Broken & Uneven are the team behind the much anticipated event series ‘The Hydra’. A joint effort from Electric Minds, and Ajay Jayaram, one of the main forces behind The End (RIP), Broken & Uneven launched earlier this year with a series of events at a host of clubs across London. The Hydra will be setting up in a number of ‘undisclosed east London locations’ complete with Funktion One sound and the series much lauded visuals.

Part one of The Hydra series is comprised of seven events that feature some of the most exciting and discerning electronic music labels/collectives around such as Innervisions, Permanent Vacation, Deviation, R&S, Non Plus and Workshop. Things kick off on August 24th with a label showcase from Berghain’s fiercely reputable Techno imprint Ostgut Ton and continue the following night on Saturday 25th September with leading D&B collective A Bunch Of Cuts which will also be the launch party for DRS forthcoming album. The third Hydra event takes place in September and sees Hamburg’s outstanding House connoisseurs Dial Records come to town with Pantha du Prince (Live), Efdemin, Roman Flugel, Lawrence, Roman Fluegel and more flying the flag for the label.

Deviation’s fifth birthday will have an especially eclectic lineup, with Moodymann slotted in next to Kode9 and Hudson Mohawke. Innervisions and Permanent Vacation split the bill later that month, with Dixon, Âme, Tensnake, Todd Terje and Prins Thomas all confirmed.

The Hydra will host an R&S showcase on November 23rd, though details for that one are still forthcoming. The schedule’s next event is the following night: a NonPlus and Workshop party with Boddika, Joy Orbison, Kassem Mosse, Lowtec and more.

Another 5 events are due to be announced for The Hydra pt 2, and the calibre of labels, collectives, promoters and artists will be maintained with the likes of Bugged Out, Border Community, Bleep.com and Electric Minds all set to take a bow as a part of The Hydra.

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We caught up with the guys behind Broken & Uneven and The Hydra for a chat…

Hey guys, could you tell us a bit about yourselves?

B&U: Ajay Jayaram worked at The End for 10 years as one of the head bookers and then went on to be a director at Cable for two years until the end of 2011.  Dolan Bergin has run Electric Minds in London for the last seven years.

How did you first get into electronic music?

Ajay: I took a punt on an album by some guy from Cornwall – ‘Selected Ambient Works 85 – 92′. This very slippery slope started there…

Dolan: My dad used to live outside the Paradise Club in Islington which is where AWOL started so I used to sneak into early morning sessions there, amazing to experience at 15. I also lived in Worthing and caught the end of a club called Sterns which was pretty seminal at the time. It closed in ‘93 with Carl Cox, Terry Francis, Grooverider, Fabio, Colin Dale, Luke Slater all playing regularly. With both of those clubs on my doorstep I was hooked and the pursuit of finding raves across the country began.

We understand you’ve been involved in a number of London favourites, notably The End and We Fear Silence at Cable, before you launched Broken & Uneven earlier this year. What prompted the change, and how does Broken & Uneven differ from your previous projects?

Ajay: I think I needed a change of scenery after three years doing WFS at Cable and the opportunity to take things I had always done at established venues into warehouses felt like a good challenge.

What’s the concept behind ‘The Hydra’?

B&U: To present a series of events in London that represent credible and underground electronic music in the best possible way.

Your music policy stands out in that it really crosses the board and you’ve got a host of heavyweights lined up for The Hydra, is it tricky putting on such a wide ranging series of events rather than just focusing on one genre?

B&U: It can be difficult as you have to be creative and take risks with the bookings.  The music we work with is a niche of a niche and so sometimes you have to help introduce people to new acts.  We only do this as we’re passionate about the music so every act that we book is done so as we follow their productions.

The Hydra is set to take place in an ‘undisclosed East London location’. What drew you to this venue?

B&U: We’ve worked very hard to secure a venue for the whole series but with the increased restrictions that were placed around the Olympics it wasn’t possible to just settle on a single space. We have several venues which are all great spaces and we are moving towards securing an amazing venue to house all of the 2013 Hydra events.

What can we expect from Broken & Uneven in the future?

B&U: We fully plan to develop the Hydra Series for 2013 with more labels and more dates to take place between August and December 2013.  There will also be additional one-off dates earlier in the year with a full season of Electric Minds loft parties which will run throughout the year.

What advice would you give to anyone looking to start their own night?

B&U: To do it because you are passionate about the music.  It’s a highly competitive industry and one that is also high risk so if your main goal is to just earn money, there are probably easier ways out there to do that.

And finally, who’s the most exciting DJ or producer in the world right now?  

B&U: A completely imposible question to answer at any given point as it changes all the time!

For more info on The Hydra click here, and keep up with Broken & Uneven on Facebook here.