk. His success has led him to doing several tours of the US, Canada, Australia and Europe, as well as being none other than Kylie Minogue's scratch DJ on her 'Fever' tour.