Interview with Ultra Sonic
Back in the summer of 1991 at Scotland’s now famous
Metro Club, Rodger Hughes and Mallorca Lee were introduced to each
other by Mallorca’s brother. Two eighteen year old ravers, new to
the scene, just got talking to each other and found that they both
had a love for electronic music. At that time Mallorca was working
in computers and ‘messed about DJ’ing’ while Rodger was training to
become a teacher. After spending more and more time talking they
discovered that they shared the same musical tastes and were
influenced by the synthesiser sounds of bands and artists such as
Adamski, Guru Josh, Sterling Void, N-Joi, and A Guy Called Gerald.
With a love of even earlier ‘keyboard wizards’ such as Kraftwerk and
New Order, they put their heads together, bought a couple of
synthesisers and started to put their tastes, ideas and thoughts of
what they would like to go out and dance to into practice. Towards
the end of 1991, they landed a couple of gigs and although they
weren’t yet known as Ultra-Sonic, they were causing a bit of an
impact on the still young Scottish dance scene, working under
different names at every gig such as Sub-Sonic, Axium and Aviation.
Into early 1992 they had a chance meeting with Bill Grainger of
Clubscene Records, who spotted the talent. He signed them to Club
Scene Records. It was Bill who gave them the direction they needed.
This was Spring 1992 and Ultra-Sonic were born.
“We’d sent Bill a tape of our material and he said it was too
weird”.
Now signed up to Clubscene, Ultra-Sonic’s first job was to get into
the studio. So, with time booked at Wet Wet Wet’s Pet Sounds Studio
in Glasgow their first tune ‘Obsession’, with a vocal by a session
singer called Heather, was unleashed onto the unsuspecting Scottish
dance scene selling over 6,000 copies and making it the second best
new single in the 1992 Scottish dance awards. With live performance
being Ultra-Sonic’s forte, they began their ‘live’ career officially
as Ultra-Sonic with their first live performance at ‘Freedom’ in
Glasgow, where they stormed the place. So much in fact that
Ultra-Sonic were voted best brand new band in the 1992 Scottish
dance music awards.
Into 1993 and Ultra-Sonic released their 2nd single ‘The Pulse’
steering more towards the Hardcore Techno side of things and with
this particular track selling over 10,000 copies it was obvious that
Ultra-Sonic were steam rolling ahead onto greater things.
After ‘Freedom’ more events followed head lining such events as
Eurodance, Fantazia, Streetrave, Revolution and of course
Rezerection. Their third single ‘Arpeggio/Annihilating Rhythm parts
1 & 2’ was released in October 1993, has become known as a
Rezerection anthem. This is by far their biggest single to date
selling 15,000 copies alone in Scotland and after being licensed by
Low Spirit/Polydor Records in Germany with over 60,000 sales of
‘Apreggio/Annihilating Rhythm’ taking total sales of their third
single to over 100,000 not bad for a little known band from
Scotland.
Ultra-Sonic have now established themselves as a superior Techno
band, being described by the head of Low Spirit Records in Germany
as the ‘best live band in the world’. In 1993 they were voted best
Scottish band (M8 magazine awards), best Scottish band (Radio
Forth’s ‘Stepping Out’ dance awards), the list goes on and on and
with also winning best UK band in the Rezerection poll awards 1993.
Why haven’t Ultra-Sonic appeared at a Rezerection for almost two
years?
“We have been asked a few times to play at Rezerection, but we’ve
had to turn them down because of their sound problems, they get
constant hassle during their events from the little man with the DB
meter working for the environmental health. Rez put 160-180k of
sound in their events but won’t use it because of the wee man with
his meter telling them to turn it down and we will not compromise
our performance through lack of volume. It’s not Rez’s fault it’s
that man from the environmental health”.
Ultra-Sonic released a video in December 1993 which contained
footage of all their recent gigs and in four days of it being on
sale, 6,500 copies had been sold, outselling Disney’s “Jungle Book”
in some Glasgow stores.
Ultra-Sonic’s CV would make impressive reading as their frequency of
live gigs gain even more momentum with events through 1994 reaching
various clubs and events all over Europe including some behind the
former ‘Iron Curtain’ in cities such as Budapest in Hungary. Their
popularity in Europe is phenomenal, in a recent poll in Germany,
Ultra-Sonic were voted best dance band alongside Prodigy. They are
so popular that in 1994, two weekends out of every month were spent
performing somewhere in Germany including the massive Mayday event
in Dortmund.
“At the Mayday event, you came out of the ground into the centre of
a huge Velodrome Stadium, we felt like Rocky – fuckin’ mental”.
Ultra-Sonic don’t wish to be labelled a Techno band, although their
music is Techno based, they prefer just to be called a dance band
playing dance music and are fiercely proud of their rave roots.
Ultra-Sonic’s live performance is pure energy from start to finish,
with Mallorca often going nuts on stage. Controversy often follow
the band, though sometimes very undeserved. At a recent event staged
in Glasgow’s Burrowlands which took place at Christmas for under
18’s, Ultra-Sonic came on stage to a packed venue sporting t-shirts
with MDMA splashed across the front, the Scottish press had a field
day.
“We had just arrived back in the country after an event in Australia
called Music-Dance-Mania-Australia and being Scottish we managed to
cadge a couple of free t-shirts which we were wearing when we played
at ‘The Source’ at Christmas causing a few raised eyebrows, but
getting totally the wrong idea and not giving us the chance to
explain. Music-Dance-Mania-Australia or MDMA for short”.
Ultra-Sonic choose not to get involved in the politics of dancing
and clique of the Scottish dance scene, not do they get involved in
the ‘they’re shit, we’re not’ bitching that follows such cliques.
Instead choosing to concentrate all energies on their music.
Although live performance is what Ultra-Sonic love most, it’s their
talent in the studio what has made it’s mark, having just completed
a remix of ‘move your arse’ by German dance band Scooter and having
just signed a major two album deal with the mighty Edel Records from
Germany it looks like Ultra-Sonic’s career, especially in Europe is
just beginning. With their forthcoming single ‘1, 2, 3, 4/Tic Tok’
due for release on 13th March, looking to be their best single yet –
original Techno in the Ultra-Sonic yet – original Techno in the
Ultra-Sonic anthem style joining ‘Obsession’, Annihilating Rhythm’
and ‘Check Your Head’ in the Techno junkies hall of fame.
1995 looks set to be the biggest year yet for Ultra-Sonic with a
return to Australia later this year, with Ultra-Sonic head lining
massive events in Sydney and Brisbane. An invitation by the
organisers of the Mayday event for Ultra-Sonic to return has been
duly accepted by the band and they will be there. Busy is an
understatement for these boys with a tour of Japan planned later
this year and an album deal similar to the German one coming up, and
a second album and second video planned for release in this country
in the summer, phew!!
Being massively popular in Scotland and all over Europe, hasn’t
affected Rodger or Mallorca as you would expect of some equally
popular groups. They remain very approachable and maintain that they
have any amount of time for anyone who wishes to talk to them, two
extremely likeable guys with a belief in their audience.
But what about England which seems to be unaware of Ultra-Sonic? The
boys see England as somewhere special. A recent gig at the Drome in
Birkenhead went so well that they were immediately re-booked and
will be appearing on 18th March. Maybe if one of the organisers like
Dreamscape, Helter Skelter etc. dared to unleash the flavour of
Scotland onto their crowd this would give them an edge. However,
having just landed a distribution deal with Mo’s Music machine for
England, Ultra-Sonic’s music, talent and sheer energy will open a
few English eyes and ears.
So there you have it, that’s Ultra-Sonic, check out their tunes if
you like your Techno anthems, Ultra-Sonic’s album ‘Techno Junkies
‘92-94’ is in your shops now, get it and taste the Scottish flavour,
you won’t be disappointed. Or catch them at one of their live gigs.
After all there’s 2 in England, 5 in Scotland, 8 in Ireland and no
less that 17 in Germany, and that’s just to the end of April – catch
‘em if you can!!
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