Loadstar were a music production duo from

Bristol Bristol () is a City status in the United Kingdom, cathedral city, unitary authority area and ceremonial county in South West England, the most populous city in the region. Built around the River Avon, Bristol, River Avon, it is bordered by t ...

, United Kingdom. They produced mainly

drum and bass Drum and bass (commonly abbreviated as DnB, D&B, or D'n'B) is a genre of electronic dance music characterised by fast Break (music)#Breakbeat (element of music), breakbeats (typically 165–185 Tempo, beats per minute) with heavy Bass (music) ...

, while also working in other genres such as

dubstep Dubstep is a genre of electronic dance music that originated in South London in the early 2000s. The style emerged as a UK garage offshoot that blended 2-step rhythms and sparse dub production, as well as incorporating elements of broken ...

and electro. The duo consisted of Gavin "Xample" Harris and Nick "Lomax" Hill. They previously produced under the alias Xample & Lomax.

Career

2007–2009: Record deal and formation

The two artists met while Bristol-born Xample was studying sociology at Liverpool University. Lomax was one-third of the production trio Holdtight at the time. Xample booked Holdtight for a

event, and Lomax moved to Bristol shortly afterwards. Xample sent some tracks to

Andy C Andrew Michael Clarke (born 7 April 1976) is an English DJ, record producer and co-founder of RAM Records, a label in the drum and bass genre. Music career Early years Andy C was a DJ in his own right but gained a strong reputation and more ...

via instant message, and soon afterwards was signed to his label

RAM Records RAM Records is an independent record label established in 1992 by Andy C with the help of his friend Ant Miles. It specialises in drum and bass Drum and bass (commonly abbreviated as DnB, D&B, or D'n'B) is a genre of electronic dance m ...

. The duo's first release was the track " The Latter" which was released on 28 May 2007. It featured as a B-side to Xample's track " Lowdown" and was released on

. Their second collaboration was "Contra" (released as a single on 2 February 2009). Throughout 2009 they shared studio space and began to release more material together.

2010: Formation of Loadstar

On 26 April 2010, they released a single on RAM titled "Remember / Rushin Dragon". On 27 September 2010, they released their first song under the Loadstar alias: "Link to the Past / Rapidas". To tie in with the song title they looked through old rave tape packs and computer game cassettes until they found an old

E-mu E-mu Systems was a software synthesizer, audio interface, MIDI interface, and MIDI keyboard manufacturer. Founded in 1971 as a synthesizer maker, E-mu was a pioneer in samplers, sample-based drum machines and low-cost digital sampling music ...

sampler. The old interface took a long time to load each sample and displayed a spinning star while loading. Hence the moniker "Loadstar" was born.

2010–2011: Commercial breakthrough

During late 2010, the duo also started producing for Hadouken!, starting with their singles "Mecha Love" and "

Oxygen Oxygen is a chemical element; it has chemical symbol, symbol O and atomic number 8. It is a member of the chalcogen group (periodic table), group in the periodic table, a highly reactivity (chemistry), reactive nonmetal (chemistry), non ...

". On 14 November 2010, their remix of

Example Example may refer to: * ''exempli gratia'' (e.g.), usually read out in English as "for example" * .example, reserved as a domain name that may not be installed as a top-level domain of the Internet ** example.com, example.net, example.org, an ...

's " Two Lives" was released as their first Loadstar remix. In 2011 collaborations became more frequent, including remixes for Breakage,

Chase & Status Chase & Status are an English electronic music duo composed of Saul Milton (Chase) and Will Kennard (Status). In addition, Andy Gangadeen is the drummer when the band performs live. MC Rage formerly performed as MC with the group, but left in ...

and Jess Mills. They received airplay from major radio stations such as

BBC Radio 1 BBC Radio 1 is a British national radio station owned and operated by the BBC. It specialises in modern popular music and Contemporary hit radio, current chart hits throughout the day. The station provides alternative genres at night, including ...

, and were asked by

Annie Mac Annie Macmanus (born 18 July 1978), known professionally as Annie Mac, is an Irish DJ, broadcaster and writer. She hosted a variety of shows on BBC Radio 1, including BBC Switch and ''Future Sounds''. She also DJed in various locations, includ ...

to create a mashup of

Jessie J Jessica Ellen Cornish (born 27 March 1988), known professionally as Jessie J, is an English singer and songwriter. Born and raised in London, she began her career on stage, aged 11, with a role in the West End musical '' Whistle Down the Wind ...

's "

Price Tag A price tag is a label declaring the price of an item for sale. It may be a sticker or attached by twist tie or other means. Some jurisdictions require items (possibly exceptions for bulk good and produce) to be individually marked with the p ...

". On 28 March 2011, they released the second Loadstar single, titled "Space Between / BLVD". "Space Between" was their first track to have an official music video. On 24 July 2011, their track "Kaoss" was released as part of ''RAM 100'', the label's hundredth release. They went on to release the single "Berlin / Hit the Ground" and a remix of

Ed Sheeran Edward Christopher Sheeran ( ; born 17 February 1991) is an English singer-songwriter. Born in Halifax, West Yorkshire, and raised in Framlingham, Suffolk, he began writing songs around the age of eleven. In early 2011, Sheeran independently r ...

's " You Need Me, I Don't Need You" in 2011.

2012–2013: ''Every Weekend'' and ''Future Perfect''

2012 saw a redesign of Loadstar's image: they created a new logo and began to gain recognition from a wider audience. The duo remixed "Tommy's Theme" by

Noisia Noisia was a Dutch electronic music trio from Groningen, Netherlands. The trio was composed of Nik Roos, Martijn van Sonderen, and Thijs de Vlieger. Their music spanned several genres, including drum and bass, dubstep, breakbeat, and house. They ...

which appeared on the special edition of their album Split the Atom, re-released by

mau5trap Mau5trap (stylized as mau5trap; pronounced "mousetrap") is a Canadian independent record label founded in 2007 by electronic music producer Deadmau5. The label was formerly a vanity label, hosting releases through labels such as Ultra Music, V ...

. They produced "Parasite", the lead single from Hadouken!'s third studio album '' Every Weekend''. It was released as a free download on 11 April 2012, and the song was later released alongside remixes on 19 May. They also produced the majority of tracks on '' Every Weekend'', including the album's fifth single " Levitate" which was co-produced by

. On 8 May, they released a free two-track single titled "Second Skin / Terror Drone". On 8 July, they released their first extended play titled "Passenger / Bomber", alongside a remix of "Passenger" by Culprate. In September, they released a remix of Excision's "Sleepless", as part of his

remix album ''X Rated: The Remixes''. In November, they released a remix of

Rudimental Rudimental are a British drum and bass band, signed to Asylum Records, Atlantic Records and Black Butter Records. The band consists of Piers Aggett, Kesi Dryden and Leon "Locksmith" Rolle. They were nominated for a Mercury Prize in 2013, and ...

's single Not Giving In featuring John Newman and

Alex Clare Alexander George Clare (born 14 September 1985) is a British singer and songwriter based in Jerusalem, Israel. His debut album, ''The Lateness of the Hour (Alex Clare album), The Lateness of the Hour'', was released in the UK on 8 July 2011 on ...

. They released a remix of The Good Natured's song "5-HT" as a free download in December. Their most popular release to date, "Black and White" featuring Benny Banks, was released on 9 December 2012. The official video has accumulated over one million

YouTube YouTube is an American social media and online video sharing platform owned by Google. YouTube was founded on February 14, 2005, by Steve Chen, Chad Hurley, and Jawed Karim who were three former employees of PayPal. Headquartered in ...

views. It was later announced that this was to be the first single from their debut album. It was announced in February that the duo would be releasing their debut album, titled ''

Future Perfect The future perfect is a verb form or construction used to describe an event that is expected or planned to happen before a time of reference in the future, such as ''will have finished'' in the English sentence "I will have finished by tomorrow." ...

'', on 5 May 2013. However, this was later delayed to 26 May. On 8 February, they released the track "Drowning" from the album as a free download. On 21 April 2013, "Refuse to Love / Flight" featuring uncredited vocals from Takura was released as the album's second single. On 9 May 2013, they announced the fifteen-track standard edition album track list. It includes guest appearances from

Scrufizzer Amary Lorenzo, better known as Scrufizzer, is an English rapper, MC, singer-songwriter, and record producer from West London. He first gained recognition as a grime producer before building a reputation for his bashment-influenced flow and v ...

, Takura, Jakes, Benny Banks, Jenn D, Hadouken! and Lloyd Yates. The deluxe edition of the album features seven extra tracks. On 7 June 2014, "Give It To Me" appeared in the pilot episode of American crime drama ''

Power Power may refer to: Common meanings * Power (physics), meaning "rate of doing work" ** Engine power, the power put out by an engine ** Electric power, a type of energy * Power (social and political), the ability to influence people or events Math ...

''.

2013–2016: RAMLife - Loadstar

In 2013, the duo produced

grime Grime may refer to: * Dirt, in the form of black, ingrained dust Music * Grime music, a genre of music * ''Grime'' (album), a 2001 album by Iniquity * "Grime", a 2023 song by Macklemore from ''Ben'' * "Grime", a 2024 song by Kittie from ''Fire ...

and UK rap songs for

Dot Rotten Joseph Ellis-Stephenson (born 19 October 1988), better known by his stage name Dot Rotten, Zeph Ellis or Who's British is a British grime MC, rapper, singer, songwriter and record producer from Lambeth, South London. Having released a series of ...

, Benny Banks and Scrufizzer. They also produced

P Money Paris Joel Moore-Williams (born 8 April 1989), better known by his stage name P Money, is a British grime MC, rapper and songwriter from New Cross, South East London, who is also active in the drum and bass scene. He is best known for his li ...

's 2013 single "Round the Clock", the title track from his EP on

Rinse Rinse or rinsing may refer to: *Rinse, a step in washing **Rinse cycle of a washing machine **Rinse cycle of a dishwasher *Rinse, a method of shampoo or hair coloring. See hair care and hair conditioner. * ''Rinse'' (album), a 2003 album by Mino ...

. "Bomber" was featured in Gran Turismo 6 in 2013. The first single after ''Future Perfect'', entitled "Stepped Outside" / "Under Pressure", was released on 6 April 2014. On 17 April, "Stepped Outside" was added to

BBC Radio 1Xtra BBC Radio 1Xtra is a British digital radio station owned and operated by the BBC. It broadcasts Black music and urban music, including hip hop and R&B and is a sister station to Radio 1. Launching at 18:00 on 16 August 2002, it had been ...

's C-list and it rose to their B-list on 24 April, staying in rotation for the following week. The song features uncredited vocals from Caan. On 13 July 2014, Dot Rotten released his second studio album ''Interview'' for free download, which included the Loadstar production "Determination". On 18 August 2014, RAM Records launched RAMLife, a series of albums containing the very best of recent RAM Records releases and other songs from other labels and artists with an hour long continuous mix from the featured artist. The first instalment was presented by Loadstar including some of their most popular tracks. The duo's next single, "Native" / "Once Again", was released on 28 August 2015, over a year later from their RAMLife album and features uncredited vocals on "Native" from Danny Shah. On 1 December Loadstar was a song titled "Keeping Me High" featuring the Scottish indie band

Prides Prides are a Scotland, Scottish Independent music, indie band formed in Glasgow in 2013 and made up of Stewart Brock (lead vocals, keys), Callum Wiseman (guitar, keys, vocals), and Lewis Gardiner (drums, production). They released their debu ...

. The following single, "Lifeline" / "Switch", was released on 5 February 2016. "Lifeline" features uncredited vocals from Cleo Tighe of The Six. The second single of 2016 titled "Red Rock" / "On The Wheels", this was released on 24 June. their final song of 2016 was titled "Change the Channel" / "Encarta", and was released on 14 October. All these singles were non-album singles.

2017–2020: ''I Need the Night''

On 20 January 2017, the duo released "I Need the Night" as the lead single from their forthcoming second studio album of the same name. The album's second single, "Diamonds", features vocals from Takura, and was released 23 March 2017. Its third single, "Give Yourself", was released on 21 July 2017. On 2 July, Loadstar also released a single entitled "Ring Ring" in collaboration with UK rap artist and former

Section Boyz Smoke Boys (formerly Section Boyz and before that Squeeze Section) were a British hip hop collective started by British rapper Ghost in 2010. On 25 September 2015 the group's second mixtape '' Don't Panic'' entered at number 36, making their fir ...

member Reeko Squeeze.

Discography

Studio albums

* ''

'' (2013) * ''I Need the Night'' (2017)

Singles

Other appearances

Remixes

Production credits

References

{{Authority control English electronic music duos Musical groups established in 2009 English record producers Record production duos British electronic dance music duos British male musical duos British drum and bass music groups Living people Year of birth missing (living people) RAM Records artists British remixers Drum and bass duos British record production teams Musical groups from Bristol 2009 establishments in England