We put 10 quick-fire questions to Clydebank’s “Posh End” label boss Fear-E
A hometown DJ and producer, allegedly hailing from the “Posh End” of Clydebank (Scotland), Scott McKay goes under the name of Fear-E. A true school purveyor and lover of jacked up House, Techno and Electro who likes to draw on the raw edged sounds of Chicago and Detroit.
He also likes embraces all shades of the UK’s rave heritage as a lover of Breakbeat, Jungle and Hardcore orientated music that influenced the 90/00s rave scenes he grew up in, which he also likes to express when presenting his ‘Breakbeat Energy’ moniker.
Having notched up an impressive discography with releases on respected imprints such as Dixon Avenue Basement Jams and Dark Entries. Scott runs his own imprint “Posh End Music”, paying homage to his roots with the simple ethos of releasing quality Electronic music. Not to mention his other newly founded outlet “Breakbeat Energy”, which as you can guess by the title, is dedicated to all other forms of music that emanate from the hardcore orientated spectrum.
Over the last decade or so, Scott has been serving up up fiery DJ sets across the land that are never short of impact. He’s made various radio guest slot spots and more recently seen his music get air play over at BBC Radio 1, 6 Music and Rinse FM, with his tracks making Radio 1’s Essential Mix on a few occasions.
With support growing for his productions, gaining support amongst the likes of Randomer, Jerome Hill, James Ruskin, Bloody Mary, Paul Woolford, Skream, The Hacker, Dave Clarke, Ben Sims and even the late great Andrew Weatherall (a proud moment to say the least). Scott is powering on full stream ahead with his next audio adventures.
With the next edition of “Posh End” having landed a few weeks ago, we got busy and fired 10 questions at him:
Name your first love musically speaking?
My first real love after I progressed from Now That’s What I Call Music albums, was metal, when I was maybe about 9 or 10. It started off with Guns N Roses, then steadily got more into bands like Metallica, Sepultura, Napalm Death etc. I still revisit some metal albums once in while for nostalgia.
When and where was the first rave you attended?
The first proper rave I went to was Rezerection at The Royal Highland Centre in Edinburgh in 1994 when I was 14. The line-up had Joey Beltram, Dave Angel and Randall on it which was completely mental for that time in Scotland. It was an all-nighter, so I definitely wasn’t allowed to go by my parents, and subsequently got caught and grounded for a month. Totally worth it though!
What do you get up to when you’re not banging out the beats?
I’m an absolute boring old fart right now. Making music and playing any gigs are the most exciting things that happen with me these days. I watch quite a lot of sports and TV series/films, there’s not much else to shout about.
Is Posh End an actual place or just something you do?
The Posh End started by me proclaiming to my mates, that where I stay is the poshest bit of the town, but it’s really not posh at all. I’ve kept this long running shite joke going for years, so it made sense to have it in some of my EP titles, and then name my record label after it.
How do you know when a track/EP is done?
Usually the first real acid test is when I have a mix and see how a new track (or tracks) holds up against something that is similar in style and is already mastered, I’ll then pass it over to a few people for a second opinion.
What are the best and worst records you’ve ever heard?
That is the million dollar question as it changes all the time! Right now I’d say Jeff Mills – The Purpose Maker EP in terms of every track being A+ but I could say that about loads of Mills releases to be honest.
As for the worst, I try not to project any negativity in that sense, I’ll keep that in my head haha.
Who tweaks the 303 more to your taste: Armando or Phuture?
Most definitely Armando.
What’s better on chips, Curry Sauce or Mayonnaise?
Hard one, but when push comes to shove it’s curry sauce.
Rangers or Celtic?
Being punished for my sins by being a Rangers fan at the moment.
How would you describe your spirit animal, if there’s such a thing?
It would probably be a sloth…
Fear-E / Jerome Hill – The City 2 City is out now on Posh End Music:
