Steve Bug has been pushing the boundaries of electronic music for close to three decades now, chiefly through his Poker Flat imprint, which this year celebrates its 25th anniversary.
A longstanding champion of emerging artists, last year Bug took part in the Mixmasters Retreat programme in Ibiza, coaching up and coming producers as part of a team that also included Huxley and Denney, as well as singer and songwriter Jade PraiZe. The output was so strong, that most of the tracks went on to feature in a series of compilations entitled Under One Roof, the final edition of which (Volume 5) was released during the summer.
It’s been a couple of years since 909originals last had the chance to catch up with Steve Bug, but as you will discover, he’s lost none of his zest for championing the underground, as well as offering advice for those seeking to gain a foothold on the electronic music ladder. Over to you, Steve.
Hi Steve, thanks for talking to us. When you took part in the Mixmasters Retreat in Ibiza, did you envisage that it would lead to the development of Under One Roof?
I knew from my first retreat that there would be some high-quality productions. However, the number of suitable tracks for the label at this retreat was quite special.
What stood out about the students’ work? And how did working alongside Huxley and Denney at the influence the final compilation?
Every coach attracts a different type of student, so Huxley and Denney definitely influenced the musical direction this retreat took. Naturally, each coach also affects the final outcome, so without Huxley and Denney, the result would have been different.
We’re doing another one in a few weeks, and it’s already booked out. I’m really looking forward to seeing what comes out of it this time.
What can we expect from the Under One Roof series in the future?
That obviously depends on the demos sent to us, but the idea is to continue featuring new talent alongside some well-known artists.
You have really focused on becoming a mentor in recent years to up-and-coming producers—why did you decide to take this step?
Passing on knowledge feels great, but being part of someone’s journey and watching them grow feels even better. That’s one of the many things I love about running a label as well.
Are there any recurring issues you encounter when working with emerging producers? And do you learn from them as well?
The main issue I see is self-confidence—many emerging producers are unsure if their work is good enough. Often, they just need a little push in the right direction and someone in the business to tell them their work is already pretty good, if not great. Offering a few tips here and there helps them rethink their approach, which leads to better production skills and faster progress.
One challenge I frequently encounter is mixing. It’s something that takes time to learn properly because it’s complex, and every track is different. That’s why I started offering stem mixdowns; I realised I really enjoy figuring out the issues, cleaning up frequencies, and making tracks work in a club environment.
I’ve learned a lot about my own tracks and mixes by working on other artists’ music. In general, you always learn something from your students—like a newly discovered shortcut in your DAW that you didn’t know about because you were stuck in your ways.
How important is community and collaboration in your work and across the broader music scene?
What made the early days of house and techno so great was that it was a small community of like-minded people. You almost knew everyone in the scene, at least by name. Now, it’s more about smaller, almost isolated communities—a group of people supporting each other but not leaving room for others to enter.
I’ve always loved collaborating with other artists, whether they’re big or small. For me, it’s always been about the music and sharing something with people I like. Nowadays, it feels more business-oriented, with management teams telling artists who to collaborate with and who to avoid.
For many, it’s all about growth, fame, and money—even to the point of trying to keep others from succeeding. I’ve never understood that behaviour; I’m always happy to see other artists grow.
How does it feel to celebrate 25 years of Poker Flat? What is the secret to Poker Flat’s longevity?
Probably our stubbornness—haha. Honestly, I’m not sure why we’re still here and relevant, but we’ve obviously been doing something right over the years. In retrospect, we’ve always signed music that we personally liked, and it turns out that a lot of those tunes are somehow timeless. This might be a big part of the mystery.
The Poker Flat story began with the Double Action EP, and specifically the track Loverboy. What do you remember about that track’s release, and did it mark a new chapter for you, musically?
Not musically, but it definitely opened a new chapter in my career overall. I’d been DJing for almost 10 years and producing for at least seven years by the time Loverboy came out. I had several releases under my belt and had been running Raw Elements for about three years. After the first bubble burst in the early 2000s, when everything shifted back to smaller clubs and a slower, more minimal sound, my career really started to take off.
What a lot of artists don’t understand nowadays is that it often takes time and consistency to break through. It took ten years, hundreds of club gigs, many releases, and running a label for three years before things finally happened for me on a bigger scale.
So, to young artists, I say: take your time to grow, and don’t give yourself a deadline by which you should have ‘made it’. But also keep in mind that you may never break through – so do it because you love it.
What have been some of the biggest challenges Poker Flat has faced, and how did you overcome them?
The transition from selling physical products like vinyl and CDs to downloads was relatively smooth, and for a while, we did both before going almost entirely digital. But moving from download stores to streaming is an ongoing challenge.
You have to rely on being added to bigger playlists with every release, as people now depend on playlists or algorithms to discover new music.
The art of digging for music has ended for most people; they listen to whatever is presented to them. But the way algorithms work, they only narrow your listening experience, so you end up hearing variations of the same thing over and over. And the revenue from streams is, unfortunately, a joke unless you’re at the top. This is one reason why many artists have started adding vocals to their tracks, trying to make their sound more mainstream.
Then there’s Bandcamp, where people still dig for music, but it seems to make a difference only in the indie sector.
How has Poker Flat’s approach to discovering new talent evolved over the years?
In the beginning, it was mainly demos from friends and people I already knew. As the label’s success grew, more and more people sent us demos, but there were only a certain number of artists producing the kind of music we were releasing at the time.
Over the years, more people started producing music, and we received many demo CDs via post every week. I used to listen to them on Wednesdays and discovered a few new artists that way. But at one point, the number of CDs became overwhelming, making it impossible to listen to every demo.
Eventually, we moved to pre-listen links via the web, but even then, it was impossible to get through everything. So I started reaching out to artists whose releases I liked and played, mostly those on smaller labels. I’d let them know I appreciated their music and invited them to send demos if they ever felt like it.
Up to today, I think this is still the best way to find suitable talent. I still try to listen to as many demos as possible, but often the music isn’t even close to suitable. Sometimes, emails only include a link without so much as a ‘hello’. I mean, why should someone click on that link if the person who sent it doesn’t have any manners or hasn’t put in any effort?
A fire breaks out, and you have to save one previous release from the Poker Flat archives. What do you choose and why?
Since everything is available digitally, I wouldn’t bother at all.
You’ve been making music for more than thirty years now. How has your approach to innovation in your music changed, and what drives you to continue exploring new sounds and techniques?
It might be my endless love for electronic music itself. For me, the reason to go to the studio isn’t to finish tracks; it’s simply to be there and work on music, whether it’s ever going to be released or not. I just enjoy working on music, trying to find something that really catches me, and that includes discovering new sounds or techniques.
You’ve spoken before about the importance of maintaining the ‘underground’ in dance music, particularly as the mainstream/commercial industry gets bigger and bigger. Do you think this is getting harder?
The most innovative music is definitely not happening in the mainstream. For dance music to survive, it needs artists who aren’t aiming to create something for everyone. Otherwise, we end up with the same kind of tracks over and over again. Becoming mainstream is the worst thing that can happen to any music movement—it has marked the end of pretty much all musical movements we know.
I strongly believe that house and techno have only survived so long because they were never fully accepted in the mainstream. They had a few hits here and there, but the music was never for everyone.
Today, it feels like all that exists is the mainstream, with big magazines mainly covering already established artists. These artists get huge features for releasing a new single or simply for playing an edit of a 90s euro-trash track. When was the last time you saw someone without a million followers get a big feature?
If I were a kid today and didn’t know what was happening beneath the surface, I would never even consider going to a club where they play electronic dance music.
We need more exposure for what’s happening outside the obvious. There’s so much great music being released and so much dedication from many artists that unfortunately goes completely unnoticed.
The underground is crucial because it’s where the real innovation and diversity happens—where artists take risks and push boundaries. Without it, the scene becomes stagnant, and that’s when things start to die off. It’s getting harder, but it’s more important than ever to keep that spirit alive.
Thanks Steve for talking to us. Photo by Marie Staggart. Keep up to date with his latest releases and tour dates here.
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