Dom Search

Dom Search
Dom Search on tour with The Nextmen, Canada 2011
Background information
Birth name	Dominic Betmead
Also known as	Dom Nextmen, Dom Betmead
Born	Cambridge, England
Genres	Hip Hop, Dance, Pop
Occupation(s)	Producer/Writer/DJ
Instruments	Guitar/Drums
Associated acts	The Nextmen

Dom Search (also known as Dom Nextmen, born Dominic Christian Betmead in Cambridge, England) is a record producer, songwriter, guitarist and DJ based in London.

Personal life

Born the youngest of two boys, he grew up in Cambridge, England with his mother and father, Gill and Jon Betmead and brother Saul. He is the grandson of Grimsby Town F.C. and England footballer Harry Betmead. Dominic's father is a folk singer songwriter who was most active in the seventies and introduced his sons to music from birth. He lives in North London with his girlfriend and two daughters.

Musical career

Search has collaborated with and produced for Plan B, Groove Armada, Ms. Dynamite, Paolo Nutini, Marlon Roudette, Paul Epworth, Eliza Doolittle, Gorgon City, Ed Harcourt, Amy Wadge, Alexander O'Neal and Kiko Bun amongst others. He signed to Paul Epworth's Wolf Tone Publishing BMG imprint in 2012.^[1] He is one half of hip hop and electronica duo The Nextmen, a group he formed with fellow producer Bradford Ellis. The Nextmen have made four studio albums. They released their most recent, Join The Dots in 2009 on Universal. The Nextmen singles Round Of Applause and Lion’s Den were both Zane Lowe’s Hottest Record Of The Week upon release.^[2]

Dom Search co-wrote and produced Plan B ’s Who Needs Actions When You Got Words, the title track of the rapper’s 2006 album, which is certified Gold in the UK. He provided additional production on Paolo Nutini’s One Day from the (UK) 2 x Platinum 2014 album Caustic Love. The tracks Better Than Me and Nice Things from Marlon Roudette’s 2014 album Electric Soul were produced and co-written by him. He collaborated with producer Cadenza and rapper Fem Fel on the 2015 track Electric Blocks, and produced Louis Mttrs’ track God’s Help from the 2014 E.P. Beachy Head.^[3]

Nextmen remix credits include Public Enemy, Rae & Christian, Morcheeba and Groove Armada. Dom signed his first record deal with independent label Scenario Records after finishing university. His initial release, under the name Search was an E.P. entitled Fracture. The first two Nextmen albums, Amongst The Madness and Get Over It were also released on Scenario. He contributed DJ work on two Groove Armada albums, Vertigo and Goodbye Country (Hello Nightclub). The Nextmen track Blood Fire was included in the soundtrack to the videogame FIFA Street 2 ^[4]

Search's production is groove-based, falling within Hip Hop, Pop and Dance. His sound often fuses sparse, heavy hip hop drums with effected samples and electronic instrumentation. His riff-making guitar style is mixed, using elements of both rhythm and lead play. He learned recording techniques from Paul Epworth, whom he has worked with at various points in his career.

Dom Search working with Plan B in 2011

DJ career

Dom started DJing at 15, delving into his father’s record collection and taking inspiration from DJs such as DJ Jazzy Jeff and DJ Cash Money. As both a solo DJ and one half of The Nextmen, he has played eclectic club sets rooted in Hip Hop but encompassing most forms of dance music for over a decade. The Nextmen play regular sets in the UK and Europe and have embarked on 12 tours of Australia and New Zealand. They have made many mix tapes, the most recent being 2016’s '‘Control The Night’’, an 80 minute potted history of drum & bass. The Nextmen provided the guest mix for Mistajam's BBC Radio 1Xtra show in 2011,^[5] and in 2016 provided a guest mix for BBC Radio 1's Friction show ^[6]

Film & Theatre

Dom worked as music producer alongside composer Bill Lyons on the Royal National Theatre’s 2015 production of Everyman^[7] directed by Rufus Norris, starring Academy Award nominee Chiwetel Ejiofor and written by poet laureate Carol Ann Duffy. He worked closely with Norris, Lyons, sound designer Paul Arditti and choreographer Javier de Frutos, providing the contemporary urban soundtrack described by the London Evening Standard as ‘pulsating electronica’.^[8] The Guardian described the play as a 'stunning update'.^[9]

He provided the soundtrack to Mark Street’s 2014 short film Insoma.^[10]

2016 Activity

Search is currently working on new Nextmen material, a new Eliza Doolittle album, Kiko Bun’s debut album (Island Records), a new Marlon Roudette album (Syco), Mahalia’s debut album (Asylum/Atlantic Records) and has contributed writing to Gorgon City’s 2016 album Kingdom (Virgin EMI/Black Butter), co-writing the song 'Love Me' ft. Lulu James which premiered on November 18th 2016 as Annie Mac's Hottest Record In The World. The latest Nextmen single, 'The Corner' Ft. Drum & Bass producers Nu:Logic and Kiko Bun was released on The Nextmen's label 'Play Nice' in November 2016, premiering on Mistajam's Radio 1 show. He continues to write and produce for both established and emerging acts, focusing on pop production and writing. Alongside Bradford Ellis and Dynamite MC, he has created a new garage/house project based on a graphic novel he is writing entitled Echo Foxx. The first single Rhyme Animal is due for release on Strong Records in June 2016.^[11]

Discography

Albums (contributed to)

• "Caustic Love" - Paolo Nutini
• "Who Needs Actions When You Got Words" - Plan B
• "Vertigo" - Groove Armada
• "Goodbye Country (Hello Nightclub)" - Groove Armada"
• "Electric Soul" - Marlon Roudette
• "Amongst The Madness" - The Nextmen
• "Get Over It" - The Nextmen
• "This Was Supposed To Be The Future" - The Nextmen
• "Join The Dots" - The Nextmen
• "Beachy Head" - Louis Mttrs

Mixtapes (as The Nextmen)

• "Control The Night"
• "A Child's Introduction To Jazz"
• "Personal Golf Instructions"
• "Blunted In The Backroom"
• "The Supermen Mix"
• "6 Music Mix"
• "Yoga Mix"
• "Anxiety Mix"
• "Selector Radio Carnival Mix"
• "Checkmate"

Associated acts

References