Hailing from Bristol and regarded by many as the RZA of drum & bass, Roni Size has been a prominent figure in the scene since the early jungle days. Alongside his Reprazent crew comprising of DJs Krust, Die and Suv the four have consistently released tune after tune to critical acclaim and commercial success, and they still manage to find the time to tour internationally to bring their tough drum & bass sounds to the whole world.

In 1997, the group had stunned the UK music community (not to mention the international scene) when they were awarded the prestigious Mercury Prize Award for their debut album New Forms. The success of this led to members of the group releasing further albums including In The Mode, Breakbeat Era and collaborations with some of drum & bass' finest artists including Dynamite MC, newcomer MC Tali, beatboxer Razel and US hip hoppers Cypress Hill.

2002 saw the release of Roni Size's debut album as a solo artist and now Roni follows this up in 2004 with Return To V. RA managed to occupy some time out of Roni's schedule to talk about the album and what else he has in store.

- Is there any meaning behind the new album's title?

Definitely! Return To V is all about going back to when I first started putting music out on V Recordings. The label was all about new experimentation mixing up old break beats with ragga basslines. Return To V is about me going back to my roots.

- What impact has V had on the drum'n'bass scene since it's inception?
The label's responsible for putting a musical edge to the music, before then there were a lot of elements not being used. So the Bristol lot started to experiment with sounds like jazz. Bryan Gee, Jumping Jack Frost have been managing V Recordings for a long time. They get and deserve a lot of respect as they put a label together during exciting times.

- It's been 2 years since the last album, how have you been keeping yourself busy since then?

I'm always busy whether it be producing in studio or doing the live show. It's become a real adventure, everyone close to me understands that because I'm touring I'm away from them quite a lot. It's great being on stage, I helps to understand what's going on in the music. I'm always experimenting with sounds on stage, so the live sound is getting better and better as I can see what really works well.

- The new album has a continuous format/mix disc type approach, was this an intentional approach to the CD?
The first half was done with a mix CD in mind and second half song based. I wanted to appeal to the fans who loved the vocal stuff I did with New Forms and my Reprazent crew, and I also wanted to appeal to the fans who loved Touching Down and listen to my DJ mixes. I wanted Return To V to incorporate both.

- Would you ever plan to tour in support of the new album?
I just got back off tour last week, I've been touring this album 8 months. I'm doing it independently and getting a lot of people on stage.

- Do you feel that your sound has changed much since New Forms?
Absolutely, my sound evolves with every record. I like to take something away from one record and take it to the next record. It's like an artist - he's not going to use the very same shade of blue with every painting now is he?

- Do you still use a live format when performing or do you DJ as well?
I
do the live format, I'm still DJing, I'm still working in the studio, I still put out records, I love to get feedback on the whole thing! I have this routine go to the studio, make music with friends, tour various countries - it's an ongoing process and an amazing adventure. What's good about drum & bass is unlike commercial based music, we don't have an outside media talking about our music, the sound is dependent on individuals to do the whole thing. Like hip hop, techno and top radio DJ's boasting about the music, our music belongs to us.

- Which drum & bass artists should we be looking out for to break ground in the future?
It's not just about artists anymore, it's more about movement. There are kids out there who love drum & bass/jungle, who love basslines and grooves, and they love hip hop as well. To me it's like all these kids are nodding to hip hop beats, then nodding double time to drum & bass and basslines whilst rapping on top. To me that's the exciting Bristol sound!

At this point, the phone cut out and Roni was unavailable for further comment.