In such a competitive scene, it’s always good to see new talent emerge, especially someone who’s not only making it as a DJ, but is multi-talented, and uses these musical skills to produce his own music. Drums, keyboards, guitar and vocals - it’s all in the mix when Karuva makes a new production – and today see the release of his debut EP, ‘Shockwaves’, on Canadian label Phoenix Music. Join us for a journey into the deeper side of house music…

Your debut EP is out today, can you tell us more about it? 

'Shockwaves' is released by Phoenix Music (www.phoenixmusicinc.com), which is a cool Canadian house label. I'm glad to be signed by this imprint, as others on the label include rising stars such as Will Clarke and legends such as Todd Terry. The 'Shockwaves' EP is out today as a Traxsource exclusive followed by release on Beatport and iTunes.

What have you got planned for the forthcoming months? 

My second EP (called 'Bomba') will be out in April; it’s a three-track journey through my interpretation of deep house. I've been taken on by a manager and booking agent, I'm starting a radio show and I’m looking forward to DJing in Ibiza this summer at various label parties.

How can people connect with you? 

Everyone is very welcome aboard the journey! For more info on future releases, feel free to join me at www.facebook.com/karuvamusic, www.soundcloud.com/karuvamusic and www.twitter.com/karuvamusic.

'Shockwaves' is out today, check it out below.

© justaweemusicblog.com

Central Scotland in the UK seems to be in love with house music all-dayers, with various bars and brands running their owe regular parties, many of them having built up a loyal following over the years. One of the most popular, taking place every Bank Holiday and a few other selected dates throughout the year, is We Love Fundays at Mini Bar in Glasgow city centre.

The events have been running for over two years and were created by good friends, Allan 'Culoblanco' Whiteford, Robert McGloan and Chris McPartlin who run the event with an ethos of playing the ‘most upfront house we can find’. With another event happening this Sunday, May 26, we catch up with the trio to find out more about the event and what we can expect this weekend…

What was the idea of starting the We Love Fundays events?

Daytime parties always seem to have a good feel and vibe about them, plus we wanted to extend our regular Sunday night to invite DJs from Glasgow that we rate and are keen to have play to our crowd. Plus everyone loves an all-dayer! 

How are the events received by your regulars?

Our regulars love our all-dayers and every DJ we have come play for us always speaks very highly of the bar/staff/crowd and venue. It's always a great atmosphere and the regulars are very musically aware and we appreciate that. We try different things to keep the crowd involved and so it's not just another event with lots of DJs playing. In the past we've had a black light party, classics nights, Xmas jumper party etc. The bar is only small but it creates a great atmosphere.

What has been your favourite memory of the all-dayers so far?

We have had a couple of themed events over the years, which have worked really well…

Allan: Last summer we had loads of inflatables bobbing about the place. That was fun.

Chris: We had a classics all-dayer and personally for me anyways, Stephen Lee playing Gorgie Porgie’s ‘Life Goes On’ was a highlight. It took me back to my roots of the original room 2 in The Tunnel Glasgow and proper house music. Other than that, at one all-dayer, a punter turned up with a three feet garden gnome, which was bizarre but brilliant. 

Robert: Our recent all-dayer on the Easter Sunday was pretty special, from the off you could feel the crowd and the DJs were right up for it. After only two or three hours into the all-dayer it was in full swing, the bar was at capacity and the front door was working on a one in one out basis. The atmosphere in the bar that day was second to none… also a couple of cheeky classic house tracks were thrown in that day too and the crowd lapped them up. 

Who's the Mini Bar's clientele?

It’s aimed at those people who enjoy house music, those with a discerning ear. The owners, Ryan and Brett, plus the staff all really enjoy house music so that means we’re all on the same page on what type of crowd we try and get involved. Over the years the bar has grown from strength to strength and the We Love Fundays name is well known now in Glasgow.  

How hard is it to do a house/dance event in Glasgow when the majority of the city seems to demand pop and R&B?

Very hard at times, demand for the MTV culture does make it difficult to push a sound and a night but we manage it quite well. There are some good house music promoters coming through though. You just have to look out for the right events.

Any plans to take the events into a club afterwards?

We have spoken about the idea and we are planning on doing this in the very near future. It's tough with so much competition out there. It’s all about getting our timing right to create something everyone will enjoy. It won't be a run of the mill thing though, we want it to be special. 

What sets your all-dayers apart from others in the city?

Fresh house music with a cool mix of boys and girls. We plan our night properly, from what slots to give each DJ, to try and build a night perfectly. A lot of thought goes into each one and we constantly strive to keep it fresh. Lots of other nights are only interested in DJs who bring 50 mates, we’re the opposite. We would rather have a good DJ who plays the right music and is aware of the crowd than be banging it out just for their mates. We are not thrashing out techno or progressive bangers, we’re pushing good, upfront house music. The atmosphere is really good within the bar too, a lot of good friendships have been made from our night and within the bar.

© justaweemusicblog.com

We Love Fundays returns this Sunday at Minibar, Glasgow, click for full event info.

Beatport Mixes recently announced a very special presentation by Ferry Corsten. The Dutch trance DJ had the honour of being chosen to be the front-page headliner and to showcase his ‘Once Upon A Night, Vol.3’ mix compilation in a unique two-part Beatport Mix. Beatport Mixes allows DJs to profile themselves, allowing visitors to purchase their DJ mixes and unmixed tracks.

With Toolroom Knights’ sixth birthday set to kick off just days after the brand finishes its season-long residency at Space, Ibiza, it’s little wonder that Toolroom’s flagship party has gone from humble beginnings to a worldwide force in such a short space of time. The celebrations this time around take in no less than six tour nights up and down the UK, but the six theme doesn’t stop there. We caught up with label boss Mark Knight for a rundown on what else to expect…

Can you tailor each six-hour set for each club before you play it, based on previous regional experience?

When playing a long set, of course you need to think about what you are going to do, because the key to a set of that length is the flow; when to go up, when to go down and how long for. I usually break it into sections. But the real skill of DJing is reading the vibe of the room, understanding the psyche of the crowd and being able to adapt to it with a knowledge of your music that allows you do so seamlessly. I have various residences around the world where I play these kind of long sets, so I have plenty of experience to draw from. I love to do these sets, I totally immerse myself in the night; it’s about creating that synergy between me and the crowd that then allows me to be musically experimental and not a jukebox!

You’ve deliberately limited tickets – is this so each gig has an intimate feel? Can you explain the concept behind this?

After doing Brixton last year, which was as much a concert as a club gig, I wanted to flip it, and as you say do something more intimate. Dance music is going through a phase right now of massive grandiose shows  - which are brilliant - but I wanted to strip it back to the fundamentals: one DJ playing a cross-section of music all night long. Switch the emphasis back to the music, which essentially is what Toolroom Knights is all about. We chose some of the best clubs up and down the UK and Ireland where we felt this idea would translate the best.

Even though tickets are limited, you’ve opted for an extremely low ticket price on this tour – just £6! Aside from the continued ‘6’ theme, why did you opt for such a low price ticket?

Club entrance fees have gone through the roof with the rise of the megastar DJ, so we thought it was time for a little payback. People’s credit cards will still be recovering from Ibiza, so at £6 hopefully everyone can come and party with us.

DJ Ralph Good specialises in house music that is custom-designed to evoke warmth and happiness, and DJs such as Fedde Le Grand, Dubfire, David Guetta, Chuckie, Tiesto, Axwell, Bob Sinclar, Erick Morillo, Pete Tong and Armin van Buuren are among those that have supported Ralph’s releases. We spoke to Ralph to find out exactly where his influences started and to find out his all time top ten tracks…

The disposability of the digital era is becoming ever more apparent, and a casual glance over the Internet tells you that most people aren’t too happy about it. Anyone with more than a passing interest in the music business will no doubt have seen the vinyl-championing ‘no-one remembers their first download’ meme that’s been doing the rounds of late, and the digital versus physical debate looks likely to rage ever fiercer. For Dimitri From Paris though, the problem isn’t the particular medium used, but rather the lack of care that is put into the finished product. Obsessed with the details of things, care and attention are cornerstones professional outlook and values that are demonstrated in his latest endeavour, ‘Dimitri From Paris Back In The House’. Here, we speak to the modern-day King of Disco about his views of role of format in music, his approach to the art for the remix and his enduring love of disco.

What it is about disco that gets your blood pumping?

The fact that it is live. It is done by a bunch of people and you get to feel the energy from those people. There are two distinct sides; a quiet raw side with a rhythm section (drums, percussion, bass, keyboards and maybe guitars) and then the classical orchestra; a group of really classically trained people, usually older than the rhythm section. The two sides getting together to play dance music is quite unique, and I feel the soul of all the people involved there. The most classic disco sound is the Philadelphia sound and that is exactly it; a group of younger people from the ghetto areas of town and another group of older people, slightly more educated, coming from different paths with a really long dedication in music behind them. They would get together and it would work, there would be someone in the middle directing all this, usually the arrangers or the producers, and they would make those guys play dance music which would end up being on a disco, and I believe it kept influencing dance music years on, even though today we do use computers. They infuse some kind of a groove, a way of doing things that is still replicated and emulated in a lot of different forms of current dance and house music, so for me it really is the blueprint and the mother of all things dance.



Do you think that modern-day producers can really complete with the amount of time and money that used to be spent on creating music?

It is true today that there isn’t as much production budget in music as there used to be decades ago, but it’s not necessarily bad. The point isn’t to try to recreate exactly what was done years ago; it’s great to be inspired by it and find new, more modern ways, of doing it, and not having a budget actually forces you to be more creative. In a way it can be positive as long as you’re not lazing out and making things really quick without much thought which sometimes you can hear in too much music today. But if you actually spend time, and you have a love for what you do, you will always be able to turn out something that’s good artistically.

What has changed since you mixed your first ‘In The House’ compilation?

What has changed is the economy of music, it’s been going down gradually for the past 15 years. Now everything is digital pretty much; people do not feel the urge to own something that’s physical as they are happy to have tons of music in their digital devices. Music has become the air you breathe, the water you drink; you don’t think that much about it anymore. It’s lost a lot of that value whereas before you would save money to buy a record and when you’d get the record you’ll just hold it in your hands and look at it while you listened to it. I feel that this has been almost completely lost, but I am still trying to give the people who want something to hold to, something to look at and something to read. It’s important that music keeps some kind of value, not necessarily monetary value, but effective value. I think it’s important to carry on with physical objects that actually enclose the music that we love.

How long have you been collecting vinyl? Do you think it’s something you’ll ever stop doing?

For about 30 years, and you have to remember that 30 years ago you could only buy music on vinyl, so it wasn’t a choice to be cool or not to be cool; I wanted music, I had to buy vinyl. Today you have the choice to buy vinyl and it’s kind of a niche market, as oppose to the whole digital thing. I do not buy vinyl if I can find it digitally, but I still buy CDs. If there’s something that I really like I will store it for archive purposes. Of course I’ve kept all my vinyl from the past 30 years, but even though there are still a few things that I’m looking for, like some older disco tracks. I’m not an obsessive vinyl collector, because I have so much, and so much more that I haven’t even explored that I feel like I should rather concentrate on what I have rather than just stacking up, obsessively, new things. So I don’t buy vinyl so much, but I still use my collection; everyday I will digitise something, everyday I will try to pull out something I haven’t used, so it’s a real asset to have all this music at your fingertips. It could be in any form though; it could be digital, it could be vinyl, as long as you contain it, as long as you take care of it. As a music professional, it’s the music that matters, not what it’s recorded on to. If you want to enjoy the music more on vinyl I totally understand that there is the need to hold on to something, so both are valid. I don’t like the debate, vinyl against digital, where one is better than the other. What really matters in the end is the music; if the music is good and you want to hear it then that’s all you need to do.

As well as the musical aspects, you’re always heavily involved in the artwork on your projects… tell us about the idea behind the ‘Back In The House’ design…

Every time I do a musical project it is also very important for me to have a hand in the designing and the packaging of it. It has to make sense with the music and also with my universe as a person and as an artist. So I always work with people that can build up off my ideas and in this particular case I worked with designer Juan Kelly, a true and very good disco DJ, but also a great graphic designer and on the photography side I was very happy to work with Jamie Baker who also worked on the first ‘In The House’ compilation. I came up with this idea that I wanted the whole project to look like a ‘60s American thing kind of inspired by the TV show Madmen, of which I’m a big fan. Since I never had the occasion to do such a design I felt it was a good thing with the ‘Back In The House’ to do the original ‘50s style.

How has the transition from vinyl to CD to currently laptop been for you and how has this altered your sets?

As a person I love vinyl, the object, something that I can hold on to, look at, read, listen to, but as a professional vinyl has been a tool, and this tool, to play music, has been superseded, first by CDs and now by digital files played off digital devices like laptops. I think this is progress in the sense that when I was only able to carry 80 to 100 vinyl in a record box, I can now have unlimited access to a huge music library and for me it’s much better the wider choices - the wider spread I have of music, the better for me. So it wasn’t difficult as a DJ, the only difficult thing was to digitise a lot of the vinyl or get copies that were clean enough to stand the test with the squeaky clean digital files. Once that was done I really enjoyed playing of CDs and I enjoy playing off digital software now because it actually allows me to do more and to be more creative than I was with just playing vinyl on two turntables.

In the past you’ve done remixes for major labels… did you feel there was any pressure to deliver a certain style or were you always allowed to do your own thing?

It looks like the major labels still act like they were doing 20 years ago by throwing like 20 things on the wall and trying to see which one sticks and concentrating on that. In the case of remixes I was always free to do what I wanted, they would use it or not but that was and still is the way they do things. Now, major labels can get like 10 to 20 remixes and instead of choosing the right remix for the right track they would just get everything they can and just throw it out there and see what happens. I think the best current example is Lana Del Ray; how many remixes have been done of her? I’ve totally lost count, it’s as if they’re not really interested in the result, just the quantity. 



You’ve re-edited some ‘classic’ tracks in the past by some very high profile artists. How do you approach these – do you look to respectively tweak the parts you like or go for an all out change?

Every time I’ve set up to do a remix I think it’s essential that I don’t destroy the spirit or the memories the listeners have of a particular song, so I will be extremely cautious in remixing it, preserving all the elements and retaining the spirit. In the case of disco songs this means keeping all of the original recordings; not replaying the drums, not changing acoustic for electronic, everything I add I added in a way that you shouldn’t be able to notice it much, and that’s how I see remixing. I shouldn’t be taking the forefront, the forefront is the song. I should be on the background making it better than what it is, taking it to another area, like from a radio mix, taking it to the clubs with a more DJ-friendly mix. But I would never try to replace the original artist. I’m just the remixer, the producer, and I’m here to give my best to make the sound the best possible way in a direction that I’ve been asked to do it.

Tell us a bit about the difference between the two mixes on the compilation…

The compilation has two CDs; one CD is a live recording that was done at the Horse & Groom where Defected hosted one of their regular Thursday night parties in London and I really wanted to try and capture what was happening in a small and cosy intimate space with also the sound of the crowd reacting to the music. I’m not happy with live recordings unless you can hear them in context and that means with the crowd that was there that particular day. The other mix is a more traditional studio mix. I also love studio mixes because it allows me to do much more tweaks to make it as detailed and as flawless as I can so that it is a continuous flow of music that you can enjoy and it doesn’t have the urgency or the bumps of the live thing, so they can be good for a few different situations.

Where are some of your favourite places to DJ? What is it about them that appeals to you?

The best place to play would be any place where the crowd is open-minded and is up for a party, where they don’t expect you to be following some kind of rule or some kind of style. That could happen anywhere but lately I’ve found going back to London I got the same vibe I was having there maybe 15, 20 years ago but with a completely new generation of people. I always liked in England how people would react to the music and how music would always be very important to most of them and I can still feel that the new generation has carried that on from the older ones and its very inspiring that in this day of age this still happens. Another place that I’ve always enjoyed playing at, I’ve been playing at for like twice a year for the past 15, 20 years, would be Tokyo and Japan in general where the people who go to clubs would have quite a different approach from the rest of the world; they would go to a club to see a DJ as they would go to a concert to see a band or an artist so they’re very focused on the artist and they usually have a very precise knowledge of the artist’s background. They really know all about you and react really cheerfully and very emotionally to the music, so it’s a blessing for a DJ to have such a captive crowd.

‘Dimitri From Paris Back In The House’ is out 27^th August on Defected Records.

Ben Watt interviews long-time Buzzin' Fly mastering engineer Miles Showell at leading mastering room, Metropolis Studios in London. With an apparent resurgence in the popularity of vinyl and many people claiming that vinyl sounds better than CDs, Ben digs deep with Miles to get his expertise on the technical differences and what sounds best and why…

There is a revival of a belief among home-listening record buyers that vinyl sounds better than CD. CDs seemed to have been contaminated by a dislike for MP3s. They're 'harsh', they're 'digital', people cry. It is causing people to reject their CD collections, and buy music on vinyl again often at very high prices. A love of 12" packaging and the rituals aside, it is baffling: surely for most people in domestic environments they are imagining things.

I completely understand your frustration. While vinyl records are truly capable of extremely high digital-beating fidelity, this can only be the case if the record was (i) cut well at the mastering stage, (ii) processed and pressed well at the factory, which is the really hard part, (iii) then kept clean and stored in ideal conditions and (iv) finally played on a decent turntable with a very well-engineered tone arm fitted with a good and correctly aligned cartridge that in turn has a clean and undamaged stylus all of which needs to feed a high quality RIAA vinyl disc pre-amplifier.

Exactly. Who is going to be able to afford or set all that up?

Yes, as you can see there are a hell of a lot of 'ifs' in there. Obviously all of the above is very possible but it is difficult and more expensive to really do vinyl records justice. It is just not feasible that all the people who feel records "sound so much better than CD" have been able to achieve all of the above.

I am sure part of it is that people tell themselves it sounds better because it is 'analogue' - a word that now has near mythical proportions enriched as it is with popular modern connotations of authenticity and organic content. People say vinyl sounds 'warmer' but surely this is invariably down to low-frequency boosts and compression put into cartridges to maximise volume out of a turntable - a bit like that old 'Loudness' button on old-fashioned amplifiers. It is not really anything to do with what is on the vinyl itself. Do you think there are also other reasons that have caused this perception?

It could be that they have very poor CD players (not impossible, as the CD player has been de-engineered of late as domestic audio equipment is being made cheaper and cheaper). Or maybe they are not playing manufactured CDs but home made burns made in computers. The CD burning drives bundled with most home computers leave quite a lot to be desired (poor jitter rates when burning audio CDs especially if they are burn very quickly ie x64 which people tend to do also). 

And the blank CDs used?

Yes, the variability of blank media which can also have a very negative effect on the audio. This is especially apparent at the budget end of the blank CD market. Here at Metropolis we like to use Taiyo Yuden Gold blanks for audio CDs but these cost us something in the region of 70 pence per disc. Very few people in the real word would spend that much on blank CDs when they believe the hype (well, theory really) that "digital so makes no difference as long as the 1s and 0s can be read".

And the source material?

Yes, a lot of people burn CDs from their iTunes library so obviously they are starting with lossy compressed sources (MP3 and AAC) and not full bandwidth audio. Sometimes there is also the problem of compound compression: a manufactured CD is ripped at high speed using a lossy 'codec' to the computer, then a "copy" audio CD is burnt for a friend who, in turn rips it into his computer via a lossy codec and so on and so on.

So the chances are in most environments a CD player is still a good choice?

Yes, a decent mid-priced CD player will probably sound better than a decent mid-priced record player set up in most cases just because a decent turntable, arm, cartridge and RIAA pre-amplifier combinations are more expensive that their CD counterpart as well as difficult to set up correctly and maintain. But, I should also add, a decent turntable could quite easily beat any CD player (regardless of budget) fed with poor quality CDs. 

It seems the playing field for comparisons is not exactly level...

As someone who also loves the vinyl format I am chuffed at its recent revival, however I am not sure all of the people who profess to hear a difference are really doing fair comparisons.

What do you choose?

Here in the studio, if potential or new clients want to hear how the room sounds, I will often play vinyl records and a lot of people are staggered at the potential fidelity of this pretty crude music carrying format. So it is a hard one to call. At home I will happily play vinyl or CDs (with a slight preference for vinyl probably because the RIAA equaliser in my amplifier is so sweet sounding) but as you might expect I have pretty good gear that I have acquired over time as well as access to an excellent engineering team who can help me tinker with it!

And for the average home listener?

For most people a good CD is as good as it ever needs to be. The problem is that CDs in the domestic environment - for the reasons outlined above - are often not quite what they used to be.

http://metropolis-group.co.uk/

Ben Watt:

“For what it's worth, readers, I listen to my iTunes on shuffle all day long with tunes at varying levels of compression and quality. For me the tune rather than the obsession over its pristine sound quality is what matters on a day-to-day level. I agree with Miles that well-made vinyl can sound startlingly good on amazing gear, but surely one of the chief reasons the professionally made CD arrived in the first place was we were sick of the scratches and crackles and crappy tone-arms of the early-80s, especially when listening at home. CDs have their drawbacks but let's not imagine ones that aren't there. And then let's all bundle round to Miles' house to check out his vinyl setup when he has a moment!”

Commencing his dizzying journey at the tender age of 18, Avicii has unquestionably amassed greater success before turning 22 than most could ever hope to achieve in a lifetime. His tracks ‘Bromance’ and ‘Levels’ swept across every club in the world in 2011 taking the self-taught, fresh-faced Swedish luminary to become one of the most in demand acts in electronic music at the moment. This year, Avicii appears at Creamfields as he makes his debut headlining the South Stage, we catch up with him to find out what we can expect from his performance.

Have you spoken to any artists about Creamfields who have played there before?

Yes of course, I’ve heard nothing but amazing things so I’m very excited!

You’re going to be performing alongside a predominantly Swedish roster on the South Stage at Creamfields, what is it about Sweden that allows for such a strong electronic music scene?

I guess it's because we inspire each other. We've had really strong producers for the last 10 years and the guys that really got me into producing were the Swedish House Mafia and Eric Prydz. If not that, it must just be something with the water in Sweden...

Your career has catapulted in the last couple of years, have you had guidance from any of your DJ peers?

The person who I couldn’t have made it without and who constantly provides me with a lot of direction, guidance and support is my manager, Ash. I definitely wouldn’t be where I am today without him.

How did you get into DJing and producing?

A friend of mine told me about a program that could be used to make music without playing any instruments, I got intrigued and downloaded a demo to try. I got hooked from day one

We think she has one of the most distinctive and best voices in dance music. She’s also pretty damn hot too, but we say that with no disrespect and without detracting from her obvious vocal talents. Nadia Ali’s voice is sensational and lends itself to a 4/4 beat with utter perfection, probably the reason she has supplied the vocals on some of dance music’s biggest tracks. With her latest track, ‘Believe It’, with Spencer & Hill, out now, thanks to Strictly Rhythm, we catch up with Nadia to talk music, DJs, influences and collaborations.

Hi Nadia, your new single is called ‘Believe It’, what is the idea behind the track and how did the collaboration with Spencer & Hill come about?

Spencer & Hill did a remix of my collaboration with Sultan & Ned Shephard entitled ‘Call My Name’. I loved the result and so when they approached me to do a collaboration with them I was very open to it. They said they were looking for a song that had a very fun vibe to it so I just wrote some lyrics about how it's important to unwind after working hard because it's easy to lose the sight of the work-life balance. Also, I wanted there to be a positive message to everyone. You can really do anything you put your mind to as long as you believe in yourself.

You've got some massive collaborations up your sleeve, working with Armin van Buuren, Sultan & Ned Shephard and EDX, how do you choose who you work with?

First thing I look for in a collaborator is the quality of their productions and whether or not I am honestly a fan of their sound. Secondly, it has to work as far as timing for both of our schedules. There have been plenty of times where I would have liked to work with a certain artist but because both of our touring schedules are not in sync it doesn't always work out.

How did you get in to the music scene and how did you end up working in dance music?

I've been singing ever since I was a child. I never planned working in dance music though. It was a fluke to be honest. I was a club kid and I loved listening to dance music ever since I was a teenager. I was working with my producer on more hip-hop driven beats but I asked him to try a dance beat for fun. We recorded one and it turned out to be a huge hit. That song was ‘Rapture’.

Where do you get your inspiration from when writing songs?

I get most of my inspiration from real life experiences but sometimes if I have a really interesting conversation with someone and they share something that they've been going through, that also serves as good inspiration for songwriting.

You have been described as the diva of the current global dance explosion, how does that feel? 

I do feel very blessed to be in such a unique position in my industry. One of the highlights for me was the International Dance Music Awards earlier this year when I performed an acapella version of ‘Rapture’ into a full on performance of ‘Pressure’. I also won two awards that night and felt so appreciated amongst my peers.

‘Rapture’ was remixed by one of the biggest DJs of this year, Avicii, and it became a huge hit again. How did the remix come about and did you meet Avicii?

I was in touch with Avicii's manager, Ash, and I remember he had told me how much he admired that song. I already had a really cool remix done by Tristan Garner but I wanted something a little more commercial as part of the overall remix package. Tim Bergling aka Avicii was on tour and did the remix while he was on trains and airplanes but got the job done and as we all know now, he re-ignited the song for the younger generation of dance music lovers. I actually didn't meet Avicii until months after he had finished the remix.

You have quite a collection of club smash hits including ‘Pressure’ and ‘Rapture’, what’s your secret?

I just bring it from the heart. My songs come from personal experience and what seems like premonitions. Logistically I'm most in my creative zone when I'm writing in my studio. It's my wonderland!

Who would you like to collaborate with next?

Believe it or not, although there are a lot of amazing EDM producers/DJs that I would love to work with, my dream collaboration would have to be with Bono from U2! I have loved his voice ever since I was a child and he's been a huge influence in my musical career.

What’s your longtime goal in your musical career?

That line between dance music and other genres is quickly diminishing, and personally I'm ready to grow as an artist. In the long run, I would love to start writing and collaborating with artists in different formats and I think I can bring a different style of songwriting to other genres. I'll always stay true to my dance roots though!

There are a lot of women out there trying to break in the scene, what advice would you give them?

Just do it! (I swear I'm not sponsored by Nike, ha ha!) The EDM world is a male dominated and DJ dominated industry and that's a double-edged sword. On one hand, I stand out because I'm a female singer/songwriter. On the other hand, I am also treated as competition. In all honestly, you really have to get up every morning and feed your passion. My work is music and music is my life. That's how it should feel, always.

What’s next for Nadia Ali?

I'm looking at incorporating some live instrumentation into some future recordings and experimenting with some more traditional indie sounds. I'm also in the middle of expanding my live production and taking a bigger show on the road! Personally, I'm really excited about my move to Los Angeles. It's a brand new city and such an amazing new energy for me. 

Spencer & Hill & Nadia Ali ‘Believe It’ is out now on Strictly Rhythm

Unedited, straight from the heart, check out what Paul van Dyk has to say about each of the tracks on his recently released sixth album ‘Evolution’. Paul spent much of a recent flight to the States writing and reflecting on the album making process, sharing background and anecdotes on how the various productions and vocal collaborations came into existence. Here, in his own words, track-by-track, is the evolution of ‘Evolution’.

‘Symmetries’ feat. Austin Leeds

“At the start of ‘Evolution’s production I assembled this hybrid studio set-up which I could take into clubs. Through keyboards and effects boxes, it allowed me to work pretty much any type of new element you can imagine into a track. I’m not sure if clubbers realized it at the time, but they were essentially interacting with the music making process of ‘Evolution’. Their reactions were showing me which direction each of the tracks should take. Austin started ‘Symmetries’ by producing this piece that had the drums, percussion loops and bassline and sent me this wonderful backing track. I had a piano hook line in my head and in the club I started playing it over the top. This was the first time that the two parts came together and the track we arrived with at the end became ‘Symmetries’.”  

Listen: http://bit.ly/HVSk5T // Buy: http://bit.ly/HwkoeZ

‘The Ocean’ feat. Arty

“I met Arty in Russia sometime in 2010 and we talked at that point about making music together. That has led to two tracks on the album. On ‘The Ocean’ I was sent over some strings and sequence patterns, which I was really feeling. I then came back in with other elements and it turned into this big back-and-forth mechanism. Arty brought the topline, which is really harmonic and angelic and we used it really more like an instrument than a vocal. We both felt very strong about the parts that had gone in and I then took it and began to properly produce it.”

‘The Ocean’ (inc. Las Salinas Mix) is released on Beatport, July 2nd.

‘Eternity’ feat. Adam Young

“Eternity’ was actually the third track that went over to Adam before he was really inspired to write something. When the first one went over to him he came back and said, “you know Paul, I really don’t know what to do with this – it’s a completed track!” I said: “ok, no problem, let’s try something else”, so I did and he e-mailed me back saying: “wow, this is realllly complex. I don’t really feel there’s the space for me to write something”. So we ended up jumping on the phone and having this incredibly wide-ranging conversation, talking about everything from the weather to life, religion, the universe and everything. I found he was this clever fascinating guy with a really inspired perspective way of looking at life. So then I went back and started to work on a production that had more of an open end, that didn’t box Adam in. It allowed him to add in the story element to the song and that dynamic worked beautifully.”     

Watch: http://bit.ly/MsP0Ft // Buy: http://bit.ly/HwkoeZ

 

‘Verano’ feat. Austin Leeds

“To me there’s this definite attraction-of-opposites with Austin and myself, which I find pretty absorbing. When we were making ‘Verano’ I was going to the studio in Berlin, which was covered in snow at the time and Austin would be dialling in from Miami. We’d be working on the same track, but he’d be looking out and seeing cloudless skies and palm trees!  With my music making, it always has its start-point in the dark and dirty basement clubs of Berlin. When that meets Austin’s background – Miami: very expressive, very outgoing, sunny, irrepressible - I think the strange connect that lies between those two elements is what makes if work so well.”   

Watch: http://bit.ly/LJHVyo // Buy: http://bit.ly/HwkoeZ

‘I Don't Deserve You’ feat. Plumb

“Plumb’s this singer/songwriter who has gotten really big through Tennessee’s Contemporary Christian scene. Watching TV one evening I heard a track of hers and was really impressed. We contacted the show’s musical supervisor and he put us in contact with her. ‘I Don’t Deserve You’ was quite a tricky one to pull off. I was after something that had real depth to it, which would suit her voice. At the same time it was really intimate but also had some lift to it. It was quite a precise balance to strike. She came back with the most wonderful lyrics and vocals and the minute I heard them I absolutely knew they were going to work in the track!”

Listen: http://bit.ly/HVSk5T // Buy: http://bit.ly/HwkoeZ

‘The Sun After Heartbreak’ feat. Sue McLaren & Arty



“Arty and I went into the composing phase on the track and basically came up with something that was very straight beats, 132bpm, with a kind of progressive house lean to it. As we got further into it, I started to see that it could work better as something much more ‘lifty’ and at that point we changed its direction and gave a lot more momentum and drive. So with the tempo rise, we began to test the drum&bass elements and felt that really worked too. For me Sue McLaren is one of the best new vocalists to come along in the time since ‘In Between’ and ‘Evolution’. I just really, really love her voice. I’d been working with her on a different track, but one that was in the same key and one day I had this flash of inspiration, tried them together and the synergy that was happening between all the aspects became really compelling”. 

Listen: http://bit.ly/HVSk5T // Buy: http://bit.ly/HwkoeZ

‘Rock This’ 



“This track came about through a fairly unusual path too. I’m a big fan of this group from Liverpool called The Wombats. They had a new album called ‘This Modern Glitch’ due out and they asked if I could work on a remix for the first single ‘Tokyo’. Their label then had a change of heart, switched things around and opted for another track as a single instead. I was in the studio trying to work this out, trying to make something of this other track – which funnily enough was called ‘Techno Fan’! - and it just didn’t seem to be working. I got so frustrated in a way and needed to do something to release the musical pressure. That ‘release’ resulted in ‘Rock This’! It was kind of like an outpouring of artistic frustration!”

Listen: http://bit.ly/HVSk5T // Buy: http://bit.ly/HwkoeZ

‘Dae Yor’ feat. Ummet Ozcan

“One of the attractions for me with working with Ummet was that he’s not ‘everywhere’ artist yet. Like Sue McLaren, for me it’s about catching very talented people early in their career. So Ummet’s still a fresh name and he’s doing really cool, quite underground and different tech-ish trance. We met at Tomorrowland and we talked about doing something together at that point. Ummet started sending files back and forth and ‘Dae Yor’ was what came out at the end of that development.”

Listen: http://bit.ly/HVSk5T // Buy: http://bit.ly/HwkoeZ

‘All The Way’ feat. Tyler Michaud & Fisher

“Tyler started out doing some tracks for VANDIT, as well as a few remixes and during the A&R process he sent us over this track. The note that came with it said he wasn’t really sure what to do with it, or which direction to take it in. At that stage it was this really kooky, quirk-filled, kinda dubstep-ish, electro. I liked both of the elements but I told him I didn’t feel they worked together. Sometimes you get a cruel irony like that. So he asked if I’d be interested in coming in and working on it. I recorded a basis that I felt was a lot more compatible to Fisher’s song”.

Listen: http://bit.ly/HVSk5T // Buy: http://bit.ly/HwkoeZ



‘If You Want My Love’ feat. Caligola

“Caligola are these two guys, Gustaf and Bjorn, who front Swedish alternative rock band Mando Diao. They were telling me about this whole new persona they’d created, under the name Caligola, which was more like an artist collective than the band. They were in the final stages of writing their album and they suggested that they take something from it and turn it my way. I was very touched by this. It was a generous thing for them to offer. So I took the track and came at it from quite an avant-garde angle, while still, I think, keeping the strong rock presence of the vocal in. Its very much a sidestep for the album, one of the least expected tracks on there and quite an experimental one maybe.”

Listen: http://bit.ly/HVSk5T // Buy: http://bit.ly/HwkoeZ

‘Lost In Berlin’ feat. Michelle Leonard



“Cities are a pretty communal inspiration in general and I mentioned to Michelle that I’d done ‘New York City’ on ‘In Between’ and felt that I was a bit uncomfortable with never having done anything based around my home city. She didn’t miss a beat and said ‘leave that to me.’ She came back 3, or maybe 4 weeks later with this incredibly beautiful track that somehow really captures Berlin’s past/present essence. The lyrics are quite voyeuristic too. She’s never told me exactly what they were about and of course like all songs, they’re open to interpretation. To me though ‘Lost In Berlin’ feels like it’s about a relationship that may or may not make it. Sometimes hopeful, sometimes melancholic and introspective but with this beautiful, slightly damaged edge to it.”

Listen: http://bit.ly/HVSk5T // Buy: http://bit.ly/HwkoeZ

‘Everywhere’ feat. Fieldwork



“Fieldwork is Johnny McDaid under a new artist name. With the song he was aiming to deconstruct the traditional love song, I think. As standard, love songs always define everything as huge – big, grand gestures, full-size words - lots of heavy import and meaning. It’s kind of love through the Hollywood magnifier, I guess. If you’re really being honest about it, love is in fact something small, intimate and personal. It’s about relatively minor details because after all, it is only about two people at the end of the day.”

Listen: http://bit.ly/HVSk5T // Buy: http://bit.ly/HwkoeZ

‘A Wonderful Day’ feat. Giuseppe Ottaviani

“Aside from being one of the most exceptional musicians I’ve ever met, Giuseppe is also the most wonderful, stunning captivating character you can possibly imagine! We’ve done a lot of music together in the past and that’s going to continue for a long time. For me it’s not foreseeable to have a Paul van Dyk album without Giuseppe’s involvement somehow. There has been studio chemistry there from the start. You can be in the studio with him for 5 minutes and after that time a track is already in motion. There’s no ‘trying’ with him, we’re always in sync and there’s only fluid production.”

Listen: http://bit.ly/HVSk5T // Buy: http://bit.ly/HwkoeZ

‘We Come Together’ feat. Sue McLaren



“For me the unification of people on the dancefloor is one of the most enduring, motivating factors throughout my career to date. Electronic music has been bringing people together for 25 years now and I think its done it more effectively than any other music movement in modern history. The fact that it draws people together from all different backgrounds, religions and citizenships and marginalizes negative attitudes and violence is wonderful. I spoke to Sue, and her co-writer Stephen Massa about this and they came back saying they thought they had an idea for it. I gave them a backing track, which had quite a melodic trance tone to it and they quite quickly brought the draft vocal for it. I loved it as it encapsulated what we were talking about perfectly.”

Listen: http://bit.ly/HVSk5T // Buy: http://bit.ly/HwkoeZ

‘Heart Stops Beating’ feat. Sarah Howells



“I met Sarah for the first time at a big festival in Hamburg. I grabbed her as she came off and said ‘hey, listen, I’m playing all the tracks you’re singing on anyway, why don’t we collaborate in someway?’ She sent me ‘Heart Stops Beating’ and I really lost it. The track has trancey elements, it has electro aspects and there are even rock parts in there, with the great boomy, bassy guitar. With every year that goes by it becomes harder and harder to categorize a greater percentage of electronic dance music that’s released and that I find a generally a positive trend. Maybe one day terms like electro, house, trance and techno will cease to be used entirely and music will either be ‘good’, ‘bad’ or ‘ok’! Who knows!”

Listen: http://bit.ly/HVSk5T // Buy: http://bit.ly/HwkoeZ

Dub Pistols, one of the most widely acclaimed acts of the past decade, are back with a new album 'Worshipping The Dollar', through Sunday Best Recordings. We grab main man Barry Ashdown and his talented band to talk music, consumerism and the forthcoming Bestival.  

So, how are you guys?

We are good thanks. We’ve just finished the first part of out Worshipping The Dollar UK tour which has been a great success, and now we’re heading into the festival leg.

2012 has been a big year for you guys. Do you feel that this could be a breakthrough year?

Not sure you’re gonna see us taking the charts by storm anytime soon, as our records are not really the type of thing you’re gonna hear on daytime Radio 1. But, that's how we like it, music without compromise, the kinda cheese shizz that you hear on radio just ain't our way. That said, our tours are getting bigger and we have just picked up deals in the US and Australia. Our idea is to do it the good old fashioned way of getting on the road and playing to as many people as possible, building up a proper following of people that are into real music. It’s that which has given us longevity and credibility… it's better to be accepted by your peers, producers, artists and real DJs, than some celebrity daytime DJ who doesn't know anything about music. Keeping it real.

Your new album 'Worshipping The Dollar' seems to be a slight change of direction from your older material. Was that a deliberate decision?

It's not so much a change of direction as it is visiting some of the subjects we used to deal with pre-911. I just thought that with the current situation around the world financially and the rioting in England, that it was time to put back a bit of a social message in our records. We are not gonna bore the shit out of people like Bono but we felt something had to be said. We have also gone back to a more uptempo feel on this album, as it has been working for us live, so I wanted to take those ideas into the studio.

You're still with Sunday Best for this album. What do you love about them?  

Sunday Best are our family and have always supported us in whatever we wanna do. The label has a great team and a fantastically eclectic roster, which suits the Dub Pistols perfectly. I've know Robby and Sarah Bolshi for years, they saved my career when we were down and I have the upmost respect for them

You're playing at Bestival this year. Are you looking forward to playing at such a huge festival? 

Bestival has been our home since it started and this year we are playing the main stage on Saturday. There is no bigger honour or gig, we are a festival band and with no Glastonbury this year this is the big one, roll on September!

How did the collaboration with Rodney P come about?

This is the third album I've worked on with Rodney P, who is to me, the best UK rap artist out there. He blazed the trail that the others are now enjoying the fruits of and he was the first to rhyme in a UK style. Without him, there would be no Dizzie etc, he deserves respect and way more props than he gets, but I guess that's why we get on so well, he keeps it real. We met up a mountain in France years ago, partied hard and have been friends ever since.

What do you think the future holds for Dub Pistols?

Tour, touring, touring, touring, oh and touring! When the world’s had enough of us we will just fuck off!

From its old residency at Turnmills, to its new home at the Ministry Of Sound, The Gallery in London has been an institution in the UK’s Friday clubbing calendar. Now, with the recent release of the night’s latest compilation, ‘Social Deconstruction’, we catch up with its resident of nine-years, Gavyn Mytchel to talk music, memories, tunes and legacy…

The Gallery has turned into a ritual of life for many EDM enthusiasts in London and surrounding counties. You see many of the same faces every week. What particular aspects of the night do you think stimulates that level of dedication? 

 Big line ups week in week out, amazing production, fantastic members VIP bar where everyone hangs out at from 11pm till 1am. Everyone knows each other up there, which is great.

‘Social Deconstruction’ is the new Gallery CD. What were your aims whilst compiling it?

I was sick of seeing the same compilations with the same tracklists, I wanted to do something unique, something with dedicated tracks to The Gallery, their own experiences over the years from either playing at Turnmills or Ministry. A release for our Gallery fan base to have, which is a bit special.

How did you genre-structure the two mixes? What do you feel is the tone, vibe and progression of them is and how do you classify the music on board?

The Gallery has always maintained a musical journey throughout the night, not just trance from start to finish we always have tech house to progressive then building up to trance. The first two tracks on each CD are a bit more progressive sounding which is exactly what we provide at the club, getting the clubbers in the mood without wearing them out too early.

Unusually for a compilation, almost all of the tracks used are either purpose-dedicated or special Edits bespoke for ‘Social Deconstruction’. How did you set about coaxing all those artists into producing them especially for it?

I did 90% of the negotiating at ADE last year. Each DJ has been very loyal to us over years and all agreed without hesitating. They all said it was the first project in years that they have been able to go into the studio with fun ideas as they have certain memories from playing down there. It was more about doing a track for The Gallery rather than their solo careers

Your own ‘EC1 To SE1’ track leads out the first disc. Tell us a bit about that?

 I made this back in 2008 when Turnmills had just closed and we had five weeks break before starting at Ministry, I never sent it to any labels, so thought it would be a good track to feature on the compilation. I knew that I would be opening the box every week and wanted to play more prog, leaving my end of night trance days behind at Turnmills. I played it out nearly every Friday and it always went off!

Do you remember where you were when you heard that Turnmills was to close!?

I knew back in 2003 that the lease was up in 2008. Danny Newman and I were doing the banking and he told me then. I was shocked as I never thought of it ending at that time, I had five years of knowing but never said.

The Gallery and Turnmills were, for years, synonymous. Do you feel that after five successful years at the Ministry, that has finally been put to rest?

Yeah for sure, we have a new crowd at Ministry (a very good crowd as well). The Turnmills clubbers are now all in their mid-30s and the new crowd never really knew much of the those days. So the transition has worked well. RIP Turnmills!

The Gallery’s imagery and flyer art has always been exceptional. Who’s the artist behind that?

ED Coward. The man is a legend. He has been with us for 12 years. He actually started two months before I started at The Gallery back in 2000. He used to do weekly artwork back at Turnmills but now we are at Ministry it’s a monthly flyer, he also does all Lock N Load artwork. Quality!

How does the work division break down?

 It’s a two man team, I do all the bookings for all four rooms, all paperwork, flights, hotels, ground transport, itineraries, tech specs, set times, riders, guest list and also The Gallery tours. Nish is the online man making sure everyone is promoting through their online sites, listings and interviews, etc.

How long have you been resident and lynchpin for the nights now?

I have been resident since 2003, so nine years. I’ve been in charge of the night since 2006.

What’s the most vital attribute a DJ must have in order to be booked to play The Gallery?

Lots going on musically, large fan base, also someone who gets behind the promotion of the nights.

What is the craziest/ wildest/ wackiest thing you’ve seen during your time there?

Seen so many crazy things going on, most recently our Gallery girls got up on the bar in the 103 room with their iron boards and irons and started ironing t shirts then throwing them out to the crowd, they were like ‘what the f**k!’ Tea parties on the dancefloor. We had Predaton for the Judgement Sunday night, he was awesome and everyone had their cameras out!

What’s your all-out favourite Gallery memory?

It was back in 2001, Daniele Davoli’s last track of his set at 4am was a remix of U2’s ‘Where The Streets Have No Name’. The whole crowd was singing then Judge Jules came on, slammed some banging tracks on and the crowd were awesome. The Turnmills laser going up and down then the pyros going off – wow!

What is your personal all-time Gallery anthem?

Too many to chose from, I have a memory of so many tracks that are associated with certain DJs. Push’s ‘Strange World’ was one of mine when I was playing last set but I think Airwave’s ‘Above The Sky’ is the main one, classic!

Where would you like to take The Gallery next? What’s the next hill to climb and what would you like its legacy to be?

Sounds are changing, some line-ups are harder to fill the club, and it’s a hard job trying to do 48 Fridays a year. Keeping it fresh, pushing and pulling at the scene. I would like to keep doing more CDs and touring around the world. If we can reach 20 years old (2015) and being London’s longest running weekly club night, I would be more than happy with that, leaving a fantastic memory to thousands of clubbers.

The Gallery’s ‘Social Deconstruction’ is out now.

As the whole of the UK prepares for a massive Jubilee Bank Holiday weekend, we caught up with Catz ‘n’ Dogz to find out what we can expect from their set on Sunday June 3^rd at Circus’ massive party at The Masque in Liverpool. On the same bill as Yousef, James Zabiela, Adam Beyer, Heidi, Lewis Boardman and Scott Lewis, this is shaping up to be one of the top nights of the whole weekend…

Hey guys, where have we caught you this morning and what are you up to?

After a long and exiting weekend it's time to do some really boring stuff, bank transfers, invoices etc. Than some time in the gym and finally get back to eating some healthy food. Usually Monday and Tuesday is pretty relaxing for us after a hectic weekend. We like to chill and catch up on some reading etc...

This weekend sees you make your Circus debut. What do you know about the party and what are your experiences of playing in Liverpool?

We've never played in Liverpool so we are very exited. Everybody we've spoken to has told us that the party is awesome and actually, of late, every party we've played in the UK has been very good. We have a couple of new remixes finished and ready to test and also some unreleased stuff from our label so we're sure that the party will be the perfect place to test them out. The line-up is huge and finally we're gonna have some time to hang out with Heidi, who we became good friends with when she was living in Berlin.

Anything exciting from Catz ‘n’ Dogz and Pets Recordings that we should be keeping an ear out for over the summer?

The new Eats Everything ‘Jagged Elbow’ EP was recently released. And for summer we've prepared some exciting new and quite different material. We have some very nice new music from Chmara Winter with remixes and then a big Audio/visual project that we are still working on, and after the summer we have a release from A1Bassline. We don't want to get stuck in the monthly release cycle. There is so much music coming out right now that we really believe that keeping the quality is the most important thing. Otherwise people would get bored or lose interest...

Volkova Sisters are an exciting new band from Budapest, Hungary. Emerging from the underground DIY scene there, and attracting much attention after a head turning performance at SXSW this year, they’ve just released their new EP ‘Hope’ this week. We caught up with the band to find out more...

What's the music scene like in Hungary at the moment?

It’s small, everybody knows everybody, but it’s started to change quite fast in the last five years. We have a lot of fresh, very talented people from the younger generation who are ready to go wherever it's necessary to gain the right feedback. As they grew up online, their taste buds are developed in an international arena, but it's combined with some sort of local aesthetics and sounds. They really should be more on the radar, people would be surprised what's been growing in Hungary and Eastern Europe in general. 

How would you describe your sound? 

Dalma: If I close my eyes, I see an abandoned shore before the storm… big wide landscapes, with lots of grey and blue tones. The tone is definitely a bit dark and you hear the ‘80s synth influence, which kind of qualifies the sound as darkwave, but it has also been described as folktronica, which can be true sometimes. But our favourite is goth tron!

You site your influences as broad ranged as My Bloody Valentine and Cocteau Twins. Are there any other big influences on your music?

We listen to a lot of music all the time, so it's hard to say. When we first started working together at the very beginning, there was that DJ Hell track we'd listen to a lot – ‘Die Angst’! There was this great vinyl, and a good friend of ours were DJing at the place where we used to stay those days. We listened to this track so much that I can honestly say that the Berlin electronic sound influenced us and gave us a kick-start. Later on, we got influenced by many different and wider ranges of music based on the periods we were in. The sound-scapes we use and hear often remind me of the utopian worlds of cyberpunk because of the huge spaces and how they're built.

Would you say your music is influenced by the sometimes challenging political situation in Hungary?

Well I think we were reacting on the side effects, the general mood of the people, the forlorn atmosphere where you can't really see any possibilities, especially in the creative fields. But you can also see that people who used to be too lazy to care are changing because they also feel the surreal developments. And when it becomes personal, you have to do something against it. A lot of people actually leave for "inspiration" to other countries, but you can also see young guys becoming more active and want to let their words out. We've also been challenged by this, and our way of dealing with it was to write this EP - hence the title. We'll see about the next steps, but there are strong plans of moving our base elsewhere. 

2011 was a big year for you guys, playing everywhere from SXSW to supporting Lamb on tour. Has 2012 been just as busy gig wise?

We got some great opportunities, especially in the region. There's Exit Festival in Serbia, which is a giant festival, so it's good to have our name in that circle. And, we'll play some great smaller ones that tend to be more experimental with really open-minded audiences e.g. Poke Festival in Slovakia or Black Noise in Hungary. Apart from the bigger names, there is amazing talent emerging from this area and it's really exciting to be part of it.

We catch up with Carl Kennedy, owner of Wasted Youth records and resident DJ for Subliminal at Pacha Ibiza. As the Subliminal Sessions gears up for its new summer season on the White Isle, we talk to Carl about his roots, his influences and most importantly, his new ‘Subliminal Essentials’ compilation which was released today…

As they get set for their Exit Festival appearance on Sunday 15^th July, we catch up with Canada’s Art Department. Now part of the Crosstown Rebels gang, Art Department is Kenny Glasgow and Jonny White, two DJ/producers who between them have released some great music in their long-standing careers, particularly on Kenny’s Method 11/11 label and Jonny’s No. 19 label. 

Tell us a little about yourselves, and the type of music that you play for people who may not of heard of you before reading this. 

My name is Jonny White and I'm an alcoholic. Kenny Glasgow and I are both from Toronto, Canada. I'm currently living between Toronto and Barcelona, Kenny between Toronto and London. We've both been DJs for quite a long time, Kenny 20 plus years and I'm approaching 15 behind the decks. I started writing music about six years ago, Kenny's been writing for over 10, but was on "vacation" until I asked him to write an album for No.19 music about four years ago. As a younger DJ coming up in Toronto I can tell you from an outside perspective that Kenny was the most respected underground DJ in Toronto for ages and was actually quite successful internationally on his own about a decade ago when he was working with Tiga's Turbo label. Although I've been playing music for 15 years, I only just made music my soul focus within the last seven years.

How did you meet Damian Lazzarus and the Crosstown crew? How instrumental was that connection to the success of the Art Department project?

We actually met when I picked him up at the airport some six years ago to play a Canada Day event for my crew back in Toronto. We were doing a really small weekly Thursday night at a venue on College St and picked up the booking after the club he was meant to play had their sound repo'd. Imagine it hadn't gone down that way and we didn't cross paths… forward to four years later, with countless shows, festivals and after-parties together, we're now good friends and Damian's asked us to partner up and do a remix job for Crosstown which more or less lead to Kenny and I writing together for the first time. The success of this project is undoubtedly in part due to launching it on Crosstown. I don't doubt that we could have done similar damage debuting on No.19 but the stars were really aligned for Crosstown that year with Deniz's and Maceo's debut albums all coming out around the same time as ours.

How have the worldwide Social Experiment parties been received? 

The events have been amazing! I've been blown away by all of them. They're all sold out shows and the events are really attracting the "right people". We started off the year with one @BPM in playa Del Carmen on the beach with about 2500 people and it’s been full steam ahead with these shows since. WMC in Miami, Chicago, Toronto, NY, San Fran, Manchester, Italy, Switzerland and looking forward to our show during Sonar in my home town with Konrad Black, Deniz Kurtel, Nitin, Russ Yallop, Miguel Puente and the rest of the No.19 family. That’s one of our main focuses this year. You can come up with all kinds of creative and interesting ways to present your product and relay the ideas and the vibe behind the label but there is no substitute for having the heart of your label, the artists, get together and play for people. Nothing can portray what we're all about and the energy and passion that’s driving the label the way a live event can.

How do you adapt your sound from clubs to festivals and what can fans expect from your set at EXIT?

We play really, really loud.

What are your feelings on the growth and commercialization of dance music in America?  

I think there are obviously positives and negatives to what’s happening in America. It's great to see the music crossover and reach a bigger audience. It seems it was almost an overnight tipping point into America as far as how quickly it's become part of popular culture, even though house music's beginnings were in the States. You can look at it from several perspectives, being part of the underground and not necessarily being able to really relate to the type of dance music that people associate with this phenomenon. One perspective would be that it’s moving in the wrong direction and what the kids consider to be dance music today, the Skrilex's and Swedish House Mafia’s isn't "real" house or dance music, get angry about it and keep your distance. I think that although I don't consider our music to have anything in common with what they're doing, a lot of people are being introduced to EDM through that shit, and if it’s growth and acceptance into the mainstream means that there are more opportunities for us to play our music in the States then it’s a positive. We do what we do, and make the music that we make regardless of what’s going on, and if we're able to reach more people now because of what’s going on then I'm cool with the direction things are heading in… 

Team Sneak or Team Angello?

Guess.

What does the future hold for Art Department

We've been planning to make the move to a live performance for some time, that’s always been the plan but we've been touring too hard since we started this thing to put it together. There are always too many shows, too much travel, remixes to deliver and fun to be had, so it's been put on the backburner. We've decided to start working on our next full length album and we'll likely be writing with the idea that the music should be performed live this time around. We've got quite a bit of music coming out in coming months though… Jamie Jones & Art Department 'Our Time In Liberty’ (single on Crosstown Rebels), Storm Queen ‘Look Right Through (Art Department remix) (Defected), two new Art Department singles on No.19 Music, one being a collab with Konrad Black as well as the next mix compilation in the SOCIALEXPERIMENT series on No.19.

http://www.exitfest.org/

‘House Masters DJ Chus’ is a collection of 20 of the Spanish DJ’s original tracks and remixes, all brought together for Defected Records’ legendary House Masters series. Following on from luminaries such as Louie Vega, Dennis Ferrer and Blaze, Spain’s Chus L. Esteban is one of the country’s finest house DJs with not only great solo productions, he’s also part of Chus & Ceballos, where they developed their now famous Iberican sound with their releases. Compliments of Defected, we catch up with Chus to find out more…

How does it feel to be awarded the title of ‘House Master’?

Wow House Masters, now that’s a heavy responsibility. It’s an honour for me because this is a precious reward for all the hard work I have done all these years, but to be honest being part of the Defected house family is more than enough reward.

Your label Stereo is very well respected around the world… what is the most challenging thing about the running of the label?

I’m so proud that everyone knows about the label. One of the most challenging things about running a label is to keep your own identity but at the same time to evolve and improve your sound to keep your style alive.

Your love affair with house music started at the infamous Alien club in Madrid… what was it like to be involved in the acid house movement from so early on?

Starting my career in the acid-house movement was an eye opening experience. I remember it like it was yesterday. I was 15 and it was so crazy!

When did your break come in terms of DJing?

I started to feel like a real DJ in the early-90s, in a paradise called Portugal. I was resident DJ in a club called (1.53) which was the place where thousands of international DJs came to play for real clubbers. I played alongside Carl Cox, Deep Dish, and Roger Sanchez. That was the place for the real music of the time.

Can you remember the first record you ever made? Do you still have a copy?

I had some musical experience before, but the record I perceived to be my first baby was ‘Voices Of Savannah’. This was a tribal record which was the starting point of the Iberican sound and from there I started to focus on percussion and lyrical elements in my tracks.

Tell us about your residency at Teatro Kapital… you were resident there for 10 years, correct? How did the club and music scene change during that time?

I was a resident at the first house club in Madrid for ten wonderful years where house music had the golden age in Spain.

Tell us about some of the records of which you’re particularly proud.

DJ Chus ‘Got Feeling’… this record was so huge in Spain, I became popular after that and I will always remember being told by someone that they will never forget me because they made love for the first time to this song, so beautiful! Also ‘Back 2 NY’, I did this track with my friend Rob Mirage. I feel like New York is my second home and this is my personal tribute to a city that gave me so many great things!

How do you see your career developing over the coming years? Are there musical goals you have set yourself outside of house?

I will keep working on the things that I love, I really believe in the things I do. Music for me is a way of life so for sure more and more quality music!

Tell us about some of the re-edits you made for this compilation.

‘Enjoy Music’ is a good one that I always play in my sets, people go nuts to it, it’s one of those records that puts everyone on the dance floor in the right mood. I had a really great time and a lot of very good memories doing the re-edits for the album, I am so happy with it!

You requested to remix ‘Future’ right? What was it about that record that made you want to create your own version?

The first time I heard ‘Future’ I knew that this was a track that would make history. The big moment for me came when at ADE last year, dancing in the middle of the dance floor and witnessing the live performance that came with a Defected party. So you can imagine how pleased I was when Simon [Dunmore] asked me to remix it, this was a very important challenge in my life and I put in all my energy into doing it.

‘House Masters DJ Chus’ is out now. 

On Saturday 28^th April, The Squatters are moving into The Spa, Scarborough, for Sessions! The Big One 2012! Armed with a backpack full of dance floor bombs and a black belt in chopped and screwed mixing, the guys have bad news for the roof at The Spa as apparently they are planning on leaving a bass-shaped hole in it!

The Spa in Scarborough hasn’t seen a party of this magnitude since the ‘90s. Do you think the building will be able to cope with so many genres fused into one set?

Most definitely, it has seen some of the biggest raves and “apparently” before the refurbishment last year it had a sprung dance floor, which used to bend with 1000 ravers on it! I’m sure it will tolerate our arsenal of beats.

How does playing in the UK compare with the rest of the world? 

The UK would be far better if we didn’t have government health and safety rules which we all know as “common sense”, as when we play abroad they kind of have no rules and limit to the party. I guess the UK has some pros and cons.

Where will you guys be over the summer?

Ibiza, Canada, USA, South Korea and Scarborough.

What are the best things about Yorkshire?

The puddings and the accent.

Do you have any unusual studio rituals?

Our studio has two toilets so we can choose which one we go to depending on the condition!

With her remix of ‘Beautiful World’ released yesterday on Toolroom Records, we catch up with US native Gina Star, the in-demand female DJ and producer who’s Star (geddit?) continuous to rise with numerous releases and remix after remix for some of the biggest DJs in dance music. Her latest one for by Tiesto And Mark Knight, with the vocals of Dino Lenny, is pretty damn good too, so we wanted to find out how Gina was coping with her increasing fame…