Calibre (musician)
Dominick Martin, better known by his stage name Calibre, is a Northern Irish drum and bass music producer and DJ from Belfast. He is highly regarded for his influence on the liquid funk style of drum and bass, which was partially named after his distinct production style. He started producing drum and bass in 1995, with his first signed release in 1998 under the now-defunct Quadraphonic record label. He primarily releases his own works through his personal label, Signature Recordings, but has also released on labels such as Hospital Records, V Recordings, and Soul:R.
Calibre | |
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Calibre playing in his hometown of Belfast, Northern Ireland in February 2019 | |
| Background information | |
| Birth name | Dominick Martin |
| Also known as | Loose Dragon |
| Origin | Belfast, Northern Ireland |
| Genres | Drum and bass, liquid funk |
| Occupation(s) |
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| Years active | 1995–present |
| Labels | Quadraphonic, Creative Source, V Recordings, Soul:R, Signature Recordings, Br:nk |
According to UKF, none of Martin's productions have been officially remixed by other artists.
Through Quadraphonic, he came to the attention of drum and bass DJ Fabio, who signed Martin to his record label, Creative Source, and released his debut album Musique Concrète (2001), named after the musique concrète compositions of John Cage whom he was influenced by while attending the University of Ulster in Belfast. Although 21 songs were chosen for the final release of the album, 300 songs in total were created by Martin for the album.
Many of his productions–some of which were unreleased at the time–became synonymous with liquid funk due to Fabio playing most of Martin's productions on his BBC Radio 1 show, Liquid Funk, and at Swerve club nights co-ran by LTJ Bukem in the early 2000s. Beginning in 2007, some of these unreleased productions would be released under the "Shelflife" series of albums alongside other works by Martin on his personal record label, Signature Recordings.
In 2003, Martin was commissioned by Warner Music Group for a remix of "Put That Woman First" from Jaheim's Still Ghetto album (2002). Despite Jaheim's disapproval of the remix, 1000 limited-edition white label vinyl records were pressed with permission from Warner due to the underground popularity garnered by the remix. In 2023, the remix was included on a compilation album for purchase on digital storefronts.
In 2019, a remix by Martin was included in an extended play of "Swan Song" by Dua Lipa.
Also in 2019, Martin was awarded Critics Choice in the Drum&BassArena Awards 2019.