Benson ft. Thom Crawford “Hollow” (Billy Kenny Remix)

Billy Kenny is a name you should get to know. The young UK producer recently shipped across the pond to Germany, where he currently resides, and he’s been building momentum after his acclaimed dirtybird EP earlier this year. In addition to making tunes and playing clubs, he also runs the fledgling label This Ain’t Bristol with a couple of his mates.

He was called upon by the lads at Sweat It Out! to take on Australian wonderkid Benson’s latest track, “Hollow.” Shuffling drums meet squelching bass blasts, sending this one right to peak-time territory. We got the jump on the premiere before it hits shelves next week, so catch a couple words from Mr. Kenny below, and keep an eye out for the entire release September 4.

Creatively, how did the work on this track stack up to previous studio sessions? Was this more challenging to complete than others?
This project was genuinely a tough challenge for me, and this is actually the third version, because I wasn’t 100 percent on the other two others I’d started. Thom’s vocal is super cool, but it’s in triplets (as Benson’s original is) so fitting it onto a straighter beat wasn’t easy, and I was a bit limited with which parts I could use. I’m really happy with the final project, though, and I’m glad I was picky about the first two attempts.

Were you impulsive on this track, or did you have a sketch in mind before you started?
As this was my third attempt, I was just in an “anything goes” kind of mood. I think it brings out the best in me when I’m in that frame of mind, anyway.

Have you played this one out in any of your sets? If so, what was the response?
Yeah, I actually played it in Brunswick (Germany) last month, and they loved it! I even had people miming words they didn’t know—that’s always a good sign!

What’s your favorite sound/synth/effect/etc. used here?
It’s gotta be the big offbeat stab! That was actually the sound that everything revolved around from the start, and the rest was just built around it.

How do you measure the success of a track?
I usually use a “bass-face-ometer,” but mine’s broken and it’s out of warranty. I’m not really sure. I guess, one of those tracks that DJs don’t want to play anymore because it’s been in everyone’s set for the last six months. That’s quite a negative way of looking at it, but those kind of tracks always come back a year later, and the crowd is like, “Whoaa, I forgot about this!”

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