MATT BLACK

There are few figures in the industry that have had the same level of impact as Matt Black. From a production and performance point of view, his work with Jonathan More as part of Coldcut alone would be enough to enshrine his legacy as a pivotal figure in the evolution of dance music. Arguably the first ‘stars’ of dance, Coldcut’s unique approach to integrating sampling, DJing and a range of mixing techniques across their records, and their productions with Yazz and Lisa Stansfield, elevated the consciousness of the record-buying public to their special sonic chemistry.

But, dissatisfied with the climate of the cutthroat recording industry, Black and More set up Ninja Tune, a record label designed to give the power back to the artists and give them the creative space to make interesting records that wouldn’t see the light of day in the conventional industry. Ninja Tune exploded and is now regarded as one of the most beloved independent labels in the electronic music world.

But Black has also been pushing forward in other areas too. A lifelong tinkerer and computing enthusiast, some of the products he’s been involved with include the ahead-of-their-time DJamm and VJamm software that in tandem served to merge the computing world and the live music worlds in the late 90s. Now Matt has had a hand in a new dub delay unit in collaboration with Erica Synths. The Zen Delay is a three-way collaboration and is a multipurpose effects unit that takes its cues from the modular world. Time to find out more.

MT So Matt, let’s start by talking about the new Zen Delay, where did the idea for this product come from?

It stemmed from a visit to Superbooth in Berlin about three years ago. I was there with my friend Ingmar Kock (aka Dr Walker) who