A new documentary about Queer Drum and Bass is coming to a screen near you

Back to Bass, an upcoming feature-length documentary following the lives of Unorthodox, partners with Everpress in a new post-production fundraising campaign

Picture a drum and bass DJ.

Do you picture a gorgeous drag queen, contoured-up and bound in latex and leather, skanking behind the decks in ten-inch heels? Well, Nathan X, the UK’s first drag queen Drum & Bass DJ, and founder of the pioneering queer Drum & Bass movement, Unorthodox, is working hard to make sure you do.

So, what is Back to Bass?

Emily Badescu, the documentary filmmaker and Director and Editor of Back to Bass, is often drawn to making documentaries about joyous grassroots communities, whether it’s the skateboarding community, street artists or amateur theatre; as seen in her award-winning edit for Alien On Stage, her work is about communities creating something new.

Regarding her latest feature, Emily explains, “I grew up going to Drum & Bass raves, and during the pandemic, like many others I was yearning for the collective experience of raving. The lockdown gave me time to reflect on my experience of Drum & Bass raves, the good and the bad parts. Once things started to open up again I was curious about how this pause on live events was going to affect the genre and raving. What was going to be born out of this stillness? I was on the lookout for people who were revolutionising the industry and I came across Unorthodox’s YouTube channel, and was blown away by the amazing work Nathan X was doing preparing for their first event. I got in touch, assembled a crew (Deej Phillips; DOP and Liv Neller; Additional Camera) and set about documenting the lead up to the event”.

And so came the birth of Back to Bass, the up-coming feature-length specialist music documentary set in London following the lives of Unorthodox DJs; Nathan X, Pinks & Clarkus, and drag performer and Nathan X’s older brother, Ash Kenazi; alongside DJ; Xīlhu Ayebaitari (founder of Queer Rave Soundsystem), and the legendary MC Chickaboo, the first Jungle/DnB female MC and EQ50 mentor, as they ambitiously prepare for their premiere event post-pandemic.

Back to Bass fuses history of the genre with the present day, marking the beginnings of a movement in response to the collective’s own experience of homophobia from the electronic music sub-genre. As Nathan X puts it “Drum & Bass is a way of life but so is being queer. It’s a shame people feel they have to segregate those”.

The film highlights the collective’s determination to make the high energy music genre a space for everyone and bring it back to its queer roots - a part of history normally untold - until now. Through the first-hand experience of MC Chickaboo, the history and context of the Drum & Bass scene comes to life in the film.

A stand-out piece of advice from the scene? Chickaboo says, “You gotta learn the game in order to change it. You gotta play it, and learn it, and when you can’t change it, scrap the whole game and do your own”.

And where does Everpress come into it?

As much as the film unpacks issues of homophobia and toxic masculinity in the music industry and Drum & Bass scene, it’s also a joyous, inspiring and uplifting story of collective action on a grassroots level!

And support for grassroots movements is a core value of Everpress, a global platform that allows artists to create t-shirts and other products in ways not possible before; and a destination where consumers can shop unique, sustainable apparel from independent artists and designers. But more deeply, it has become a platform for expression; one that goes beyond products — providing a vehicle for a vast community of artists around the world to communicate ideas, champion causes, and invest in themselves.

As Sophie Cantopher, Producer of Back to Bass, explains, “We all know how hard financing creative projects can be, especially in the backdrop of the economic, cost of living and climate crisis. And for independent filmmakers like myself and Emily, with a particular passion for niche stories and genres, which we believe deserve to be told and cherished and to bring about change for future generations, it’s even harder. We had to think further afield and find creative solutions for post-production funding. Knowing Everpress’s history of supporting grassroots movements, and having previously worked with them on a campaign and chat show, Tea Time with Mya Mehmi, I thought they might be worth approaching to collaborate on this project”.

Since its launch in 2016, Everpress’ mission to support independent creatives and artists has seen over £7 million paid out to creators. As a B-Corp certified business, Everpress puts people and the planet on an equal par with profit, with a zero waste collection, ethically sourced garment materials, and SEDEX vetted production facilities and factory working conditions.

Evita Akomode, Creator Partnerships Success Manager, says of the Back to Bass collaboration, "We're so proud to be supporting the fundraising for Back to Bass. The film is so important - highlighting the queer roots of Drum & Bass. A lot of us didn't know about it until we formed this partnership. More people need to know, need to learn and need to be empowered."

The Campaign

The Back to Bass x Everpress fundraiser features 5 unique t-shirt designs reflecting the 5 ‘characters’ in the film. The vibe is a 90’s asesthetic, of mystique intertwined with the grit of Drum & Bass, and punk, a value at the root of Drag and queer culture, which Ash Kenazi explains often gets overlooked in the “obsession with Drag Race and gays in pride month”.

The campaign will run for 2 weeks from Monday 19th July 2023 with a limited amount of stock. The t-shirts can be purchased at £27.00 and all profits raised through sales will go towards the post-production of the film - specifically for the colour-grade, sound mix and use of archive footage - in order to get onto the festival circuit and make its way to a screen near you.

If you’re a fan of Drum & Bass, of music in general, a queer person or ally, a supporter of independent creativity, a dreamer, a believer in the pursuit of creative freedom, or you simply love a cool, limited edition, cotton tee, then you can support the campaign by purchasing a t-shirt or sharing information about this collaboration.

PURCHASE YOUR T-SHIRT HERE

Back to Bass is about universal themes: fearlessly being yourself, trying something new, and going against the status quo. It’s time we all go Back to Bass!