ABOUT ECHO BEACH

Nobody knows exactly where that ominous Echo Beach can really be found, about which the new wave band Martha & the Muffins tell in their song of the same name. But dub connoisseurs agree that the fictional dream beach with the long reverberation is on the banks of the Elbe. For a quarter of a century the label Echo Beach, headed by Nicolai Beverungen from the first to this day, has been supplying continental Europe with Dub music from Hamburg. Whether from the UK, as in the legendary first edition of the king-size dub series, with which it all began, or from Germany (as in episode 3 of the series) from Australia, Italy, South Africa, the USA or the motherland of dub – Jamaica. Over the years, Echo Beach and the sub-labels Dude, Select Cuts and Avanart have made a decisive contribution that is unique for the German-speaking area with dozens of compilations, re-issues and in-house productions.

The music industry, dazzling, extravagant, sophisticated, at least from an outsider’s point of view. If you talk to those familiar with the industry, terms such as pressure to succeed, internal and external competition and deadlocked structures come to mind. The enthusiasm and creativity of individual employees can quickly fall by the wayside. So what do you do if you love your job, but get on your nerves because of the constant differences of opinion with the management floor? Nicolai Beverungen faced this decision in 1994 and dared to take the step of self-employment by founding the ECHO BEACH label.

For more than 25 years now, ECHO BEACH has dedicated itself to the dissemination, maintenance and development of that exquisite secret science that has been called “Dub” since King Tubby’s days. Actually a niche product in the highly competitive sound carrier market, but one that has been stimulating the market without competition since then. “On the one hand, niche, so small – on the other hand, it is clearly laid out and quite effective. We, the little independent ones, are the connoisseurs who have our noses in the right place. I really can’t make big jumps, but I’m happy with what I’m doing.”

Nicolai Beverungen has given ECHO BEACH a personality and in doing so he represents a certain type of music that he believes in and for which he wants to inspire people. The beginning of his company’s history shows that he has succeeded in this very successfully. In cooperation with the legendary music magazine “Spex”, ECHO BEACH presented the sounds of the British “Digidub” scene with “King Size Dub 1”. King Size Dub developed into a cult series with a total of over 14 episodes. ECHO BEACH also acted as marketing consultant for Blood & Fire, the re-issue label from Manchester, financed by Simply Red, which saved the rare pearls of the roots reggae of the 70s from being forgotten. In addition, ECHO BEACH, in cooperation with Warner Brothers, paved the career path of the Berlin dancehall phenomenon SEEED and received gold and platinum for this first major signing.

In the meantime, Echo Beach LIFEFIDELITY has been supplemented by the sub-labels SELECT CUTS, Dude Records, Collision and Avantart. On the one hand this includes a lot of administrative activities, communication with press representatives and musicians as well as regular visits to the social networks, but on the other hand it is easy to implement as a one-man company thanks to the flat organizational structures. Above all, there is still time to develop ideas, which was the decisive factor for the entrepreneur for his independence. “LIFEFIDELITY – that is the motto of the party, life as enjoyment of life and of course the spirit that controls creativity and activity. I am a creative person, I have to be creative, otherwise I would be missing something. 70% of the time I approach artists and share my ideas and visions with them and most of them are quickly convinced. ”Whether Jan Delay, Stereo MC’s, Simply Red, Grace Jones, Joe Strummer, Fettes Brot, Lanrue from Ton Steine ​​Scherben or the POLICE Drummer Steward Copeland and much more he was able to win.

This creative approach then produces such bold sounding productions as the “Spoken Word” album “The Bible In Dub”, “DUB SPENCER & Trance Hill” vs. William S. Burroughs.

Concentrating on one style of music is certainly not the only formula for success. But if you mix them with know-how and passion, which Nicolai Beverungen calls “Dub”, a small idea becomes a solid company that is unrivaled even after 25 years. Above all, one in which the “dub” is lived with passion. “Dub and reggae belong together like sun and beach (= Echo Beach). It is a variety of reggae and it is impossible to imagine modern and current dance productions without it. But regardless of a musical genre, it is certain that the earth will continue to rotate and the music will continue to sound, as beautiful or as disharmonious as the centuries before, ”summarizes the ECHO BEACH founder.

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