INTERVIEW: Oldboy + Ho Gosh
Oldboy and Ho Gosh are two of the most exciting names bubbling up from the UK’s underground club scene, known for their razor-sharp productions and wide-angle approach to genre. Between them, they’ve touched on garage, tech house, breaks, and electro—but it’s the way they twist those sounds into something raw and immediate that makes their work stand out. Their new joint EP, HARD29, is a tight four-tracker built for dark rooms and peak-time chaos, full of warped basslines, left-field energy, and a proper sense of fun. The release also marks a debut for both artists on DJ Cosworth’s Hardline imprint, a label that’s quickly become a magnet for high-intensity, hybrid club music. From the opening punch of Get Ya Crew to the chaotic closer Something², the EP shows two producers in sync and having a blast with it. We caught up with Oldboy and Ho Gosh to talk about how the collab came together, the tools behind the tracks, and what 2025 has in store for them. Let’s dive in!
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Where are you based right now? What do you like about the place, and what do you like about the scene around you?
I’m currently based in Manchester, been here for a few years now & really love it. I feel like there’s always so much going on but it never feels overwhelming or too big of a city, which I think also rings true with the music scene here. There’s so many different venues/nights/collectives but I’ve always felt like Manchester is extremely welcoming in terms of its music scene.
For UK Garage, promoters like Warped have really been keeping the scene alive in Manchester & The North. It’s been great to see them run weekly nights that cater to a newer crowd & also giving opportunities to younger people getting into DJing by having a lot of local support on their lineups, it’s sick to see.
On the Tech House side, Manchester also is such a staple city for that sound. I’d say The Loft is probably my favourite venue in the city for that at the moment, i’ve found myself always being extremely inspired whenever leaving a rave there.
You just released the HARD29 EP on Hardline. What does this project represent for you? What were your influences or inspiration?
HARD29 came from a place of wanting to make tunes that played with the darker/bassy sounds of Oldboy & then the cheeky, groovy more sample based Ho Gosh sound. A1, A2 & B1 were all made in a very similar time which was really recent. It was when I was getting super deep into the more minimal & vocal side of house & UKG. I remember making Get Ya Crew on the train down to London & I sent it to a DJ who was playing that night. It was funny hearing the first really rough version of the track being played to a crowd and seeing their reaction.
B2 (Something²) was made like 3 years ago and was pretty much untouched for that time too. It was only when listening through old demos that I found it and felt it would work really well on the EP.
A few notable influences would definitely be: Reflex Blue, Burnski, Kepler, Grant Nelson, the list could go on really. I remember Whateva by Redshift was a track that I was playing a lot when making A1 & B1, there was something about that tune that really inspired the EP.
What’s your usual dynamic when working together in the studio? Has anything surprised you while working as a duo compared to working solo?
It’s normally a pretty similar formula for Oldboy & Ho Gosh tracks, the drums are normally worked on by both, bassline & FX by Oldboy & then Ho Gosh on the more cheeky melodic elements & all the vocal selection. We both have an extremely similar way of working together so it’s always easy to understand what needs to be done.
I’m always curious how artists get started on their tracks. Do you have a specific method, or something that tends to come first?
Normally I’d say the number one thing I do is just listen to tracks I’ve been loving/playing a lot. Then if I’m working with someone else just both listen to stuff together. I feel like it gives such a good understanding of what we want to get out of the track.
With closer friends that I produce with like Macarite it’s normally a case of us noting down all these tracks in our own time and then when we’d sit down for a session we can just nerd out on sick music for a couple hours before starting to produce our own.
My favourite part of making new music would definitely be creating the drums & the groove. Drums always come first & I’ll normally know within like 30 minutes if the track is gonna be finished or forgotten about just from the initial groove. I’ve found it a bit of a bad habit sometimes how quickly I can move on from a project and start something new and I have definitely been working more on heading back into old projects. Can find some proper good stuff in there!
Are there any tools—plugins, hardware, or otherwise—that you couldn’t live without? Did any specific gear shape the sound of the EP?
Most of the stuff used in the EP was in the box so didn’t really use too much hardware. On A2 I think some of the percs were run through my extremely temperamental MPC 1000 & then also used my dub sirens in all the tracks just for textures & FX, I couldn't live without my dub sirens.
The main 2 instruments I can remember being used for the EP was FEM-BASO which is an FM bass synth by Meats Beats & then also Revival which is like a sampler/synth which was put out on Studio Orbit, loads of really cool sounds on there. Then it's just mainly just samples which have been collected over the years. Like I said before Ho Gosh has got the weird random vocal sample selection on point.
What’s the last track by another artist that really stuck with you? What was it about the track that hit you?
It’s so hard to think of just one answer! There's a Leeds producer called Captain Wallop who is making really sick tunes at the moment, the most notable one being Up To No Good (Bad Kitty) which came out on Leeds label Heavy Hitters.
The sampling/groove in this track is insanely good and I’ve found myself really inspired by Captain Wallop’s productions.
What advice would you give to someone just starting out as a producer or DJ today? (Or what advice would you give yourself if you were starting today?)
Just keep doing whatever you wanna do. It’s so easy nowadays to get caught up in the Instagram/TikTok culture of staying relevant & having to make music for a certain crowd.
But to be honest, make tracks that you’d wanna hear/play in the club & you’ll be all good. That’s all that matters
Thanks for doing this interview! Tell us what do you have coming up next?
Gotta plug HARD29 first and foremost! Also got Ho Gosh playing b2b with DJ Cosworth at The Love Inn, Bristol on Wednesday 2nd April. Don’t wanna miss that one!
More Oldboy stuff coming this year, plenty of solo work and colab work also!
Follow Oldboy online
Spotify | Soundcloud | Bandcamp | Instagram | Beatport
Disclosure: This post contains affiliate links. If you buy something through these links, I may earn a commission at no extra cost to you. As an Amazon Associate, I earn from qualifying purchases.