My first proper dalliances with Mary Anne came around about 2003 when I was getting heavily into the Breakcore and heavy Drum n Bass scenes, scenes that her show at the time, The Breezeblock, was heavily supporting, and I remember my absolute shock and admiration for the show for having Venetian Snares on to do a guest mix. Here was undoubtedly the most insane and intense music on the planet, being given a showcase on BBC Radio 1.
Even though I loved the music, it still shocked me that it was even allowed anywhere near our main national broadcaster, but these shows ensured that to me, Mary Anne Hobbs was one of the coolest women on the planet, and, along with John Peel, throughout 2003 & 2004 she steered me through a love of some of the heaviest shit around, and helped me find new artists from around the world I would never have discovered if I wasn't listening. Artists like Knifehandchop, Shitmat, Scotch Egg & Tim Exile etc would have never popped up on my radar if it wasn't for those 2 shows.
After John Peel passed away, it felt like Mary Anne was the only DJ left at Radio One who was championing the real underground scenes in electronic dance music.
Don't get me wrong, I think Radio 1 has a number of great DJ's and I think shows hosted by Pete Tong & Annie Mac etc are great and serve a massive purpose, but that purpose is to a majority of music fans who like their music fairly simple, straightforward and not rocking the boat too much. The Breezeblock was the one show left after Peels death for those who wanted their Dance music challenging, fresh, exciting, new and inventive.
During 2005 the show was featuring more and more of a brand new sound, a sound which had been given the term 'Dubstep', and in July of that year Mary Anne had a special guest mix from Vex'd. That mix changed my life. It was like music from another planet and it baffled me. Because I instantly loved it intrigued me because it sounded SLOW. Like music of doom, of an impending sonic war upon the senses. Again, I really can't emphasize enough how much that mix changed my life.
Throughout the rest of the year you could sense that Mary Anne's new found love of this music was building and building, and the way she spoke about it was infectious, and at the time you really felt along with her that this music was going to change the world, and then thanks to her help, on January 10th 2006, it did.
To bring that group of artists and DJ's together, who at the time were just starting out on careers which would lead them to many different paths, was nothing short of incredible, and that show will always remain one of Mary Anne's crowning moments, and its that special a show its just been repeated on Radio One on Sunday just gone for the 2nd time, something that is unheard of on the station. Add to that show the amazing Sonar specials she has curated the past few years, alongside the hundreds of guest mixes she has brought to the show from artists around the world, and I think its safe to say she has had the best show on Radio One for years now, and certainly the most important to fans of non mainstream dance music.
Personally, I have been privileged enough to meet Mary Anne on three occasions. The first time was when I promoted my night Jasbof for the first ever John Peel Day back in 2005 with Drop The Lime and Kid 606 playing. Radio One heard about it, got in touch, and the next thing I knew they were coming down to the dive of a venue I used to broadcast live on the night. IThe venue was a dive, yet I remember getting phone calls at 6pm that day from people exclaiming that 'Mary Anne is on Radio 1 in Hev'n n Hell saying she loves the griminess of it'.
My favorite memory of that night is when I had finished my set and Drop The Lime was about to start, and I had to persuade Mary Anne to get up behind the decks and introduce him. Typically, she didn't want to take away the shine from anyone else, but I really wanted her to so she finally gave in and got on the mic. The roar from the crowd when she did will live with me forever, and that night is one of the proudest achievements in my entire life. When the sets from that night then ended up being played on The Breezeblock the following Monday was the icing on the cake.
You can hear a clip of that night and Mary Anne introducing DTL below:-
The next time I met Mary Anne was when we played alongside each other at Chibuku Shake Shake here in Liverpool in February 2007. It was the first time Chibuku had ever put on Dubstep, my first ever set at the club, and Liverpool's first proper introduction to Dubstep in a room which was packed out. I think its safe to say looking back, that we both smashed it, but if that night hadn't of worked then things in my life might be very different, as one year later I was made resident at Chibuku, where I remain to this day, and have been lucky enough to play alongside all the big guns like Skream, Benga, Loefah, Rusko etc, and I also got to play alongside Mary Anne again at Chibuku in June 2008 where once again we smashed it.
As you can see she's had quite an effect on my life, and I can tell you now that she is the nicest, humblest and most approachable DJ in a high position in music I have ever had the privilege to meet, and I will forever be thankful for the impact she has had one me the past few years, and what is thought provoking is that I am just one small scouse example of how she has impacted on people over the years all over the globe.
Its immensely sad that she is leaving Radio One, but the most amazing thing about her is that she is so on point, so relevant and up to the minute that its easy to forget that she has been fronting her show for 14 years now, and I don't blame her for wanting to take a well earned break, and I wish her the best of luck in the future, but of course I am sure we won't have seen or heard the last of her in musical circles. I am also sure she is going to be fantastic in her new role as lecturer in Sheffield University, a University I might just consider going to now when I finish my Diploma next year.
The last few weeks have only emphasized to me how much she will be missed, as she has showcased some amazing sets from Digital Mystikz, Skream, Joker and an absolute jaw dropping mix from Shackleton, who only in July told me he doesn't really like putting out mixes, a testament to just how well respected amongst artists Mary Anne is.
Mary Anne's last show is tonight with a secret mystery guest, who I am hoping and have a suspicious feeling is going to be Aphex Twin, just because I know how much she always wanted to get him on the show (seek out the 'We Love Aphex Twin show from 2005) and he has been pretty active lately, and if not him then Burial, although Kode 9 seemed to douse any suspicions of that last week on Twitter unless he was playing some jokes on us. Whoever it is, it is sure to be emotional. How much are we going to miss THAT voice?
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