Matt "Jam" Lamont - Stricktly UK Garage

Matt Lamont has been a music lover since the age of 14 (he's 30 something now). In common with many Djs who fell in love with music at that time, he was captivated by the sounds of Grand Master Flash and the Hip Hop greats. Heavily influenced by his older brothers' musical tastes (he bought the records), Matt was brought up on a staple diet of Hip Hop, Rare Groove and the sounds of the Disco legends like Earth Wind and Fire. As a Luton resident Matt started Djing as a hobby in the Bedfordshire area. A mixture of good musical taste, luck, enthusiasm and tenacity resulted in a lot of local success. In fact the "Jam" nickname became a permanent moniker to describe how busy Matts' local events became.

Matt's original profession was that of a designer (and my his own admission, wasn't bad at all), but something bad would change his life for the better. In the late eighties the United Kingdom fell into recession (with the building trade amongst the hardest hit). The building work started to slow down, and with only limited scope for a DJ to progress in the Luton area, Matt decided to try is luck in London.

Now lady luck was to shine again. "Timmi Ram Jam" (what's with this "Jam" name) possibly the godfather of London garage clubland, was just starting to promote major London underground dance music events. The "Happy Days" events quickly became the only place to be for the people in the know (or the people who wanted to know). Matt begged and pleaded for any and every warm up spot that he could culminating in one lucky two hour set. He played so well (and was cheap) so became "Timmi Ram Jam's" (or Happy Day's) resident DJ.

Now for the people with long memories the early Happy Days era will be revered like no other. Elephant and Castle after Ministry, The Frog and Nightgown, High Beach, The Yacht, The Arches, these events and a handful of select others helped to create and shape the original (Sunday) UKGarage scene (at the time media labelled "SpeedGarage"). Matt "Jam" Lamont underpinned the start of a musical genre (with the likes of Karl "Tuff Enuff" Brown, Micky Simms, Norris "Da Boss" Windross, and Dominic Spreadlove) and was the major name on every flyer and event. Matt "Jam" Lamont like UKGarage had arrived.

"The music was special back then", said Matt. "It was four to the floor, and far more musical". "We all stemmed from a Disco past, so vocals were king". The USGarage vocal sounds (Armand Van Helden, Todd Edwards, Victor Simonelli) albeit pitched up a bit, ruled. Some of the UK boys (Grant Nelson, Booker T, KCC) became hero by quickly learning and mastering (and sometimes bettering) the production techniques of the boys from USA.

Now a lots has been made of Matt's relationship with the US/UKGarage general "Todd Edwards". "Todd was a great inspiration to me and many others in the UKGarage scene", says Matt. "I used to play a lot of Todd (and I Records) stuff back in 1992, so I rang the label". "It was there I hooked up with Todd, Joe and Flithy Rich". "Some people question Todd's sound, but how many of the producers of today will be around in two years time, much less eight (and still going strong)".

Now Matt is a DJ on London's leading specialist dance music station Kiss 100. "I own much of the Kiss success to Graham Gold and Bobby and Steve (The Zoo Experience)". "I pleaded with Graham for a half hour guest mix on his show, Bobby and Steve heard it and asked me to do regular radio mix shows", says Matt. "Mainstream radio has always been important to me, which is why I sidestepped the pirate scene to make sure I got my big break". "I would love to be the best on radio, and wherever that takes me is where I want to be".

"Tuff Jam", the Karl "Tuff Enuff" Brown and Matt "Jam" Lamont collaboration was an extremely successful experience. Karl was engineering and dancing with the pop group "Double Trouble" and Matt was producing with Spreadlove and Justin Cantor. Matt had just produced possibly the first "UKGarage" (and one of the most memorable along with Grant Nelson's Together) 12 inch called "Feel My Love". "I had messed about with some sounds in Cubase added a fat bassline and crossed my fingers". "Justin had a label at the time and overheard it playing in my car, and Feel my Love was then born".

"I met Karl through an introduction from my cousin, and we both had similar musical interests". "That's when Tuff Jam started, and as one of the pioneers of the scene as we know it became extremely successful". "The first legal radio show, the first major compilation series, the Tuff Jam success opened a lot of doors for others." Now all good things come to an end eventually (and recently), after achieving as much as they possibly could together the Tuff Jam duo are now pursuing individual projects.

"Karl was a good programmer, and I like to write songs". "My solo career (and coincidentally the name of his new record label - Solo Recordings) will be all about vocals and songs". "One of the first projects you will hear will be the remix of WHY by Mystique". "Gavin (ex Catch productions) and I decided to mix the RnB sound into a two step style, to keep the vocals." "Time will tell if we got it right". "I am doing a lot of work with Gavin at present. I have known him for years as we mixed a lot of the Tuff Jam records at Catch Studios". "I only work with people I trust, and we click really well together".

So what does the next chapter hold for Matt "Jam" Lamont. "Well the year 2000 had a number of highs and lows".

The Highs

UKGarage shocking the majors by flying high in the national charts,
The majors signing everything (people finally getting paid),
The early musical elements (personified by Artful Dodger and MJ Cole),
UKGarage in Europe (and the USA)

The Lows

There are now too many badly produced thoughtless productions
Too many people thinking they are the scene (its not one person but a complete framework)
The animosity caused because DJs are taking sides (Dark side against Vocals)
Trouble is now evident in some venues
The majors signing everything (good and bad) to corner the market.
The Drum and Bass or dark breakbeat sound more evident in the latter part of the year entering the UKGarage scene.

"The 30 minute to produce throwaway tracks really annoy me", "they wont be around long and don't deserve their current fame".

So for what does the future hold for Matt "Jam" Lamont. "I am really proud of the first phase. I was at the start of something and a part of so much. I have had a nine great years". "I wouldn't change a thing". "I would like to pay a tribute to all who have been involved, even the people who tried and failed still contributed something". "The UKGarage scene has always been about community, if the scene was one person we would have nothing".

"So heres' to another nine years, lets build on the foundations we have created". "I would like to send a special message to Ruth for all her help and guidance and to Club Class for keeping everything under control".

So there you have it, Matt "Jam" Lamont finally in print. Look out for his new project on SOLO Recordings (and a website coming soon).

Colin Williams : www.ukgarage.com 2001