Alex Cargill aka Phatcamp began with a humble Playstation MUSIC game in 1999.

Alex said: "For £40 you had a virtual studio at your fingertips and an instant introduction to dance music production in its most basic form. I was hooked, and within 15 months an indie record label in Liverpool wanted to release a track that I'd produced called Brainstorm.

"When the sound engineer asked me over the phone what kind of studio equipment I was using, he was horrified when I said that it was all produced on a Playstation One. He then said sorry but it was a no-go because the track was not produced on industry standard software / hardware. Sadly that label went out of business a few months later."

For a while all was quiet for Phatcamp until 2005 when Pharaoh, a plodding psychedelic techno track, was picked up by Rob Da Bank and played on his OneMusic show on BBC Radio One.

This success was followed by yet another play on BBC Radio One, when JK and Joel unleashed the cartoon breakbeat mayhem of Back Of The Net, playing it to a worldwide audience on the Scott Mills Show in 2006. Alex's music reflects his various influences.

He said: "I would describe my music as "dubby breakbeat- techno and trippy ambient soundscapes". In layman's terms: a mixture of rave and chillout. I listen to a vast range of music -everything from Frank Sinatra to drum n' bass. I think its so important to be open to as much music as possible, especially if you're involved with music yourself.

"The artists and bands that have had the most obvious and direct influence on the Phatcamp sound would be the likes of The Prodigy, The Chemical Brothers, Fatboy Slim, Boards Of Canada, The Orb, Moby and DJ Shadow.

"Also the production techniques of the big names on the current UK hip hop/ grime scene - Roots Manuva, Dizzie Rascal and Wiley - have been a great source of inspiration for me. I love the way they can take really cheesey old sounds and use them in fresh and innovative ways."

Alex is planning to take Phatcamp live on the road: "All year, I've been frantically buying equipment and learning how to make it all happen in the live environment - some would say its becoming an obsession. I'm almost ready now, and I'm aiming to showcase the Phatcamp live PA at the DiscoWhip Boxing Day event on December 26. If anyone is interested, I'm looking for a talented MC to front the show. Also, a live percussionist and a good hip hop turntablist / scratch DJ would be nice if anyone would like to volunteer their services."

DiscoWhip started in 2005 following Alex's drinking session with his friend Jamie Ross. He said: "We took a little break from raving in the streets at Notting Hill Carnival and nipped into a pub for a quick drink. We spotted superstar DJ Brandon Block coming in through the door. Jamie just went up and started talking to him. Admittedly we were all a bit worse for wear but somehow we struck up a deal with him to come and DJ at a night that we would be promoting in Devizes over the following months. Two months later he appeared as promised, played an absolutely blinding set and ensured that the The Corn Exchange in Devizes was absolutely rammed with party people.

"Myself, Jamie and a couple of other resident DJs warmed up for Brandon, and the night was a huge success. Since then we've done a handful of DiscoWhip nights, it seems to happen about three times a year or so. We've since moved to a bigger, better location called Club E11even in Chippenham. Brandon Block came back and headlined for us again in February of this year and again it was a roaring success. We are currently organising a Boxing Day event to be held at Club E11even, with a big name DJ headlining."

Visit www.myspace.com/phatcampmusic or www.myspace.com/discowhip Email Phatcamp at alexcargill@aol.com CDs are available for £5 each including postage.

3:45pm Friday 9th November 2007

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