Rob Bailey -The Modstock Album (Detour) Interview

The New Untouchables website says, “I managed to catch up with Rob Bailey DJ and compiler of the ‘Le Beat Bespoke’ series about his new project Modstock-21st Century Club Classics album.”

01. Can you tell us a little bit about the history of the Modstock Event to get us started?

The first Modstock was in 1994 and held in Saarbrucken, a small town on the German border. Mods from all over Europe came for 3 days of non-stop fun. The second Modstock was held in London in 2004 and was a very ambitious project that included all aspects of Mod Culture including fashion, art, music and transport. We will be showing for the first time ever footage from Modstock2 and also 1994 in our bespoke film tailored especially for this event.

02. What were the driving factors to get the LP and CD in place for the event in 2014?

I wanted the Modstock album to different from my ‘Le Beat Bespoke’ series.

At the start I wanted to do create an underground version of ‘20 Mod Club Classics’ but quickly realised all those songs had been compiled many times before and already in most people’s collections. As I started to go through my own collection I realised just how many great songs given the right exposure could be ‘21st Century Mod Club Classics’.

03. How is the CD different from the Vinyl LP?

At the start I wanted to include one recording from all the artists performing at Modstock-50 on both the vinyl and CD. Sixteen tracks (eight each side) is just about the maximum you can include without losing too much quality on the pressing. I also wanted the album to sequence like a DJ set with only small gaps so it could be played at your house party as well as your car. With the wide variety of Mod inspired music spanning over six decades this was near on impossible, especially when you factor in the time restraints. So I opted to add tracks from the band playing at ‘Modstock 50’ onto the CD with the exception of Brenda. There are some exclusive studio tracks from a couple of the bands on the CD version.

04. Where did you produce the Project?

I found a great studio called Art Space close to home in Brixton Hill where I live. We recorded some tracks directly from vinyl and others from the masters with great results. I’m very pleased with the sound and also the bespoke artwork by BazDen at Pip! Pip! It’s a great package and one that I’m proud off.

05. You are working with Dizzy and the Team at Detour Records on this one? How come?

The first Modstock album was released on Detour Records in 1994/95 and featured two live tracks from each band recorded at the original event. For the 50th anniversary I wanted to create a different project this time focusing more on DJ selections as well as studio recordings from the live bands for the CD version.

06. Run us through some of your fave picks from The CD and the Vinyl?

It’s great to be able select from the more authentic Mod club sound spectrum as well. It also meant I had to revisit my entire collection where I found some gems that have been in my collection over twenty years that I had completely forgotten about like The Gass, Quartet Tres Bein and The St James Group. The new sounds I am very impressed with The Stone Foundation version of the Bobby Bland classic which is an exclusive for the project.

07. Are there any really rare tracks included of note?

There are some really rare tracks some things I have never seen again like UK releases from The Ranglers and The Gass. There are some tracks from masters as well as super rare records like the Undertakers.

08. Have some of the tracks been well received from the Dancefloors of various NUTs events?

I’m very happy to see tracks like ‘Love’s A Workin’ make this collection as I had been playing it in my DJ set for quite a while and it was always well received. The album is a mix that includes a couple of classics like Teddy Mack and Gentlemen June Gardner as well as current sounds and new discoveries.

09. Where can folks grab a copy and will there be any more in the series in the future?

The album will be on sale during Modstock; advance orders are available now from the Nutstore and will be posted out shortly after Modstock.