Never afraid to make an impact, he burst onto the drum and bass scene back in 2000, announcing his arrival with a raucous remix of a hardcore classic, Nasty Habit’s ‘Here Come the Drums’ on Reinforced.
He backed up this bold move, however, with a series of EPs for the legendary label proving he was no young pretender. Breakage was at the forefront of a new wave of breakbeat scientists bringing a percussive sound back to drum and bass at a time when the scene seemed to have forgotten it’s jungle roots.
Breakage continued his good form dropping a number of sort after releases for the Inperspective label, his remix of Equinox’s ‘Acid Rain’ twisted the Amen break to new levels and served as a rallying call for producers looking to bring back the original drum and bass sound.
Further releases came on labels including Critical and Scientific Wax, before his debut album release in 2006 ‘This To Shall Pass’ gained wide spread critical acclaim and included some slower tempo material, hinting at what was to come.
James signed with Shy FX’s mighty Digital Soundboy imprint in 2007, and soon turned heads with the haunting half- time beats of ‘Clarendon b/w Shroud.’ It came as no surprise that he would make waves in the dubstep community with his next release, ‘Callahan b/w Untitled,’ after having remixed one of the scene’s biggest tracks to date, Benga & Coki’s ‘Night,’ alongside Shy FX as Digital Soundboy.
2009 saw Breakage cemented himself as a main player across the British dance music press and taste- making elite. Following on from the superb ‘Together’, Breakage released ‘Run Em Out’ feat. Roots Manuva b/w ‘Higher’ followed by the thuggish reworked ‘Hard’ feat. Newham Generals and David Rodigan, which has gone on be become a underground anthem with Zane Lowe naming it his ‘Hottest Record In The World’ on his Radio 1 show.
His sophomore LP ‘Foundation’ was released in March 2010 on Digital Soundboy, featuring Skream, Burial, Roots Manuva, David Rodigan, Newham Generals, Donae'o and more. The album has been a tremendous success across the dubstep/d&b scenes as well as widespread mainstream acclaim. IDJ, DJ MAG, NME & Mixmag all named the record 'Album Of The Month' and it supporters included the likes of Zane Lowe, Pete Tong, Laurent Garnier and Benga.
Alongside his original recordings James has also recently turned in remixes for the likes of Massive Attack, Florence & The Machine, Plan B, Magnetic Man, Underworld & Claire Maguire.
To quote a certain Mr. Roots Manuva... “Breakage is a man with an ear for deep, deep, sub-sonic frequencies. He goes in low. I thinking he’s talking to sea-life. He’s talking to the squid”.
2011 saw Breakage up the levels once again. His single ‘Fighting Fire’ featuring Jess Mills caused serious damage across dance-floors and airwaves worldwide. Zane Lowe named it his ‘Hottest Record In The World’ again (Its James 6th Hottest Record in the last year!), and further support came from Annie Mac, Nick Grimshaw, Mista Jam, Rob Da Bank and even Vernon Kay. Fighting Fire charted at 34 in the official UK national charts and spent 5 weeks on the BBC Radio 1 A-list.
In 2012 James remixed Benga, Loadstar and Ellie Goulding, plus the critically acclaimed released of his ‘The Promise EP’ earning his another Zane Lowe ‘Hottest record’ slot.
Dec 2014 see's Breakage release the first single 'Treading Water', taken from his forthcoming album 'When The Night Comes' - due for release spring 2015.
Future
Breakage Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
Just ghosts in the house that we used to know
Now I sleep in the middle of our too-big bed
And I listen to my heart
I gave you one last chance, but you let me down
Chipping holes in my body till the love ran out
Now I look to the past, staring into the sun
How you broke my fragile heart
Oh, oh no
Everything moves slow
Standing stranded on my own
And now I wanna go home
I just wanna go home
Oh oh oh
Oh oh oh
We built this castle but it's made out of sand
In an hourglass, slipping through our shaking hands
Now I'm tightrope walking and I can't look down
Why'd you break my fragile heart?
Oh, oh no
Everything moves slow
Standing stranded on my own
And now I wanna go home
I just wanna go home
Oh oh oh
Oh oh oh
Just take me back to the future
I'm gonna turn back time and start again
Cause I'm too far gone to love again
And now I wanna go home
I just wanna go home
Oh oh oh
Oh oh oh
Just take me back to the future
Take me back to the future
Take me back to the future
The song "Future" by Breakage featuring Madi Lane is about the aftermath of a breakup. The first verse talks about how the author left, and there's nothing left in the house but memories. The author feels lost, sleeping in the too-big bed and listening to their heart, grieving for what once was. The second verse dives deeper into the relationship, where the author gave one last chance to their partner, but the partner let them down and left holes in their heart till the love ran out. The author is left with the memories and the pain of past hurt.
The chorus is where the author stands alone, stranded in their own emotions, wishing to go back home, and everything moves slowly. The author finally realizes that whatever they build with their partner is fragile and can break easily, like sand slipping through shaking hands. The author feels like they are tightrope walking, unable to look down, and questioning why their partner broke their heart. The song concludes with the author wishing to go back to the past, turning back time to start again, but acknowledging that they are too far gone to love again.
Line by Line Meaning
There was nothing left when I let you go
After ending our relationship, there was nothing left of the way things used to be between us
Just ghosts in the house that we used to know
Our past memories together are now just empty and haunting echoes of what was once familiar
Now I sleep in the middle of our too-big bed
I feel alone and disconnected, unable to fill the empty space where you used to sleep beside me
And I listen to my heart
I turn inward to try and find solace and understanding in my own emotions
I gave you one last chance, but you let me down
Despite my hopes that we could mend things, you ultimately betrayed my trust
Chipping holes in my body till the love ran out
Your actions slowly eroded away the love I had for you until there was nothing left
Now I look to the past, staring into the sun
I can't help but dwell on the memories of our time together, even though it's painful to do so
How you broke my fragile heart
Your actions shattered my heart and left me feeling vulnerable and broken
Oh, oh no
Expressing a sense of negativity or disappointment
Everything moves slow
The world seems to be moving slower, perhaps due to feelings of depression or apathy
Standing stranded on my own
Feeling stuck and isolated without anyone to turn to
And now I wanna go home
Yearning for a sense of comfort and familiarity in a place of safety, likely a metaphorical 'home'
We built this castle but it's made out of sand
Our relationship may have seemed like a fortress or safe haven, but it was only temporary and easily washed away
In an hourglass, slipping through our shaking hands
Like sand slipping through an hourglass, our time together was dwindling and falling apart despite our efforts to hold on tight
Now I'm tightrope walking and I can't look down
Continuing on my journey through life with a sense of uncertainty and unease, trying to find my balance without falling apart
Why'd you break my fragile heart?
Questioning why my partner would hurt me so deeply, taking advantage of my vulnerability
Just take me back to the future
Yearning to regain a sense of hope for the future, as if time travel could offer a fresh start and a chance to make things better
I'm gonna turn back time and start again
Desiring to go back in time and make different choices, hoping to avoid the heartbreak and pain of the past
Cause I'm too far gone to love again
Feeling like I've lost too much of myself to try and love someone new right now
Take me back to the future
Continuing to express a desire for a fresh start, hoping to leave the painful memories of the past behind
Take me back to the future
Repeating the phrase to emphasize this longing and hope for a better tomorrow
Lyrics © BMG Rights Management
Written by: JAMES DANIEL BOYLE, MADI LOUISE LANE
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind
@NikitaBenCarter
❤
Just take me back to the future
I'm gonna turn back time and start again
Oh, oh no
Everything moves slow
Standing stranded on my own
And now I wanna go home
I just wanna go home
Oh oh oh
Oh oh oh
Theses lyrics our from someone who heartbreak In love.
😢😢😢 the Drum & Bass is Haunting 💔
@JMac90_
Calibre; he doesn't try to go too fancy. Just real solid grooves every time. One of the best of this genre.
@streetBALLEr190446
if not the best mate
@leehossain8339
Agree totally
@mr_a1238
Cannot get over what he did with the vocals: "I'm gonna turn back time and start again" beautiful stuff
@elbo7755
what did he do?
@kreaola93
@@elbo7755 3:40
@RRSmith107
The level and consistency of Calibre's productions are ridiculous. He just never disappoints. A stunning piece of music.
@PzYcho
The Don always gets it done properly
@PURELIQUID
still one of my favourite liquid drum and bass tunes !!!!
@NCTmusic_
that bassline! Calibre literally never disappoints