You are pretty young producer, first Identity’s tunes were signed in 2006. Success and fame came with ‘Brain Dead’ which has been released on Renegade Hardware’s sister label Barcode. How did you meet other members of your collective? What made u decide to get involved in drum’n’bass and start producing this genre altogether? How long have you been producing drum’n’bass?

It was around 2 years ago, when myself and Jonny (cbx) was trying to collab on a track, so John (Dstruct) helped us with some beats, and then Identity was born.  One more guy was added to the collective, Shawn (Korosiv), Jonny's ex flatmate. I started to become interested in drum & bass after Marky playing in a club in the city i was born in, Rio De Janeiro. After this i was drawn to the sound in a big way, it was around 7 years ago. Since then i have built my records collection and took my first steps into dnb production.

Do you have any musical background?

Not much really, i had some basic music lessons with Andre (Bungle) and at present i only work using software.

Which producers and what music are the main influence for Identity?

For Identity, we take inspiration from the techno sound, we all have respect for Raiden, Cause 4 Concern and of course Kemal. All of us bring something from our musical past to the table when we make tracks, techno is a big part our sound and i also produce techno tracks under various names.

Identity is the collective of four producers spread out over Brazil and USA. How do co-operations between all of you guys work in this case? Who does what in the studio?

Although nothings is ever routine, basicly me and Shawn will start new ideas, Jonny records any vocals and Dstruct engineers the tracks. All of our work is done over the Internet, mainly AIM.

I heard that new Identity tunes will come out on Flatline Audio, Venom Inc and Freak Recordings this year. Can you tell us more details about it?

Yeah, this year is looking really good for us, Dylan just signed a track called Hell of Techno, which is forthcoming on Freaks sister imprint Obscene. This is a step forward that we're all very excited about. We also have more tracks comming out very soon on Venom Inc Recordings, a new label specialising in the darker techno edged sound of dnb, the one to pay attention this year. Our Strong Bad track will be released very soon on Darkitek, a puerto rican label which is making some big noise in dnb. Flatline Recordings are to release a CD based LP which i will mix for them, a project which i'm looking forward to!

What projects are you currently working on? What are Identity’s further plans for the future? What more can we expect from Identity this year?

Expects lots more from Identity as we continue to shape our sound and style, coming soon will be collabs with The Sect, Infiltra, Gremlinz, Kano, Define and Masheen. I'm currently in Europe starting a tour to promote our tracks and showcase our sound to the world, working on my solo projects, drum & bass and techno, deep dnb tracks under the alias Vinicius with my good friend Gusta, who lives in Sao Paulo too.

Let’s talk about Grind Recordings, a new drum’n’bass label that you launched. It seems to be more and more recognized and bigger. What are the artists that you feature on it?

Grind is my new baby! I'm taking care that I'm involved with every step of its growth, and to make sure we stay focused on dancefloor music with quality tracks. My point with this label is to release tracks made by Brazilians and firends around the globe. I'm really glad to say i already have some really talented names like Tetradin, who are doing serious damage in the USA on labels like Human, Hardware and Freak. Other friends involved with it is my man in the UK, Masheen, he's working hard to keep DSCI4 on the spot as the new A&R helping Trace. Representin Brasil, 2 of the best Brazilian producers, CABLE who is making big waves on every big label around and just got a track signed on INNERGROUND (Marky's label) and SPY, who lives in UK right now and is resident at the Hospital and Metalheadz parties everywhere. I'm excited to have these boys on my side for the label. And to kick things off, GRIND001 will feature a Commix remix of an unreleased Identity track.

Future of Grind Recordings? What have you planned for this year?

As well as the established talent on the rosta, we have a quality line up of new names breaking through including Jiant (USA), Solarcube (Hungary) and Brazilian boys Gusta & Digital Hunters, lots of  other stuff to come, check the myspace for more info (www.myspace.com/grindrecordings).

Which drum’n’bass producer do you rate most at the moment and why?

For me, Raident is leading the way as far as techno-dnb goes, every track he makes he takes it to a new level, a great producer.

Identity has collaborated with Sunchase (‘4D’– Salvage Digital,2006), Catacomb (‘Sadist’ Darkitek Music,2006) and with 4Pro (‘Snap’ – Ohm Resistance,2006) so far. What can you say about those producers, collaboration etc.?

The Sunchase collab was our first Identity finished track, Sunchase is a close friend of Dstruct and now mine too, a very talented producer. 4D was made for Salvage, funky amd techy business, one of my fav Identity track ever. Sadist was done with Catacomb, only good words about these boys, they are doing big thing right now. The collab with 4Pro (another Brazilian producer) was to be our solo track, BTK and 4Pro, but the Ohm Resistance owner prefered to release it as Identity which was cool for sales and Identity name. It was our first track signed and our style has evolved a lot since then, but a good tune and works well with the crowd. I love to do collabs and mix experience and influences with other producers.

Chosing between spinning records and producing, what would you prefer and why?

I started as a DJ so I'm more into DJing, i really like to feel how the crowd feels when you play a tune you believe in 100%. Production is another world for me, another chance to connect with the crowd and thats important because people might not know your face but if you make a good track people will listen to it everywhere and your name will reach them before you do in person as a DJ.

What can people expect from your sets?

Intense mixes, full of energy, techno :).

What do you think are current strengths and weaknesses of the scene?

I think the main strength is the sense of unity between all kinds of different areas of dnb. Boundries are beginning to come down and people are experimenting more. The fact that the scene grows every day is something that we all should be grateful for. As some music scenes stay stuck in the past, weaknesses always be present within any worldwide community, an example of this in dnb is the whole dubplate drama that engulfs it, tracks are being traded round like tokens and i think its getting out of hand.

The future of drum’n’bass? Will it stay underground forever?

Because it changes so often it is hard to predict the future of dnb, but with more new blood coming through all the time i'm sure it will continue to evolve and shape peoples ideas about music, as for staying underground. Everyone has a different opinion on it and my thoughts are with the overall state of the scene so if people are feeling what we do then to me thats enough validation.

How much does the Internet mean for underground genres like drum’n’bass? Is it the good/ proper way to produce, create drum and bass subculture? Does the music stay underground one in the Internet?

The Internet is a great resource for getting any music heard by lots of people in a short amount of time, but as with all music formats it has its downfalls such as piracy and leaks. As for producers it is also a great way to collab and make music with people you otherwise would never get to meet.