Laura Pacheco Interview | Drum and Bass
Ever wondered about the life behind the angelic voice on those DnB records? Total Science, Klute, State of Mind, Bungle and SKC, are some of the DnB professionals she has worked alongside. Laura Pacheco visits nerdbanite.com and shares her history and thoughts with us.
Q&A with Laura Pacheco
So you’re young, innocent and just getting to grips with the world, when did it start becoming apparent that you could sing?
Ha innocent? *polishes halo and attaches wings* I swear I was singing from the moment I was born. I suppose you could confuse it with a wailing scream depending on the judge. I do remember my dad giving me singing lessons when I was younger and I have vague recollections of us pissing the neighbours off when my dad, sis, and I had mini concerts in the front room. A quick bang with the broom on the wall was usually the treatment we’d get. He also liked to enter me into karaoke competitions on family holidays without me knowing. Of course, it became obvious when they called my name out! Typically, I would be singing a Whitney Houston classic…enough to send everyone to sleep! Then he would follow my act with Elvis Presley “Please release me”…you get the jist. Haha. He even made me sing a song he wrote accapella in this bar with an audience of around 50 people. Embarrassing! Both my dad and sister sing, so I guess it’s in the Pacheco blood. I used to sing a lot more when I was younger as I had more time. I was involved in school choirs, bands, concerts, session singing, and auditions. I guess featuring on Michael Barrymore’s “My Kind of People” wasn’t the highlight of my career. I should have given up then! 
What music did you listen to as a little Pacheco? Which artists outside of DnB have influenced you the most?
As a little Pacheco…everything BUT drum and bass. That was my mum’s input in my education. She made sure I knew who Luther Vandross, Michael Jackson, Marvin Gaye, Stevie Wonder, Motown, Whitney Houston, George Michael, Toni Braxton, Abba, Gloria Estefan, The Carpenters, Celine Dion, and Dionne Warwick were. ‘Cause lord knows their songs were on repeat enough times. So if she wasn’t trying to educate me, she was trying to torture me. My biggest influences now are without doubt, The Foreign Exchange as number one, Erykah Badu, Little Brother, Jill Scott, Q-Tip, D’Angelo, John Legend, Raphael Saadiq, Kelis, Cesar Comanche, Busta Rhymes, Amy Winehouse, Common, Natalie Williams, and Darien Brockington. They are my top top artists. I also love house music, and electro and whack this on whenever I want to get in the party mood!
They say you can tell a lot about a person with this next question. Let us in on your top 3 albums of all time?
1: Although recent, Foreign Exchange: Leave it All Behind
2: Michael Jackson – Off the Wall
3: Raphael Saadiq: Instant Vintage
How did your involvement with DnB begin?
Well that’s a funny story that I can acclaim to my brother [I blame everything on my family as you can tell]. At the time, I was being bullied at school and my parents had just split up, so I became a bit of a recluse. My brother took me under his wing, and his friends all treated me as their little sister. He took me pretty much everywhere with him and his friends, whether it be playing pool, going out, or to rugby matches. After his Nirvana, Levellers, and Jimi Hendrix phase, he grew to love drum and bass, perhaps because he played the drums and loved the patterns. Anyway, he started raving at the Que Club in Birmingham with his friends. It wasn’t long before I started going – a little Pacheco raver at the front embarrassing myself! Flashback…those were the days! But you know, at the time I would never have thought I would eventually get to meet the people I was once a fan of! But from there on, I followed the DJs and music, and made it my mission to work for a D&B label when I moved to London to study PR at Westminster University. The first place I worked for was Hospital Records as an Intern. That was wicked. DJing at Hospitality is one of the most memorable experiences I’ve had to date. It was such a rush. My boyfriend at the time coincidentally worked at Valve, and so through him, I got to meet everyone there. At the same time, I got speaking to Jeryl [the former editor of DOA] and we got chatting, and as quick as you like, I was writing news and reviews for DOA, and it wasn’t long before I became Assistant Editor. That’s where it all started really.
Let’s go back, it’s your first time in the studio recording your first track. How did it feel? How does it compare to when you step into the booth nowadays?
Well my very first track was a garage track when I was 13 called “Make a move on me”. When I listen to it now [I have a version of it on tape, yes tape!] it sounds like I made it in the 80s, Haha! The lyrics are amazing. I have to laugh – it’s so funny. I should give you a clip of it for laughing sake. But everyone has to start somewhere right? At the time, I was working for a recording studio on an intern basis. They caught wind I could sing and they got me singing on tracks – that being one of them. I just remember being stood there in this huge grey soundproofed room feeling quite nervous and not having a clue about studio recording! But they were nice guys and taught me the ropes and it wasn’t long before I was telling them when I wanted to double-track and harmonize. I knew all the basics anyhow from bands etc, but singing live is completely different from singing in the studio. They had a lot of artists passing through, and it was through the studio that I got loads of session singing work. Sometimes getting paid £30 for singing a line! Those were the days… now, it feels second nature I’ve done it so much. It’s a proud moment when you hear a finished track, and when you get a vinyl through the post…well, that seals it for me.
Multitalented you are, tell us about your alias DJ Camo? How long have you been chopping, cutting and eq’ing it?
Haha yes DJ Camo. Do you want to know how I came up with that name? Tony Coleman, Tom from Hospital, Chris Goss, and I…we were sat in the car on our way to Hospitality and they asked me what I was going to call myself. We decided on a name together, I think on the basis I used to wear lots of camo stuff! It was that instant. Surely more thought is supposed to go into these things? But it sure is hard coming up with a DJ name. DJ Pacheco just didn’t sound right. Haha. But when I played at Hospitality I did end up wearing a camo top, so it worked well. It didn’t work so well when I wore a skirt and black shirt when I played at Movement. But sadly, I don’t DJ anymore. I don’t know why I gave it up really…I should get back into it! I think it’s because you have to produce these days too and I haven’t had time to learn and do it all. But who knows what the future holds?
What’s your format? Vinyl, CD or MP3?
I hate this question because the obvious choice is vinyl, I think for most DJ/ Producers. Vinyl has a much warmer sound and of course, is a physical symbol attributed to the growth of dance music. You can’t beat the sound you get from a 12”. But, sadly, it costs a fortune to keep up with these days what with so many tunes being released. For that reason, most people/DJs/producers choose MP3. It’s an interesting one though, because if we all just give in to the cost etc, we are perpetuating the loss of such an iconic format, so I do respect those that are sticking with it no matter what.
What other secret talents do you possess that we may not already know about?
I’m currently learning to pole dance, thanks to my best friend who is a pole-dancing teacher.
I can play chopsticks, the theme tune to the film “Big”, and “The entertainer” on the keyboard.
I used to play 3 instruments: violin, French horn, and clarinet. I can read Braille [on a basic level].
With Bungle residing in Brazil, SKC heralding from Hungary and State of Mind originating from New Zealand, has your voice taken you to all the corners of the globe? Or do producers work with you in the UK?
I wish! Producers work with me via AIM. I usually record the vocals at home or in the Bugz in the Attic studio and then send them over for them to lay in the track and produce final mix. I have been invited to Finland though to record vocals for LAOS, so that will be great when I go over there.
Who are the producers you’d most like to work with in and outside of the realms of DnB?
Other than Phonte and Darien Brockington, I’d love to work with some house producers like Eric Prydz and Fedde Le Grand, Soul producers like John Legend, and even former garage producers like MJ Cole. I love drum and bass but my voice is more suited to the more melodic tracks where I can really sing. Sometimes with D&B you can only do a little hook because that’s all the track needs, which can be a little frustrating because you want to write an essay! But making a huge house track and then featuring in the video would be so ace. That’s definitely a dream of mine.
Are there any other artists (singers/rappers) you’d really like to collaborate with?
Phonte, phonte, phonte…and Darien Brockington. I know I keep repeating that, but I am their number one fan. I heart them so much. They’re talent is astounding and in my opinion, unmatchable. Of course there are others, such as all of the people I listed as my favourite artists before, but those two would be my ultimate dream. Erykah Badu, Stevie Wonder, Beyonce, Estelle, or George Michael would be good ones too.
The last song you wrote, what was it called? Tell us about the story behind it and how you went about writing the lyrics.
Well I’m writing lyrics at the moment for some new projects I’m doing with Spy and LAOS but in terms of finished projects, my last finished track was “Gota Touch”, as featured on Zero T’s album, “Cheap Shots”. The theme behind that one was to do with relationships: I’m trying to say that even though things can get complicated in a relationship, you might find you say horrible things to each other, or you might not tell someone what you’re thinking all of the time, if you’re in love, then that’s just part of the game, you still love that person and want to be close to them. Hence the “Gota touch” part. It’s just how love is – messy!
In terms of writing the lyrics, what normally happens is, a producer sends me a track they want me to write vocals for and then I listen to it and see if I can write something to it. If I do, I vibe off the track and write down whatever comes to me when I listen to it first time round, and then build off that, usually by going away, listening to other music, and coming back to it.
I’ve also started writing a new track for Zero T called “Admirals Lament” it is a hiphop track and I gave it a catchy hook. The lyrics are:
“This is mine, the ministry of whole, get up she said, she swore, you’ll never be left alone, this is life, derivative of cold, get up, she said, bail out, and you’ll never be someone”
That was about my dad leaving my mom and how my mom promised no matter what, I’ll never be left on my own, she will always be there for me. But ultimately, unless I get up and get on with life, I’ll never be someone. She was sort of saying, don’t mope around for too long, you have to be strong. That track hasn’t been finished yet, but I’m hoping it will be this year, along with another one called “Missing you”.
What does 2009 hold in store for you? Which producers will you be working with?
This year, I will be working with Spy, Chris SU, LAOS, hopefully Klute, and hopefully Zero T again! I’d like to collaborate with Break, Cable or Serum, but will have to see what happens!
