From Metal to Dubstep and Jump Up: The Journey of L3mmy Dubz

Liam Laverick, also known as ‘L3mmy Dubz’, is a dubstep and jump up producer from Saltburn, whose journey into the world of heavy electronic music hasn’t been conventional. 

His love for intense, heavy sounds began during his school days when he discovered heavy metal music. It was then he realised a passion for music with  raw edge. That was just the beginning of his dubstep adventure.

Discovering Dubstep

At the beginning of Liam’s music journey, electronic music wasn’t on his radar. But that changed when he stumbled across track Broken String by Tek One. The track introduced him into a new world of heavy basslines and aggressive dubstep rhythms.

Liam said: “Ever since I listened to that dubstep tune, I just wanted to find heavy electronic music like that, and I guess the rest is history with that one.”

Now age 27, Liam has been making music for 16 years and has went through a long process to get to where he is now.

Liam said: "I’ve been making music since I was 11. Back then, I’d loop kicks and snares on the decks, play them into Audacity, and generate square waves. It sounded awful, but I loved it."

Liam’s Dubstep Breakthrough

In 2018, Liam had a breakthrough with the release of  his track Aon. The track received significant support and led to a series of live gigs.

Liam said: “When I made and released Aon, that was a while ago now, that was back in 2018 when I released that track. It got loads of support and that’s what kickstarted my gigs for a while.

“I remember when I made that track, Hedex played it at Rampage; it was moments like that that made me realise I can make tunes that people will play and I’ve got to keep it going, people are actually enjoying this stuff .”

However, his musical journey hasn’t always been smooth. Liam admits that, like many producers, there are times he feels stagnant.

He said: “I’m at a point where I’m pretty stagnant at the moment, and that can get producers down a lot sometimes, and sometimes it does considering I was doing alright back in 2018.

"But I always try and tell myself that at the end of the day, you have the integrity to keep making music Liam, and you are lucky in yourself to be able to do that. Just keep going and something will pop up again, like it did in the past.”

Blending Genres like Dubstep and Jump Up and His Creative Spark

For Liam, music is about blending influences, pushing boundaries and not being afraid to experiment during the creative process.

He said: "I try to incorporate techniques from other stuff I like into the music I primarily enjoy."

Liam is now focused more on producing jump up music, a sub-genre of drum & bass, however it still shapes how he produces music.

"I always think of jump-up as heavy dubstep, just at 175 BPM," he said.

His approach to music production isn’t always technical, often inspiration strikes him when he least expects.

Liam said: “Random thoughts will pop up in my brain that I think of when creating a track.

“For example, it’s a pretty quirky one, I remember going on a walk in Saltburn and hearing the coo of a pigeon. I was just like, that would actually make a mint rhythm for a jump up tune. It’s just silly things like that, that when I’m out and about , I’ll go back, incorporate it and I will surprise myself sometimes.”

Advice for New Producers: Stay Inspired, Don’t Conform

Liam has some solid advice to share to aspiring producers.

“Be inspired and not to conform would be my advice to other producers. Like there’s nothing wrong with being inspired, but be you as a producer, produce what you want to produce,” he said.

“Like if someone was to say a sentence like I don’t know, you should make stuff that’s more commercially accessible. I totally get the advice behind that, but sometimes that can be a hinderance on originality because you are trying to cater to people.

"I feel like you should ultimately cater to yourself. You should like it first, and if other people like it, that’s fantastic. That’s great it’s a bonus.”

Future Aspirations

Although Liam loves heavy electronic music, his passion for sound design makes him want to explore new avenues.

He said: “I’d like to play lots of  gigs and have lots of releases but would like to take my music into other medias like games and film because as much as I like heavy electronic music my deep love is for sound design itself.”

Soon, Liam is headlining an event in Bristol, a city he’s never played before.

"I’ve got a booking come through for Bristol, where I’ve never played, and that’s a headline event, so I’m quite excited for that,” he said.

“We will just have to watch the space and see what happens.”

You can listen to L3mmy Dubz on Soundcloud and find out more on his Instagram and Facebook page.

Listen to the interview below.