Biography
Fila Brazillia, the Hull-rooted duo widely regarded as the flagship act on the respected Pork Recordings roster, first assembled in 1990 when producers Steve Cobby and Dave McSherry joined forces. Prior to that partnership Cobby had worked with Ashley & Jackson, a pop/dance outfit on Big Life! whose moderate success ended once the label pushed for fewer dance elements and greater pop concessions. Back in his hometown after time spent in Manchester, Cobby connected with local DJ and occasional producer Dave Pork, and the pair quickly established a working relationship. Adding McSherry completed the lineup, and Fila’s debut 12-inch “The Mermaid” appeared the same year on the newly launched Pork imprint created expressly for the release, earning immediate praise from DJs and dedicated listeners for its fresh blend of funk, dub, house, hip-hop, and acid jazz.
A succession of albums followed, among them Old Codes, New Chaos, Maim That Tune, and Black Market Gardening, helping cement Pork’s standing as one of Britain’s most reliable and admired underground breakbeat and trip-hop imprints. Subsequent work folded pop and drum’n’bass textures into several tracks. The duo’s profile also led to high-profile remixes for Lamb’s “Cotton Wool,” the Orb’s “Toxygene,” and DJ Food’s “Freedom,” more than a dozen of which later appeared on the 2000 anthology Brazilification. Entering the new century, Fila issued the 2001 mix collection Another Late Night and the studio album Jump Leads in early 2002. Following a two-year recording hiatus, 2004 brought the production sets The Life and Times of Phoebus Brumal and Dicks along with the further mix album Another Fine Mess. Beyond Fila, Cobby remains active in other Pork-associated projects, notably his solo outlet Solid Doctor and the group Heights of Abraham, each of which has issued multiple full-length recordings.
A succession of albums followed, among them Old Codes, New Chaos, Maim That Tune, and Black Market Gardening, helping cement Pork’s standing as one of Britain’s most reliable and admired underground breakbeat and trip-hop imprints. Subsequent work folded pop and drum’n’bass textures into several tracks. The duo’s profile also led to high-profile remixes for Lamb’s “Cotton Wool,” the Orb’s “Toxygene,” and DJ Food’s “Freedom,” more than a dozen of which later appeared on the 2000 anthology Brazilification. Entering the new century, Fila issued the 2001 mix collection Another Late Night and the studio album Jump Leads in early 2002. Following a two-year recording hiatus, 2004 brought the production sets The Life and Times of Phoebus Brumal and Dicks along with the further mix album Another Fine Mess. Beyond Fila, Cobby remains active in other Pork-associated projects, notably his solo outlet Solid Doctor and the group Heights of Abraham, each of which has issued multiple full-length recordings.
Singles
