Bvdub

Bvdub is an American electronic music producer originally from the San Francisco Bay Area. Since 2007 he has released more than 40 albums and EPs under this name and other pseudonyms including his birth name, Brock Van Wey. Residing in Shaoxing, China, he produces ambient and ambient techno music that has received critical acclaim from the likes of online magazines '' Resident Advisor'', '' Headphone Commute'' and '' Gridface''. His first release as Brock Van Wey, ''White Clouds Drift On And On'', was included in RA's Top 20 Albums of 2009.

Overview

Van Wey was born in 1974 and grew up in Livermore near San Francisco. He was classically trained as a child and from the age of five he was taught violin and, later, piano. By age eleven he had composed his first piece of music for the trio of cello, violin and viola and had written several more pieces by his mid-teens. Feeling that he did not actually enjoy classical music (and preferring instead to "remix" the pieces he learned in his head) he eventually gave it up altogether. In the early 90s he heard, by chance, a deep house mix tape that would inspire him to pursue electronic music. He was soon performing as a deep house and ambient DJ and appearing regularly at raves in San Francisco, initially under his own name and later under the bvdub moniker. Van Wey composed his first electronic piece in 1993 - an industrial techno/classical track - that differed significantly in style to the music he would later produce.

In 2001, Brock moved to China, having become disillusioned with the scene in San Francisco, and sought to make a fresh start in a country that had always held a fascination for him. He began work as a professor of English, teaching over 200 students. It was not until 2006 that he started to produce his own music after a friend spent time teaching him the finer details of various pieces of hardware and software. His first release as bvdub was ''Strength In Solitude LP'' in 2007, an album which comprises the first six tracks he created in the order that they were made.

In 2007 Van Wey founded the label ''Quietus Recordings'' in response to his friends' music being turned down by other record labels for being "too self-indulgent" or "too deep". Creating the label allowed bvdub and others to release their most personal compositions without fear of it being rejected. The label, in fact, encourages its artists to present only the music by which they would want to be remembered. To make each release as personal as possible, Van Wey takes the photos for the CD label and the cover art himself whilst listening to the music that the images are to accompany. The label has released bvdub's own recordings as well as productions by Quantec and Arc Of Doves.

After returning to China, following a period of living once more in San Francisco, a mutual friend put Van Wey in touch with indie label Darla Records. A fruitful relationship blossomed that has seen bvdub release several albums on the label to date including 2011's ''Resistance Is Beautiful'' and 2012's ''Serenity''.

In 2018 he was part of "The Ambient Files", a mix CD project by Stars Over Foy.

Name

The name ''bvdub'' was given to Brock by a colleague and is simply a shortening of his initials, BVW, rather than being intended to denote dub or dub techno music. Brock describes his own music as electronic, ambient and ambient techno (though prefers not to categorize it at all) and has stated that he has never produced anything he would associate with dub. However, he has worked with dub techno label and production duo Echospace, who released his album ''White Clouds Drift On And On'' and whose member Intrusion remixed it in full.

Discography

Albums

*2007 ''Strength In Solitude LP'' (2600 Records)
*2009 ''We Were The Sun'' (Quietus Recordings)
*2009 ''A Prayer To False Gods'' (Shoreless Recordings)
*2009 ''White Clouds Drift On And On'' (as Brock Van Wey) (echospace)
*2010 ''The Art Of Dying Alone'' (Glacial Movements Records)
*2010 ''A Silent Reign'' (Styrax Records)
*2011 ''Tribes At The Temple Of Silence'' ( Home Normal)
*2011 ''One Last Look At The Sea'' (Quietus Recordings)
*2011 ''The Truth Hurts'' (with Ian Hawgood) (Nomadic Kids Republic)
*2011 ''Songs For A Friend I Left Behind'' (Distant Noise Records)
*2011 ''I Remember (Translations of Mørketid)'' (Glacial Movements Records)
*2011 ''121 years''
*2011 ''Resistance Is Beautiful'' (Darla Records)
*2011 ''Then'' (AY)
*2012 ''The First Day'' ( Home Normal)
*2012 ''Don’t Say You Know'' (Darla Records)
*2012 ''Serenity'' (Darla Records)
*2012 ''Strangers No More'' (With Or Without You)
*2012 ''All Is Forgiven'' ( n5MD)
*2013 ''A Careful Ecstasy'' (Darla Records)
*2013 ''At Night This City Becomes The Sea'' (AY)
*2013 ''Born In Tokyo'' ( n5MD)
*2013 ''Erebus'' (with Loscil) (Glacial Movements Records)
*2014 ''I'll Only Break Your Heart'' (Darla Records)
*2014 ''Home'' (as Brock Van Wey) (echospace)
*2014 ''A History Of Distance'' ( n5MD)
*2014 ''Tanto'' (Quietus Recordings)
*2015 ''A Step In The Dark'' (AY)
*2015 ''Safety In A Number'' (Not On Label (Bvdub Self-Released))
*2017 ''Epilogues for the End of the Sky'' (Glacial Movements)
*2017 ''Heartless'' ( n5MD)
*2018 ''A Different Definition of Love'' (Dronarivm)
*2018 ''Drowning in Daylight'' (Apollo)
*2019 ''Explosions in Slow Motion'' ( n5MD)
*2020 ''Ten Times the World Lied'' (Glacial Movements)
*2020 ''Burn Back Time'' (Silent Reign)
*2020 ''101 Rooms'' (self-released)
*2020 ''Wrath & Apathy'' ( n5MD)

Compilations

*2011 ''Air Texture Volume 1'' (with Andrew Thomas) (Air Texture)
*2015 ''Lost Ambient'' (Not On Label (Bvdub Self-Released))
*2015 ''Tech From Times Past'' (Not On Label (Bvdub Self-Released))

References

External links

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{{Authority control

Year of birth missing (living people)
Living people
Deep house musicians
Darla Records artists