GILLES PETERSON
+
Anna Prior Andrew Weatherall Confidence Man/Don Letts Eris Drew/Gabriels/HAAi Luke Una/Orbital/Overmono SAULT/SHERELLE
SHERELLE +
Anna Prior/Andrew Weatherall/Confidence Man/Don Letts/Eris Drew Gabriels/Gilles Peterson/HAAi/Luke Una/Orbital/Overmono/SAULT
Don’t Call It A Comeback
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ISSUE 1 / 2022
CONTENTS 4 Editors’ Letter It's good to be back.
10 First Person
The importance of nextgeneration ravers by Emma Warren.
12 First Listen
Damian Harris gives ‘Music Has The Right To Children’ a first spin.
14 Audiophile Listening Bars
Why they’re quite the latest thing.
16 Gabriels
As endorsed by Elton John, David Byrne and Paul Weller.
18 Reissue Labels
In search of lost classics and forgotten gems.
20 Anna Prior
Songs from the funky drummer.
22 MasterSounds
Rotary mixers are also quite the latest thing.
24 Eris Drew
The DJ and producer goes deep.
26 corto.alto
Scottish jazz with a Buckfast twist.
28 Overmono
The Russell brothers jack it up.
32 Confidence Man
The party-starting, cocksure Aussies return.
36 How To… Run A Club Night For 30 Years Dave Beer and Back To Basics.
44 Ninja Tune
How did it become electronic music’s most important label?
52 SAULT
We peak behind their cloak of anonymity.
60 The Secret DJ
The history of The Space Terrace.
66 North-West Rave Photo Special
Peter Walsh’s snaps are a priceless documentation of Manchester’s early rave scene.
78 Orbital
The Hartnoll brothers keep on working it out.
90 The New Balearic
Is it Balearic? We dig the new – and old – breed.
98 Rheinzand
There is no better band named after a bag of sand.
102 Luke Una
The real story of the funniest man in dance music.
114 SHERELLE
We discover what makes the livewire Londoner tick.
126 90s Techno
It’s the end of the century party!
140 DiY/Castlemorton
30 years on from the pinnacle of the free party movement.
150 Gilles Peterson
How to navigate 30-plus years in the music business...
162 John Peel
What really happened behind the scenes of his Fabric mix.
172 HAAi
With the release of her debut album Teneil Throssell is really ascending.
182 The Birth Of Jockey Slut
The how, the why, the when…
185 The Archive
The Avalanches, François Kevorkian, Andrew Weatherall meets Don Letts, John Peel.
202 How We Made… ‘Infiltrate 202’ by Altern 8.
208 Cratedigging
RAW SILK pull out their electronic battle weapons.
216 My House Is Your House
Justin Robertson gets lost in his inspirations.
224 Where Are They Now?
Electribe 101’s Billie Ray Martin is back.
228 Have You Ever Ridden A Horse?
Terry Farley has the Faith.
Editors’ Letter We never thought we would ever be writing this.
But there are other themes too - Weatherall and
When Jockey Slut magazine closed suddenly in
John Peel are referred to frequently. The
2004, we assumed that was it. And we’ve never
‘intellectualising of dance music’ is mentioned
been the kind of people to look back - we’ve
more than once. And the sheer freedom of losing
always tried to keep moving forward. But people
it to music on the dancefloor feels like a mantra
- and situations - change and in the last few years
through the mag.
things have happened that have made us start looking back over our shoulders for the first time.
So who and what is in it? Well, our covers feature
We’ve lost people, we’ve been disconnected from
a music broadcasting stalwart who has perhaps
friends and for a while we didn’t have access to
never been more relevant and one of the most
the dancefloor (which even for those of us that
exciting new names on the scene. We’re proud to
don’t go clubbing as much as we used to felt
have Gilles Peterson and SHERELLE grace the
significant). There’s always been supportive
front of the first issue. We’ve also got features on
people on social media suggesting we bring
the electronic powerhouse that is Ninja Tune, the
Jockey Slut back, but in recent years those calls
mysterious and majestic SAULT, electronic music
got louder, particularly in the wake of our 2020
icons Orbital, the new Balearic scene, the real
Andrew Weatherall Tribute book. Which meant
Luke Una, a huge and exhaustive piece on 90s
that last year we were ready to listen.
techno, DiY and the free party movement, the story of John Peel’s Fabric compilation plus HAAi,
So, a successful crowdfunder later, here we are.
Overmono, Confidence Man, The Secret DJ on
But the world is different now, and we believe a
Ibiza’s Space Terrace and loads more. We’ve also
new magazine and a new start is the only way to
got some bits from the Jockey Slut archive,
go. And although inspired by Jockey Slut, Disco
including a 2001 interview with The Avalanches, a
Pogo is a different animal. Reading through all the
feature detailing the historic meeting between
articles (written by some incredible journalists)
Weatherall and Don Letts, and a pretty
we’ve noticed a few important themes - race,
entertaining readers’ questions with a somewhat
gender and mental health are front and centre,
forthright François Kevorkian. We’ve even brought
which just wasn’t the case 30 years ago when
back popular Q&A Have You Ever Ridden A Horse?
Jockey Slut launched, or even when it closed 12
which London house legend Terry Farley deals
years later. We’ve also been more aware of the
with supremely. And it wouldn’t be the same
importance of including female, Black and Queer
without Leeds hero Dave Beer and his club Back
voices in the mag (whether artists, writers or
To Basics, so they are in there too!
photographers) - these were simply not things we gave much thought to with the old magazine
Finally, we want to say thank you for all the
(and we still have more work to do on that front in
incredible support via the crowdfunder from
the new magazine). Age also pops up frequently as
friends, readers and companies. We literally
a talking point and we’ve tried to cover artists
couldn’t have made this magazine without you.
both younger and older, using journalists and photographers of different ages with different
Hope you enjoy reading it as much as we have
levels of experience. With Disco Pogo we want to
enjoyed putting it together. It’s good to be back.
embrace age in a healthy, honest and positive way and not shy away from it as a subject of discussion.
Viva acid house!
Jim, Johnno and Paul.
4_DISCO_POGO
Photography: Robin Hughes
www.goodmeasure.co.uk
ISSUE 1 / 2022
Editors In Chief Paul Benney & John Burgess Editor Jim Butler Art Director Chris Jones Print & Production Harriet Jones Writers Luke Bainbridge, Chris Blue, The Secret DJ, Nick Doherty, Manu Ekanayake, Paul Flynn, Damian Harris, Andrew Harrison, Harold Heath, Mark Hooper, Toby Manning, Neil Mason, Tshepo Mokoena, Hugh Morris, Kris Needs, Annabel Ross, Patrick Ryder, Anton Spice, Jonas Stone, Katie Thomas, Emma Warren, Tim Wilderspin, Kieran Yates Photography David Bowen, Luke Dyson, Vanessa Goldschmidt, Martyn Goodacre, Dietmar Maria Hegemann, Alice Hepple, Matilda Hill-Jenkins, Sophie Jouvenaar, Lauren Jo Kelly, David Lake, Steve Lazarides, Alan Lodge, Pav Modelski, Elspeth Moore, Mark McNulty, Tom Oldham/Everynight, Casey Orr, Eddie Otchere, Ben Saunders, Ed Hepburne Scott, Heather Shuker, Tom Stapley, Mike Stuart, Jen Amelia Veitch, Eva Vermandel, Peter Walsh Illustrations Leo Zero Studios Thanks Mark Archer, Harry Harrison, Ibiza Spotlight, Photomatic, Amy Wainwright Cover photos Gilles Peterson by Matilda Hill-Jenkins SHERELLE by Eddie Otchere Design Jones Design Create Published twice per year by Disco Pogo Ltd discopogo.co instagram.com/discopogo.co facebook.com/discopogo.co twitter.com/discoxpogo First Edition 2022 All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced, stored in, or introduced into a retrieval system or transmitted in any form or by any means electronic, mechanical, photocopying, recording or otherwise without prior written permission of the publisher. Printed by Spectrum Printing, Cardiff. ISO 9001 Certified (Management), ISO 14001 Certified (Environmental). The paper used for this book is FSC Certified from sustainable sources and Chlorine Free.
6_DISCO_POGO
The Importance of Building NextGeneration Ravers Emma Warren
brought top club line-ups to the youth in the mid-90s, as did promoters at the U18s garage night I wrote about for Dazed & Confused later in the decade. Elijah from Butterz remembers teenage grime nights at Stratford Rex which he attended despite being underage – even for an underage night. There were daytimers for South Asian youth for whom going out contained extra complications. People in their middle teens need spaces to gather and they also need spaces to dance, because dancing together is a basic human need. At this point you might be thinking ‘yes but TikTok’. It’s not either/or. We’re
FIRST PERSON
a remarkably adaptable species and if you turn down the lights and turn off the cameras the same thing eventually happens to everyone – which is that people move, on their own terms and in their own way. Dancing is stress-busting on multiple levels, and today’s teens are going through a lot.
I’ve known Mark since our early teens. He spent a large
There are multiple reasons for the absence of
part of his 20s deep in 90s club culture and still
underage nights. There’s fearfulness in the remaining
makes space for dancefloor forays. We began in the same
venues about having children on the premises and the
place: a fortnightly Under 18s at The Civic in suburban
myriad things that could go wrong, as well as issues
South-East London. It was run by soul pirate JFM and
around insurance. Our club culture – which is
we’d dance to brand new hip hop, electro and house as
simultaneously professionalised and diminished – can’t
well as residual tunes that were flying around from the
reach complicated parts of the community, especially
previous generation’s excursions.
those that don’t bring easy cash. Inventiveness is
Recently I’ve been reconstituting The Civic for a book, so I chatted to Mark who responded by making me a playlist of tunes he associated with it. Hearing three
required, just like when Kieran Hebden channelled Fugazi for his £5 all-nighters at Brixton Academy. There’s a ray of light in Ancoats, Manchester.
hours of artists like Silver Bullet, Big Daddy Kane,
Beautician turned youth worker Sharlene Small is
Bomb The Bass and Shannon made me realise how
running monthly MGTY Wheel Up rollerskate sessions
foundational this dancefloor had been on my taste. It
where members spin tunes for their peers from the age
had given me a lifelong love of dancing in a socially-
of ten upwards. Local artists come and freestyle on
mixed environment to new music.
the mic. There’s proper dancing. “You know Kid N Play’s
A few weeks ago Mark messaged me. Could I recommend any Under 18s nights for his 14-year-old daughter? In 2022 there appear to be very few, and that’s not even a
‘House Party’ movie, or ‘Soul Train’?” she says, “We implement that vibe.” I imagine a summer of underage dances across all
pandemic thing. A TripAdvisor thread from ten years ago
genres, across the country. They will bring next
named a couple of events, adding that they were “a bit
generation ravers into the listening and the movement in
thin on the ground.”
safe quasi-clubs. Existing promoters and venues could
There is a long history of underage nights in our
make this happen in basements, disused shops, church
constantly-evolving club culture. West End club
halls and youth clubs. Other people could too: youth
Busby’s (where Mud Club happened) ran Under 18s on a
workers, or those of us who soaked up decades of club
Sunday circa 1987 with resident DJ Pete Davis from
culture, or dancefloor aficionados in their 20s who want
then-pirate Kiss FM and live PAs from Farley Jackmaster
to make space for the next wave. Co-promote with the
Funk and Wee Papa Girl Rappers. Junglists Subject 13
kids. Let today’s 14-year-olds grow into the DJs, dancers and producers of the future. Give them the opportunity
10_DISCO_POGO
and they will build the dancefloors they need.
WED THU FRI SAT
21 22 23 24
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Boards of Canada: ‘Music Has The Right To Children’. Damian Harris finally gets round to listening...
their favourite bits of everything – hip hop, techno, electronics and many other things in between. ‘Telephasic Workshop’ is a great example of this fusion: crunchy breaks, layered rhythms and sounds, gates and scratches building the atmosphere. The way it meanders, but never seems lost, and those little stabs
FIRST LISTEN
of speech are perfectly timed and curated. Another example is the deep distorted voice on ‘Pete Standing Alone’ – stunning. Synths over hip hop beats has long been my Achilles’ heel and there are some absolutely divine moments of musicality. ‘Olson’ and ‘Kaini Industries’ are
In my defence 1998 was a bit of a blur… Skint, the
beautiful. The fact these melodies seem to emerge from
label I had started in 1995, was going through its
the dirt fleetingly makes them all the more powerful.
moment in the sun and controls were set for the heart
I have to admit I had preconceptions about Boards of
of it. Sirens blaring, hurtling towards the hit parade,
Canada. I imagined slick, serious electronic music – so
Fatboy Slim on the front of the tabloids and Bentley
I was slightly surprised that, well, it’s quite fun…
Rhythm Ace and the Lo-Fidelity Allstars on the front
apologies to the band for sounding like my Auntie
cover of the NME. We were the sound of the moment all
Theresa there, but it is. And it manifests itself best
fuelled by copious amounts of ‘let’s ‘ave it’. Not all
in ‘Aquarius’, probably my favourite track at the
of us wanted to be on the Big Beat fun bus but it was
moment, but like all the best LPs that may well change.
hard to get off. I’m handing that in as my excuse for missing this fine album. Before Skint I worked in a record shop where you had
As I played the LP for the first time another reaction was Req! Req was Skint’s very own Brighton B-Boy who made fucked up, uncompromising lo-fi hip hop
the luxury of being able to listen to music all day –
– some of my favourite music released on the label
you’re on top of everything, from all genres. It’s your
– and I desperately clung on to his underground
job to be.
credibility as we started having chart success with our
When you are running a record label with eight to ten
other acts. We released his first EP in 1995, around
artists all sending you new music, as well as trying to
the same time Boards of Canada got going, so it warms
keep on top of the ever-growing demo pile, well, your
my heart immensely that there’s a kindred spirit
audio capacity to give new music the time it deserves
running through both artists.
is dramatically reduced. You’re permanently catching
I do wonder what I would have said if A&R
up. Hence why it’s taken me 24 years to listen to
responsibilities had been mine. I’d have certainly
‘Music Has The Right To Children’.
asked them to make more of ‘Kaini Industries’ – a
In fact, the most annoying thing about this oversight
stunning 59 seconds of burbling melodic synth that I
(to put it mildly) is that it really is very much ‘my
would love to hear more of. And at 71 minutes the album
type of record’. It comes from a place that was
is a fair bit longer than my preferred 40-50 minutes
producing some of the most exciting and innovative
optimum LP run time.
music at the time. That no man’s land between genres where people with ideas and a sampler brought together
I would have probably trimmed a couple of tracks. But in the same way when I tried to A&R Req, I hope they would have politely told me to go fuck myself and just
12_DISCO_POGO
informed me that’s just the way it is. Quite right too.
Listening Without Prejudice Sometimes it’s just about soaking up the music…
generation of salarymen obsessed with American jazz but unable to afford the hefty entrance fee of an import LP. Considering the algorithm’s unlikely obsession with hen’s teeth gospel cuts and Afro-disco obscurities, the contemporary music fan is facing a similar predicament; at once enlightened to these rare masterpieces but only able to experience them in unworthy bit rates. Now though, most major cities provide the option to explore these gems through detailed systems from Danley, Tannoy and Bowers & Wilkins with listening bars cropping up everywhere from Highland
As humanity reanimates after a
Bluetooth audio, there’s little surprise
Park (L.A.) to Hong Kong, London to
pandemic pause, so too does the
the concept’s caught on, and the
Lisbon, each preserving the focus on
burgeoning trend for audiophile
demand for superior sound has seen
fidelity while exploring new aesthetic
listening bars. Kitted out with fantasy
new spots like Brooklyn’s Eavesdrop
ideas suited to their location.
hi-fi combos straight out of a Sound &
joining the vanguard of Public Records
Vision centrefold, these venues allow
(New York), In Sheep’s Clothing (Los
programming at Manchester’s NAM
the music-obsessed the opportunity to
Angeles) and Brilliant Corners (London).
explains their particularly local
appreciate the full-spectrum glory of a
The movement has its roots in the
Christos Eleftheriades, head of
jazz kiss establishments of post-war
listening bars, at least certainly in
having to reach for the research
Japan, intimate cafés with exceptional
Japan, programming has traditionally
chemicals.
sound where patrons talked less and
leant heavily, if not exclusively, on jazz.
listened more to full vinyl sides from
But that’s just not very Manchester
compressed pop blasted at ever-
the likes of Horace Silver or Art Blakey
– the city’s best talent is all over the
increasing volume through limp
& the Jazz Messengers. Softly-lit and
place and I think we’d be doing a
largely seated, these venues provided
disservice by putting ourselves in a box
an affordable and elegant solution to a
like that.”
Set against a landscape of over-
14_DISCO_POGO
All photos courtesy of NAM
approach. “In the lineage of audiophile
Norman Whitfield production without
Alongside this open-minded approach to genre, NAM pairs its impeccable musical programming with a vibrant Vietnamese menu, top-spec cocktails and a refined decor. By extending their high sonic standards to the other aspects of the business, this new wave of venues offers a fully epicurean experience, striking a chord with followers of the slow living movement and embodying the old fashioned maxim that if a thing’s worth doing, it’s worth doing properly. “We wanted a space where intimacy and a focus on quality, both in terms of
Though the preference for seated
this time we can control the entire
the sound and the music, were the key
customers has allowed a lot of
experience in a much better way. We
pillars,” explains Eleftheriades. “A small,
audiophile venues to emerge from the
have a strong community and crew
free-and-easy spot where you could
pandemic with minimal adjustments,
that all want the same thing and this
hear across-the-board selections that
there were of course casualties,
time we are free to adapt and do things
DJs couldn’t play anywhere else in the
including Hosoi.
completely our own way.”
city, through an enveloping and
“We were part of a big hotel in
While business seems to be booming
beautiful Klipschorn setup, and for no
central Stockholm with a complicated
it’s primarily the love of music, and in
door charge.”
relationship,” says Sanchez. “During the
particular the community which comes
pandemic our differences and the
with it, that unites this scene. Whether
Stockholm’s Hosoi, concurs, stating
different ideas on things for the future
it’s soaring through the Living Voice
that the space is everything. “Everyone
became very clear. This led to the
speakers at London’s Spiritland, the
is affected by their surroundings,” he
agreement of closing the space and for
Tannoy Westminster’s at Tokyo’s Ginza
says. “So the feeling of the space, the
me the quest to find a new home.”
Music Bar or those stunning
Victor Sanchez, founder of
mood and what is served play a very
That new home is a 120-year-old
Klipschorns at Nam, love is still the
important role for the overall
slaughterhouse in the old meatpacking
experience. For us music comes first
district on the outskirts of the city,
and everything else is secondary, but
currently being renovated from the
community,” says Eleftheriades
that really only means we adapt the
ground up to house the new and
proudly. “A home that welcomes guests
space to the music. Sometimes we pair
improved venue, which will include a
to unwind, enjoy our hospitality and
food and drinks with it and other times
350-capacity listening room.
come together for a love of music.”
closing the bar and not serving anyone
“Our ambition is only to improve
for a while makes for the best
what we did before and run the space
experience.”
with the same mindset,” he notes. “Only
message. “At its core we regard NAM as a
PATRICK RYDER DISCO_POGO_15
Sent From Heaven
Gabriels, an unlikely trio built around the angelic voice of Jacob Lusk, are set to be the sound of 2022… Who are Gabriels? It’s a question that
tracks on the EPs so far released
has been gathering apace on the
suggest something far more nuanced:
strength of a handful of EPs filled with
this is deep, thoughtful music, steeped
pared-back, slow-burn soul. Their
in jazz, blues and gospel, with
success has been described as ‘word of
something important to say.
mouth’ – but that’s slightly stretching
The songs speak of loss and pain –
the concept, when you consider those
not least the heartbreaking ‘In Loving
words of praise come from the likes of
Memory’, which seemed to gain extra
Elton John, David Byrne and Paul
resonance through the Covid pandemic.
Weller, the Prada marketing team who
“I lost friends, I had Covid really bad…
commissioned their first track and the
and so it felt for us like a good time to
Great American public, who voted
put that song out,” Lusk says. “It felt like
singer Jacob Lusk into fifth place in the
the world needed it. And then we did
2011 season of ‘American Idol’.
the EP and it just took off on its own. There was no plan like: ‘Boom! We’re
BLM protests in LA – included in the
trio are the classically trained
gonna take over the world making this
extended film for ‘Love and Hate...’).
American-Armenian Ari Balouzian and
weird-ass music!’”
Making up the rest of the LA-based
Sunderland-born film director and DJ
Indeed, had he won ‘American Idol’,
The trio met when Hope (whose showreel includes films for Sam Smith,
Ryan Hope. Together, they create music
you get the impression that the show’s
Rihanna, Drake, and a host of luxury
that is hard to pinpoint – so timeless, it
clearly-defined, production-line pop
brands) was working on a score with
feels like it could have been recorded
trajectory would have been anathema
Balouzian and they decided they
anywhere between the 1930s and last
for Lusk, whose devout, Apostolic
needed a choir.
week. Comparisons stretch from SAULT
upbringing saw secular music banned
and Massive Attack back to Billie
in the home.
Holiday and Paul Robeson. Such
“There was no alcohol in the house,
“I was directing the choir,” Lusk notes, “but they didn’t really know that I could sing. My arrangement was kinda
there was no smoking,” he explains.
cool and I was singing all the parts on
“But I was allowed to listen to jazz,
that, and they were like: ‘Wait, he’s
Literature teacher said I was going to be
because they felt I needed to know my
singing the high parts too? The girl
like Paul Robeson,” he says via Zoom
history. My grandmother’s from
parts and the boy parts?’”
from his home in Compton. “Like, OK!”
Georgia and experienced segregation,
associations aren’t new to Lusk. “Interestingly, my high school English
After forming what Lusk describes
and I think it was important to them
as “a little brotherhood”, they started
‘Love and Hate in a Different Place’ and
that I knew what she lived through. So,
to write music, purely for themselves
last year’s ‘Bloodline’ EP might point to
I knew ‘Strange Fruit’ before I hit 15.
at first.
a certain (albeit superior) template of
(For further confirmation, witness the
modern, sparse, soul-pop, the other
film that went viral of Lusk singing a
so I could say whatever I wanted. I could
chilling version of the Billie Holiday
cuss, it didn’t matter, because no-one
classic through a loudhailer during the
would hear it – at least that’s what I
If the breakthrough success of single
16_DISCO_POGO
“We just went to the studio as friends,
thought! And then Covid happened. We
Don’t worry about what I’m doing; worry
put out a song for Prada…’ (‘Loyalty’,
about these songs. The music is me. If
more torch song than house banger
which appeared on a 2018 Prada ad
you want to get to know me, listen to the
(Kerri Chandler’s euphoric remix of
featuring Academy Award winner JK
music. My heart’s in there. My life is in
‘Love and Hate in a Different Place’
Simmons). Emboldened by the reaction
there, my love is in there.”
notwithstanding), the band are
to the track, they added a bridge and
Lusk gives credit to his musical
released it as a single. Soon, influential
partners for helping him to find his
names started tipping them as the next
true voice, despite their differences.
big thing. Much of the power in the music that
Even though many of their tunes are
passionate about the role of the dancefloor in their music. “The dancefloor became a safe
“I have to be honest with you, even
place.” Lusk says. “It became the place
though Ari is Armenian, I look at these
where gay, Trans, whatever you were,
Gabriels create lies in what they leave
guys as two white men: straight,
you could go on the dancefloor, you
out. Compare Lusk’s raw performances
up-and-down, both raised by mom and
could be whoever, whatever, however
for ‘American Idol’ on YouTube – a
dad… Ryan tells me Sunderland is a
you wanted to be. It’s where you can
singer with all the chops but no
little rough, I don’t know if that’s true
express yourself, however you want.
direction – with today’s controlled,
or not. But his parents still had a
And my hope is that Gabriels can
less-is-more incarnation, and the
garden, you know what I mean? But for
create that in our shows. You can
difference is like day and night.
these two white men to create this
come, you can be however you want to
space for me, where I am encouraged
be, you can lay down whatever you
is not a reality show! I don’t need to
to be myself? Listen, we’re very
went through during the week, and
prove to anybody that I can sing. And
different, but this is the place where
maybe… have a breath.”
likewise with our music, it’s very like: oh,
we can say what we really feel. We
MARK HOOPER
this is not necessary, why is that in
want to do something that’s special
there? We want it to be about the music.
and that matters.”
“I was on this reality show… but my life
DISCO_POGO_17
TheBigReissue All hail the labels encouraging us to Be With music…
“Brave move.” Words of scant encouragement from DJ Balearic Mike accompanied news of Be With Records' tenth reissue back in 2016. Kylie Minogue’s eponymous 1994 album was making its way to the presses under a freshly-minted Be With logo. Even the distributor was sceptical. Here was an An array of specialist and enthusiastic
at his first ten releases speaks for the
to an audience for whom rarity means
reissue labels are now chipping away at
whole: classic soul, UK garage, West
more than popularity. If genres and
that grand canonical edifice of music
Coast AOR, melodic folk-rock, South
scenes are lines in the sand, Be With
history to reveal myriad chinks, angles
African boogie, R’n’B royalty, Hawaiian
crashed across them like a wave.
and perspectives smoothed down by
funk, kosmische disco, and, of course,
the passage of time. The result has
Kylie Minogue.
“A good, timely reissue can re-frame or re-contextualise a whole scene that
been a thrilling, kaleidoscopic
people thought they knew everything
refraction of the musical landscape.
“Perhaps the discernible authorial voice resonates because it all emanates
about,” Be With's founder Rob Butler
Launched in 2014, Be With has
says. “It can act as a hand-raiser for
reached 100 releases (a milestone
for these artists and these records,”
that particular artist as a means of
recently attained with the release of
Butler suggests.
saying: ‘Hey, we were there too, and we
Kenny Dickenson’s beautiful score to
made this amazing body of work that
French-Vietnamese artist Mai Hua’s
its attention to detail. If the audio isn’t
has actually been criminally
documentary ‘Les Rivières’) off the
spot on, the artwork not pristine, or,
overlooked for the past decades’.”
back of a singular and undiluted
most importantly, if the artist doesn’t
What makes the Kylie record so
approach. Schooled behind the
want it to go ahead, Be With won’t do it.
compelling is that it flipped this
counter at Manchester’s Piccadilly
relationship on its head.
Records, Butler was determined for the
and repertoire with the greatest of
label to reflect his broad tastes as a DJ
respect,” Butler continues. That he
and record collector. A cursory glance
could take American singer-songwriter
18_DISCO_POGO
from one record lover’s deep passion
What also unites a Be With reissue is
“Reissue labels must treat the artist
Sleeves courtesy of: Be With Records
upstart indie releasing a major label hit
explains. “They made possible a reinvention of my music in Europe.” It’s something she now takes on in her own work, “opening doors for people who are curious about music and other worlds.” Those lines in the sand are nowhere to be seen. It is 15 years since vinyl sales began rebounding, and you could say that labels like Be With have become victims of their own success. Majors are now more likely to reissue their own vast catalogues, and in doing so clog the pipes of the vinyl manufacturing industry like coffee grind. So much so that Butler believes they have a responsibility to build their own pressing plants. While long lead times can become prohibitive for small labels with tight margins, the passion behind the work remains. “The recent past is no longer a foreign country,” Butler says. “I feel that great music, like all great art, has the ability to endure, regardless of whether it was important in the wider sense of Ned Doheny on tour, 40 years after his
explains. A focus on extensive liner
being part of a crucial scene or
debut, speaks to the depth of their
notes and in-depth context play a
capturing a certain Zeitgeist, or
working relationship. Ned is now
crucial role in telling a record’s story
whether it's just a pretty piece of
affectionately known as the uncle of
and expressing his gratitude towards
music, or rhythmical killer that will
the label. “Every effort should be made
the music.
never fail to make people move or
to ensure that the artist is able to tell
Being exposed to these stories can
their own story, or get to set the record
also have a transformative effect. For
straight, if required.”
Coco Maria, the Amsterdam-based DJ
It’s a sentiment shared by Kay Suzuki,
smile.” It is this approach that has helped Be With thrive. And as for that Kylie reissue? The
and curator behind Bongo Joe
first run sold out in 24 hours and,
whose Time Capsule label has recently
compilation ‘Club Coco’, there were
perhaps just as importantly, Balearic
featured Angolan musicologist Mário
two titles that particularly captured
Mike approved too. “I am a MASSIVE
Rui Silva, dance therapy pioneer
her imagination when she was starting
Kylie fan – as are all right-thinking
Gabrielle Roth and electronic gwoka
out: ‘Roots of Chicha’ (on Barbès
people,” he enthused.
from Guadeloupe.
Records) and Soundway’s ‘The Original
“I thought re-introducing this rare and beautiful music to a wider
Sound of Cumbia’. “They influenced me because I could
audience would be a perfect way to
see through new eyes the music of
celebrate the original artists,” he
Latin America I grew up with,” she
In life, as in reissues, some of the bravest moves are the most resonant. ANTON SPICE DISCO_POGO_19
Prior Record Meet Anna Prior, the Phil Collins of lush, sun-kissed electro pop. Maybe…
Anna Prior’s next single, which will be
she recalls. “One of the prerequisites of
her third as a solo artist, is inspired by
me having drum lessons was that I
being lost in a sea of people on the
learned to play like Stewart Copeland
dancefloor. 'I’m in the crowd and I can’t
from The Police.” She began drumming
find you,' she sings, drawing from an
at 14, and at the same time began a
experience at Latitude Festival. In its
lifelong love for Nine Inch Nails. “I think
hazy textures, 808 drum claps and
that’s where I first realised you can
propulsive rhythm, the track is a subtle
have crossovers in music,” she
ode to Prior’s “angel” friend, who
explains, “how Nine Inch Nails has
clocked her in the throngs and
electronic elements and it’s still
scooped her up in an anxious moment.
gothy, rock and cool.”
“I don’t want to take myself too
In recent years, Prior has started
seriously,” says Prior over video call
DJing and holds down a monthly show
from Luxembourg City, the day before
on Soho Radio. She’s been leaning
Metronomy are due to play in the city.
deeper into house and techno, a world
She tends to say something and then
she never thought she’d be a part of.
follow it up with: "It sounds really
Home to venues like Doncaster
cheesy." But what she really conveys is
Warehouse, her hometown was a
sincerity, and that she is grateful for
melting pot for the UK rave scene, and
the people around her.
she remembers being in the car with
Prior has been drumming in Metronomy for over a decade. In that time, the beloved glossy electronic
her dad and being intrigued by rave posters plastered to traffic light poles. “That world is really exciting to me
alt-pop group have toured the world a
now,” she says. “It’s great having the
crisis, asking herself: “Who am I? What
few times over, released five albums
radio show to have that outlet for
am I doing?”. As a solo artist, that
and captured the hearts of their fans
harder stuff.”
journey of discovery is ongoing, but
internationally. Prior has been playing
The show is called Beat Palace, which
she’s found that, sonically, what’s come
live since she was 16, but it was only
is also the name of the record label
during lockdown that she first felt the
that Prior started in 2021 to release her
desire to make music of her own.
own music. With Ableton Live Lite, a
Nothing’ and ‘Easier Alone’, were both
“I guess I’ve been moving around a lot
out has surprised her. Her first two singles, ‘Thank You For
one-octave MIDI keyboard and a
heartening, sun-kissed pop songs. In
and not feeling very centred,” she says.
restorative vista from her new home in
the former, she sings over bright
“But having that space and time to fill,
Almada, Portugal, for company, Prior
synths about sangria, the beach and a
it’s changed my life.”
spent lockdown learning production,
faded summer fling. Amongst the
intending to write tracks she could slot
Jamie xx-flavoured steel drums and
into her DJ sets.
pop melodies, you can hear an affinity
Born in the 80s in Doncaster, Yorkshire, Prior grew up in a household soundtracked by the likes of U2, The Police and Seal. “My mum loved music,” 20_DISCO_POGO
She describes the process as “a bit
for techno in crisp 808 drum claps. On
fraught at times.” After so much time
‘Easier Alone’, her voice soars over
alone and even longer without being on
shimmering chords as she documents
stage, Prior was having a minor identity
the struggles of being in a relationship.
“I really struggle with lyrics,” she says
auxiliary band members to be
Looking ahead, Prior is excited about
hesitantly. “It feels too exposing for
recognised and appreciated more.
what’s to come. She wonders if,
me.” Then she adds with a chuckle:
Referring to campaigns which highlight
perhaps, Metronomy will be her life’s
“Now everyone knows that I’m just a
how few non-male artists are on a
work and what she’s known for. “And
complete moron in relationships.”
festival line up by removing all the men
I’m completely cool with that (if so),”
from the artwork, Prior explains that
she says with a grin. But as these early
Records to celebrate feminine energy.
those efforts almost always focus on
singles have shown, Anna Prior has yet
Having been in the industry for so long,
women-fronted bands. “I feel like
more to give.
and particularly in her position as a
musicians like me are kind of forgotten
drummer (she recalls the countless
about,” she says.
Prior wants to use Beat Palace
times people have assumed she’s a
In a series of short films shared on Instagram in December 2020, Prior
“I didn’t have (women) role models
described herself in five words: Complex,
singer in the band), Prior has
when I was learning to play the drums,”
passionate, resilient, silly and sensitive. In
experienced a slow, but sure, shift in
Prior reflects. “I was just obsessed with
her output as a solo artist, she’s allowing
attitudes towards women.
male drummers.” But the situation has
all those parts of herself to unfurl.
But there is still work to be done.
changed now, and she will always use
KATIE THOMAS
There’s a particular area she’d like to
her position in the industry to bolster
see change, she explains, which is for
fellow women instrumentalists.
DISCO_POGO_21
TheRotary Connection Vinyl and hi-fi obsessives MasterSounds talk high-end DJ rotary mixers…
stamped, very numbered, something that you'd really want to own”. As most DJs converted to digital, vinyl culture retreated into a more artisan model, playing up the elements that digital formats couldn’t compete with – the sound, the uniqueness of the physical medium and the links back to foundational DJ culture. Correctly reading the Zeitgeist, Shaw utilised his engineering knowledge and began to manufacture turntable weights, before diversifying into
With its range of high-fidelity analogue
record shops and co-owned Eclectic
modifying turntables and buying and
rotary mixers, MasterSounds has built
Avenue Records. All of which, together
selling DJ equipment. He hooked up
a reputation for beautifully put-
with his metalworking and engineering
with Rigby-Jones in 2016 and they
together DJing equipment. Aside from
acumen, perfectly placed him to launch
created their first mixer which, in
its built-to-order mixers, the company
MasterSounds in tandem with
contrast to the function-heavy,
also produces turntable weights,
legendary audio engineer Andy
FX-laden digital mixers that were in
analogue FX/filter units, performance
Rigby-Jones.
most DJ booths, featured just a
power supplies, turntable isolators and other premium DJ gear.
The company’s roots go back to the
high-pass filter on each channel and a
mid-to-late-2000s when Shaw was
master EQ isolator. MasterSounds’
working at London’s Phonica, which
stripped back high-end designs proved
obsession with electronic music began
gave him a front-row seat to the
popular and they deftly rode the
as a kid when his older brother started
decline of vinyl. As sales plummeted
vinyl-revival wave, finding many fans
bringing Haçienda and Sasha rave tapes
and vinyl distributors went out of
who desired high-quality sound and a
home in the late-80s. He began record
business seemingly every week, he
design aesthetic that connected back
collecting and then DJing, went on to
noticed a corresponding trend.
to the early days of disco.
Company founder Ryan Shaw’s
have a successful DJ career, worked in 22_DISCO_POGO
“The records that were selling a lot
And while its products don’t come
changed,” says Shaw. “They became
cheap, there’s clearly a market for
very limited edition, very hand-
premium DJ gear.
beautiful market of people who
an esoteric principle of sound and
quality than a commercially made
“The components are of a better
understand how our products work
simplicity,” Shaw continues. “So rather
mixer from the Far East,” Shaw says.
and the story behind them.”
than including an astonishing array of
“And I’m not knocking anyone who
That story is like the one David
buttons and functions on mixers, we
wants to get into DJing no matter what
Mancuso was telling in the early 1970s:
go back to something that's very
format, from using a controller all the
that the quality of the components in
simple, but that lets the music speak
way up to the high end, there’s a
the reproduction of sound is
for itself.”
market for everyone – but we’ve got a
paramount. “Design-wise, we work on
High-quality components result in high-quality sound and Shaw is proud of MasterSounds’ hi-fi credentials: “The soundstage we have is open, dynamic and transparent. A very British sound that kind of goes back to the traditional hi-fi days. With the design, we just want to make fantastic, beautiful audio products that people will love and cherish.” This minimalist approach to functionality adheres to a particular DJing aesthetic which prizes highfidelity sound. And as well as that highly-prized analogue signal path, part of the appeal of MasterSounds is that rotary mixers are synonymous with pioneering DJs like Mancuso, Nicky Siano and Larry Levan, a hardware link back to what Shaw calls “the Bozak days” - a nod to the industry-standard DJ mixers in the early 70s. In the beginning, MasterSounds’ customers tended to be “pretty much from the disco era/early house guys who wanted a less-is-more kind of thing. So, it was people who really wanted to experience great audio quality and mix records in a really free way. Then as we went into the valve series more techno guys came on board.” As selector culture and the popularity of rotary mixers has grown, there’s been a corresponding growth in rotary memes and online snobbery too, which is, ironically, at odds with Shaw’s egalitarian approach: “I think there’s snobbery involved in anything where you can get into niche things. But I’m super-inclusive about everything that I do and there’s certainly none from us. Audio should be for everyone, and great sound should be available to as many people as possible.” HAROLD HEATH
DISCO_POGO_23
The Beat Goes On Mother Beat advocate Eris Drew on ecstatic rituals and traditions…
24_DISCO_POGO
Not all DJs are the same. Some rock up
irreplaceable for me personally as a
to the party, drop some bangers, hit
healing tool. It takes great focus and
the afters then rinse and repeat each
concentration to do long blends with
weekend. For others, their connection
records. When the blend is tight
to the time spent behind the decks is
everyone can feel this spiritually as a
deeper, more spiritual. For some DJs
resolution of chaos: the two records at
like Eris Drew, DJing is not simply being
different speeds resolve into a unified
a party-starter, it’s also close to an
whole. This act of harmonisation and
ecstatic ritual or shamanism. Indeed,
quantisation is both metaphysical and
her studied approach facilitates DJ
ketamine was popular, before my
metaphorical. We feel it as a kind of
sets that are a riot of exuberance,
friends had to take gigs in hotel
tension and release.”
energy and sheer joy.
lounges and before sponsored festivals
“I sound so very serious,” she notes with refreshing self-awareness. “It is
played a significant role in the scene.” Aside from her commitment to this
And within an Eris Drew record there’s often a similar process of somehow attempting to resolve chaos
truly also just the way I have fun. I have
rave authenticity ideal, Drew also
too. Her music is made up of thick,
found no greater joy in life than mixing
espouses an esoteric philosophy in
gauzy layers of samples and sounds
records behind the decks!”
which DJing and parties are simply the
that recall older styles, reworked into
latest incarnation in a long history of
fresh forms, creating a new whole out
quarter-decade DJing career, Drew is
the ecstatic tradition, using the rituals
of seemingly disparate elements.
also an accomplished producer who
of music and dance to achieve higher
turns out music that skilfully melds
states.
A Midwest rave warrior with a
house, rave and breaks. She’s released
“I don’t care what marketing terms
“I want to turn chaos into something beautiful, radiant and narrative,” she continues. “My songs start with
on Naive, Fabric, Interdimensional
are used to sell music, underneath it all
collages of records and other bits of
Transmissions and T4T LUV NRG (the
is a primary beat – a Mother Beat. This
sound, which I then jam over with my
label she founded with her partner,
fundamental rhythm is a principal form
keyboards. Sampling is an engagement
fellow DJ/producer Octo Octa). She
derived from nature that can be
with synchronicity and memory, like
dropped her magnificent debut album
harnessed to heal individuals and
making art from a photo album, so
‘Quivering In Time’ last year. The LP was
communities. But the trend in
there are always meanings which
a jubilant distillation of several musical
capitalist societies has been to
emerge which go beyond my
styles: a sample-heavy concoction of
decouple music from its actual
intentions. It is like casting a spell
psychedelic breaks and house, rooted
historical purpose in communities and
without knowing the result.”
in the pure, raw euphoria of rave but
to commodify it. To turn it into sport.
updated for the 21st century.
This is part of colonisation. Disco,
constant touring, Drew’s first live set in
house and rave arose to reconnect
years, more releases on T4T LUV NRG,
people with music’s essential purpose.”
the second volume of her ‘Raving Disco
Her latest single on London’s On Loop label, ‘Heartbeat’ is a buoyant swirl of sampled beats and vocals
Conceptualising DJing as part of a
The year ahead will involve near-
Breaks’ mixtape and music from her
matched to a pair of plaintive chords.
tradition of altering consciousness
“dedicated to hard house and bass
The drums are part-Motown, part-
through dancing is central to Drew’s
rollers” Bassbin 23 side project.
pure warehouse rave, the overall feel
DJing technique. Clearly, if you’re
However, before all of that, she has a
simultaneously nostalgic and futurist.
assuming your role as a DJ can
simple, but timely reminder to those
potentially alter your audiences’
out there on the dancefloor.
Drew’s productions and her outlook are very much informed by her
psyches, then you’re going to give some
background and coming from a dance
thought to how you carry out your
finishes. “Try not to forget why you fell
music scene that had yet to succumb
blends and mixes.
in love with the music the first time.”
to the forces of commerce. “I am a Queer Trans woman who got
“Fundamentally it is a set of
“Just a message to the dancers,” she
With Eris Drew behind the decks –
techniques, which I take very seriously,
or on production duties – there’s little
her musical education in Chicago in
that can be used to create a carrier
chance of that.
the 90s going to warehouse raves and
wave into the Other. That’s a reason
HAROLD HEATH
loft parties,” she explains. “This was
why mixing technique is important for
before the anti-rave laws, before
a DJ like me. And why records will be
DISCO_POGO_25
Talkin’ AllThat Jazz
Glasgow jazz collective corto.alto don’t care for tradition – for them it’s all about bebop, boiler suits and Buckfast… Seeing nu-jazz eight-piece corto.alto perform live is a grungy throwback to a time before many of their young fans were born. Their December gig at Leeds’ Hifi Club was a memorably raucous occasion; after crowdpleasing support from local wavy jazz
the jazz course at the Royal Conservatoire of Scotland.
Shortall finding his own musical voice,
imposingly presented their rowdy
after years of playing in other people’s
cocktail of bebop, boiler suits and
projects, and he describes “falling into”
production line for excellent jazz
Buckfast, with wild results.
That course has become a bit of a
its current ascendant state. Speaking
musicians in the city, and the
The past decade has witnessed a
the day after the band’s Ronnie Scott’s
community around Shortall is going
dramatic reversal of fortunes for jazz
debut - usually a blue riband event for
places too – pianist Fergus McCreadie,
in the UK, a resurgence concentrated
up-and-coming jazz musicians in the
STRATA drummer Graham Costello, DJ
around scenes (London, Manchester),
UK – there’s an evident anti-climactic
Rebecca Vasmant and fellow
labels (Brownswood, Gearbox) and
feeling in the air.
trombonist Anoushka Nanguy all share
sounds (dancehall, trip hop and grime).
“It’s a different challenge playing in
out their gigs around Glasgow, playing
But ten years on from the first wave of
there,” he explains. “It’s a bit more
in each other’s projects and hanging
new UK jazz acts, there’s now space for
‘sit-down’ than I’m used to, I’m just used
out at the city’s cheap and welcoming
something fresh and free from
to playing in mad clubs in Glasgow.”
jazz clubs. Though Shortall is keen to
expectation, and many are choosing to
It soon becomes apparent Shortall is
stress that the city’s jazz scene didn’t
look outside of the capital for the
nothing but honest. “Jazz can be so
just happen overnight, the lack of
answers.
boring to watch,” he says. “When you’re
expectation was a good thing for them.
But thoughts of ‘finding what’s
in there watching people and they’re
“The fact we all didn’t have too much
missing’ don’t figure in bandleader and
looking like they’re having the worst
inspiration locally made us just do our
trombonist Liam Shortall’s voyage of
time of their life? There’s almost a
own thing, and not have the pressure
musical discovery. From their first
weird disconnect between what you’re
to conform. There’s not that pressure,
singles with a cool neo-soul vibe,
watching and what you’re hearing.”
there’s not that ‘London sound’ that
through R’n’B bubblers and even a
But corto.alto isn’t all about crowd-
they go for here. No two projects sound
lockdown collaboration with Soweto
pleasing – though there’s plenty of that.
the same.” The city’s creative
Kinch, the punk-fuelled spirit he’s
It seems to emanate from a band
communality is best reflected in
eventually arrived at ironically takes
committed to having a good time
Shortall’s best bit about Glasgow
them back to where it all began.
themselves. “We don’t like watching
– “cheap rent.”
Shortall started the band from his noisy
gigs where people are taking it too
flat above rowdy punk bar Nice N Sleazy,
seriously. I want everyone in my band
Now’’s trickling production (co-
on Sauchiehall Street (“Glasgow’s
to feel free to reach out and drink
produced by Nubiyan Twist’s Tom
answer to the Ibiza Strip,” he laughs.)
Buckfast (the notorious fortified wine
Excell) point towards Shortall’s future
sometimes referred to as ‘commotion
plans. As well as summer festival
intricate tracks and a rotating
lotion’ in parts of Scotland). As long as
appearances, there’s the group’s debut
collective of horn players making
they play their parts, I don’t really care.”
album in the works, where Shortall
The project is a big undertaking, with
logistics a nightmare. But despite the
Photos: Sophie Jouvenaar
Corto.alto began as a means for
outfit Naalí Collective, the Glaswegians
Shortall rebels against “intellectualising
Behind the lively horn lines, ‘Not For
hopes to push his myriad influences
collective spirit of it all, Shortall’s prints
stuff just for the sake of it”, which he
into a production context. Yet, despite
are on everything, right down to the
believes jazz is guilty of, but part of
being six EPs into the process, he’s not
band’s name.
corto.alto’s appeal comes from their
in any particular hurry.
impressive jazz chops. ‘Not for Now’,
“I think my love is more than just
short-tall. In Spanish, that’s Corto Alto,”
the title track of their latest EP ticks
making records,” he says. “It’s making
he says. “I put it in Spanish, as a nod to
along nicely before unleashing a long,
tangible music, that can be repeated
my Spanish grandmother. She’s one of
bebop-inflected unison line over a trap
and shared.”
these people that’s just got Facebook,
groove that’s impossible not to smile
HUGH MORRIS
and shares everything. I just thought I’d
at. The bebop impulse reflects
call it that, so she would think it’s funny.”
Shortall’s upbringing as a student on
“My second name is Shortall, like
DISCO_POGO_27
Live & Direct PHOTOS: MATILDA HILL-JENKINS
Overmono rail against the intellectualisation of dance music. Which probably explains their dynamic live show and bass-heavy techno sound. “We just sit down and make tunes,” they tell Manu Ekanayake. “We don’t tend to attach much meaning to them after that.”
This comment comes in response to asking what the title of the duo’s latest EP, ‘Cash Romantic’, is about. This prompts a burst of laughter from Tom, the quieter of the duo, but who shares the more talkative Ed’s wry sense of humour, which is clearly important to their musical output. “Can I get back to you on what it means?” Tom says grinning. “Honestly, giving tracks titles is one of the hardest things about making music, I swear.” Not that it’s stopped them so far. Overmono started back in 2016, with the ‘Arla’ EP on XL Recordings, who took a punt on the brothers from Monmouth, Wales - a punt that seems to have paid off. But neither of them were unknown quantities in dance music terms. Tom is better known to UK techno fans as Truss, one half of Blacknecks, alongside Bleaching Agent (aka Al Matthews), a frankly ridiculous 2010s techno project that had its tongue placed firmly in cheek throughout. He’s been making music since 2007, on labels like Miniscule and Perc Trax, so he clearly has a fondness for the harder stuff. As witnessed by his MPIA3 alias, which was all about channelling the love of free party-style acid techno he’s enjoyed since his teens. Track titles like ‘Squatters Dog’ say it all. Ed is also known as Tessela, who created ‘Hackney Parrot’, one of post-dubstep’s biggest bangers, as well as a slew of other bass-driven techno tracks. Since 2016, Overmono has progressed, in true UK techno fashion, via a series of much-loved EPs. Until 2021, there wasn’t anything resembling a longer release, until the
Sometimes the direct approach is best. That’s probably the
much-celebrated ‘Fabric Presents Overmono’ mix
best way to describe Overmono’s sound: live (increasingly
compilation, which they anchored with their own work but
so, as they much prefer playing live to DJing, but more on
also showcased some influences like Smith & Mighty (‘Film
that later) and direct, bassy rave techno that lights a fire
Score’), Ed Rush & Optical (‘Bacteria’) and, of course, Blawan
under any dancefloor it’s played on.
(‘Fourth Dimensional’) amongst many others.
Their UK garage, drum’n’bass and dubstep-influenced
But it was also last year that they really broke through to
sound is “techno as an adjective, not just a prescribed
a wider audience, with a DJ Mag Best Live Act award
notion of what ‘techno’ should sound like,” Tom Russell of
cementing their reputation for tearing up festival
Overmono tells us on the eve of a recent live show at
performances. Talk of those shows prompts a typically
Brixton Electric. This seems pretty direct, or at least
straightforward answer. “Before the pandemic we’d played
well-considered, considering both he and his Overmono
a few festivals, you know, but we’d always be thinking we
bandmate – and younger brother – Ed are completely
could have changed the show in some way,” Ed says. “But
stumped when they’re asked how they would describe their
then when we played at Gala in Peckham Rye Park last year,
own style of music.
it just went fucking mental. Everyone knew every tune, the
This is rarely an easy question for artists and sometimes elicits responses that are somewhere between the esoteric
set had fallen into place, our set-up was locked…” “… and we were so nervous beforehand, so we were just
and the just plain laughable. But this duo’s bemused
throwing a few drinks back,” Tom interrupts. “I’ve never
reaction tells its own story: Overmono are simply two
needed a piss more in my life! I mean it was all I could think
studio heads who prefer making music (and playing it) to
about during the whole set, I only really saw how busy it got
talking about it. As dance music in the social media era has
afterwards on the videos.”
become more of a performance for many artists, and who
Bladder control aside, it feels like they’ve got another
feel at pains to pontificate on the issues of the day or graft
festival banger on their hands with the new single from
a political theory onto their beats, Overmono are definitely
their sound system culture-referencing ‘Cash Romantic’ EP,
more about action than words. But as Tom’s quote shows,
namely ‘Gunk’. It features twisted-up vocals by Kindora,
that’s not to say they’re not thinking carefully about every
whose “music we found on Bandcamp – we don’t know much
move they make.
about her, but her hooks are unreal” Ed notes.
Ed explains their direct approach to production a bit
Plus it has just the kind of powerful bassline you’d expect
further. “We both have a bit of an aversion to the
from these two. It feels like techno and, yet simultaneously a
intellectualisation of music, especially dance music,” he
bit of ravey UKG too, especially with that time-stretched
says. “Because a lot of the time it doesn’t need it. As boring
vocal sample.
as it sounds, we just sit down and make tunes. We don’t tend to attach much meaning to them after that.”
DISCO_POGO_29
I’ve never needed a piss more in my life! I mean it was all I could think about during the whole set, I only really saw how busy it got afterwards on the videos.
few times to get it sounding right. There are no live drums or sampled drums on the record. It’s all from our MS-20 and maybe a few other synths. We process everything so much that it almost doesn’t matter what we record from in the first place. They go through so many different stages of processing and re-sampling that it sounds so different to how it started. We never really use drum machines; we just record sounds of synths.” As Tom says when asked about ‘Gfortune’ on the EP” “We really like working with de-tuned synths and the one we used here, the Vermona PERfourMUR, is almost impossible to get into tune anyway, so that’s just how it sounds. That’s what makes it sound like there’s timpani or whatever, it’s actually three or four oscillators playing but they’re all slightly out of tune.” This seems like a pretty direct progression from the cobbled-together technical arrangements that defined UK sound system culture (and indeed its Jamaican antecedent). And when this is mentioned, how two guys who grew up on the Welsh borders feel that culture relates to them, the boys proffer a very telling answer. “We were talking about this recently,” Ed says. “And we “We spend a lot of time looking for stunning vocals, but
said that the feeling of being on the outside of something is
we’ve never really recorded any,” Ed explains. “We prefer
good. You never feel like you’re included, but that’s not
samples because that way you’re limited with what you can
necessarily a bad thing. You have to do your own thing and I
do as there might only be certain sections you can use
think that has stayed with us. We don’t feel like we’re part
without interference, so that makes you get creative. How
of anything now; we don’t sit within one genre. But we’re on
are you gonna get that 12-second bit of audio? So we start
the outside looking in which gives us more freedom. If there
chopping and trying to make it fit, which can lead to loads
is a tune on here that’s a weird take on R’n’B and then a
of different ideas.”
d’n’b tune, then that feels very natural to us as we’ve always
The idea of limitations actually helping their work is one that Tom takes up when asked about ‘Bone Mics’, the rumbling El-B bass-rumbling second track on the new EP.
been pulling little bits from scenes we see, but are never wrapped up in.” So what are the differences between DJing and playing
“Every single sound on that track, bar the bit of vocal, was
live? Now the most animated they’ve been all interview, Ed
done on the MS-20. We do that quite a lot. Just set ourselves
answers: “I think it’s like before you start playing out and
some limitations of writing a tune on one synth and you
you start DJing in your bedroom. You can practice as much
start getting some weird, interesting stuff out of it,” Tom
as you like, but you really learn by playing out. And it’s the
explains.
same with playing live, but times ten. So you’ve gotta do a
This love of weird and interesting things they can create
show, then go back and re-work the show, change the
in the studio is present when talk turns to the EP’s title
set-up, then play another show. That cycle goes around and
track, ‘Cash Romantic’. Is that live timpani in the
around. And it feels like by doing that over the last few
background? No. Everything you hear is programmed by
years, we now feel like we both know exactly what we’re
them.
doing. It’s taken us years to feel like that – and there were
This offers a more general insight into how Overmono like to work. Tom says: “We programmed our own breakbeat and then sampled it. Ran it through a bunch of kit and recorded it again. And for that tune especially, we did that a
certainly a few shonky live shows back in the day – but you have to do that to get to this next stage.” Tom is more succinct. More direct you might say: “Playing live is about keeping so many plates spinning that people really react when you pull it off. DJing nowadays just
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doesn’t get that same reaction.”
On Top Confidence Man are back! Back! BACK! And they’re bigger, bolder and better than ever. Jim Butler hears how the Aussie dance pop superstars went about creating their anti-lockdown lockdown opus, TILT. “It was like getting drunk and writing at 5am on a Tuesday, and then sleeping until Thursday,” the band explain…
Down Under Lockdown did funny things to a lot of people.
musical masterminds Clarence McGuffie and
Gardening, wild swimming, refining the perfect
Reggie Goodchild – refuge. Their safe space. If
artisanal sourdough bread… the gift of time gave
indeed they needed one. Alongside the incessant
many the unexpected opportunity to develop new
partying (“Our neighbours hated us,” laughs
skills and hobbies. Not so eight-legged Aussie
Planet), the group eventually began to write a
groove machine Confidence Man. Rather than
follow-up to their acclaimed 2018 debut,
adopt mindfulness, jogging or some other
‘Confident Music for Confident People’. And in
mood-boosting makeover, the charismatic
true hedonistic musical fashion – think the
quartet doubled down on their Technicoloured
Stones recording 'Exile on Main Street' in French
party-first-ask-questions-later lifestyle and
mansion Nellcôte, albeit more Melbourne youth
turned everything up to 11.
club than French villa – time became an
Having moved in together in the north Melbourne suburb of Thornbury at the start of
amorphous and immaterial concept. “It was like getting drunk and writing at 5am on
the pandemic when they realised their adopted
a Tuesday, and then sleeping until Thursday,”
city (they originally hail from Brisbane) was
explains Planet. “And then waking up and doing it
heading for an extremely long lockdown, they
all again. Weird, crazy hours. A pretty gross
just kept the party going at home.
lifestyle.”
“We’re the best of friends,” explains ebullient frontwoman Janet Planet – not her real name, not that it matters. “And we pretty much
“There was nothing else to do,” offers Bones by way of supposedly rational explanation. Thankfully, for us at least, if not the band’s
exclusively hang out with each other anyway. So
livers, the result of this endless partying has been
we created a club in our house called The Fuck
worth it. At a time when the world could do with
Bunker (the band are big fans of ‘Peep Show’, The
an unapologetic shot of sonic dopamine,
Fuck Bunker being a scuzzy venue where Jez’s
Confidence Man have delivered. And then some.
group play).”
Their new album, ‘TILT’, is a no-holds-barred,
“There was nowhere else to party,” confirms
glitter bomb-fuelled rush to the dancefloor.
Sugar Bones (most definitely not his birth name),
Taking onboard everything from the euphoric
Janet’s co-front-person and an equally magnetic
sound of early 90s rave and 80s imperial pop to
force-of-nature. “There’s only so many times you
00s UK garage and modern-day R’n’B, it is less a
can get drunk in the kitchen. We realised all we
love letter to dance music, and more a flirtatious
needed was a smoke machine, two shitty lasers,
and instant TikTok message.
some decks, a couple housemates and you can make a club anywhere.” The Fuck Bunker quickly became the band’s – alongside Janet Planet and Sugar Bones, the group is rounded off by a pair of shadowy
For the listener it sounds like all great parties – fun, maddening, flamboyant, crazy, playful, soulful… For Confidence Man it was an escape. “It reflects the freedom we found in the Fuck Bunker,” says Bones in a rare moment of levity. “But more so the freedom and escapism you can
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find through making music. It took us out of
DISCO_POGO_33
“We realised all we needed was a smoke machine, two shitty lasers, some decks, a couple housemates and you can make a club anywhere.” reality, gave us purpose and kept us sane. This sounds cheesy, and she’ll hate this, but music is medicine, you know?” Planet: (Audibly gagging) “Eurgh.” (laughs) The pair do agree on one thing, though. ‘TILT’ is not a lockdown album. Rather than reflect upon the grim reality the world found itself in two years ago, as Bones notes, the band dug deep to find an alternative, magical reality. “It’s the opposite of a lockdown album,” affirms Planet. “Out of desperation we created something else that saved us. In a really dark
‘TILT’, Planet points to a third Confidence Man
time it’ll probably save some other people too.”
über pop album, or even side project.
“We’re super proud that we managed to create this escapism,” admits Bones. “I suppose in reality it was a lockdown album. But, you know, in non-reality it was way beyond that.” The global pandemic also shaped ‘TILT’ in other
“There’s a handful of bangers that we’re going to finish,” she says with relish. “It was definitely inspirational seeing his mind work,” adds Bones of the time spent with the man behind the late-90s archetypal pop tune, ‘You Get
unforeseen ways. Before the world came to a
What You Give’. “The way he approaches songs is
shuddering halt in spring 2020, the Fab Four had
very open and free. I think that’s how we worked in
been grappling with the direction their second
the beginning. So after four or five years of being
album should take. In the vaults of The Fuck
in the band it was good to get that refreshing
Bunker reside a disco version and a pop iteration
energy again. The guy’s a fucking genius.”
inspired by working with songwriter and
Back in Melbourne after years of touring both
producer Greg (The New Radicals) Alexander. The
pre- and post-‘Confident Music for Confident
band worked with him for a couple of weeks in
People’ (“We were a bit burned out,” admits Bones;
Brighton, alongside U2 producer Andy Barlow,
“Our thighs were sore,” adds Planet), the group –
and although these tracks didn’t make it onto
like the rest of the world – were afforded the luxury of time. They opted to go bigger. To ditch
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the kitsch elements and dial up the anthemic.
“The characters are still there,” says Planet.
A desire to have fun. In a typically flamboyant twist
“But they’re being sluttier and badder over bigger
(of pleasing embellishment?), Bones believes this
and better beats.”
was destiny. He describes how Janet was playing
She’s right. The band’s first album of playful electronic punky pop and indie dance was spectacular if a bit more literal. ‘TILT’ is a
keys in a band at the same time Confidence Man was starting out and it didn’t sit right. “When we made ‘Boyfriend’ and ‘Bubblegum’, it
different beast altogether. It begins with a pair of
was like, she needs to be front stage, centre,
turbo-charged early-90s Italo house bangers,
being a fucking superstar,” he explains.
‘Woman’ and ‘Feels Like a Different Thing’ – the
Planet chuckles at the memory: “I feel I've been
latter with a gospel-infused coda. Both are
building up my whole life to be able to do what I
anthems of female empowerment and a clarion
do on stage. I feel like it would be such a shame
call to the dancefloor. These are followed by the
for people not to see that.”
block party Sub Sub-flavoured hip house boogie
And like their Australian forebears, The
of ‘What I Like’ and the brand-new-you’re-retro
Avalanches, their contrarian streak of chucking
Neneh Cherry vibes of ‘Toy Boy’. Elsewhere, there
everything into the blender not only set them
are traces of Bow Wow Wow and Haysi Fantayzee
apart from the tired rock bands that clog up
on the Pop Art collage of ‘Angry Girl’ (recorded
their home music scene but helped distinguish
when Planet and Goodchild took a [romantic?]
them in the eyes – and ears – of kindred spirits,
break to an Airbnb out in the Australian country
and their eventual label, Heavenly Recordings.
during an easing of lockdown and Planet just
“Naivete is bliss in music,” says Bones. “We’re
screamed uncontrollably into a microphone), and
out here on this island, kind of detached from
even some broken French sophistication on closer
the world…
‘Relieve the Pressure’. “It’s definitely a bit like a collage,” admits Planet. “It's the same thing with the clothes and the stuff that we do on stage as well. A bit of it is like theatre and then we mix it up with the dance stuff.”
Planet: “… filled with rock bands.” Sugar: “It gave us the freedom to take our own path and to take our time.” Planet: “I do think once we came to the UK and started working with Heavenly, they probably
“We all have these wide-ranging interests,”
educated us a little bit too much. We know too
concurs Bones. “So that all kind of boils down
much now. We can’t fuck up as much. Fuck ups
into this…”
are good sometimes.”
Planet: “Icky mess.” The album’s centrepiece, however, is
According to Planet, the band didn’t understand all this talk of remixes Heavenly were
undoubtedly the escapist Fuck Bunker anthem
suggesting at the outset. This charming lack of
‘Holiday’. Coming on like 2 Unlimited mixed by
wisdom was soon rectified when Andrew
Felix Da Housecat, Planet coos: ‘I get away every
Weatherall transformed ‘Bubblegum’ into an
day, my holiday, I'm gettin' paid/I live it up on the
infectious and joyous dose of widescreen
go, I’m gettin’ high, I'm never low’. Bones
ALFOS-friendly chug.
repeatedly adds: ‘We all need something to live for, baby.’ In a perfectly-aligned cosmos, it would have
“When I first heard it, I was shocked,” recollects Planet. “I was like: ‘What is this wonky song?’” It’s now one of her favourite remixes – she
shot to the toppermost of the poppermost global
describes it as “sick”. Talk of Weatherall soon
hit parades. The world’s loss is of course our gain.
turns to the times they met Lord Sabre. Bones
Conceived in a four-hour session and inspired by
remembers a time in Dublin when he was strung
a coming together of Underworld and MIA, it’s the
out, post-gig.
perfect embodiment of Confidence Man’s
“I had the most beautiful chat with him,” he
so-anti-cool-they’re-actually-really-cool
affectionately notes. “And then he gave me this
aesthetic.
perfectly rolled joint and sorted me out. I loved
“I want to be taken seriously,” says Planet, “but, like, not too seriously. I kind of think we're a joke,
that guy.” “I did way worse than that,” Janet laughs. “He
but then also, like, not a joke. I am serious, but I’m
was DJing, and I jumped up and tried to steal his
also not.”
joint. I started dancing with him and he was
“We're just going to do our thing and we're
asking who I was. I kept saying: ‘I’m in Confidence
going to do it with as much energy as we can,
Man, give me your joint.’ So of course, mine is way
which will be a lot of energy,” states Bones. “So
more embarrassing.”
whatever people want to interpret that as, it's up to them. But yeah, we'll probably fuck-‘em-up.”
Riches of embarrassment; tales of excess; dancefloor-slaying songs… all born in the Fuck Bunker during lockdown. This is Confidence
Confidence Man weren’t meant to be a band.
Man’s TILT at world domination. Don’t say you’re
Planet, Bones, McGuffie and Goodchild came
not tempted.
together not-so-much from the ashes of other outfits, but as a means of release from them.
DISCO_POGO_35
How To… Run a Club Night For 30 Years BY DAVE BEER Having recently celebrated its 30th birthday, Back To Basics intends to carry on flicking the Vs at clubbing convention and keep growing old disgracefully. Long-time ally Kris Needs catches up with Basics’ linchpin Dave Beer to hear how he’s kept the good ship afloat all this time…
36_DISCO_POGO
Photos: Mark McNulty, Elspeth Moore
Fuelled by punk rock attitude, like-minded kindred spirits and unflagging musical passion, Dave Beer has been steering Back To Basics through thick and thin since November 1991, to become the UK’s longest-running club. Having experienced top-of-the-world triumphs, heartsearing tragedy and setbacks that have smothered other clubs, this charismatic livewire dynamo has flown the
leave home to follow major inspiration The Clash. Although
battered but defiant Basics flag over several locations
Joe Strummer ordered him back to art school, the seeds
across Leeds, even now embarking on its latest incarnation
were sewn for B2B’s anarchic pleasure pen a decade later.
as Fuck It, Let’s Dance.
These were further catalysed by Dave experiencing America’s underground dance clubs when roadieing for
has a Dave Beer story. After being introduced by our mutual,
various bands (and unknown until recently, his then-
and much-missed, friend Andrew Weatherall, this writer has
undiagnosed ADHD).
so many they’re impossible to list. After that fateful
“People keep reminding me of these incredible things I’m
introduction, my band Secret Knowledge performed ‘Sugar
supposed to have done and I can’t remember any of them!”
Daddy’ at the Music Factory in 1993. At that point in the
he laughs. “I thought it was down to being totally drug-
club’s history the night was still bathed in shock and
addled, but the ADHD puts a whole new slant on it. The
tragedy following the car crash that March which had
crazy, punky behaviour all makes sense now. Everybody was
claimed the lives of Dave’s DJ running buddy Alistair Cooke
off their tits, but I was even more animated because of it!”
and resident Ralph Lawson’s girlfriend Jos. But my bandmate Wonder and I knew we’d found a new family and friends for life in Dave (a fellow survivor of the 70s punk revolution), Ralph, Huggy, James ‘Boggy’ Holroyd,
Scene set, I’ve given Dave some Malcolm McLaren-style headings as he explains the invincible phenomenon that is Back To Basics.
‘Chicken Song’ on acid, spinning the Village People at
Have A Great Visual Aesthetic
Pleasure Rooms annexe Bar Basics or playing with Irvine
“Looking back, we thought this acid house thing had totally
Welsh as the Disco Kings. I witnessed countless global
done it, but it totally hadn’t. There were a lot of like-minded
turntable legends fall in love with the club’s legendary
people, including Andrew Weatherall and Primal Scream, who
crowd and beautiful aesthetic. When Secret Knowledge
wanted to wear the leather trousers again. We’d gone back
signed to DeConstruction I flew to Dundee (where B2B was
to our punk rock roots ‘cause we were sick of being hugged
on tour) to celebrate with these favourite souls, Dave
by sweaty kids on ecstasy blowing whistles and waving
getting arrested for nicking a bottle of brandy.
glow-sticks. It was winding me and Ali up – doing our heads
Micky Hirst and many more. I experienced countless euphoric high times visiting Basics to DJ or hang out, including recording the fabled
Running Creation’s dance offshoot Eruption, I signed
in. I remember thinking: ‘I’m getting the leathers out. I’m not
Dave’s ‘I Am Miami’ single, taking him to the Winter Music
dressing like this anymore.’ All the flyers were like sunshine
Conference to promote it. Even in 2013, the first field trip
and light. It felt like: ‘This is shit, somebody’s gotta keep at it.’
with my late soul-mate Helen was B2B’s 20th birthday bash,
So we nicked Jamie Reid’s Sex Pistols imagery and the
where I played the Punk Room and found that unique spirit
Queen’s head. It just made sense: two steps further than any
still going strong.
other fucker, going back to basics. Start again but do it right.
Talking to Dave about running a club for over 30 years
“There was all this shit music in the charts. It felt like the
inevitably starts with the teenage punk epiphany that
70s when disco went shit and punk had to happen. All ‘Peace
ignited his remarkable journey – notably when he wanted to
in the Valley’ and shit like that. The Primals and Bocca Juniors going: ‘Raise your hand if you think you understand/
38_DISCO_POGO
Raise your standards if you don’t’ was more up our street. It
Photos: Mark McNulty
Everybody who’s collided with B2B’s super-spangled orbit
sounded more dirty and real, more edgy as everything seemed to be getting really lame. We just thought: ’Fuck it, tell ‘em all to fuck off!’ Our punk rock energy was still so strong we thought that’s what we are. It’s how you define what you are and what you’re about. No sell out. You make your mark for life and I made mine at a very young age. It comes out in those standards that The Clash and people stood for; that working class ethic of making good from nothing and standing up for what you believe in. We couldn’t go on with all this raving. “Flyers were your club’s identity and that cut-and-paste Queen gave us carte blanche to be naughty. There was nobody really being like that then. I could relate to Flying and Boy’s Own in London more than these middle-ofnowhere raves. Starting Back To Basics was going back to basics; simple as that. ‘For the more discerning clubber’, as we put on the flyers. Jamie Reid got wind of it and came to Above: Alistair Cooke and Dave with Gilly from The Herb Garden’s dog. Below: Ralph, Huggy, Dave and Mickey.
the club wanting money. I said: ‘You’re fucking joking. Here’s fifty quid but we’ll do you an exhibition in the club and buy some of your pictures.’ So we did the first Sex Pistols art exhibition in a nightclub for him. That Queen’s head image got us noticed. I got the rights for fifty quid and we’re still mates.”
Employ A Great Set Of Residents “The residents are like the rhythm section of your band. The guitarist and singer can do what the fuck they want as long as the drummer and bassist are locked in. Ralph and Huggy were like the rhythm section of Back To Basics: the backbone. We’d pull off headliners and put on the residents because they’re more important than anything. I had to tell people like Eddie Flashin’ Fowlkes, and even Paul Oakenfold, to stop playing because Ralph’s got to go on. It was like: ‘Here’s your money and do one.’ “Ali worked in record stores still loving indie stuff like REM. I was lucky to be in America in the mid-80s roadieing with bands like That Petrol Emotion, Run DMC and Public Enemy. While the bands went to afterparties with poncey record companies we’d load up the trucks. The only places open were these Black gay clubs in Detroit, Chicago, Washington and everywhere. They were open all night. So we would end up going to them. It was amazing. I was going to clubs like the Warehouse in Chicago where Frankie Knuckles played, in New York it was Alphabet City and places like Save The Robots. That’s where I heard all this house music. “A lot of the people I was with thought it was shite! I loved drum machines from Sisters Of Mercy, Suicide and Cocteau Twins, so totally got it. When I came back to England in 1987, I didn’t have a clue it’d gone off over here. People were going nuts at the Haçienda after Mike Pickering started there and it was fucking unbelievable. This couldn’t have been better timing as I’d already got into house music in America. I was like: ‘right, where do I sign?’ “Ali never practiced smooth mixing at home. He was cross-fading, smashing in his pile of old punk records, resonated with a life of its own. It’s like Weatherall said: ‘If
at the club (Marshall Jefferson Presents Truth’s ‘Open Our
Ali hadn’t had his untimely death, he would have gone on to
Eyes’) and he’s still there now. Huggy was a postman then
change the sound of house music, which Andrew went on
and he’d be due to start his round at five in the morning,
and actually did. I wouldn’t have gone to see Ali if it hadn’t
delivering letters with tunes in his bag on Monday morning!
been for Andrew. Me and Andrew went to the chapel of rest
When all else fails you’ve got your residents. We have
to see him. That’s why Andrew dying destroyed me in a way
changed residents now and then, adding more to the family
I’m still trying to deal with. It was the end of an era.
who are now household names. I’ve got the best on the
“Back To Basics is a family. Boggy, Ralph, Huggy and Micky are part of that family. Ralphy played the first record ever
40_DISCO_POGO
planet, all of them are the most amazing DJs. “Until quite recently I couldn’t mix a vodka and orange.
Photo: Tom Oldham/Everynight
Belgium new beat and German industrial; pure energy that
Trust Your Instincts “I never thought I did until I realised I’ve got ADHD, which gives you a sixth sense. Although it is a disability, somebody with ADHD would see a tsunami or nuclear bomb coming before anyone else. It kind of makes sense now looking back at it. I’ve always felt like Forrest Gump. Like I was with a band called Ghost Dance supporting the Ramones when the wall came down in Berlin. I just happened to be there. We were the last people through Checkpoint Charlie. I didn’t even know the wall was coming down because we’d been on tour for months. There was something going on in the water with Alex Paterson and Killing Joke being there too. Then The Orb and all that was going on in England, a lot of things happening that were fundamentally British. We stood out with the best of everything.”
Always Be Two Steps Ahead “If you’re not, you’re fucking behind, aren’t you? Nobody wants to be backward, but I don’t want to be a dedicated follower of fashion either. Terry Farley said I always look sharp as fuck but funny as fuck as well. I’ve just done my own thing, but it’s like every time I have a haircut everyone else has the same haircut. It’s a bit like when Weatherall had his beard; everybody in Shoreditch had his beard and all these beard grooming shops opened. When he cut his beard off people were unemployed because they had to close these shops so Andrew selflessly grew his beard back so people would have a job again. “When I first met Andrew in London at some dumb party, we had the same clothes on, bondage pants and brothel creepers. I went there thinking I’m cool as fuck, nobody’ll Why would I want to play records? I’ve got the best guests
look like this, then this cunt turned up and we had the same
and the best resident DJs. They’re quality and that’s what
clobber on! We were trying to avoid looking at each other. It
Back To Basics stands for – quality for the more discerning
was the first time I’d heard Primal Scream’s ‘Loaded’ and I
clubber. There was a network of us that stood out and were
was like: ‘Fuck. Me.’ I looked over and it was this cunt in the
different, like the Slam boys from Scotland and Bugged Out!
bondage pants on the decks! Some things are meant to be
Lads. Certain discerning groups of people who got it. When
and, while I called him a cunt more than once he became a
it happened, acid house was a phenomenon that swept
lifelong mentor, inspiration and beloved friend. I don’t know
everywhere. It was just the perfect time for a brand new
if I have got my own style. I’ve never thought about it. You
club. Everybody was off on one.”
can buy fashion, but you can’t buy style. Style’s all down to whoever’s wearing it. You can look a right cunt but if you think you look good it makes you walk like you’re good and other people buy into the ethos, I suppose. “I can wear something second-hand with something that cost a thousand quid just ‘cause it works and feels right. But I’ll never wear something that anybody else is wearing. It’s fucking crazy. It wasn’t pre-meditated, but we were doing what we were doing and didn’t give a fuck what anyone else thought. If you don’t like it, you can fuck off – in the nicest possible way. We were spreading the love but, in a way, if you don’t get us, we’re not really that interested anyway.”
DISCO_POGO_41
Left and below: When Faith met Back To Basics at the latter’s 30th Birthday celebrations.
Don’t Let The Bastards Grind You Down
Never Give Up On Your Passion
“There’ve been some massive knocks, starting with the car
drinks, over-priced doors and people getting taxed on snack
crash on the way to Slam in Glasgow. The weather was
boxes at the door. Bollocks! Clubs used to be a melting pot of
really bad, and Ali was driving. He died in my arms then I did
different people. The next thinkers, the next designers, the
too before being brought round in the ambulance. We also
next artists, next musicians. That’s gone. It’s such a shame
lost Jos, and Jill, the mother of my son Danny, suffered
people aren’t mixing. You don’t see Black kids with gay kids or
terrible injuries. Spiritually, I had to get up and get back to
cross-dressers. There needs to be a mix-up again so people
life again after Ali died.
can have new ideas. Without that you don’t have a future.
like cattle. Clubland is a boring backdrop of over-priced
“So we said no cunts, no cameras, no cattle ‘cause we’re sick
never change the ethos of the club. I could never sell it out
of what’s going on. The Faith lot played on my birthday, and
as a brand. We weren’t a brand; we weren’t fucking there to
they were fucking amazing. It was like 30 years of clubbers,
do that. We were trying to punch everybody out to an
three generations having it off. I thought: ‘This is what it’s
extent. We turned down record deals, turned down people
about, this is what we do. This is real.’ Who gives a fuck how
wanting to buy in on something that wasn’t for sale.
many followers you’ve got on Instagram for putting on
Everybody wanted to stick the boot in but how can they
lipstick? I thought influenza was like when you caught a bad
when you’re the hardest cunts on the planet, musically
cold but now it’s an influencer. It’s an open music policy again.
and the way we were? Not in a bad way, we just believed in
“Some people like music, some people dance to it, some
what we were doing. Ali going gave it even more importance,
people make it, some people just are it. It’s your best mate. It’s
so fuck it man ‘cause we’ve had some shit and we’re not
like all you’ve got. So it’s never a case of giving up the music. It
for sale.”
never gave up on me. I’m sat here looking at pictures of Ali, Frankie Knuckles and The Clash. It’s a beautiful thing and it’s going to carry on. Still two steps further than any other
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fucker, but in one giant leap!”
Photos: Elspeth Moore
“Once that happened there was no sell out for me. I could
“The new club is called Fuck It, Let’s Dance ‘cause it’s all got
“KEEP IT WIDE, KEEP IT OPEN”
“Jon and I love all sorts of music and we love mixing them together. We’re John Peel’s children, we have open ears.” Matt Black
Just how did Ninja Tune go from being one of the 90s’ leading experimental outposts
Coldcut
to the most important electronic music label of the 21st Century? By “employing the right people and letting them get on with
Younger Ninja Tune followers might also be surprised to learn that along with pioneering, sample-heavy trip hop fare, Coldcut (Matt Black and Jonathan More) were responsible for producing one of the biggest pop hits of the 80s,
the job without interfering,”
‘The Only Way Is Up’, for Yazz and the Plastic
hears Annabel Ross…
lineage and the diverse tastes and talents of
Population. Looking back though, this unlikely Black and More – an Oxford graduate and computer programmer and an ex-art teacher
Fans of the label Ninja Tune can be roughly split
respectively, whose key influences include New
into two camps: those who followed the career
York sampling duo Double Dee and Steinski,
of its founders, trip hop/sampling maestros
Grandmaster Flash, the experimental dub of
Coldcut from the beginning in the early-90s,
Adrian Sherwood’s On-U Sound label, and Black
along with other heritage Ninja Tune acts such
music from house to hip hop to rap to reggae and
as 9 Lazy 9, The Herbaliser and Funki Porcini; and
beyond – goes some way in explaining how Ninja
those who may not even be aware of Coldcut as
Tune eventually became what is arguably the
artists, and for whom the name Funki Porcini
most important label in dance music today.
conjures a strain of magic mushrooms more than anything else. The split is largely generational (the latter
Coldcut launched Ninja Tune out of frustration with the creative constraints at major labels such as Arista Records and Big Life, where they
group extends from millennials to Gen Zs, the
were expected to keep churning out chart-
former is mainly Gen Xers) and it’s indicative of
toppers for the likes of Yazz and Lisa Stansfield.
how the London-based label has successfully
The name was hatched in 1990, while watching
reinvented itself over the past 30 years, from its
old ninja TV shows in Japanese hotel rooms while
heady trip hop/jazz roots to the electronic music
on tour with Norman Cook and Beats
powerhouse it is today, home to banner acts such
International, and it has remained the perfect
as Bicep, Floating Points, Bonobo and Little
moniker for a label that has expanded and
Dragon and scores of trophies from BRIT Awards
shapeshifted with credibility intact. As for the
and Mercury Prizes to a Grammy.
name Coldcut: “I was living above a butcher’s and the heating was broken,” Black says. “The
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backyard was just full of cold cuts of meat.”
Peggy Gou
Thundercat
Fathers and Kae Tempest, and released Diplo and Spank Rock’s debut albums. Following the murder of George Floyd in May 2020 and ensuing protests, a decision was made that would not only reinvigorate the label, but hand over power to Ninja Tune’s Black and POC staff. “We were sitting in, I think, weekly calls with Starting Ninja Tune was also a means for Black
our CEO, to point out the things we thought
and More to release their own music under other
needed to change and basically have very honest
aliases (among them Bogus Order, DJ Food, Roots,
conversations with him,” says co-head of Big
Euphoreal) as contractual obligations with Big
Dada Victoria Cappelletti. “One of the things we
Life prevented them from being able to release as
suggested is that we launch a record label by and
Coldcut for a number of years. So began Ninja
for POC, and with no debate we got a green light
Tune Mark 1: the trip hop/jazz/breaks/dub era,
and were given the opportunity to do that our
defined by releases such as DJ Food’s ‘Jazz
own way.”
Brakes’ series and Bogus Order’s ‘Zen Brakes’
The label is now an incubator for Black and
records. Before too long, like-minded artists
POC artists, and, like Ninja Tune, hard to
came knocking including Funki Porcini, Italian
categorise musically. “We are focused on working
downtempo jazz outfit 9 Lazy 9, and London
with artists who have potential, represent and
Funk Allstars.
evolve within various communities, or have an
“It’s certainly true that we didn’t really try to
artistic vision beyond music,” says Cappelletti.
sign artists to the label,” says Black. “I think what
“We look at making sure we’re all on the same
we stood for became quite legible quite quickly.
wavelength in terms of what sort of impact we
And it was a needed beacon of independence in
want to have in this music ecosystem.”
the electronic music world, so that was attractive to a certain type of artist.” In the mid-90s, the 18-month tenure of Ninja
Big Dada’s birth at the end of the 90s coincided with a new sonic era for Ninja Tune, defined by downtempo, jazz and ambient acts such as The
Tune’s legendary club night, Stealth, held at jazz
Cinematic Orchestra and Amon Tobin, and by the
bar The Blue Note in Hoxton, cemented their
mid-00s, artists as varied as Bonobo (whose own
burgeoning reputation, along with Coldcut’s legal
stylistic development has roughly mirrored the
reclamation of their name in 1995. This was
label’s) The Bug, Fink and Daedelus.
topped off with their celebrated ‘70 Minutes Of
According to Black, “like-minded and leftfield”
Madness’ mix CD, named Best Compilation of All
is probably the best descriptor for artists on the
Time by Jockey Slut in 1998. Following success
label and its various imprints and partnerships
with the heady, skunky sounds of acts such as
over the years, including Flying Lotus’ Brainfeeder
The Herbaliser, DJ Vadim, and Mr Scruff, another
label, distributed worldwide by Ninja Tune and
pivotal moment for Ninja Tune was signing
home to artists including Thundercat and Ross
acclaimed rapper Roots Manuva to their sublabel
from Friends, the Technicolour imprint (Peggy
Big Dada in 1999.
Gou, Sofia Kourtesis, Octo Octa) and Counter
The brainchild of journalist Will Ashon, who wanted a home for the obscure hip hop-leaning
Records (Maribou State, ODESZA, TSHA). Indeed, of those mentioned, Gou and TSHA are now
music he liked to write about, Big Dada went on to sign other Mercury Prize-winning and nominated artists such as Speech Debelle, Young
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Octo Octa
Black Country, New Road
signed to Ninja direct. Every time you try and categorise Ninja or one of its sublabels, you’ll come across outliers such as experimental rock group Black Country, New Road and avant-rap trio Young Fathers. “Sometimes, with Ninja Tune, it’s good to focus it and sometimes it’s good to make it diverse and there’s been periodic oscillations between that if
Bonobo
you look at the Ninja Tune story over the last 30 years,” says Black. “Jon and I love all sorts of music and we love mixing them together. We’re John Peel’s children, we have open ears and you know, keep it wide, keep it open.” Bicep also knew Ninja Tune had the manpower Still, one could argue the Ninja sound is less
and global network to help them make a bigger
esoteric than it once was. It’s still an exclusive
splash. “Our own Feel My Bicep imprint at that
club – not in a snobby way, but quality control is
point was a one-man operation putting out
tight – but it’s more Zeitgeisty than ever thanks
12-inches, which is a lot of work if you want to
to a cabal of fêted house and techno artists who
push things to the next level,” they add. “Ninja
have joined the roster, most of whom followed
have really amazing teams in different countries
the biggest signee of recent years, Bicep.
worldwide and this just made taking the music
The Belfast duo of Andrew Ferguson and
across the world much easier.”
Matthew McBriar went stratospheric following
In the past year, breakthrough acts such as
the release of their self-titled debut LP in 2017,
VTSS, Anz, Elkka and India Jordan have joined an
marking the start of Ninja Tune’s club music era.
ever-growing list of much-hyped club artists
“Although Ninja Tune prior to us never released
signing to the label and its Technicolour imprint
what some would perceive as straight-up club
including Jayda G, DJ Boring and Hieroglyphic
music, they were putting out a wide range of
Being. Whether they’re longtime fans of Ninja
really interesting stuff as they had been for
Tune or not, the newer artists are aware of the
years,” they explain. “We’d recently seen some
label’s history and significance and invariably
other album campaigns they had rolled out and
excited and proud to join the Ninja Tune family.
could tell that they cared about the details whilst
“Ninja Tune has been one of my go-to all-time
leaving the artists alone enough to do their own
favourite labels since I was about 16, so to say
thing. We felt Ninja Tune would be the perfect
this means a lot to me is an understatement, I’m
place for us if we wanted to experiment more
still pinching myself now!!” wrote Jordan on their
with our sound without the necessity for lots of
Instagram when announcing their ‘Watch Out’ EP
4/4 (beats) in the albums.”
last March. Like many other artists Disco Pogo spoke with, Jordan also praised the enthusiasm
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and attentiveness of Ninja Tune’s staff.
“We felt Ninja Tune would be the perfect place for us if we wanted to experiment more with our sound without the necessity for lots of 4/4 (beats) in the albums.” Bicep
Floating Points
Marie Davidson “The personable element of Ninja and meeting the wider team felt important to me. I don’t think I’d ever want to work with a label that felt removed, distant or transactional.” A name that comes up frequently among current era signees is Adrian Kemp, who joined the business in 2010, became head of A&R around six years ago and is now also CEO, with Peter Quicke. Ninja Tune artists speak of having full
she says. “When my first release came out, with
creative control, but they also appreciate
online trolling and stuff you could just kind of tell
feedback from the A&R department. They have
that putting out my music was trying to shift
“an encyclopaedic knowledge of music,” says
Ninja in a different direction and sort of
Swedish electronic producer DJ Seinfeld, who
penetrate this old-school trip hop, probably
released his second album ‘Mirrors’ on Ninja Tune
predominantly white male music nerd fanbase,”
last year. “They give you the time of day and
she says. “But I’m happy to be on there because
they’re very, very honest. They don’t just listen to
all the time I get messages from people,
your demos once or twice, they’re checking out
especially other ethnic minority artists and
tracks ten times and providing [feedback] which
female artists who’ll be like: ‘It’s really
you can tell is very thoughtful. But if the artist
inspirational to see you on a label like that.’”
doesn’t agree, they’re happy to back down. There
India Jordan, meanwhile, thinks they might be
are no big egos attached to anything either. They
the only non-binary artist on the Ninja Tune
are all happy to be proven wrong.”
roster, but says they wouldn’t have signed with
Nabihah Iqbal, who was signed to Ninja Tune as
the label if they didn’t think it was committed to
Throwing Shade in 2015 and is readying her
improving its representation of women, Queer
second album for release later this year, is
and Trans artists. “There’s always more work to
similarly complimentary of the wider A&R team. “I
be done and labels need to ensure they are fully
really like working with them because they’re not
supporting the artist throughout the process, not
sycophants. All of them are quite analytical with
just signing them to increase their diversity
how they listen to things,” says the electronica
quotas,” they said.
artist. “It was actually the first time I had people
Ambient techno auteur Darren Cunningham,
listening to my music from a slightly different
better known by his artist name Actress, signed
perspective and thinking about new things to try
to Ninja Tune in 2012, after a lot of consideration.
out and how [I could] push myself.”
“I think I wanted to understand as deeply as
The influx of new artists has also increased
possible how the machinations of the music
diversity in Ninja Tune’s ranks, with many of its
industry works, particularly from an independent
star recruits being women and/or Black and POC.
perspective,” he says. “Rather than actually give
Iqbal was the first South Asian woman to sign to Ninja Tune “and they can definitely do more of it”,
DISCO_POGO_47
VTSS
Bicep
Actress
“What makes a difference is if the people working for you are working for your music.I’m expecting a label will be as excited as I am about the music.” Marie Davidson
Elkka
makes a difference is if the people working for you are working for your music,” she says. “I’m expecting that a label will be as excited as I am about the music that’s going to be put out.”
my music to people, I tended to sort of, for want
She released her most acclaimed album to
of a better word, infiltrate different labels just to
date, ‘Working Class Woman’ on Ninja Tune in
learn different things.”
2018, then announced her retirement from club
Cunningham had stints working at One Little
music the following year. In 2020 she launched a
Indian and XL while running his own Werkdiscs
new project, a new wave band called Marie
label, but ultimately decided to join Ninja Tune in
Davidson and L’Œil Nu, whose debut album was
2013 (Ninja Tune now distributes Werkdiscs
released on Ninja Tune last year.
releases and has released Werkdiscs artists
“I haven’t felt questioned in my decisions or my
including Actress and Helena Hauff on Ninja Tune).
artistic output,” says Davidson. “Ninja Tune have
“They seem like quite a restrained label, I think
been great and I’m very happy and proud to be a
they’re quite stealthy in the way they operate,”
small part of their history.”
says Cunningham. “And I’ve never really felt pressured when working with them, if I’m being
Maddy Salvage, vice president of A&R in North
honest with you, and very occasionally, if you
America who has worked for the label for 12
know how to push the right buttons, they’ll allow
years, describes their approach as “less
you to pull levers they don’t usually allow you to
interventionist.”
pull, and then it’s amazing how quickly you will see certain things get done.” As an example, Cunningham cites Ninja Tune’s
“Personally, I’d rather find artists whose vision I already believe in and sign them rather than mould someone into something they’re not,” she
agility and responsiveness after he announced on
says. “It should be about amplifying their art and
social media he’d be releasing the 2020 mixtape
enabling it to work in the current musical climate
‘88’ in 24 hours, then had to follow through.
rather than trying to manufacture anything.”
French-Canadian minimal wave artist Marie
Salvage moved to the US in 2017 and has been
Davidson was approached by an A&R after
central to expanding Ninja Tune’s presence in the
performing at Sonar by Day in Barcelona and
States and attracting key American artists. “With
says it was their genuine enthusiasm that sealed
a large office in North America and label staff
the deal for her. “I believe that in the end, what
internationally, I think our signings have become less UK-centric,” she says. “Moving Stateside really gave me a bigger sense of perspective
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when I’m looking for new music.”
DJ Seinfeld
Sofia Kourtesis
Salvage insists that the shift towards buzzier, club-oriented acts in the past few years has not been intentional. “We’re probably less influenced by hype than we were, and more about whether
Helena Hauff
that artist is actually saying something that people are responding to,” she says. “The irony of course being that we probably have more hype and accolades across our roster now than we
brandishing a record were designed by Kevin
ever have. But I think that’s because there’s a
‘Strictly Kev’ Foakes as Openmind. Cunningham
genuine authenticity in all of our signings,
says that growing up, he wasn’t exactly a
regardless of genre, and people see that.”
collector of Ninja Tune records, “but they
Having started Ninja Tune to avoid being
definitely had an aesthetic which was the ninja
screwed over by major labels, Black and More
and which was always in the corner of my eye.
initiated a 50/50 royalty split between artists
They’ve always had quite a power for a visual
and the label in the beginning, something which
aesthetic, I would say.”
holds to this day and is doubtless another reason
Coldcut have always used audiovisuals to
artists are attracted to Ninja Tune and tend to
complement their music and live performances
stay loyal to the label once signed. That and Ninja
and have released video games with their
Tune’s large infrastructure, essential to getting
“multimedia pop group” Hex, created award-
their artists’ music heard by more people and
winning music videos, and produced A/V works
having the resources to enhance releases,
for London’s Barbican Centre and The Pompidou
whether it’s a 24-hour radio station on Spotify to
Centre in Paris. In the past decade they’ve also
accompany Anz’s ‘All Hours’ EP, a private
branched into software and hardware. A music
WhatsApp group, TikTok partnership and special
remix app called Ninja Jamm was launched in
Instagram filter to bolster Bicep’s second album
2013 (the upgraded version, Jamm Pro landed in
‘Isles’, elite stage and tour design, or the killer
2020) and in 2019, Ninja Tune released its first bit
artwork that graces all Ninja Tune releases,
of hardware (a first for an electronic music label),
commissioned from world-leading graphic
the Zen Delay.
designers, artists and photographers. A strong visual identity was a calling card for
Says Black: “When someone like Floating Points or Maribou State gets hold of one and they tell all
the label from the beginning. The first Ninja
their mates it’s great, that doesn’t hurt our
Tune logo was designed by Michael Bartalos,
reputation because, as someone commented on
while various subsequent incarnations of the iconic Ninja Tune logo featuring a ninja
DISCO_POGO_49
Little Dragon
Nabihah Iqbal
India Jordan
the socials, it’s quite a radical move for Ninja Tune to do that. It shows that we’ve still got some zap and can take a different direction if we want
“We’re probably less influenced by hype than we were, and more about whether that artist is actually saying something that people are responding to. The irony of course being that we probably have more hype and accolades across our roster now than we ever have.” Maddy Salvage
to and mix it up.” Black and More certainly still have zap, but are careful to point out they’re “not that involved” in running the label, which now numbers nearly 80 staff around the world, with offices in London,
Quicke was head of A&R until around six years
Berlin and Los Angeles. “But we think that as
ago, when Adrian Kemp took over, and is now the
granddads, we have some kind of useful input
chair, but like Black and More, he’s less involved in
and I think people at the label know who we are
the day-to-day running of the business these
and respect what we’ve done as well, so it’s like
days, and more focussed on the company’s
having one lovely big growing family,” Black says.
sustainability goals and net zero commitment.
They also emphasise the immense contribution
Now in their 60s, Black and More could be
of Peter Quicke, who joined Ninja Tune back in
forgiven for taking a back seat at the label, but
1992, as label manager. “Jon and I, we didn’t really
despite their philosophy of “employing the right
want to run the label because we wanted to make
people and letting them get on with the job
our music and do our creative thing,” says Black.
without interfering,” complete retirement seems
“So many artists say: ‘I wish I could find someone
unlikely anytime soon.
to take care of the business side.’ And Pete did
“We’re going to continue to strive to put out
that. We mix music, he mixes people and I think he
good, cutting-edge music,” says Black. “And even
deserves full credit for the success of the label.”
though we’re not a tiny label right on the edges anymore, we still think that we’ve got a sharpness to what we do and the same love and passion for music. We’ve still got it strong, so I think that’ll carry us through.”
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Our money’s on another 30 years, at least.
COMING SOON
ISLANDMAN A CELEBRATION OF ARTHUR RUSSELL SISTER NANCY & LEGAL SHOT SOUND PATRICE RUSHEN RAH BAND - REBORN MR G OMAR SOULEYMAN SCIENTIST FATBACK BAND EVELYN “CHAMPAGNE” KING DEXTER WANSEL BLACK UHURU JUNGLE BROTHERS MARCOS VALLE MA KYOTO JAZZ MASSIVE
LIVE MUSIC SEVEN NIGHTS A WEEK
SAULT OF THE EARTH SAULT are not only the best group to emerge in recent years, they are also the most important. By circumventing traditional music industry practices this clandestine outfit allow their music – and the messages contained therein – to take centre stage. As their sixth album, ‘Air’, suddenly drops, author and journalist Tshepo Mokoena gets to the heart of why they really matter…
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“Lively group vocals also common to Inflo productions are widespread, as much of a treat as the crack rhythm section’s facility in recontextualizing gritty and smooth soul, Afro-beat, Krautrock, and post-disco boogie.” AllMusic It started like a fire; embers lit before spreading. When SAULT, the enigmatic, genremashing group, first released two albums online in 2019, they were an insider secret. A whisper. By June 2020, Gilles Peterson relished the opportunity to play their album ‘Untitled (Black Is)’ in full, on his 6 Music show. None of SAULT’s six albums to date have cracked the UK album top 40. And yet, even though the group don’t maintain a YouTube account, pirated rips of insistent 2020 single “Wildfires” have racked up more than 4.6 million cumulative views on the video platform. How did we get here? SAULT are a confounding, exhilarating proposition. We still don’t know who they are – nor even how many band members “they” entail. Careful archaeology into their albums’ digital metadata reveals producer Inflo (Little Simz, Michael Kiwanuka), Kid Sister’s Melisa Young, producer and keyboardist Kadeem Clarke and singer Cleo Sol credited as songwriters. And sure, both Little Simz and
Photos: Alice Hepple
Kiwanuka were given performer credits on 2021’s ‘Nine’ and 2020’s ‘Untitled (Black Is)’, respectively.
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“By stripping back and getting to the essential core of it all, ‘7’ reveals something almost indistinguishable from its constituent parts and much, much more appetising. It seems that Sault adds flavour.” The Arts Desk But for fans and critics alike, that’s beside the point. From behind the cloak of anonymity, the songs have shone through. In a few years, SAULT have begun to carry on a legacy of layered, multi-genre expression, in the tradition of Black British experimentation and adaptation. With the surprise arrival of 2022’s ‘Air’ in mid-April, they’re only getting started. Let’s rewind. If you felt as though in that harrowing summer of 2020 you leapt suddenly from ‘knowing nothing about SAULT’ to ‘desperately seeking out every album in SAULT’s discography,’ you weren’t alone. Their 2019 albums, ‘5’ and ‘7’, belatedly blew onto a couple of ‘overlooked/underrated albums of the year’ lists. Both were released without music videos, promo, live bookings – minus any fanfare, really. On ‘5’ and ‘7’, SAULT leaned into funk, pitter-pattering drums and danceable grooves. They showed signs of a more political edge to come on ‘5’’s ‘Foot on Necks’, a horrifically evergreen, stomping, scuzzy treatise on anti-Black police violence that sits deep in the pocket of the beat. ‘7’ was less strong as a body of work. It still rumbled across a more crystallised political stance, as on rallying cry for Black boys, ‘Threats’: “They see you as a threat now / but don’t let them break you down”.
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“At 20 songs, ‘Black Is’ is ill-suited for short attention spans but therein lies its strength: It passionately considers the entirety of the Black experience in this moment.” Pitchfork The Guardian summed up both albums as feeling “simultaneously exploratory and confident, a really appealing, intriguing combination”. Then, to 2020. SAULT exploded into the public consciousness with ‘(Black Is)’, released on Juneteenth during a summer of protest framed by the hulking shadow of Covid-19. Signposting that this was to be the first ‘Untitled’ release, they shared a simple message on social media in solidarity with Black people and people of Black ancestry. “RIP George Floyd and all those who have suffered from police brutality and systemic racism,” it ended. “Change is happening… We are focused.” Here, their grab bag of 70s funk and 80s post-punk basslines continued to clatter into spoken interludes, neo-soul meditations and layered vocals, sung sweetly then seemingly shouted from out a window. They took new listeners’ breath away, topping both 6 Music and NPR’s year-end lists while touted by Rough Trade as “the most essential album for 2020”. Mercury Prize-shortlisted ‘Untitled (Rise)’ followed in September, exemplified by pointed lyrics. Again, propulsive drums pushed everything forward, as on breakout psych-funk romp ‘Free’, which ascends into a chorus light as candy floss.
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“‘Untitled (Rise)’ hardly yields highlights because the quality never wavers: whoever’s involved, it feels like they’ve been galvanised to the top of their game. It manages to be as lyrically unflinching as the music is compelling.” The Guardian Following on from the pace of work they’d set in 2019, SAULT fell back into the rhythm of dropping two albums per year. Their impact came from more than their work ethic, though. Both ‘(Black Is)’ and ‘(Rise)’ spoke to an outpouring of grief after the murder of George Floyd. An estimated 20 million people joined protests in the US, with others counted in 60 countries. On ‘(Black Is)’, SAULT distilled a howl of rage, of pain, and the slow inhale-exhale that follows. No Black person aware of racism was shocked by Floyd’s dehumanising killing. But music like SAULT’s captured how Black people – whether protesting in the US, UK, South Africa or Kenya – could still find the will to fight back against systemic, ingrained inequality. We’re tired. And still, we fight. SAULT’s songs feel like catharsis, like a breath; a way to take care of yourself to better serve your community. When the band swoop between genres and sonic textures, they slot into a history of Black British music. Sound systems from Jamaica arrived in England in the 1950s, bringing with them a practice rooted in crowdsoundman interaction and the fertile ground on which to test out hits that the white mainstream entirely overlooked. As journalist and author Lloyd Bradley has
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“Once again, SAULT demonstrate the power of words and just how impactful music can be. It’s impossible not to feel affected by the stories being told.” NME put it: “The parlay between soundman and audience allowed British Black music to define itself, and it developed accordingly, taking chances and making seemingly illogical leaps.” A soundman could guide their listeners from reggae – itself a form of protest music – to jazz, calypso then lover’s rock in a packed room. The sound system, speakers stacked high, seemingly surveyed the scene. And from here the stage was set for the underground development of dub, dubstep, garage and later, via pirate radio, grime. Black British music is so often about transformation, about flourishing while being ignored and rattling at the boundaries of what “popular music” can mean. Though SAULT may not sound much like Lord Kitchener, Joan Armatrading, Matumbi or Linton Kwesi Johnson, they have walked along the path those elders forged. Sonically, SAULT can tend to lean closer to Massive Attack, Tricky, the Bronx’s ESG and even the Chemical Brothers or Can, from one track to the next. That’s the beauty of relying on the drive of the rhythm section and what we assume are mostly Cleo Sol’s vocals sung in a mellifluous flow. You struggle, eternally, to neatly place the band in one genre box. SAULT’s most recent album, ‘Air’, makes this explicit. It came after ‘Nine’, an album only made available to stream or buy for 99 days in late 2021 (999, of course, being the
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“They create a near-wordless collection of scores with enough scale to match – or even tower over – their diptych of Untitled records. These compositions deserve ‘Fantasia’-style visuals.” The Quietus UK’s emergency services phone number). With ‘Air’, SAULT pick up the vocal harmonies and strings of songs like ‘Something’s in the Air’ (from ‘5’), ‘Us’ (‘Black Is’), ‘Rise’ and ‘Street Fighter’ (both from ‘Rise’), blooming into richer, dream-like choral arrangements. Soprano voices trill in butterfly-wing vibrato. Horns blare. Strings twist and fall. Fans expecting the band’s usual groove – one of their only defining characteristics so far – ought to buckle up. Here, Philip Glass, Michael Nyman and early Janelle Monáe come to mind more than the usual neo-soul, jazz and funk references. The finest line stands between a gospel choir, a three-part soul harmony, an R’n’B layered vocal and a mantra, sung in unison, at the top of one’s lungs. By paying homage to various Black music traditions, SAULT tap into that connecting thread: Black creativity. They manage to sound both familiar and innovative. Their transatlantic appeal derives from more than Sol’s Americanised singing voice (she obviously is a disciple of the Beyoncé school of pop-R’n’B – find her recordings from 2011 to hear this most clearly). They make diasporic, open-armed music that has captivated audiences who still have no idea what this group would look like on stage. No doubt, SAULT will continue to keep us guessing. The fire may fade in quieter moments between releases. But it can easily be ignited again.
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Must Be In Space
The Secret DJ spent a decade working in Space so you didn’t have to. Something like that. He affectionately looks back on its rise and fall, remembering what made the club unique and why he’ll never, ever forget…
“Vodka limon pourfavvor”. Just those three words made you
The DJ booth was behind the bar, as was the DJ. Terrible
feel like a proper jetsetter. James Bond with sunburn and
posters. Food no one ate from rusty machines that no one
herpes. No change out of a tenner for it. In a glass so tall
operated unless they absolutely had to. For a while, for me,
and thin it was like a test tube and containing considerably
Playa d’en Bossa was like a lukewarm pool that you dipped
less liquid. Everyone is in bad vests hiding their raccoon
a toe in ‘cause you had to. A baby bath for a particularly
stares behind huge bug-eyed 90s shades and sporting
hideous baby. A place so disappointingly English it felt like
shapeless Maharishi loon pants. The cold water taps in the
being at Alton Towers with the thermostat broken.
bogs don’t work and the cig machine hasn’t for three weeks
Photos: Mike Stuart with thanks to Ibiza Spotlight
either. Everything smells of bleach.
Oh ‘ello. There’s Blocko and Peasy spending way more energy screaming at everyone to ‘ave it than on deciding
Must be in Space.
what records to play. Oi boys to the bone. Scarlet honking
For the first two years working at Space I didn’t know
sausages. As was everyone else. More Club 18-30 than ‘Club
there was an indoors bit. True fact. Worse, I didn’t even
Tropicana’. No one seems to remember James Mitchell being
realise Ibiza itself was a paradise. I thought it was nasty. I
the author of the Brit mornings, but I won’t forget. The air
used to fly in, go to Bossa to DJ and leave as fast as possible.
was thick with the scent of folks away from their home and
When a flight was missed, and it was much cheaper to hire
parents for the first time. I should know, I was one.
a car than get a hotel, I ended up driving about a bit with
You’d stagger in through the steps up to the gate, back
my mate. Revelations abounded. It was the longest,
when no one gave a shit at the door, and were immediately
stupidest and most panoramic dawn known to humanity.
greeted by a burnt flesh wrecking yard. People in all states
Hang on, I suspect there might be something to the
of disrepair straddling the terrible furniture with remarkably
popularity of this place after all. Dur.
low energy. For quite a while I didn’t get past this part of the
My earliest Space memories are of the sprawl of cheap
assault course. Space was the place for recuperation to
wicker-wicker wah-wah chairs and tables with quantum-
begin with. Maybe it was just me but everyone seemed to be
twatted freaks dotted around, royally recumbent like really
up from the night before. That would change.
shit lions. Staggering through this human wreckage was like a hot morning on the world’s worst crazy golf course.
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“My earliest Space memories are of the sprawl of cheap wicker-wicker wah-wah chairs and tables with quantum-twatted freaks dotted around, royally recumbent like really shit lions.”
It wasn’t entirely like that of course, that’s just my
the promoters arrived. Later in my career came the mad
skewed personal view. If I had the minerals to go past the
night shifts and huge snaking queues outside. Those early
melted pink statues guarding the entrance, I might have
years were pretty pleasant I have to say. Is there anything
discovered the multicultural indoors that had been merrily
more satisfying than being a resident who builds the thing
entertaining all nationalities for years, such as Jose
up? Playing to a handful of happy campers in the sun and
Padilla’s REACT parties, Tribe, or DJs such as Daniel Klein,
watching the place fill and fill and the vibe catch like an
Jose de Divina and Vandy.
ember. The whole gaff lighting up. Suddenly a roaring flame.
Then they built The Terrace. I’m going to use capital letters because frankly, there can be only one. More The
Job done. Take a break ’til the next shift later on. Front Left was everything. Its own little corner of the vast
Patio really but it immediately doubled, if not tripled, the
L-shaped bar just a step down from the booth. It was too
size of the place and it was a lot less like an outdoor bar and
early in history for Balearic Silverbacks, but in Crow’s Feet
suddenly became quite a different beast. Still a lot of chairs
Corner you’d find the dancefloor veterans, industry types
about, however. I could be wrong, and drugs definitely
and pro freaks. An off-duty Sven Våth glaring at you with
existed, but the era of arriving in Ibiza and not sitting down
his hungry goggly eyes. Alistair pretending he was Andy
for two weeks wasn’t quite upon us yet. I left and didn’t
Warhol, as per. Danny Tenaglia wearing and carrying so
come back for a couple of years.
many novelty items he looks like a walking toy shop, whilst
When I returned it was completely different. It had mirrored the global scene, naturally. No longer a manky, monochrome Brithole but a particoloured ‘It’s a Knockout’.
simultaneously being so camp he becomes a human singularity, the eye of the Gay hurricane. There’s half the island’s resident DJs and promoters of
The Brits had lost their global stranglehold on dance music.
various stripes and species having a quick social after
Now the Europeans were leading the way. We resolutely
waking up, or just arriving from last night. Most of the
failed to play the joker. That period certainly changed me. I
people in that corner pretty much end up running anything
went from a wide-eyed but closed-minded little Englander
worth going to in a few years. The lone bouncer on the steps
to a full-blown European. I met and befriended people from
up to the booth loves the daytime shift as much as I do. The
almost every nation on the planet, but none more so than
hardest job for him is to stop too many people using the
Spanish, Italian, German and French. And of course, thence
thick railings to swing on or crowd onto the tiny podium
came the Belgians.
immediately by the booth door. A very tiny door that I only
To begin with, being a resident was not glam, it was grim. When I tell people I was a Space resident they oo and ah like I must be a millionaire, but it didn’t become a posh destination for a very long time and we got paid bugger-all. Its grubby past is completely overwritten by its shiny final years. It was a bit cheap and cheerful when I started. Go past the huge car park billboards, usually advertising itself, and there’s the familiar stonework ship, floating in a sea of hire cars. The usual hastily erected banners of whatever was on were the only indication of life. Matinee. La Troya. In Bed With Space. Barbara Tucker. Carl Cox. I only ever seemed to see Space in the daytime thankfully - often I’d arrive for work before the banners were up and 62_DISCO_POGO
world’s easiest job. The famous shelf in the booth. Never more notorious than when an Italian promoter comes up to talk to us about booking Tenaglia, and Danny himself says with a flourish “talk to my manager” and gestures behind him to Kevin lying full-length, writhing on the shelf licking his own eyebrows. Oh yeah. Hang on. Don’t forget popping to Agualandia round the back for a dose of botulism and a sole full of verrucas. Nothing could give you liquid guts quicker than a go in the poo pool. And no mention of Space can really go without an honourable mention in despatches for the mighty Bora Bora, Gee, Spiderman and Co. A sin bin of relative relief when you felt you’d been in Space for a thousand years. God forbid, perhaps even a moment where something solid other than a pill might be ingested. Wait, nearly forgot The Terrace Booth Driving School, where a certain resident DJ would stand next to you eating a fried egg sandwich and reading the Sun being Emperor Buzzkill at 9am, just while you are desperately trying to get an atmosphere going. I just don’t have room here for all the good times and funny tales. The story of Space is essentially a love story, however. No, it really is. Pepe Rosello was the owner and whoever was Pepe’s boyfriend at the time was the manager. Few people know or care about the years Space existed before Pepe, as he likes that to be firmly brushed under the carpet, but Space as we know it was fathered by Pepe, mothered by his partners and midwifed by the promoters and DJs. see closed when a very large ego occupies it. Most of the
However, to say peak-Space was the Space made by Fritz
time the security dude does nothing but grin and do a tiny,
would be an understatement. Indeed for many years people
lumpy cheeky man-dance.
saw little of Pepe unless it was to pop up at the end next to
I’ve only a limited amount of words here to convey the
whatever DJ was the most famous and soak up some
good times. The sheer, innocent sun-kissed debauchery of
applause. Conversely, running things like clockwork in the
Manumission’s Carry On every Tuesday morning. Playing
engine room, omnipresent Fritz was busy being Space.
back-to-back with Alfredo, then Tenaglia too. Getting my
Friendly, helpful, and as cool under pressure as a Bavarian
flatmate a job on the door and him being hired, fired and
stein. You could set your watch by Fritz Pangratz, solid
barred for life within an hour. My best mate being so
manager of the venue and general man-at-the-wheel for
blissed-out in the middle of The Terrace dancefloor he
much of Space’s life.
didn’t even notice his trousers had fallen down until a
The Fritz years were the Space Golden Age. Every great
helpful soul pulled them up for him and gave him a ‘bless’
business from Apple to Zara is built around a single
pat on the head.
personality. You can, in theory, access this person. A true
Oh yeah, hang on, Blonde Hitler. What the fuck was he all
figurehead is never reclusive. If you wanted to speak to Fritz
about!? Oscar jingle-jangling everywhere, towering over
it was never difficult. Indeed I always used to say that Fritz
everyone and bellowing: “Oorf coursh!” Little Ziggy Ohm,
was one of my favourite people in the business. He had the
about 75-years-old grinning at everything in his smock.
simple trick most people never manage to pull off i.e doing
Being given the new Red Box upstairs as a booby prize and
exactly what he said he would. I know, right? It’ll never catch
actually turning it into something. Finally earning doing the
on. You could argue that Space also changed under Fritz.
Terrace on Sundays. A squadron of cross-dressers on stilts
But of course it had to. They didn’t build a roof on it to
and Tenaglia singing you happy birthday in The Terrace
annoy you, they did it upon threat of being closed-down.
booth with sparklers and cake. Cueing up the sound of the
You could hear Space for miles.
plane from the intro of ‘Back in the USSR’ as a loop on the
Seriously. I was very much part of the transition. I was a
early CDJs, waiting for a plane and then merging that sound
resident just before it was upgraded and just after. I liked it.
with the loop and then playing the record to a huge roar…
I don’t think it lost anything. I was even given a hard hat
and then a kid wanders over saying: “Wow, that was a really
tour by Fritz in the winter. I was shown round the all-new
long plane”, while a sneaky jealous DJ scuttles off to grass
terrace building site proudly by him, while being secretly
you up for playing ‘rock music’ in the home of Balearia.
amused that no-one seemed to understand that the
A mystery DJ turns up to play after us and starts constructing a 1980s ‘step class’ step, and neatly arranges
foundations constantly filling with water was something to do with the big blue wet thing a couple hundred yards away.
records only for Lawler to arrive regally, the first person we ever saw with a DJ Butler, somehow managing to sublet the
DISCO_POGO_63
Things went very dark, very quickly. There’s no point explaining why in great detail but let us put it like this. I’d shown them I could promote and shown them I had a handle on the new vibe of music. They wanted me to do Mondays. Space open on Mondays was unheard of and possibly foolhardy as so many things had come into existence to fill that day. Fritz was up for it and so was another promoter I won’t name as just thinking about them makes the veins on my forehead throb. Long story short: the promoter assured me Pepe was not part of it, it was all about Fritz. This made me happy. Then the week before we were to open, and about €20,000 of my own money into it, Pepe vetoed it. Pepe didn’t even look at me during the fateful meeting that the promoter didn’t even bother to show up for. Literally the day before I’d gone to have my photo taken for my ugly mug to be on a bona fide giant Ibiza billboard. Within an hour I had nothing. And when I say nothing I mean zero cos the promoter told me it was an exclusive deal and I could only play at Space the coming year. I had to cancel my whole diary. I spent that entire year on my own in the small farmhouse I’d rented in advance watching those gigs I was supposed to do every week tick by without me, while I couldn’t even afford to get on a plane to see my mother enduring cancer. When I tried to get some money back from the promoter to help my mum, their exact words to me were: “not my problem”. That encapsulates the dance music industry in one handy sentence. My career
“My best mate being so blissed-out in the middle of The Terrace dancefloor he didn’t even notice his trousers had
never recovered, but thankfully Mum did. I started in 1997 and the end for me came around 2007. Space carried on for a few years and somehow, amazingly, they managed to have a good time without me. But when
fallen down until a helpful soul
they had the farcical final closing party, with 100s of DJs
pulled them up for him and gave him a
playing for 15 minutes each, well… that was all she wrote.
‘bless’ pat on the head.”
Is Space really closed forever? Pepe repeatedly says: “no”. One thing is sure; you can always buy your way in or out of anything in Ibiza. The rumours of a hotel-esque complex in San Antonio are debatable. And debate is the whole point. Similar rumours of Space opening in different countries
This period of the ‘New Terrace’ was an apocalypse for
abound. But frankly Space has always been a place not a
some, mere evolution for others. Certainly it was never
brand. Corporate moves have never been its forte. I always
better musically. Things have to progress. Indeed most of
found the Space franchise tours pretty tepid. Who knows?
my critics are faded 90s DJs. Their number one gripe, it
Not me. My feeling is it will try to carry on but only for as
seems, is that I am not allowed to write books as I am ‘not
long as Pepe’s ego inhabits his body.
famous enough’. I can only assume that they stopped
But without its physical home in Playa D’en Bossa it will
working in the 90s so it follows in their head that I did. I
only ever be just an echo of that golden era. Fritz moved to
didn’t. I moved to Ibiza. Soz and all that.
New York, became a restaurateur and art dealer. He is very happy for it too. DJs like Carl Cox are a moveable feast. And
Then things got blurry. At one point I was playing The
frankly they are the primary reason we go to these legendary
Terrace, and Discoteca indoors and upstairs. I could arrive
places. And they are just places for people to be in. We can
at Space on Saturday to work and still be there playing the
see these people, and thousands of other people, in other
last record on Monday morning. I found a photo for you of
spaces. But they won’t be THE Space, with a capital ’S’.
one of the rare Mondays. Utterly silent, empty and thick
Let us honour the good times there then. Of which there
with detergent. The only day off from being constantly open
were millions, in the form of the frankly massive amounts of
day and night. The reason DC10 came into being was to fill
people who went there. It was probably YOU who made
that gap. That deep need. My own free parties took place on
those good times. The gentrification of the planet is in our
a Monday. Often, I would work internationally from Friday
hands and it’s up to us to resist it and make changes. But we
to Saturday, then home to Ibiza straight from the airport to
never do. What happened was within three years’ most
Space to finish on Tuesday without any rest at all. For years.
young clubbers had forgotten Space, if indeed they had even heard of it. And life continued. But some of us
64_DISCO_POGO
remember. And we will never, never forget.
It’s Grin Up North Photos by Peter Walsh
66_DISCO_POGO
Frenzy rave, Blackpool, July 1989
DISCO_POGO_67
All photos: Gio-Goi Joy rave, Rochdale, August 1989
Before he began taking the photographs that perfectly captured one of the most significant cultural events of the last century, Peter Walsh was already a regular on the dancefloor of the Haçienda. So, when acid house kicked off and he was on the floor at Hot, he knew. “I realised there was something different going on,” he remembers. “It was completely wild. I wanted to document it. Because I was into it and part of it, I really wanted to capture what it was like to be on the dancefloor.” With a background taking photos of the political demonstrations that seemed to skate through Manchester every weekend (“It was the time of Thatcher, remember,” he laughs) and schooled in the photojournalism of Robert Capa and the humanist photography of Henri Cartier-Bresson, Walsh wanted to detail everything. Not just the DJs or bands, but the people on the dancefloor – in his estimation, the real stars of the show. “Capa said: ‘If your pictures aren’t good enough, you’re not close enough.’ So I had that in mind. I’d take the wide shots, but I’d also get in on the dancefloor and be moving to the music as I was taking photos. I could see something was great: Bang, bang, bang! Fire some frames off. And then move on to another group of clubbers. I wanted the person looking at the photograph to be immersed in it. I wanted to capture that atmosphere and the spirit. The euphoria people had.” As well as shooting the likes of the Haçienda, Boardwalk and Tony Wilson’s memorable end-of-series party for his TV show, ‘Another Side of Midnight’, he also documented the life-changing energy of raves in the north-west – such as the notable Gio-Goi Joy rave in Rochdale in August 1989. “Back then, of course, I was shooting on film and obviously I only had a certain amount,” he recalls. “I knew I had to hold some back for when daylight broke. To get these people still partying at sunrise.” It’s this attention to detail that is the hallmark of his book, ‘Rave One’, that came out at the end of last year. “I had to record it because I knew it was going to be important in the future.” Looking back, he realises how fortunate he was to be in the right place at the right time. “There were hardly any photographers documenting this,” he concludes. “Now everyone is recording everything all the time. I was blessed.” JIM BUTLER
68_DISCO_POGO
The morning after: Gio-Goi Joy Rave, Rochdale, August 1989
The Boardwalk, Manchester, October 1991
The Boardwalk, Manchester, October 1991
Laurent Garnier DJing at Frenzy, Blackpool, July 1989 72_DISCO_POGO
Frenzy, Blackpool, July 1989
Luke Cowdrey on the Haçienda dancefloor
The Boardwalk, Manchester, October 1991
Frenzy, Blackpool, July 1989
A Guy Called Gerald and Graham Massey at the ‘Other Side of Midnight’ aqua party, Victoria Baths, Manchester
Gio-Goi Joy rave, Rochdale, August 1989
Mike Pickering DJing at the ‘Other Side of Midnight’ end-of-series rave, Granada Studios, Manchester
76_DISCO_POGO
BROTHER IN No other band are quite like Orbital. In the early-90s, at a time when much of dance music was dismissed as ‘faceless bollocks’, the Hartnoll brothers helped legitimise it thanks to a raft of critically-acclaimed albums and live performances. Today, 30-plus years on from their formation, Andrew Harrison finds Paul and Phil in reflective mood, but always with an eye on the future. “The two of us have created something a bit special,” they admit…
78_DISCO_POGO
RS ARMS Photos: Ed Hepburne Scott/Photomatic
DISCO_POGO_79
swirls, clattering ‘Amen’ breaks) there’s an affecting emotional cadence to it – and it culminates in a passage where, in vocal samples and burgeoning electronics, ‘Smiley’ ave you got BritBox? It’s not exactly
does with that formative Sevenoaks police raid what a
the edgiest of streaming TV services,
classical piece or a movie soundtrack would. It represents
heavy on vintage 9pm-on-ITV rural
action and emotion and reversals of fortune as pure sonics,
murder shows and other comfort
so that an act of repression is drowned and defeated by a
viewing for nerve-racked Middle
swell of beauty and good feeling, a euphoria that’s stronger
Britain. But down in the depths of
than cruelty.
their EPG is at least one diamond for
In its own small way ‘Smiley’ encapsulates what always
the Disco Pogo audience. Here, a
set Orbital apart from dance music’s more functional
little fuzzy round the ages but alive
providers of bangers-by-the-yard. It’s the factor that took
with the electric thrill of a moment
Paul and Phil Hartnoll everywhere from multiple
that can never be repeated, is the
Glastonburies to movie soundtracks to the Paralympics
infamous ‘A Trip Round Acid House’ edition of ‘World In
Opening Ceremony with Stephen Hawking, the one that
Action’ from 1988.
gave Orbital’s albums – from the palette-expanding ‘brown
It’s incredibly exciting – and impossible to watch without
album’ through epics like ‘Snivilisation’ and ‘In Sides’ to
yearning for a Tardis to take you straight back there.
2020’s ‘Monsters Exist’ – a personal meaning to generations
“Saturday night in South London,” says a breathless,
of ravers old and new: the emotional heft to make you see
plummy-sounding woman over clips of baggied-up
the world anew.
youngsters teasing their hair and piling into coaches.
“I thought going right back to the beginning would be a
“Hundreds of young people are gathering for the latest
lovely way to start,” Paul says about ‘Smiley’. “Because all
craze: an ‘acid house’ party in a disused warehouse…”
that was about a year before Orbital started. So, let’s show
We meet confused coppers, irate pensioners, old lags of rave in their impudent youth, and the Sunday People’s laughable, grizzled ‘Acid House Correspondent’ Ted Hines. It’s like a lost episode of ‘BrassEye’. And there, as a police raid of shocking brutality on a
what it was like. Let’s do a track that’s sonically where our heads are at now but wearing the clothes of the 80s.” “And let’s illustrate the point,” interjects brother Phil, “about how, you know, in civil rights terms… we all got beaten up by the police for having a party.”
house party in Sevenoaks is laid out in alarming detail, is another familiar face. Looking both impossibly young and
Suburban Britain is where everything comes together, the
also mightily affronted that he and his mates have just been
true melting pot, and in hindsight you can see Orbital’s future
battered by the Met for the crime of having a party, is Paul
musical world assembling itself even when they were kids.
Hartnoll of Orbital. “Something like that could never happen now, the police
Phil and Paul got the disco bug early. Their mum’s cousins Mick and Ray, who lived on the same estate as
would never have got away with it,” Paul recalls today,
the Hartnolls in Dartford, were DJs who hammered the
laughing ruefully over a Zoom from his wood-panelled
Tamla Motown and reggae at Christmas parties and
studio somewhere near Brighton. “Everyone would have
birthdays. “We were brought up on that,” says Phil. “Proper
been filming on their phones, wouldn’t they, and it’d be all
mobile disco. I remember going around the house and just
over YouTube. Not back then though…”
being completely amazed about the amount of records
More than 30 years on, these life-changing original days of raving are fresh in Orbital’s minds again. They’re about to
that they had.” He can remember pestering for a Jackson Five record for
release a three-decade anniversary compilation entitled ‘30
his eighth birthday – he got ‘Ben’. “I learned how to deal with
Something’, a reinvention of the ‘best of’ concept featuring
disappointment from a very early age…”
Orbital classics updated for 2022, plus new tunes, rarities
Into the mix went their father’s movie soundtrack albums
and remixes by admirers including Jon Hopkins, Floex, ANNA,
and third brother Gary’s collection of prog rock. “I used to
Jon Tejada and David Holmes.
be able to go up the stairs at home and choose which way I
“I’m a big fan of time and change and decay, all that kind
wanted to go with the two brothers on either side,” says
of thing,” says Paul. “So instead of doing another best of, it
Paul. “I could go one way for Trojan, reggae and David Bowie
was like: ‘OK, what can we do that’s different?’ For me, the
or the other way for Queen, Led Zeppelin and Godley and
interesting thing of 30 years of improvisational dance music
Creme. A complete education.”
is, I wonder how different they are now?” So ‘Chime’, ‘Satan’, ‘Impact’ and other Orbital favourites
Then came punk. The first thing Paul noticed when he started at secondary school, a place with a rough
appear in newly-recorded versions based on how they’ve
reputation and the unbeatable name the Wildernesse
evolved over years in Orbital’s live show. “All those mistakes
School, were two symbols painted on either side of the 1960s
and improvisations, all those little new little bits that
central building. He thought it was the Captain Scarlet logo.
happened, they’re all in there.”
Instead, it was indomitable vegan punk collective Crass,
To open the album they built a new track around Paul’s
whose fuck-the-system attitude would shape Orbital’s in
glitchy old VHS of his appearance on ‘World In Action’. It’s
years to come. Paul had wanted to get into music since he’d
called ‘Smiley’ and while it’s full of period details (acid
heard The Beat’s version of ‘Tears of a Clown’, but then his mate introduced him to ‘Bloody Revolutions’ by Crass – “and
80_DISCO_POGO
I never looked back. Went full anarcho-punk.”
“Punk really did make a difference in my life… I’d been brought up on Black music, I didn’t understand racism at all, and the anti-Nazi thing made a huge impression on me. It was like, this makes sense.”
bad. Maybe it isn’t, he thought. “And then we played it to Jazzy M,” says Phil. “And Jazzy M went mental.” ‘Chime’ remains one of the true gamechangers of British dance music. It’s a bridge between the glacial futurism of Detroit techno and the more rumbunctious DIY ethic of the British free party scene, it’s UK electro pop reconnecting with the Chicago house it inspired… and yet somehow completely different from any of those things. Famously they mastered it straight from the cassette that Paul used to make it. “That tape got lost forever in Jazzy M’s car boot, never to be seen again,” says Paul. “Good job he’d put it on a DAT so Pete Tong would think we were more professional.” ‘Chime’ became the archetypal hot white label hit, golden DJ currency, a mystery must-have.
For Phil the trigger was the Rock Against Racism
“Jazzy M was pressing up another thousand before we’d
movement of the late 70s. At school he admits he “wasn’t an
done the first lot,” says Phil, “It was like he was feeding the
angel… I was always joking about, doing moonies and that.
famine up north.” It would go on to become the climax to
Out of control. I mean, dyslexia wasn’t even a word then.”
countless festivals. For Christmas 2013 Paul replaced the
When he was maybe 14, he sneaked into Rock Against
descending melody with festive bells and released it as
Racism’s famous gig in Hackney’s Victoria Park with The
‘Christmas Chime’. There’s still nothing that sounds like it.
Clash and Steel Pulse. “Punk really did make a difference in my life,” he says.
‘Chime’ also led to one of the most uncooperative yet memorable performances in the history of ‘Top of the Pops’.
“That day fucking blew my mind. I’d been brought up on
“We’d been playing live for months so we wanted to do this
Black music, I didn’t understand racism at all, and the
live as well,” says Paul, “but they only let you do that if you’re
anti-Nazi thing made a huge impression on me. It was like,
New Order.”
this makes sense.” By the time he was 16, Paul had left school, was working
So it was that on 22 March 1990, the Hartnolls appeared onstage on the nation’s favourite chart show alongside a
with his father on his building site subjecting his workmates
baffled and out-of-place BBC-mandated ‘rave’ dancer, both
to Laser FM, the Cocteau Twins, industrial rock and 80s
brothers studiously ignoring the camera in T-shirts that
electro, and desperate to get hold of a drum machine.
said NO and POLL TAX. “We used squiggly writing so the BBC
“I just wanted to know what the fuck made that sound,”
couldn’t spot it,” says Phil. “We were so awkward. We even
he admits. “We got this little Rhythm Box with Latin
put the extension cords on top of the keyboards so people
patterns, terrible mistake really, but we’d shove it through a
would see they weren’t plugged in.”
guitar pedal and sound like Test Department. We loved it.”
“This was our anti-establishment training from Crass
The big discovery, though, was getting a 4-track. “Now it’s
coming true,” says Paul triumphantly. “No, we’re not going to
like you’ve got four synthesisers even if you’ve only got one.
mime! You can’t make us! We refuse! We were being
It’s like: ‘Oh shit, this is fucking power.’ Suddenly you can
pig-headed young men. Still,” he says, “You’re not going to
layer stuff and it sounds fucking immense.”
turn down Top of the Pops, are you…?”
In a nod to the job that paid for the kit, Paul released his
Playing live, then a heresy for post-house electronic bands,
first electronic music under the name D.S. Building Contractors,
was becoming more of a focus for Orbital. “We’d always
a brace of acid-era tracks that appeared on an FFRR
thought of it like Cabaret Voltaire or Adrian Sherwood and
compilation with the none-more-1988 title ‘The House Sound
Tackhead, a proper electronic band with instruments,” says
Of London Vol. IV: The Jackin’ Zone’, put together by LWR
Paul. “But the one we really modelled it on was Tangerine
house DJ Jazzy M. Phil was now in America, sending back “the
Dream. I just loved the idea that we were nothing to watch.
most amazing tapes of WBLS and all these hip hop stations”.
Just two blokes standing there jamming, but here’s some
And years of tinkering were about to pay off for Paul.
giant mad psychedelic video show behind us.”
“I did ‘Chime’ as just a ridiculous meaningless thing, using
The dance music circuit then was based on the PA – get
six inputs on my 4-track to see if I could do six things at
up, mime to a DAT, get off – but Orbital built a bona fide set
once,” he says. It was a Wednesday night, and his mates
where everything was to be played live. It stood them in
were shouting at him to finish up and come to the pub. Paul
good stead when they were invited over to Northern Ireland
rushed through the recording and as he pressed STOP he
by a young DJ called David Holmes.
could see one guy sitting on the sofa, nodding appreciatively, telegraphing a simple message: that’s not
DISCO_POGO_83
“We were coming out of a really crazy, super-bleak time
story, the moment where they don’t just announce
back then,” says David Holmes of Belfast in the early-90s.
themselves to a wider world beyond the raving committed,
“There was a lot of a subliminal anxiety, fear, paranoia, and
but they change the very festival itself. Glastonbury had
stress. There was police checks, your car being ripped apart,
never truly got to grips with the dance music that had
shootings… it was part of everyday life so you just got on
transformed Britain. Orbital was a bit of a gamble. So, for
with it. But that doesn’t mean you’re not carrying it about
this major, make-or-break moment the Hartnolls naturally
with you.”
decide to play mostly tracks from ‘Snivilisation’, their
So, Holmes (then a hairdresser) and his equally music-
all-encompassing concept album about the spiritual and
obsessed mate Iain McCready launched an underground
material disintegration of society – a new record which isn’t
night at Conor Hall in Belfast Art College where they played
out yet, which nobody has heard, and which they’ve barely
house, acid and techno. Supercharged by the pills then
worked out how to play yet.
filtering into the city and a legendarily top of the line sound
“We didn’t understand that a festival set is supposed to
system, Sugar Sweet became a packed-out escape for
be your best of,” admits Paul. “And to be fair, there probably
Belfast youth from both sides of the Troubles. “It wasn’t a
wasn’t even 100 people in all those thousands who knew
normal way to live,” says Holmes, “so when you went out for
who we were anyway…” (This is very debatable).
a night, the roof came off.” ‘Chime’ was the anthem of the time (“if you were lucky
He describes playing a nerve-racking show that felt like a scene in a war movie where they’re desperately trying to
enough, you got a copy”) and there was a number on
keep the submarine afloat: “We’d only played these fucking
Holmes’ white label. So, he rang it, got Paul Hartnoll,
songs twice before!”
explained about Sugar Sweet and asked if Orbital fancied
As pre-programmed sections of the tracks rolled on
the trip over? “A lot of people were just frightened to come
unstoppably the Hartnolls would make panicked changes
because it was still quite hardcore,” says Holmes, “but they
on the fly. “And then I realized: ‘Oh, fuck’,” says Paul: “’I’ve left
were just up for it, like Weatherall was. And they had such
everything turned up to maximum.’”
an amazing time. They were so blown away by their experience.” On the night the crowd were in raptures and screaming
So, on ‘Are We Here?’ – ‘SnivilIsation’’s epic centrepiece where man, God and existential dread come together in an unreal space – some 40,000 Glastonbury people listening to
for an encore. Orbital had run out of tunes, so they played
a track they’ve never heard by a band they don’t know are
‘Chime’ a second time. “There were people literally crying,”
suddenly assaulted by clattering breakbeats and snares all
says Holmes, “People from complete opposite ends of the
turned up beyond 11.
political spectrum having a transformative experience that
“And the crowd just went… ‘brilliant!’” says Phil. “It just
completely changed their lives. I’ll never forget it until the
totally worked. They went mad. There was so much ‘I’m
day God calls me.”
gagging for the electronic sound’ in the air that year and it
On the way home they left Holmes with a tape of Orbital demos. Weeks later Holmes told them that he and his mates
was fucking magical. Even we didn’t expect it.” Paul and Phil came offstage capering about like children.
could not stop playing it over and over as they drove around
Phil: “We did the tish-kaboom dance like we did on bath
Belfast on acid at night, the music transforming the city.
night when we were little kids, banging our bums together
Thus, Orbital’s most beautiful recording, a glowing,
and going ‘tish-kaboom’….” Paul recalls the same deep
optimistic sunrise of a tune which transcends simple
satisfaction you feel after a really good day’s work. “I was
notions of comedown/chillout to enter the realm of true
just floating through Glastonbury, up to the King’s Field and
emotion, got its name: ‘Belfast’.
drinking real ale at 6am… absolutely brilliant.”
“It’s because of the beauty of it,” explains Phil. “People
Orbital 1994 was the beginning of Glastonbury as a rave
don’t expect a track called ‘Belfast’ to sound beautiful, but
event with rock bands, not a rock festival with a few DJs.
it was so fitting. For us to have that wonderful experience of
The next year they opened the Dance Tent, within five years
Belfast after being indoctrinated by the TV about the
a Dance Village. And it cemented in the minds of the new,
Troubles like most English people were… to meet beautiful,
festival-addicted public an image of Orbital that’s defined
beautiful people there…” He starts to run out of words. “It
them ever since. Two shadowy figures onstage, torch-
was one of the best experiences we’ve ever had.”
glasses making their heads look slightly too wide, alien even, controlling not just explosively compulsive beats but a spiral
It’s 25 June 1994, a balmy Saturday evening in the middle of
of electronic beauty unlike any other. The one thing you
one of the hottest Glastonbury festivals of the 90s, and Paul
absolutely, definitely have to see.
Hartnoll is terrified. He’s watching the look of absolute fear on the faces of the acts going onto the NME Stage before
Orbital tend to split up. They’re brothers. Brothers get on
Orbital. There’s M-People’s percussionist Shovel, usually a
one another’s nerves – brothers fight. They first parted
happy-go-lucky type, his face grey before he goes on. An
ways in 2004, only to reconcile for a tour in 2009 that turned
hour later, looking mortally afraid before curtain up, it’s
into 2012’s comeback album ‘Wonky’, a built-for-live affair
Björk. “I peeked around the curtain and saw this sea of
including robust contributions from Brummie MC Lady
people, like ‘Lord Of The Rings’,” he says, “and I’m like: ‘Oh my
Leshurr. This particular reunion produced possibly the
god, what the fuck have we got ourselves into…?’”
strangest and yet fitting guest vocalist in Orbital’s
Glastonbury 1994 is the major turning point in Orbital’s
cosmically-inclined career when they appeared at the London Paralympics opening ceremony with Professor
84_DISCO_POGO
Stephen Hawking.
“I peeked around the curtain and saw this sea of people, like ‘Lord Of The Rings’, and I’m like: ‘Oh my god, what the fuck have we got ourselves into…?’”
have created something a bit special here, and we should remember that.” “OK, this is cheesy,” says Phil, “But I can’t get over the love and affection we get from our fans. I’ve lost count of the times we’ve split up and yet they’re so forgiving. We’ve got people bringing their kids to our shows now. I mean,” he winces a little, “You don’t want to say we couldn’t have done it without them – but it’s true.” Meanwhile something new and possibly bigger than ever now appears in Orbital’s world. Always the most cinematic of the British electronic acts, they’ve just released their biggest soundtrack yet – the score for ‘The Pentaverate’, a Netflix conspiracy comedy in the vein of ‘The
They’d been asked to provide music for a segue into
Prisoner’. Creator Mike Myers of ‘Austin Powers’ fame plays
Hawking discussing the Large Hadron Collider and thought
five different characters in the story of a secretive cabal
that the ‘Wonky’ track ‘Where Is It Going?’ seemed to fit the
who’ve influenced world events and protected the human
theme of spinning particles. “A really euphoric track would
race since the 1300s. Ironically, Orbital got the job because
be perfect for that moment,” says Paul, “And then we
of their own homage to the Lalo Schifrin-style tension and
thought, what if we make Stephen Hawking sing? Pitch his
drama of 60s and 70s TV shows, ‘The Box’ from 1997.
voice up and down, and tune it?” They met Hawking and
“The directors were sitting around in Mike Myers’ place in
gave him a copy of the ‘Wonky’ album, expecting not much
New York going through loads of different tracks that might
feedback. But he liked it. To their amazement, the Director of
fit the mood,” says Paul, “and one of the writers suggested
Research at the Cambridge Centre for Theoretical
‘The Box’. Apparently, Mike Myers jumped on it and said,
Cosmology agreed to step into the shoes of Alison Goldfrapp,
That’s the track we want, that’s it.” When director Tim Kirby
David Gray and Zola Jesus, and lend his voice to Orbital.
came to see Orbital in Brighton, Paul thought he just
“It was the most bonkers event,” says Paul. “I’m backstage
wanted rights to ‘The Box’ and was ready to make a
drinking champagne with Ian McKellan, fucking Gandalf
tentative pitch for the whole score – only for the director to
himself. Here’s Stephen Hawking wearing our torch glasses.
offer it to them anyway.
And we’re getting ready to play to 11 million people viewing
“As soon as I read the script, it was like: ‘Right, OK, this is
it around the world.” He got lost on the way back from the
so us,’” says Paul. “It’s ‘Logan’s Run’, ‘The Prisoner’, ‘The
toilet, Spinal Tap-style, and almost missed his performance.
Persuaders’… right up our street.” Orbital have filled the
“And the thing about Stephen Hawking,” says Phil, “is he
soundtrack with ominous analogue sounds, grand Wendy
was so funny. His character was fantastic – he agreed to
Carlos strings, bits of 70s adverts and the sounds of the BBC
wear the torch glasses, which he really didn’t have to do. We
Radiophonic Workshop. “I was spitting tea out of my mouth
weren’t even supposed to talk to him on the night…” After
that some of the cultural references that young people
the show they sent Hawking an edit of the track. “He
might not get, but why not use them?”
emailed me back right away saying: ‘This is fantastic, when
The pandemic gave them a head start to write music
are we going to release it?’ He was really enthusiastic.” The
before filming instead of afterwards as usual. Myers took
Hawking mix of ‘Where Is It Going?’ did not see the light of
finished pieces of music and played them loud onset to get
day at the time but it’s on ‘30 Something’.
the actors in the right headspace. “That is really rare and
“It’s sad that he’s not here to see it,” says Phil, “but we got
really exciting,” says Paul. “He’s a brilliant collaborator, he’s
there in the end. It’s just so brilliant to have this mad
into all the same stuff as us, the old tropes and nostalgia.
moment of history preserved.”
He knows what he wants but if you disagree, he’ll listen to
When Orbital split again in 2014 it was supposedly forever. Phil DJ’d across the Far East. Paul went deeper into his
you and try it your way.” The irony, he thinks, is stupendous. He wrote ‘The Box’ on a
dream of working on soundtracks with ‘Peaky Blinders’ and
Sunday afternoon in the mid-90s as an affectionate spoof
‘American Ultra’ and made solo records including ‘8:58’
of 60s-70s TV, looking for the sound of ‘The Avengers’ or
– featuring spoken word from Cillian Murphy and very much
‘UFO’, rediscovering the things he loved as a kid.
the lost Orbital record to investigate – and an entertaining
“Now 25 years later, it’s found exactly its place with Mike
collaboration of electro rave with Vince Clarke of Erasure
Myers, in a programme that pays homage to the very same
called ‘2Square’. But they always come back together.
thing as me. It’s just not believable, is it?”
“I personally have realised that this is probably what I’m
Or perhaps it is. With Orbital, with music, with certain
meant to do,” says Paul. “I love doing soundtracks, I love
notions of spacetime itself, there is the idea that past and
working away on lots of different things, but when it’s
future are part of the same thing. There is the theory of the
Orbital it just announces itself as something big, something
Möbius. Where time becomes a loop.
that means a lot to a huge number of people. After a few years of not doing Orbital we realised that the two of us
DISCO_POGO_87
P&P Music Factory
Selected highlights from 30-plus years of Orbital
1996-1997 Orbital realise a long-cherished ambition with a film soundtrack, Paul W.S. Anderson’s space horror picture
Dec 1989
‘Event Horizon’. They co-create it with
‘Chime’ comes out on Jazzy M’s
composer Michael Kamen. “He did the
Oh’Zone Records. An “already eagerly
score to ‘Brazil’, my all-time favourite
sought modest twittery shuffling
film,” says Paul. “I said to him, I can’t
acidic instrumental” according to
read music, is that going to be a
James Hamilton’s Disco Page in Record
problem? And he goes: ‘Well I don’t do
Mirror.
electronic so we’re gonna get on just fine…’”
7 Jan 1991 ‘Belfast’ is released on the ‘III’ EP. In
31 Dec 1999
heavy contrast the lead track is the
At Cream’s massive event at
grinding techno-metal track ‘Satan’. “It
Liverpool’s Pier Head, Orbital see in the
was our supportive message after
21st Century with a special version of
Judas Priest got sued for backwards
‘Chime’ – with extra bongs.
satanic messages,” says Paul. “Why can’t you have forwards satanic
2004
messages?” As a result, Orbital are
Orbital split for the first time. Phil
picketed by Catholic mothers in
concentrates on his DJing and Paul
Poland. Phil: “That was a proud
releases a solo album, ‘The Ideal
moment.”
Condition’, with guest vocals from Robert Smith.
1992 Orbital tour the USA with Meat Beat
2008
Manifesto. At a New York shop called
The Hartnolls reform to headline The
Star Magic Space Age Gifts on
Big Chill and record the ‘Wonky’ album.
Broadway they spot a set of headmounted torches for handymen. “We
27 June 2010
thought that’s good, you can check
Eleventh Doctor Who Matt Smith joins
your record box when you DJ,” explains
Orbital onstage to close the 40th
Phil. “So, we gave it a go and next thing,
Glastonbury with the ‘Who’ theme.
we’re the band with the torches on
Smith of course wears the obligatory
their heads.”
torch glasses.
25 June 1994
29 August 2012
Orbital headline Glastonbury’s NME
The Paralympics Opening Ceremony –
Stage for the first time, winning over a
Orbital perform a medley of ‘Where Is
crowd of 40,000 and pleasurably
It Going?’ and Ian Dury’s ‘Spasticus
traumatising the psychologically
Autisticus’ with Prof Stephen Hawking
vulnerable with new track ‘Are We
and the Graeae Theatre Company.
Here?’’s deafening voice sample: “What
Some 11 million people are watching.
Does God Say?” “I got all those samples about Jesus
2014
from a weird religious record I found in
Orbital split again, after 25 years
a charity shop,” says Paul. “The picture
together, saying: “Nothing lasts forever
on the front is a split screen with a
and it’s time to stop.” Paul scores
bunch of nuclear weapons on one side
Season 2 of ‘Peaky Blinders’ after
and a stained glass window on the
collaborating with Cillian Murphy on
other. I thought, I’ve got to own that
his solo album ‘8:58’.
record…”
2018 Orbital reunite again, to play live and release the album ‘Monsters Exist’ featuring Brian Cox. “The real joy for me,” Phil tells the website Music Radar, “is I’ve got my brother back.” 88_DISCO_POGO
Orbital Thirty-Something
15.07.22 Deluxe Double CD 4 x Heavyweight Vinyl Boxset Digital Reworks, remakes, remixes and re-imaginings. Includes new track ‘Smiley’ and remixes from Yotto, ANNA, Jon Hopkins, Dusky, Joris Voorn, Logic1000, Eli Brown, Shanti Celeste & more. orbitalofficial.com
BLANCMANGE - PRIVATE VIEW 30.09.22
The new album featuring ‘Some Times These’ and ‘Reduced Voltage’ Limited Orange Vinyl, Black Vinyl, CD & Digital. blancmange.co.uk
Or, the continuing (mis)adventures of The Balearic Network part 27… Balearic: Is it a sound?
90_DISCO_POGO
A style? A genre? Jim Butler goes searching for answers and forgets to ask for Chris Rea…
ILLUSTRATIONS BY LEO ZERO STUDIO DISCO_POGO_91
“A friend once described what me and Andrew did as dark Balearic and it’s probably a better description than drug chug or whatever it was people called it.” Sean Johnston In March 2020, Colleen ‘Cosmo’ Murphy, like the
This June, she releases her first ‘Balearic
majority of people around the world who weren’t
Breakfast’ compilation, featuring tracks from the
frontline workers, began working from home. For
likes of Cantoma, Midlife, Lady Blackbird, a
music fans of a certain persuasion, however, she
suitably soulful remix of P’taah by the much-
was about to perform a key task. Broadcasting
missed Phil Asher, and Friendly Fires’ motorik-
from her home studio, she not only kept the
flavoured collaboration with Andrew Weatherall
musical conversation going – “Something I felt
and Timothy J. Fairplay’s The Asphodells. Her liner
was important for people isolating,” she reflects
notes state: “Musically Balearic Breakfast is a bit
two years later, “including myself” – she was
of a hodge-podge of chillout, spiritual jazz, deep
placing the latest marker in one of dance music’s
soul, percussive house, quirky disco, indie-dance
most enduring, and contentious, narratives. The
and what may ‘traditionally’ be called Balearic
story we call Balearic.
(whatever that may be).”
That summer, she temporarily filled in for Gilles
She explains further her feelings about what
Peterson on one of his Worldwide FM morning
constitutes Balearic music: “It’s very nebulous in
shows. Having already begun asking for audience
what it is in terms of musical structure. It is more
requests on her other shows on the station, she
about the feeling it conveys. It’s about musical
replicated this vital dialogue and cultural
exploration. Or it should be.”
exchange in that slot. The show was such a hit
Jason Boardman, co-founder, alongside
that Peterson asked Murphy to keep the spot,
Richard ‘Moonboots’ Bithell, of the Mancunian
and in September that year, she changed the
Balearic mainstay Aficionado, concurs. “That’s
name to Balearic Breakfast.
the idea isn’t it,” he states bluntly when its put to him that at its best Balearic represents a certain
92_DISCO_POGO
musical freedom.
“There’s a preconception that Balearic music is
Has Balearic music had a resurgence in recent
100bpm, has a chuggy 4/4 beat and after 16 bars
years then, or has that spirit of adventure, of
the bassline comes in and after 32 bars the
shapeshifting musical freedom, always been
Spanish guitar comes in,” he explains. “I really
there? Johnston and Dr Rob both point to people
hate that because that’s not what it is. At
like Boardman and Moonboots, Balearic Mike,
Aficionado we start off with super-horizontal
Coyote and Phil ‘Cantoma’ Mison as being pivotal
music and end up at a crazy disco or acid space.
in keeping the sounds alive during the 90s.
And that’s over the course of six-to-eight hours.” Kenneth Bager, Danish producer, DJ and label boss of the simpatico Music For Dreams, believes that as a musical term it means “expect the
“They stuck to their musical guns and their particular musical obsession,” says Dr Rob. “The rest of us jumped from bandwagon to bandwagon.” Another key chapter in the Balearic story was
unexpected”, explaining it is all about “musical
the advent of Bill Brewster and Frank
choices”. Dr Rob, the man behind the adventurous
Broughton’s influential DJhistory forum in late
music blog Ban Ban Ton Ton, says “really,
1999. Dr Rob says it reignited the passions of
musically, it’s just a kind of eclecticism.” While
many music lovers as they shared information on
Timm Sure, one-half of sonic explorers Coyote
“forgotten Alfredo favourites found in local
and the label Is It Balearic? points to it being a
charity shops and IDed tunes on José’s treasured
state of mind based upon not following any rules.
tapes”. It also, crucially, introduced the term
“I kind of apply it to everything,” he says. “Anything can be Balearic. Like drinking Estrella out of a toothbrush glass watching the silent jet
Balearic – in a context other than geography – to the rest of the DJing world, he says. The late-00s gave us the cosmic years. Inspired
skis dash across the shimmering sea at
by the exciting selections of Italian DJ Daniele
lunchtime in Hostal La Torre. Ask me tomorrow
Baldelli (“He completely fits into the Balearic
and I’ll say something different no doubt.”
narrative,” says Andrews. “One of the most
DJs Kelvin Andrews and Sean Johnston,
inventive DJs of all time) – and popularised on
meanwhile, both point to Terry Farley’s oft-cited
DJhistory – producers such as Prins Thomas
description of Balearic being whatever Alfredo had
(recently described by Piccadilly Records as a
in his record box and played in Amnesia between
Balearic Poster Boy), Hans-Peter Lindstrøm and
1985 and 1989.
Todd Terje delivered a sunshine-soaked take on
José Padilla, another one of Balearic’s totemic
space disco. This was complemented by the likes
founding fathers, following his legendary DJ sets
of Al Usher’s sublime, free-floating ‘Lullaby For
at Café del Mar – and the compilations that
Robert’ and Windsurf’s ‘Windsurf EP’ (both
followed – was emphatic when the question was
released on Thomas’ Internasjonal). Sorcerer and
posed to him, stating: “Balearic is not a kind of
Hatchback (each one half of Windsurf), Rekid,
music, it’s a way of life. It’s the freedom to play
Mark E and Mugwump mined a similarly beatific
whatever you want, so long as you play it
cosmic house feeling.
proficiently. People listen to a track with a guitar
Indeed, the latter’s monumental ‘Boutade’ soon
on it and say: ‘This is Balearic’ when it’s not.
found a home in the incredibly diverse sound
Balearic is just the spirit of Ibiza. DJs used to play
being played at a new club in north London’s
here seven or eight hours a night and have the
Stoke Newington: Andrew Weatherall and Sean
freedom to play anything they wanted, from rock
Johnston’s A Love From Outer Space. A refuge for
to house.”
all manner of leftfield dance music that never
But that was then. And while tales of Brits
knowingly exceeded 122bpm, Johnston believes
having life-changing holidays on the White Isle in
that ALFOS is on the periphery of Balearic, but
the 80s and dancing to Chris Rea will always raise
admits there is some crossover.
a wry grin, or knowing smirk, as Dr Rob has it:
“I certainly felt we were more aligned to Baldelli
“The term Balearic Beat only really existed in the
and the cosmic thing,” he says. “But Andrew said
UK where it was created solely for marketing
to me on a couple of occasions that when we first
purposes.” Namely, FFRR’s 1988 ‘Balearic Beats Vol
started A Love From Outer Space it was the
1’ compilation.
closest thing in terms of musical freedom to
“The days of Alfredo, Leo Mas, José…” says
Shoom. A friend once described what me and
Boardman. “That was a blueprint. We Anglicised
Andrew did as dark Balearic and it’s probably a
the blueprint. So much so that the B word is a
better description than drug chug or whatever it
difficult term these days. It’s been bastardised.
was people called it. I guess we are the dark side
Things masquerade as Balearic.”
of the shiny Balearic spoon.”
Johnston, with his tongue ever-so slightly
Musical freedom is central to any explanation
wedged in his cheek (the inherent ludicrousness
that captures the spirit, attitude and essence of
of all Balearic discussions never being more than
Balearic music. The Secret DJ coined the term
a shuffle away), looks at it in a different light,
Balearic Silverbacks to describe a certain cabal
noting: “Balearic Beat is for life. It’s not just for a summer in the late 80s.”
DISCO_POGO_93
of beardy, British, middle-aged ravers who
“People seemed to suggest it was us putting a
despite claiming to be imbued with the Balearic
Balearic flag in the ground,” he states firmly. “Our
spirit have “taken something that fundamentally
first two albums weren’t meant to be Balearic.
means ‘no rules’ and given it a very tight set of
Yeah, it had that sound. But for me they were
rules and have the nerve to tell the Balearics
alternative rock or alternative dance.”
what’s what”. He notes that Balearic isn’t a genre. “It’s a way of choosing.” As such, daring acts have been committed in its
A Mountain Of One recently released their third album, the majestic ‘Stars Planets Dust Me’, after a gap of over 10 years. A deep, life-affirming
name. Johnston points to one year at the Electric
record – think Talk Talk at their most intense – it
Elephant festival in Croatia when Kelvin Andrews
definitely touches upon that open-ended
played at the open-air club Barberellas.
narrative that Balearic music best represents.
“The sun was coming up and he played ‘Grease’ (Frankie Valli),” he enthuses. “Most people would probably hear that and think it sounds cheesy as
But not intentionally so. So, maybe the best Balearic music is accidental? “100%,” says Morris. “It’s a feeling, isn’t it? Like a
hell. But at that moment in time, with the sun
Debussy classical record – that gives me the
coming up in the most beautiful courtyard, in this
exact same feeling as a Pat Metheny record.
one-level club, with this massive sound system, it
Maybe it’s just soul music, then. If it’s touching
was the most Balearic thing you’d ever heard in
you that way, it’s touching your soul. It’s not
your life.”
touching your Balearic G-spot because it doesn’t
“That was not a planned record,” laughs Andrews. “It was 6am and I was told I could play
exist. There isn’t one. But people have a soul.” Boardman is certainly an advocate of
one more. But a short one. And it just literally
inadvertent Balearic. He and Moonboots started
appeared on my list. Bang. Just played it. And it
Aficionado the label because they wanted to
went off. People were saying that they would
release a Shawn Lee record. The diverse identity
have never thought to play it. I was like: ‘Neither
they had established from their DJ sets meant
did I!’ It’s the open-air thing in the morning.
they were approached by differing musicians and
Anything goes. When Harvey played The Bee Gees’
producers from across the world.
‘How Deep Is Your Love’ the following year
“We’ve released Welsh folk, chillout, Australian
everyone lost it. It’s having the freedom and the
ambient, chuggy disco and indie-influenced stuff
tools to go somewhere when you need to. In
too – accidental Balearic stuff,” he says.
terms of DJing anyway. I look at it from the DJing and dancefloor point of view.”
Dr Rob agrees: “I want to hear – and play – records made by bands that have an energy in them which has made them Balearic by accident.
So what about the musicians and producers?
A Scottish industrial act next to a remixed Italian
Despite it being heralded as arguably the most
pop star, rather than similarly-sounding soft
open-ended and nebulous style of music – in the
synth homages created by design.”
hands of innovative DJs at least – no one willingly wants to be pigeonholed as Balearic. “Someone like Phil Mison and the music he
Today, the acts that fall under this banner cast their net far and wide. Granted, they might not want to be pigeonholed with the term. Although
makes as Cantoma is deeply rooted in the sound
as label bosses Coyote astutely note it can come
of The White Isle,” says Dr Rob. “But I’m sure he’d
in handy with record shops, just look on Phonica
loath to be called Balearic.”
or Piccadilly Records’ website for proof. But
As Boardman alluded to earlier, there is a
artists as varied as Mudd, Pippi & Willie Graff, Max
danger the music termed Balearic can fall into a
Essa, Tornado Wallace, Maribou State,
Café del Mar-type formula. Murphy notes: “The
Khruangbin, Mushrooms Project, Poolside, Jonny
formulaic stuff I find really boring. Ok, this is
Nash, Suzanne Kraft, the various guises of Andras
made for chilling by the pool. It has the same
Fox (Wilson Tanner and Art Wilson among them),
keyboards sounds, it’s in the region of 102-
Jura Soundsystem, Mind Fair, islandman,
122bpm, there’s no real musical hook… it’s purely
Residentes Balearicos, Yu Su, Idjut Boys, Be.Lanuit,
functional music. There’s quite a bit of that and
Begin and Rheinzand all have some Balearic
that to me is not Balearic because they’re
essence about them. Accidental or not.
adhering to a formula.” Mo Morris, one-half of A Mountain Of One, who
“I listened to the new Rheinzand album,” says Balearic stalwart Leo Elstob, who was in an early
were tagged everything from Goth Balearic and
incarnation of A Mountain Of One and constructs
Prog Balearic to Nu Balearic (alongside Swedish
beautiful remixes and re-edits as Leo Zero. “I
duo Studio whose 2006 album ‘West Coast’ is
contacted Kenneth (Bager) asking to do a remix
another important part of this ever-expanding
of that Level 42 cover (‘Love Games’), because the
puzzle) when they emerged in the mid-to-late
back end of that is just heaven. A wonky, new
00s, balks at the description.
beat take on Level 42.” He goes on to praise acts like Gabriels (“Modern
94_DISCO_POGO
bluesy, disco-meets-soul”), Rita Ray (“She’s got a
“Maybe it’s more labels that act as an umbrella for various artists who could be better described by the word… These imprints act as curators. We’re back to Balearic by accident rather than design.” Dr Rob
bit of that Stevie Nicks, Carly Simon-sound going
recordings of ships’ horns, owls and waves
on. Very purist soul. She’s from Estonia”) and Lou
lapping to the shore – it’s a properly immersive
Hayter (“She’s got it. She knows the whole thing
and contemplative experience. One might refer to
back to front”).
it as sonic mindfulness, a phrase that wouldn’t be
“Maybe it’s more labels that act as an umbrella for various artists who could be better described by the word,” points out Dr Rob. “Kenneth Bager’s
out of place when critiquing a Chris Coco compilation for instance. “Sonic mindfulness is a good shout,” says Tillett.
Music For Dreams for example, home to
“I have always loved nature and art alongside
Rheinzand, who aren’t Balearic, but just make
music, and it was just that moment (the
brilliant European pop. These imprints act as
pandemic) where I could take a breath from
curators. We’re back to Balearic by accident
day-to-day work and put the release together.”
rather than design.” Bager, Coyote, Boardman and Elstob cite labels
Releases such as ‘Home Vol 1’ also shine a light on the camaraderie that exists among the
like: Higher Love, Growing Bin, NuNorthern Soul,
musicians, producers and DJs that float in and out
Music For Dreams, Is It Balearic?, Claremont 56,
of this orbit. Back in the late-80s and early-90s, a
Italy’s Archeo and Isle of Jura in Australia as
so-called Balearic Network existed in the UK. It’s
being exemplars of leftfield, adventurous
still there. From Man Power’s nights in Newcastle
electronic dance music.
(recently attended by Harvey and Sean Johnston)
One can’t overlook the more chilled strain of
and London’s peripatetic We Are The Sunset’s
modern Balearic music either. Last year, Ali Tillett,
loose-limbed gatherings to the pub shindigs
from booking agents Warm, compiled the
hosted by St Leonards-on-Sea’s Marina Fountain
extraordinarily soothing ‘Home Vol 1’. A chance to
and Todmorden’s Golden Lion, a community of
bring music, art and nature together –
like-minded artists continue to determinedly
horizontally-friendly tracks by World of Apples,
plough their passions. And these days, thanks to
Coyote, Âme, Richard Norris, Kirk Degiorgio and
the internet, it’s a global network too.
Crack’d Man are complemented by field
DISCO_POGO_95
“Anything can be Balearic. Like drinking Estrella out of a toothbrush glass watching the silent jet skis dash across the shimmering sea at lunchtime in Hostal La Torre” Timm Sure, Coyote It’s not just the preserve of middle-aged folk
makeover of David Holmes’ ‘It’s Over If We Run
either. Last year, Alfredo, Colleen Murphy and Bill
Out Of Love’ and Rheinzand’s transformation of
Brewster (“The elders,” jokes Murphy) played
Lou Hayter’s ‘My Baby Just Cares For Me’.
alongside John Gomez, Ruf Dug, Jonny Nash,
“The repurposing of pop records has been
Zakia and Mafalda at the A Balearic Beat Hotel
absolutely central to this thing. Crooked Man
event in Ibiza.
doing over Amy Douglas (2018’s ‘Never Saw It
“There were all these different ages of people
Coming) and Soulwax’s rework of Fontaines D.C.
contributing,” recalls Murphy, “and it all worked.
(‘A Hero’s Death’) are two recent instances that
Different generations, different racial
immediately spring to mind,” says Dr Rob.
backgrounds, different genders – and the
At the end of the day – as the sun begins to set
younger people fitted in perfectly. All of their
– Johnston believes you can just sniff Balearic
sounds were eclectic.”
out. The proof of the pudding being in the eating
It’s this pan-generational cross-fertilization
rather than theorising about it. His mind goes
that feeds the Balearic story. Balearic is not a
back to playing the Crooked Man remix of Amy
genre, but an attitude, a feeling, a spirit. Lines
Douglas at Convenanza. He’d been sent the track
can be drawn between different eras and
that day and hadn’t heard it played loud. He also
different sounds, but they’re not straight. They
knew Weatherall hadn’t heard it.
are dots on a journey. Dance music’s culture of
“As soon as I heard it, I knew it was Balearic,” he
remixing has borne some of Balearic’s greatest
smiles. “Andrew turned to me and said: ‘What is
sounds. To wit: Johnston’s recent Hardway Bros’
this? It’s Balearic as fuck!’” The story continues…
96_DISCO_POGO
Disco Pogo For Punks in Pumps since 1985
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BELGIUM’S The Rhine, Central Europe’s second-longest river,
“We are a European band,” says Becha, aka Mo
has long played a pivotal role in the development
Disko, known to music lovers of a certain dotage
of the countries it flows through. It was a key
as one-half of the DJ duo The Glimmers (formerly
component in the Roman Empire; ownership of
The Glimmer Twins).
the territories it runs across have been contested at various times in history and it played a critical role in the industrial modernisation of Europe. It has captured the imagination of poets and
“It’s a very good thing to speak languages,” adds Vanbergen. “We can very easily adapt to language,” explains Becha further. “It's good that people
artists such as Lord Byron and William Turner,
from the south of here to the north can get
and today is a vast source of tourism as visitors
our message.”
cruise along its 765 miles stopping off at the
This message – of hope, optimism, unity
great romantic cities of Basel in Switzerland,
all coming together on the dancefloor – is
Strasbourg in France and Cologne in Germany.
fixed firmly in the DNA of Rheinzand. Their
Less heralded, however, is the small, but
music is a hypnotic blend of
significant, part it played in the formation of one of
cosmopolitan 80s Euro disco pop –
leftfield dance music’s most innovative outfits – the
evoking a world of Maxi singles and
cosmic-inclined, electronic pop-tinged, disco-dub
eye-opening (for us Brits at least) foreign
magnificence of Belgium’s Rheinzand. For as well
exchange visits at school – Balearic beat,
as being a commercial, industrial, transport and
cosmic prog and free-spirited new wave. This
tourist artery, the river also produces fine grains of
endearing openness is embedded in the band’s
sand that have been used to make mortar – in
second album, ‘Atlantis Atlantis’.
Belgium known as Rijnzand. When Mo Becha was leaving Reinhard
Across the album’s 12 tracks, Caluwaerts sings in six different languages – seven if you
Vanbergen’s studio in their hometown of Ghent in
count a small section of German on the title
2013, after completing work on their first track
track – further cementing the band’s
together – the appositely-titled ‘The First Time’ –
infectious sonic Esperanto.
multi-instrumentalist and producer Vanbergen
“I’m a nerd,” she laughs. “I always loved
called out to Becha, enquiring what the (then)
languages. Always studied languages in high
fledgling duo should call themselves.
school. Latin, Greek. The whole thing. And we
“I opened the door and there was a bag of Rijnzand standing right in front of me,” the long-haired Becha remembers, smiling at the
already did French and Spanish together. French, Spanish and English. And then Italian…” This commitment to overcoming
memory. “I shouted: ‘Maybe, Rheinzand.’ He’s
parochialism finds its best expression in the
called Reinhard. That bag was there, right? There
single ‘Elefantasi’. A strident punk funk tale
wasn’t a band called Rheinzand. And it’s difficult
about an elephant that no longer wants to be
to find a good name.”
pink, but blue, the original version is sung in
The similarly hirsute Vanbergen also chuckles, adding: “I was really happy that the first thing Mo saw was a bag of sand, and not a scooter or a
Danish as an homage to their label, Kenneth Bager’s brilliant Music For Dreams. “It was a surprise to them,” she explains,
police car. Better to be called Rheinzand than
“because I didn’t tell them I was learning
scooter or the police I guess.”
Danish. They asked for an English version
There’s another analogy between the Rhine and
because they said no one would love
Rheinzand. Traversing through six countries –
the Danish version. But actually a
beginning in the Swiss Alps, before taking in the
Spanish one came quicker. Then French.
Principality of Liechtenstein, Austria, Germany, France and finishing its journey in the Netherlands – the river is not only long, but no respecter of arbitrary geographical boundaries. A bit like the band and their music. It soon becomes clear speaking to Rheinzand – alongside Vanbergen and Becha is singer Charlotte Caluwaerts, who being Vanbergen’s partner made the duo a trio around the completion of the group’s third track – the group are proud to be European. 98_DISCO_POGO
NEW English was the hardest one to do and came last.”
BEAT
Rheinzand occupy their own very special musical universe. An exotic universe that intentionally makes a mockery of boundaries – both musical and geographical – and has its eye on one prize: the dancefloor. The band tell Jim Butler about their longing for nightlife: “You know, decent hangovers and stuff…”
DISCO_POGO_99
In total, there are six different versions of
language? There’s also a Turkish band on Music
'Elefantasi': Dutch and Italian complementing the
For Dreams she loves – islandman. “It’s a way in,”
aforementioned. Plus on the single release a
she affirms. “A way into culture and people.”
Make Your Own Version – an instrumental – for those feeling left out. “We thought it was good to announce there
Vanbergen and Caluwaerts recently got back from a month in Mexico. The first time they’d travelled anywhere since the pandemic. Having
would be six different languages across the
previously taken travel for granted, Caluwaerts
album,” explains Vanbergen. “So people could get
says this trip opened her eyes to the amount of
acquainted with it.”
bureaucracy and red tape involved.
“I love that I can’t understand the original
“To say I don't believe in borders or possessions
version of 'Elefantasi',” says Becha. “It makes it
is very hippy,” she explains, “but actually, to me, it
exotic to me. It’s something I search for a lot in
doesn't make sense. It's not something we are.
music. You don’t have to understand it.
Also because I'm white European, I don't have to
Sometimes it’s better you don’t. It becomes a
think about it. And I’m very, very conscious of
melodic thing. Like an instrument.”
that. It's just not fair. It's politics.”
“Different languages ask different things,” says Caluwaerts. “If you do a French track, you already
Rheinzand’s first – self-titled – album was
move sideways a bit. And if you have different
released in the ignominious month of March
languages, you're not going to be… you’re not very
2020. And while it proved a musical panacea for
straightforward. If you do it in English then it will
many during those first few months of lockdown
become too pop or too generic.”
– even going on to secure top spot in Piccadilly
“Let's say ‘Sueño Latino’ in English,” says Becha,
Records’ prestigious end-of-year poll (“We
ever the consummate record selector. “It's a
cursed in six languages,” jokes Vanbergen; “It
different story, right?
gave us a real positive boost,” says Becha) – wider
“Yeah,” interjects Vanbergen. “You can make all
events meant all the band’s plans, most notably
your music with one synthesiser, but at the end
a series of live shows, came to a shuddering halt.
you want to have 20 because they all do different
Rather than feel sorry for themselves, the group
things. It’s the same with languages.”
decided to use the situation to their advantage.
The next language Caluwaerts wants to learn
The plan was to write every day for a month.
is Turkish. There’s a big Turkish community in
But first Vanbergen and Caluwaerts had to be
Ghent so why not take the time to learn their
invited into Becha’s musical universe. By his own
admission, Becha is not a musician as such. He
pop on the emotive call to arms ‘We’ll Be Alright’
doesn’t play any instruments. His vocals on ‘The
to infectious and familiar tales of nocturnal (mis)
First Time’, were indeed the first time he’d sung
adventures set to dreamy and sophisticated
on a track. And while his deep, gruff and
slo-mo disco on the opener ‘Better’. In between
sensuous tones adorn ‘Atlantis Atlantis’, his real
there is dancing as the perennial vertical
skill – honed over years of DJing – are in musical
expression of a horizontal desire ('Facciamo
presentation. He’s the band’s musical director.
L’amore') and otherworldly odes to the power of
“Mainly I’m hanging around having a drink or a smoke and nodding my head,” he says. “If I’m not nodding it means we’re not there yet. I guess I’m
the dancefloor on the gothic low-slung bass groove of the title track. There’s also a sense of adventure and yearning
more of a vibes man ensuring it all heads in the
throughout. The album itself represents a desire
right direction for me personally.”
to reach Ibiza’s secret cove, Atlantis. A journey
And for the vibes to be flowing correctly there needs to be atmosphere. The first
Let's say 'Sueño Latino' in English. It's a different story, right?
the group have attempted many times, but never succeeded in reaching. “It’s been a few years since I went to Pikes,
album, Becha notes,
when Harvey started his residency,” says Becha.
had atmosphere, but
“We tried to go to Atlantis – this little cove close
unintentionally.
to Es Vedra. It’s hard to get there by land. So
Everything about
we’ve since tried by boat. But jellyfish kept us
‘Atlantis Atlantis’ is
away. It’s become something of a running joke. I
intentional. To
think the best thing of the journey is never
kickstart this he
reaching there. The journey always continues.
selected a bunch of
Imagine you arrive there and its nothing. Yeah. It's
tracks that could be
maybe better to just keep it a dream.”
used as inspiration and reference. “It’s basically my record box,” he
It’s also about a desire for the dancefloor – a place denied to so many for so long. Like the White Isle cove, Atlantis becomes a club the group seek, but never find. In the song itself Caluwaerts
explains. “The music that keeps me busy at the
repeatedly asks Becha for directions, but alas he
moment. Everything that I like; that I discover;
doesn’t know the way. “There’s certainly that
that I get sent; that crosses my path. It all
longing for the nightlife, you know, decent
gathers in my box. My universe.”
hangovers and stuff,” says Caluwaerts.
“It really is a universe,” smiles Caluwaerts. “A
So, it’s pop. But not pop. It’s diverse.
world that Mo invited us into. It was really nice to
International. A land of freedom. Of glamour. Of
start from, because the lack of nightlife, because
mythical nightclubs. Possibly in Ibiza. Frequented
we didn't play live, we couldn't go out… so we had
by Harvey. In other words, very Balearic.
to immerse ourselves in this world (of nightlife) during daytime hours and reimagine it.” When the album was almost there, the trio
“It depends who’s asking!” laughs Vanbergen. “I can understand why people might think that,” says Becha. “It ticks a lot of boxes of what
invited back drummer Stéphane Misseghers and
people might think is Balearic. For me Balearic is
bassist Bruno Coussée, to record their parts.
whatever is good. We’re certainly diverse and I
Misseghers and Coussée played on a couple of
think Balearic is diverse. There's a lot of different
tracks on ‘Rheinzand’ and are an integral part of
parameters that we touch of being, you know,
the live experience. Although it was never
Balearic, but there are other parameters that we
intended to be a band in the traditional sense (“It
touch that are nothing to do with it.”
was all electronic and 12-inch-based to begin with,” says Becha) it soon became clear playing live and doing things within a band aesthetic made sense. “It’s a hard-working band,” laughs Becha. “We don’t have roadies, each one does their own gear. Load the van, unload the van.” The result of this ever-shifting, alwaysevolving, decidedly-experimental world is the
“I didn't even know the genre before we started Rheinzand,” admits Vanbergen. “Balearic? There is no genre,” Becha states. “It was the same with the new beat period here. That was just very adventurous dance music. And that's what we are.” “I think it's a nice way of saying it,” concludes Caluwaerts. “Adventurous dance music.” Call it whatever you want of course.
triumphant ‘Atlantis Atlantis’ – so called, explains
Fundamentally, there’s only one question that
Vanbergen, because it sounds good when you
needs answering. Are you dancing? Because
shout it as a choir answering the lead vocal in the
Rheinzand are asking.
track itself. Grander, perhaps even more ambitious, than its predecessor, ‘Atlantis Atlantis’ veers from rousing and hypnotic, Arthur Russell-like, wonky
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Not All Superheroes Wear Capes: The Untold Story of Luke Una Luke Una (nee Cowdrey) is the hero dance music never knew it needed. Lauded for his epic club nights, his genre-defying DJ sets and, naturally, his hilarious Instagram rants and skits, he’s also, as long-time friend Luke Bainbridge discovers, deeply sentimental, a committed activist and someone for whom searching for the perfect beat is a lifetime obsession… PORTRAIT PHOTOS: DAVID LAKE
102_DISCO_POGO
naturally. It was Luke
became more acute as I got older and I couldn’t concentrate
Una’s idea to do the
at all, so I ended up going to see a CBT specialist, and it was
big interview at 10am Saturday, but now the time has come it’s the morning after an unexpected night before, and he’s
the most amazing thing I’ve ever done.” It’s the first of many tangents today, but he eventually
had a later start than his usual 5am, even if any
circles back to the radio show. “Yeah, so at the same time I
transgressions nowadays are only minor ones.
was rediscovering parts of my record collection, the show
With a pot of black coffee to sustain him, we’re ready for
happened, and it became a mix of new music, old music,
a couple of hours talking through his musical history. Back
archive, b-sides, dark horses, and little unearthed nuggets
in 2020, as the reality of the first lockdown began to bite,
I’d previously dismissed because I listened to the wrong
Luke opened up on his radio show about getting cabin fever
track, on the wrong drug.”
at home. “There’s talk of me being removed to my own
He continues on his musical trip down memory lane: “A lot
studio with my records… let’s see what happens,” he said.
of my life in the 80s and 90s and 00s, was staying up for
Two years later, he’s sat in his lovely new minimalist,
over-long weekends listening to oddball records. Cosmic
high-end studio/rave cave in Ardwick, east Manchester, six
jazz, machine soul, all sorts of mad records you’d stay up all
miles from his house. Ageing DJs don’t retire, they just build
night and day listening to in someone’s flat, on a cosmic
‘Grand Designs’ man caves. Serendipitously, an early
high of E. I think it was Rob Bright (an original resident at
Bugged Out! flyer featuring the words Disco Pogo, sits
Bugged Out!, a DJ’s DJ, nicknamed ‘The Guv’nor’) who
framed next to his decks: “I didn’t put that there ‘cause you
originally came up with the phrase ‘E-Soul’. The old soul
were coming, honest!”
boys always found it funny that we were obsessed with
He’s surrounded by his huge record collection. “I’ve never
these records. But that sound developed over time. The
sold a single record,” he shrugs. “I’ve still got every record
broken beauty of these oddball records you’d found on a
I’ve ever bought. I’ve got 15,000 records, but I’m not like Yogi
market stall that somehow captured the mood of a bunch
Haughton (fêted DJ and record collector) who has 80,000!”
of people at 5am gazing out at the dawn from a high rise
The pandemic allowed Luke to rediscover his vinyl. “My cellar was full of records and I hadn’t been through them
flat, searching the horizons for better days.” Gilles Peterson originally suggested a two-hour show, but
for so long. I’ve basically spent the past two years
it quickly spiralled to three then eventually over five hours,
unearthing lost gems and holy grails.”
and was a huge hit, lauded by everyone from fellow DJs to
Like everyone, Luke had to readjust in lockdown, but he
the Guardian as one of the things that kept us going
was given a focus when Gilles Peterson offered him a show
through lockdown. Luke has long been a beacon of light in
on Worldwide FM. “Gilles just hit me up and said: ‘Luke,
clubbing circles, but the radio show and his Instagram rants
you’re mad!… but do you want to do a radio show?’ and it
turned into something of a nocturnal alternative treasure.
started in March 2020, just as Covid hit.”
Mr Bongo were also listening, and the label asked Luke to
It proved something of a lifesaver. “It made me refocus my ADHD mind at a time when I really needed it,” he explains. “Without the focus of the show and my records, I think I would have gone under during Covid, I really do.” He talks a little about his ADHD. “I don’t talk about this
put together an album which reflected the show. The result, ‘Luke Una presents É Soul Cultura’, is his first solo compilation. “It’s a collection of all sorts of oddball records, like ‘Space Queen’ by King Errisson, a record I picked up on a digging trip to New York in the early 90s, looking for cosmic disco
much, but when I was 10, I was put in a special school for
records. I was with my mate Raif Collis and it was our first
kids with behavioural problems. I can’t remember what I did
time in New York which just had this incredible vibe back
that made them do that, probably threw something at a
then. We went to Save The Robots and met these drag
teacher in frustration or something. But that school was
queens who took us back to their house in the Lower East
something else, the kids were flying off the walls. Nowadays
Side, which was nothing like the gentrified place it is now.
they’d say they were ‘neuro diverse’ or something, but back
There were people injecting in the street and as we got to
then they just thought we were all mental.”
this drag queen’s house, someone was being carried out on
After a couple of years, he was back in mainstream
a stretcher. It was mental. Wild.”
education. “You weren’t diagnosed properly in the 70s, so I didn’t realise exactly what ADHD was until recently. It
DISCO_POGO_105
Afters! Roísín Murphy and Winston Hazel at Luke’s old flat on Tib St, Manchester
It’s a typical Una anecdote, spiralling off and ending with a
“I got on the bus one day with my sister when I was about
tale of absurd nocturnal debauchery, but also reflects his
11, and the cock of the school just came up to me and said,
approach to music. That record collections are hugely
‘Why are you sat next to that n****r?’ and I said: ‘She’s my
personal soundtracks to a life well lived, with each record
sister’. It’s not something I’ve ever talked about, but it really
triggering synapses and feelings of when and where you first
affected me. From then on, the political was personal for
heard it, the smell of the club or bar you were in, who you
me, and as I got older, I got involved in all sorts of things like
were at that moment in your life, who you were falling in love
the Anti-Nazi League.”
with or breaking up with at the time. That a record collection should not be like filling in the gaps in a Panini sticker album. ‘“I’ve never been a completist, and I’m not a purist,” he says firmly.
In his early teens, the family moved to Sheffield, where Luke had his first musical awakenings. “I used to work in the Hallamshire Hotel, where Pulp used to play upstairs, and Richard Hawley and everyone would come in.” One night, someone gave him some speed, “and
I first got to know Luke in the mid-90s, just as the Electric Chair was starting, part of a hedonistic Manchester
that was it, the music just sounded totally different”. He became a regular at Jive Turkey, the seminal
underground scene that also gave birth to Jockey Slut,
Sheffield club where residents Winston and Parrot played
Bugged Out! and many others. Luke was the infectious
everything from electro to proto-acid house records,
attention seeker, always the life and soul of afterparties.
which sowed the seed for much of what followed in Luke’s
Not least because they were often back at his flat. I’ve had
life. In 1986, he moved to Manchester to study and
numerous wild nights with him over the years, but then so
immediately immersed himself in the nascent house scene.
has half of Manchester and Sheffield. Everyone knew Luke,
So wide-eyed and evangelical was he about what he was
though like most gregarious characters, the real Luke
discovering, he even wrote a letter to his nan, eulogising
remained something of an enigma to many.
about the new sounds from Chicago: ‘You’d probably hate
Born Luke Cowdrey in New Delhi in 1966 – “My mum and
the clubs I go to! Small, seedy underground rooms, too
dad were very liberal. Dad was a civil servant in Whitechapel
dark to see and too filled with smoke to breath (sic). The
and was offered a transfer to India, so they jumped at it” –
music screams out – talking is impossible but the main
the family moved back to Essex when Luke was still a baby,
objective is to dance!... the heat is like an inferno – walls
and he and his brothers and adopted sister, who is Black,
wet in perspiration – I knew you would hate it! I really
ended up at a school which was 99% white.
love it though. The music you would probably dislike even more – ‘Hard Funk’ ‘Go-Go’ and ‘House’ music from
106_DISCO_POGO
Chicago, USA – brilliant!!’
Jen Amelia Veitch
“A lot of my life in the 80s and 90s and 00s, was staying up for over-long weekends listening to oddball records. Cosmic jazz, machine soul, all sorts of mad records you’d stay up all night and day listening to in someone’s flat, on a cosmic high of E.”
Not long after arriving in Manchester, Luke met fellow
creating a vibe which was the antithesis to the shiny house
Yorkshireman Justin Crawford, who would become his DJing
and super clubs of the mid-90s. “We were a natural reaction
and business partner for the next three decades.
to a very dominant mainstream,” says Luke. The fact that
“Meeting Justin had a profound effect on me, like Winston
the Chair was in a basement rock club [the Roadhouse] with
and Parrot did,” he recalls. “Justin was this good-looking lad
sticky floors kept away the wrong crowds. “None of the
from Bingley, who loved northern soul and all sorts of
shiny people or gangsters wanted to come in!”
oddball weird off-piste music. We formed an amazing
As it outgrew the Roadhouse and moved to the Music Box,
relationship, where music was the real key to everything.
the Chair’s reputation spread nationally then
I’ve learned so much from him over the years and none of
internationally, often through guest DJs blown away by the
this would have really happened without him.”
atmosphere. It was a club where everyone partied as one.
Justin was bass player in post-punk funk band New Fast
Straight and gay, strangers and soul mates, students and
Automatic Daffodils, who brought Luke on tour as support
scallies. This rare alchemy had Joe Claussell returning to
DJ. After the New FADS disbanded, Justin and Luke decided
New York evangelical in his praise: “I rarely play in the UK,
to launch a club night, came up with the name Electric
but I can’t explain in words how great that party was. To me
Chair and called themselves The Unabombers. In those early
it’s all about energy and that place had one of the greatest
days, they were not just DJing but co-parenting records.
energies I’ve experienced as a DJ anywhere.” His compatriot
“We didn’t have a lot of money, so we pooled our money
and fellow DJ Maurice Fulton even met his wife Mu at the
and shared records,” Luke laughs. “We’d put a pink sticker
club, recording the track ‘Mu That Rocked the Electric Chair’
on them to show it was ‘ours’. I think he’s still got most of
to celebrate. There were also some incredible Electric Souls
the pink sticker ones, the twat!”
word-of-mouth parties, including one with Harvey DJing in
The first couple of Electric Chairs were “rent-a-mob
an old brothel.
really, just mates and mates of mates”. But within a few months, they found their sound and a fiercely loyal crowd,
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“I’m genuinely enjoying DJing more than ever. I’ve not joined a Namaste death cult. I’m still out, loving it more than ever. I’ve been staying up late for nearly 40 years now, so my body knows how to do it.”
above the Northern Quarter. “I was self-medicating really, and I was in quite a dark place for a while.” When the Unabombers launched Electric Elephant festival in Croatia later that year, the sun helped clear the clouds. “I’d never gone to Ibiza back in the day, I’d never seen the point. Sunset? No thanks, where’s the basement? But Croatia was amazing, it was a huge moment for everyone who was there.” Luke and Justin’s second act, as bar and restaurant owners, began with Electrik in Chorlton, followed by Volta in West Didsbury, a wonderful neighbourhood small plates restaurant. In 2016, they were brought in to run the bar, restaurant and nightclub at the old Palace Hotel, after a multi-million renovation as the Refuge. A huge step up they somehow made look effortless. “I thought… their signature is small, friendly, slightly batty – no way would that work in this cavernous space,” With the Chair established, Luke launched the sibling
admitted the Guardian’s Marina O’Loughlin in a typically
HomoElectric, a wonderfully debauched oddball riot for
gushing review. “But I couldn’t have been more wrong: it’s a
beautiful misfits, in the then no-man’s land between the
jaw-dropping, dazzling tour de force.”
Gay Village and Piccadilly station. “I’ve always drank in gay places. Even as a teenager, we
Another huge step up for Luke came with Homobloc in 2019, a ridiculously ambitious 10,000 capacity one-day
used to go to the Cossack in Sheffield, a gay pub. I don’t
festival born out of HomoElectric. “We’d always had the idea
know why I always felt so comfortable and at home around
about doing something bigger, and when Mayfield Depot
a gay crowd. Possibly because they never judged me.”
came up, it just seemed the perfect place. The night before the tickets went on sale, I thought: ‘What have I done?
The Unabombers unexpectedly called time on Electric Chair
10,000 people??? As if!’ Even people that I know on the
in 2008, explaining they always wanted to end on high, and
LGBTQ+ scene were saying: ‘You’re off your head, you’re
move on to other things. As the last record on the final night
never gonna get 10,000 people!’.”
played out, Sébastien Tellier’s ‘La Ritournelle’, Luke jumped
Homobloc sold out within 24 hours. “Seconds before we
on the mic and emotionally told the crowd: “Electric Chair,
opened, I felt like Eddie the Eagle going down the ski slope –
thank you so much… keep the faith, keep it dirty, keep it
you’re going into the unknown but it’s too late to go back. I
basement, fuck Tesco and Ikea… keep it real, see you soon,
had no idea if the crowd would work, or if we’d get some
watch this space.” The Music Box sadly closed shortly after
knobheads ruining it for everyone. But the first three people
and became a Tesco bloody Metro. When it comes to
through the door were this amazing older dude who looked
gentrification, every little helps.
like Gandalf, his daughter and her friend who was trans. As
By his own admission, Luke hit a rough patch in the
soon as they walked in, I knew it was going to be great.”
mid-00s, derailed emotionally by the sudden death of his father and suicide of his best friend. Single and hitting 40,
In the years before the pandemic, Luke had been an
he would spend too long on his own in his flat in the sky
intermittent figure on social media. There was the odd early viral moment like the ‘Hey Jude’ remix on YouTube, he was
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often banned from Facebook (usually by his partner Amy)
DISCO_POGO_109
Lauren Jo Kelly
The Unabombers: Luke Cowdrey on the throne; Justin Crawford in the bath
“We didn’t have a lot of money, so we pooled our money and shared records. We’d put a pink sticker on them to show it was ‘ours’. I think he’s still got most of the pink sticker ones, the twat!”
and Twitter, but it was on Instagram where he found a
It’s funny to witness his new Instafame. A couple of nights
natural home for his rants. Regular targets include chin-
previously, Luke was at Freight Island, watching Greg Wilson
stroking completists, foragers, acid house grandads and
DJ, when a middle-aged woman frantically beckoned Luke
namaste death cult or coki yogis. Those virtual signallers
over to the stage barrier. “I LOVE you on Instagram, you’re
whose week of cleansing revolves around organic
brilliant!!” she exclaimed excitedly. “Can we be friends? Will
wheatgrass shots and hot yoga, before going out and
you follow me back on Instagram??!”
boshing two grams of dirty cheap coke at the weekend. It’s never personal, and he’s self-aware enough to know he’s guilty of half the charges he rails against. During the
“I know, I know…” he says. “I’ve been out shopping in Lidl, and someone will stop and ask for a selfie.” At the start of the pandemic, came the latest step up,
pandemic, his posts seemed to strike a nerve in a broken
when Luke and Justin joined forces with Gareth Cooper
Britain where most people were trying their best to pick a
(Snowbombing, The Printworks, Festival No.6 and many
decent path through ever rising inequality under a
others) and Jon Drape (Haçienda, Festival No.6, Parklife and
gaslighting government mired in sleaze. A unifying voice in a
many more) to open Escape To Freight Island, the old freight
time of unprecedented division. The crack where the light
depot next to Piccadilly station, reimagined as a vast new
came in. In his comments, you’d find everyone from Daniel
‘urban landscape’ of street food, bars and live
Avery to the actor David Thewlis, who replied to one of
entertainment, which proved a huge hit as Manchester
Luke’s rants: ‘Best one yet! And that’s saying something.
emerged blinking from the darkness of lockdown.
Always a fucking pleasure.’ “Who’s David Thewlis?” Luke asks, when it’s mentioned. “I
Like the great, sadly-departed and much-missed Andrew Weatherall, Luke shares an appreciation that it’s not
don’t know who half the people are! Amy is always saying:
necessarily all about what happens on the dancefloor. “I
‘You know so-and-so is following you?’”
love nightclubs and discos, but they’re not that important to me,” Weatherall once said. “It’s more about who you meet
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and where you go afterwards. It’s great when you’re in a big
Heather Shuker
“I’d never gone to Ibiza back in the day, I’d never seen the point. Sunset? No thanks, where’s the basement? But Croatia was amazing, it was a huge moment for everyone who was there.”
With a little help from his friends. Electric Elephant, 2012; L-R standing: Andrew Weatherall, Sean Johnston, Trevor Jackson, Ewan Pearson, Krysko, Chris Duckenfield. Luke kneeling at the front.
crowd of people, listening to the same music, on the same
around people who are leathered when I’m straight. I played
drugs, but what’s more important to me is what have you
at Salon zue Wilden Renate in Berlin at 7am, and I did it on
got in common with those people when you’re outside of
Sudafed, coffee and Red Bull.”
that moment and that situation… What brings us all here?
Granted, he still has his moments, but no longer feels the
They’re hearing me play music, but I want to know about
need to set the controls for the heart of the sun, one of the
them, I want them to talk to me about books or art. That’s
ways he shows his age.
when you find out who your friends are.” Luke Una has spent the last four decades spreading a
“I don’t want to be a 60-year-old acid grandad in the corner, staying up to Tuesday morning with a load of
similar sentiment, from early Electriks fanzines to his Vee
20-year-olds, one foot in the rave... It’s like today, when I get
Vee Right Vee Vee Wrong column in the original Jockey Slut
to Helsinki, I’ll spend the day going round the record shops,
(check out his latest missive on page 109) to his current
find some great good, and maybe stop off in a bar for a
radio show.
whisky, before going on to DJ later. People have been saying
When we next speak, he’s at the airport, waiting to fly to
to me for years: ‘When are you gonna grow up’,” he says in
Helsinki. “I’m genuinely enjoying DJing more than ever,” he
conclusion. “I’m like: ‘It’s a bit late for that. I’m 55 this year,
enthuses. “I’ve not joined a Namaste death cult. I’m still out,
I’m gonna be dead in 20 years.’”
loving it more than ever. I’ve been staying up late for nearly 40 years now, so my body knows how to do it, it’s in my muscle memory, and it doesn’t bother me at all being 112_DISCO_POGO
As a DJ, producer and now label boss, SHERELLE is reconnecting Black Queer euphoria to dance music’s diverse and inclusive roots. Because if anyone understands the importance of representation at a time of upheaval, it’s this livewire Londoner. “I’m just adding to something that allows the next person to come through,” she tells Kieran Yates…
PHOTOS: EDDIE OTCHERE
DISCO_POGO_115
S
ome of SHERELLE’s earliest memories are of the
she also gestures with a frown towards the road behind her,
walls literally coming down. A child of demolition
where her early DJ sets took place including the infamous,
like so much of London at the mercy of social
but now defunct, Birthdays which closed in 2016. In fact, at
housing, she watched her estate fall to wrecking
only 28, many of the clubs where she trained her ear for
balls at a young age. It was an early lesson in
mixing and selecting are now relegated to the archives.
understanding the precarity and importance of space to call your own. By the time she, and her mum and sister, had moved to
SHERELLE is no stranger to change. While the soundtrack to those early years was her mum’s ear for dancehall and reggae which filled the house – a connection to her family’s
another council estate in Walthamstow, she had
roots in Clarendon, Jamaica – she was expressing her
understood two things: one, was reverence for care, thanks
musical love through her bedroom walls. By the time she
to what she calls “a dynamic of support, where there was a
was a teenager she had grown out of boy bands (“It felt
massive need to help each other”.
wrong… because I was gay” she laughs) and she cleared the
The other, was the importance of making something for
way for Janelle Monáe pictures ripped out of fashion
herself, which she quickly got to work with, finding her
magazines and a limited edition Daft Punk 3D cover of
sanctuary in a “tiny box room which might have been for
Dazed & Confused, “which came with glasses”. It was in that
storage” and transforming it into something beautiful: filled
space she spent many moments gazing at the electronic
with “Black Barbies, Blazin’ Squad posters and loads of
French duo coming alive in her tiny room as she listened to
Arsenal posters”, (she’s a child of the Invincibles era – when
Mary Anne Hobbs and Annie Mac on the radio.
Arsenal went a whole league season without defeat in
Outside the house, she was making space for her personal
2003/04, which might explain some of her youthful
passions. Her first dream, of being a footballer, came crashing
confidence).
down after an early collision with structural barriers. “The
Today, SHERELLE, the DJ, producer and label head has this
girls training ground was in Hertfordshire, which was just too
same bop of optimism as she bounces down the capital’s
far, we couldn’t afford to travel to it,” she recalls. “Ironically, I
Dalston High Street. She’s donning a big blue puffer jacket
lived so close to the men’s Arsenal training ground, so I
that conceals how small she really is, and her trademark
remember I called them up and I was like: ‘Hello, do you have
smile. She rocks up at Escuado De Cuba, a Cuban restaurant
any space? Can the girls try out here as well?’ They said no.”
that transforms from day to night. Today, it’s dark inside, but at night the surroundings are bathed in red light, with
When that didn’t work out (though the practice hours
up-tempo music and after-hours dance, fitting for
allowed her to listen to “Kano, Roll Deep, Friendly Fires and a
SHERELLE, whose body is also finely tuned for night-time
lot of drum’n’bass tunes on my iPod” so it wasn’t all bad),
transfigurations.
she got a job at River Island. This taught her how music can
The location is sandwiched somewhere between her past
help you squeeze some joy from the tedium of life because
and present. As she excitedly talks about the near future –
she “hated it with a passion” not least, because of its
an upcoming US tour, more summer bookings, radio slots,
soundtrack, which was a rolling cast of caustic pop hits.
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Traxman, Azari & III”, between the indie-pop glut. Her saving
Her ears filtered the songs she liked, “(Chicago DJ)
grace, she remembers, was discovering, then listening religiously, to the SBTRKT album on the 275 bus journey from Woodford station to her job in Stratford and back again. “That saved me!” she grins. Partly as a reaction to the River Island playlist, she was set free after learning that you could curate soundtracks on your own terms, for yourself, by downloading music from the internet. “I spent hours at the computer on LimeWire downloading everything and anything,” she says. “I would
“I played for my friend’s 16th birthday party once,” she
find a load of jungle records, all terrible quality, ripped from
says with her characteristic liveliness between bites of
pirate radio but listen again and again anyway.”
cheese and jalapeño-topped tacos. “It was in this random
It was when the frenetic bloom of Chicago house travelled
warehouse somewhere in Walthamstow. I even did a jungle
through her laptop speakers one day in 2012 that she really
section where I went really fast and people were like: ‘Oh my
fell in love, as Barbara Tucker’s vocal entered the auditory
gosh.’ Yeah… I really went in on that.”
cortex of her brain, travelled through her body and dilated her pupils. “I downloaded someone’s Strictly Rhythm compilation by accident,” she says. “It was where I discovered Chicago
The sets that followed retained this dual sense of energy and liberation. SHERELLE taking the Black Queer euphoria of house’s history, injecting it with UK jungle’s beating heart, with the aim of making those listening lose their minds.
house. I was like, okay, fuck, this is the kind of sound I’m
She is careful, though, to make a crucial distinction
into.” Soon after, she came across a Machinedrum mix. “I
between being a purist and a specialist – a specialist she
didn’t know that I was listening to footwork at that time.”
explains, has passion, opens up the genre, and rejects the
It led her to footwork pioneers like DJ Spinn and RP Boo,
exclusionary nature of purist approaches. If SHERELLE
the Teklife crew and others who make up the underground
wants anything, it’s to build the music scene up bigger,
music phenomenon born out of 90s Chicago. The genre,
always allowing the bodies left outside, in. She understands
generally at a high speed of 160 bpm, borrows from
that while it might make for a neat classification to call her
drum’n’bass with its double-time clave triplets, syncopated
a jungle and footwork DJ, she is, of course, a product of
toms and huge sub-bass. It was born from the corners of
years of diverse iPod playlists.
Chicago, in tiny, wood-panelled homes and makeshift spaces where people jerked to juke, flailing limbs in all directions in reverent submission to the music. It was around this time that she downloaded the DJ
“You can, like, represent other things as well,” she says. It was discovering how the internet made it possible to build something from the ground up that inspired SHERELLE’s next era in music. She did what most fans did at
software VirtualDJ which allowed her practice hours to
the time and exploited the mid-2000s landscape of DIY
beatmatch, scratch, and create mixes. An enthusiast to the
music reporting that blogs afforded. Her contribution to the
end and limited by nothing, SHERELLE tested her mixes in
online ether was a blog called Influxxx. This gave her access
spaces which don’t exactly spring to mind when you think about UK future garage and R’n’B sets.
DISCO_POGO_117
to artists via reviewing gigs, interviews, attending clubs for
spectrum of dance sounds, namely thrilling ‘160 edits’ of
free, crowbarring herself in to what had been for a long
lovers rock songs or Kaytranada reworks.
time largely gate-kept music spaces. She reels off a list of people she was able to access at the
The talent from Reprezent has filled some of the gaping holes in the music industry, breaking comedians like Munya
time: Andy C, SBTKRT, Chase & Status. “I’d be standing in
Chawawa, alongside A&Rs who went on to work with XL,
these crowds and be like, wow, they’ve managed to like
producers poached by Beats and selectors who found
produce this music,” she recalls. “They’re now DJing it. And
homes at 6 Music, 1Xtra and beyond. It’s worth noting that
then everyone’s going mental. It was a huge influence for me.”
Reprezent (107.3 on the FM dial, or a website away if you want to listen online) broadcasts with the same energy and
If the internet gave SHERELLE an online musical home, then
continued to produce talent and jubilation throughout the
Reprezent gave her a physical one. She joined the now
lockdown in living rooms across the city (sometimes
infamous south London community radio station when she
interrupted by mums passing through).
was 20 and beams every time she talks about it. “Reprezent is one of those like magical places,” she says.
The permission to just exist in peace felt radical. “There’s a fuckload of people within the music scene at the moment
“It’s like, you don’t understand how much confidence you
that wouldn’t exist without it,” explains SHERELLE. “We were
get from that. It almost like makes you wanna like, like
given time to just do whatever the fuck we wanted. We sat
scream and cry. Cause you’re just like, finally fuck! And the
on a beanbag and did fuck all and chatted with a friend.”
generations come in waves.”
In a climate where youth spaces have been almost completely decimated by 12-long years of Tory governance,
“I LIVED SO CLOSE TO THE MEN’S ARSENAL TRAINING GROUND, SO I REMEMBER I CALLED THEM UP AND I WAS LIKE: ‘HELLO, DO YOU HAVE ANY SPACE? CAN THE GIRLS TRY OUT HERE AS WELL?’ THEY SAID NO.” It’s an inspiring approach to think of it this way, waves
sometimes all you need is a shipping container, some speakers, and some mates to change your life. In 2015, the station, a social enterprise funded largely by local authorities, was under threat of closure thanks to cuts from central government which had a devastating effect on the station’s finances. The closeness of Reprezent’s precarious economy politicised the issue for those who used the station as a lifeline. For SHERELLE, it illustrated something razor sharp, and between sips of a beer she summarises what it felt like to consider that the walls might come down. “We’ve got a government that couldn’t give a fuck about young people. And especially about young people of colour,” she sighs. And she should know – she’s a product of political governance which has sent this message for as long as she’s been DJing clubs. Over the decade between 2011-12 and 2021-22, over £36 million has been cut from annual youth service budgets in the capital: a fall of 44%. Thankfully, the tidal wave of talent from SHERELLE’s era was more inspirational than the bleak political moment. “I used to play for a couple of groups, one called 160 feet deep (a reference to the general BPM of Chicago footwork). They used to put on loads of footwork nights, and a night called We Buy Gold in London. I was really influenced by it. It made me step my pussy game up to kind of, be like, okay, cool. I need to go do this myself.” So mighty was its impact she
that roll on, rather than bemoaning the glory days of a
began taking DJing in clubs seriously, finding another place
golden era long gone and it’s a useful reminder that
to just be, to find her footing, and turn crowds inside out.
excellence and support comes in waves, and tides continue to persist – if they’re allowed to. The station, which gained its FM licence in 2011, but has
In 2019, SHERELLE showed us exactly what she could do to a crowd. Boiler Room invited her to share in what she calls “a
been broadcasting since 2009 is beloved for being a place
watershed moment in my DJ life”. The now legendary set is a
where young DJs, presenters and broadcasters play great
frenetically-paced masterclass in joy, and a speed-through
music across the board and are as likely to chat about
UK dance music history. There are plenty of electric
exclusive grime performances as station collaborations
moments that sent the crowd into raptures – from mixing
with The xx or the local Chicken Cottage’s Ramadan special
90s trance track ‘Toca’s Miracle’ by Fragma into deep jungle,
between songs. The roster is diverse musically – everything
or Teklife bounces that spring off the walls. The set went
from indie sleaze throwbacks, to trap specials, and journeys
viral internationally, (currently at almost half a million
into Detroit house. SHERELLE was among the first Reprezent
views) and was the moment that cemented Sherelle Camille
generation to move from the brick contours of Queens Road
Thomas as a mighty mononym in the scene.
Peckham to the steel shipping containers of POP! Brixton in 2017 and used it to finesse her ear for jungle, footwork and a
DISCO_POGO_119
SHERELLE’s offering showed what many who have been cutting shapes in the corners of raves where womxn (a term to describe the intersectional inclusion of all femme identities ignored by the mainstream) are centred already know: a really good club connection can grant us transcendental moments. She talks about it with almost religious devotion. “The day after I can’t quite quantify how I felt ‘cause of the fact that it felt so divinely… right. And the level of joy that I got, like, it’s this warm, very warm, rush.” For SHERELLE, time is often compartmentalised in music – if in 2011, she was in her 275 bus-SBTRKT-era, by 2019, she was deep in her DJ Rashad one. This cemented her confidence in her own understanding of the genre and how to make people feel something. She says that Paul Johnson’s ‘Get Get Down’, helped her make a connection between her world in Walthamstow and the sounds coming out of Midwest America. “I used to hear that song at birthday parties!” she laughs. In fact, her mixes take the history of how Chicago house and footwork have seeped into UK electronic music, as represented by UK labels like Hyperdub and Planet Mu. In 2010, Hyperdub teamed up with Rashad’s Teklife crew (formerly GhettoTeknitianz) to throw footwork parties in London and Bristol. These explosions of dubstep, grime, hip hop, and funky are all represented every time SHERELLE touches the decks. Her recent – and acclaimed – Fabric compilation is testament to this, breakbeat in breakneck speed designed to make you sweat.
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“I DOWNLOADED SOMEONE’S STRICTLY RHYTHM COMPILATION BY ACCIDENT. IT WAS WHERE I DISCOVERED CHICAGO HOUSE. I WAS LIKE, OKAY, FUCK, THIS IS THE KIND OF SOUND I’M INTO.”
The Boiler Room set and opportunities that followed
“It makes me sad” she said at the time, talking about
amplified SHERELLE’s profile. Even today, as she talks, she
some of the most vulnerable clubbers amongst us, “...to
pulls her black beanie over her ears and she attracts a
think that a lot of people usually in these crowds… are
few looks from passers-by – of admiration, certainly, but
struggling from not seeing themselves, being stuck at home
also what are presumably various strands of recognition,
or with family members they’re not out to, in places where
perhaps from her Radio 1 residency slots and frequent 6
they can’t be their authentic selves.”
Music features, her viral Boiler Room sets, club nights, or
The brutality of the pandemic on an industry which had
beaming from the covers of numerous magazine profiles.
already felt the bite of austerity can’t be underestimated. In
Maybe you just bumped into her at one point in life and
October 2020, SHERELLE appeared on ‘Newsnight’ on a
never forgot it. After all, as her sets attest, if there’s
programme following the winter economic plan of
anything SHERELLE is definitely not in short supply of, it’s
chancellor Rishi Sunak that failed to adequately support
charisma.
the culture sector, in the midst of crisis. Circumstances that
The flurry of bookings, projects, tours following ‘The
make activists of us all.
Set’ turned into ideas on how she might use her influence
“The whole industry, live music, is in complete dire
to disrupt the oppressive whiteness and lack of access in
straits” she said. “It’s very stressful for us all. I’ve got
the scene. Then, of course, it all came to a grinding halt
friends on Universal Credit and they’re unable to either
after the world went into lockdown. For someone used to
choose between paying rent or paying for food and basic
a life of outlandish basslines, the world quietened down.
amenities.”
In 2020, at the height of some of the tightest of restrictive
better. I think about this quote by writer Audre Lorde in her
lockdown measures in Britain, and a historic reimagining
1988 ‘A Burst of Light: Essays’: “Caring for myself is not
of how to amplify the joy of Black life after tragedy, I
self-indulgence, it is self-preservation, and that is an act of
interviewed SHERELLE over Zoom from her home,
political warfare.”
Two years on, and SHERELLE has imagined something
reflecting on how we reconnect in a future music world.
For SHERELLE, this care takes place on the dancefloor, it
In that moment of liminal space, it seemed impossible to
is in the dancing, in the curating of a home for her peers,
imagine. How do you rebuild something that felt like it
and it is an opportunity to care for each other.
was demolished?
DISCO_POGO_121
“Some of us don’t have space” she explains. “Some of us don’t have ownership of certain things”. At Goldsmiths, as a student SHERELLE was taught by
to add and rewrite these histories back in tenfold, bringing us closer to truth and a deeper understanding of the world we live in. In the context of dance music, it might just be
feminist scholar and thinker Sara Ahmed. It’s where she
asking questions of disco and house archive footage which
first came across academic ideas of decolonialism, and the
show only white, affluent kids dancing in the Manhattan
insidiousness of structural racism.
clubs. These speak little to the Queer Black or Latinx
“I’d always leave her lessons being like: ‘Fucking hell, no
dancers taking up space in Harlem in a climate of hate,
wonder this has happened to me in the past.’ But her lessons
stretching their limbs in clubs and commanding the power
gave me strength,” she recalls. Making environments
of the music to help empower them in life.
welcoming to marginalised communities is now paramount, having spent much of her time in crowds that weren’t always friendly. She explains that once, her USB was stolen from her laptop mid set. The whole vibe shifted. “Suddenly the room didn’t feel like we were all in this moment together.” Her point is these ecosystems are fragile and sometimes that’s all it takes to feel like the crowd outnumber you, that you’re not, all, children of Barbara Tucker’s Beautiful People. “And that as a Black woman I’m not always afforded the luxury of anger,” she says, rubbing her beanie against her ear. “But I think back to Sara. Now, if someone’s being a dickhead, I’ll just call them a dickhead.” SHERELLE’s new project, the aptly named BEAUTIFUL, builds on what she’s learned from seeing things rise from the ashes. It provides the very thing a generation of would-be artists are looking for – a place to metaphorically and figuratively, call their own. But alongside logistical offerings like free studio space (“because it’s fucking expensive!”), SHERELLE is clear about its existence being a reaction and disruption to a music scene in bondage to its own structural privileges. She aims to curate and put on exhibitions, a record label centring Black artists (she has experience in this, having headed up label Hooversound recordings with Apple Music presenter, fellow DJ and Reprezent alumni NAINA since 2021) and also provide DJ and music business workshops as a way to demystify the process. One of the offerings she’s most excited about is a syllabus that teaches musical and political histories. “I feel that the electronic music scene has been whitewashed,” she says, which she sees as an opportunity. “Festivals and others need to do better in order to book more people of colour. The platform’s gonna be basically something that addresses influence, space and ownership.” It also insists on writing the joy of Black artists as
“I FEEL THAT THE ELECTRONIC MUSIC SCENE HAS BEEN WHITEWASHED. FESTIVALS AND OTHERS NEED TO DO BETTER IN ORDER TO BOOK MORE PEOPLE OF COLOUR. THE PLATFORM’S GONNA BE BASICALLY SOMETHING THAT ADDRESSES INFLUENCE, SPACE AND OWNERSHIP.” With this in mind, talk turns to the role of the dancer. Her
curators, creators and practitioners into the past, present
answer is both logical and poetic: “The role of the dancer is
and future of the electronic music scene. To make a point
important because they represent freedom.”
about erasure she retells a recent story about arguing with
She continues. “Freedom of expression is something
someone on Twitter about Kraftwerk. She tells the story
which we don’t have enough of in the world, and we’re not
quickly which can be summarised in a single final sentence
able to have enough of, so the dancers - especially the
that makes her laugh so incredulously she splutters as she
Queer gen - they could have it in the club, if they weren’t
takes a long sip of her beer: “Kraftwerk were not dance
being beaten the fuck out of by police or being heckled in
music until Black people in Detroit were dancing to them!”
the street.”
This point builds on the idea that ‘decolonising’ is an
She mentions learning how the club creates celestial
active word that lives in the world beyond academia. Put
moments from listening to 90s Detroit techno pioneers
simply, it describes that most of our cultural, social and
Underground Resistance: “It’s like a lot of gospel-led things
political lives have been whitewashed, centring whiteness
where you can just feel like… the pain floating away.”
and erasing the contribution of marginalised communities,
In 2021, Sherelle offered something that took from this
particularly Black, Queer ones. This branch of thinking
idea of “a softer, emotive side to the world” with the release
suggests that it is our collective responsibility to continue
of her sensitive, thoughtful and thrilling two-track EP, ‘160 Down The A406’. She says the tracks are “supposed to be
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warm and forgiving”, and they are – airy vocals over gentle
bass clips that give you a chance to catch your breath as
the UK, many thanks to rising rents) SHERELLE sees herself
she calls you to dance in your own way, at your own pace.
as inspired by other DJ collectives and communities who
She takes this knowledge of the dancers and DJs who have come before her as the foundation for BEAUTIFUL.
have unearthed light in the midst of political darkness. She namechecks Discwoman (A New York collective
“I’ve noticed a lot more Queer people getting into footwork,
platforming women and non-binary electronic artists) BBZ
juke, jungle, d’n’b,” she says. “People who might not always
(a London-based Black Queer art and DJ collective)
have been so open to kiss or to dance or be themselves
Unorthodox (who put on a Queer drum’n’bass night), all the
fully.”
time making the point that there are people working to
Her thinking is that post-pandemic, people want speed rather than a gentle way back in the club. If that’s true
build something even as things fall down. For those working class young people for whom studio
then she’s the person for the job. Talking about footwork,
space is the difference between making music or not, for
she muses that: “I think the music and how fast and crazy
those LGBTQIA+ communities of colour looking to find
and sporadic it is has actually lent itself well to people
home, or those artists for whom seeing themselves as part
being able to do whatever – whatever dances you wanna
of the past can empower their present. For anyone looking
do, whatever you wanna wear, the tongue-in-cheek nature
for a place to feel beautiful, SHERELLE aims to make it so.
of it all. Sexual liberation and sexual openness is always
Her education, learned from the confines of her tiny box
really good, and I think the speed of the music enables one
room, to the training grounds just for boys, to sprawling
big clusterfuck of explosion and expression.”
inclusive online spaces, to being in command of crowds
It’s true that to call the music fun is an understatement – it is at times instructional: “Bounce that Booty’ (DJ Deeon) asks what some may say are urgent questions, ‘What’s the
and airwaves, has taught her that making something for yourself is good but sharing it is even better. Before she leaves – she needs to rest her body before a
use of having that ass if you ain’t gonna throw it? (DJ
US tour in a few days’ time – she makes a final, enduring
Rashad) and sometimes, provides crucial advice for life:
point as she begins to zip up her puffer jacket. “I’m part of
‘DON’T JUST STAND THERE’ (DJ Spinn).
an ecosystem that already exists. I’m just adding to
In the midst of a political and social moment where
something that allows the next person to come through,
communal spaces are fighting for their lives (between 2005
and then the next group, and then the next wave of people
and 2015 it was reported that over 1400 clubs were shut in
to come through, building something together. All while highlighting how beautiful and delightful the Black music
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scene is.”
Jeff Mills at Tresor. Photo: Dietmar Maria Hegemann
TECHNO! TECHNO! TECHNO! TECHNO!
No other music soundtracked the world’s dancefloors in such a sustained – and magical – fashion during the 1990s as techno. Beginning the decade as the preserve of a handful of innovative sonic scientists in localised scenes, ten years later it was heralded by many as a futuristic artform, and by all as a global phenomenon. With key contributions from techno’s significant players, Jonas Stone looks back on the end of the century party… DISCO_POGO_127
Despite heading into a new decade on the back of a global
Now, 30 years later - and with its own Instagram tribute
recession, as the 1980s turned into the 90s a more optimistic
page called, appropriately enough, 90s Techno - it’s time to
– perhaps naive – way of looking at the world was beginning
assess the impact of techno and its growth into a
to form. Buoyed by the fall of the Berlin Wall just two
worldwide musical force during the 90s. How did it go from
months before and the-then USSR premier Mikhail
a dystopian Detroit dreamscape to a pan-global music
Gorbachev’s drive for perestroika and glasnost (reform and
revolution that permeated into rock festivals, the pop
openness), a new era of peace and democracy had begun to
charts and the pan-global lexicon? Some 30 years on, can it
melt the icy, iron-clad fist of a decades-long Cold War.
still re-invent itself and stay relevant? And in the end did
And while the road ahead was not without numerous
techno really change anything?
political, social and economic potholes, this willingness to embrace new ideas and tear down a failing and largely
The beginning of the 90s found many of techno’s pioneering
irrelevant old guard was further reflected in the art, film,
producers and DJs already engaged in various forms of
culture and musical ideas of a new emerging decade.
dance culture. These had been running as an underground
Acid house had already detonated a resurgence in dance
parallel alternative to what most music media were
music counterculture fuelled by affordable new technology,
reporting. X-Tront and Planetary Assault Systems man, Luke
a breaking down of music tribalism and a dancefloor unity
Slater had established himself as a resident of the mixed
that was often driven by hedonism and new narcotics. In
gay night Troll at the Sound Shaft in London’s Charing Cross
the formative years of the 1990s the anything-goes
after handing the promoter a mixtape on his second visit to
eclecticism of rave culture began to splinter into new dance
the club in 1988.
structures as garage, jungle, house, breaks and techno began to find new spiritual homes and legions. Techno’s sonics can be traced back to the 1950s and 60s via a myriad of influences. These include Juan Atkins’ mid-80s
“By the time say, 1991 came around, I’d been really immersed in the whole world for a good few years,” he recalls today. “It wasn’t a new thing to me. But I did witness the sort of catching on of it, flung around the world. It was
“When John (Acquaviva) and I started the label, we were like, let’s kind of put our lives, our schooling, on hold and just see. Maybe this house and techno thing lasts two or three years, let’s have fun. There was nothing to lose.” RICHIE HAWTIN ON PLUS 8 RECORDS
Model 500/Cybotron aliases and fellow Detroit DJ/producer
like this secret world where there’s all these different
evangelists Derrick May, Kevin Saunderson and Eddie
people dressed up, doing what they want to do. The whole
Fowlkes. Going further back, it also incorporated early, raw
thing was so different from everyday life. That kind of
Chicago house tracks, 808-driven electro, 70s disco and
impounded the idea that the music went with that culture.
reggae sound system culture, plus Kraftwerk, Yellow Magic
It wasn’t the music that you’d hear on Radio 1 or anything
Orchestra, Nitzer Ebb, The Human League, DAF, Throbbing
like that. It wasn’t something you could explain to people, or
Gristle, Silver Apples and the pioneering work of Daphne
people would know about. I soaked up everything. And I
Oram and Delia Derbyshire. However, it was the 90s that saw
wanted turn it around and start putting stuff out there. I
its galvanisation and proliferation from a word-of-mouth
suppose to some degree I was a messenger back then. And
cottage industry into a global dancefloor phenomenon.
there was, I think, at the beginning of the 90s, a slow
As the millennium approached techno had poured out of clubs and into festivals via a network of independent clubs,
realisation of that all around the world.” The genesis of what we now know as techno in the
labels, promoters, distributors, producers, DJs and clubbers
previous decade should not be understated. White labels
all searching for a new dancefloor truth through a shared
and rare imports were already causing a stir in Europe’s
euphoric experience. Its viral assimilation into the cultural
more discerning dance record shops, as early adopters,
mainstream saw it beam out of our TV screens, our radios,
mainly DJs, tried to get their hands on these new sounds
our magazines and ever deeper into our collective
emanating from across the Atlantic. As Dave Clarke, who in
conscience. As Underground Resistance co-founder, ‘Mad’
a few short years would establish himself as one of techno’s
Mike Banks declared to Jockey Slut magazine in the summer
prime ambassadors via his ‘Red’ series, saw it, the 80s were
of 1994: “Techno to me is the one music that is truly a global
special because they were the formative years.
music. It might not only be a global music – I think it’s a galactic music.”
“(It was) Almost a dangerous form of the music, challenging with the likes of Adonis’ ‘No Way Back’ breaking the status quo and still nowhere near the general public’s
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taste. Then the 90s came and with the rise of better
technology and an understanding of how to use it, the machine’s rules were being broken. (Joey) Beltram’s ‘Vortex’, (Dan) Bell and (Claude) Young’s ‘Planet Earth’, K-Hand’s ‘Ready for the Darkness’, Gary Martin... and then the English grabbed their own sound: B12, Black Dog, Surgeon to think of a few. “It started to proliferate outwards at speed. The Dutch with Maurits Paardekooper and Speedy J, and the Germans with Mike Ink etcetera. There was a unity on the dancefloor, a comradery of counterculture pushing back against pop culture, against racism, pro-gay rights at a time when tolerance was very low… people singing Joe Smooth! Yes, it was fuelled by ecstasy but what a great catalyst for change. People were far more politically aware and active then, not by posting on social media, but living what they believed.” Techno had begun to make inroads into the public’s conscience from the late-80s and early-90s with tracks like Humanoid’s ‘Stakker Humanoid’ (featuring a young Future Sound of London’s Brian Dougans) and Nexus 21-offshoot 3MB: Moritz von Oswald, Juan Atkins and Thomas Fehlmann
Altern 8 whose ‘Activ-8’ anthem had Mark Archer and Chris Peat hiding behind their trademark ‘A’ embossed dust masks and hooded, zipped up macs. There was also New York’s Toxic 2 duo (Damon Wild and Ray Love) with ‘Rave Generator’ and Gez Varley and Mark Bell’s ‘speak and spell’-voiced warehouse anthem ‘LFO’. All were beamed into the nation’s living rooms via UK TV chart institution ‘Top of the Pops’. Yet they were still predominantly considered acid house or rave, mainly relegated to the back of the stage and more often than not hidden behind an array of garishly-clothed ‘club’ dancers and someone’s interpretation of an alien that was little more than a mime artist on stilts, wrapped in Bacofoil. Neil Rushton and Dave Barker’s 1988 Network Records compilation ‘Techno! (The New Dance Sound of Detroit)’ had brought the term to a wider audience by introducing the likes of Rhythim Is Rhythim (Derrick May), ‘Magic’ Juan Atkins, Blake Baxter, Kevin ‘Master Reece’ Saunderson and Anthony ‘Shake’ Shakir to a ravenous music and style
John Acquaviva, Richie Hawtin, Speedy J
magazine culture, but few, bar the more adventurous house, rave and electro DJs of the time were aware of the labels behind the releases such as Metroplex, Transmat and KMS. Gradually the ‘virus’ began to spread and slowly the vinyl seeds began to germinate on new terrain as enthusiasts and fledgling producers saw the possibilities in the raw beats
friendly rivalry between Underground Resistance (Mike
and abstract soundscapes as the basic means to make
Banks, Jeff Mills) and Richie Hawtin and John Acquaviva’s
these new sounds came within financial reach.
Plus 8 Records which was situated across the river in Windsor, Canada. A slew of gauntlet-laying releases
When Queens native Joey Beltram first played an acetate of
continued to redefine the limits of what a 909 and 303 drum
the brutally dry, TR-909-driven ‘Energy Flash’ at legendary
machine could do. For every silver box pummelling
Belgian new beat institution Boccaccio in 1990, it was
‘Substance Abuse’ and ‘F.U.’ from Hawtin’s F.U.S.E. moniker
notably a combination of Detroit’s Transmat and Belgium’s
there was a UR dance-off in waiting from ‘Acid Rain’ or
R&S that brought it to the world. The transatlantic sonic
‘Punisher’.
cross-pollination continued to bear fruit as a shadow
“When John and I started the label, we were like, let’s kind
coterie of emergent artists who were already exploring the
of put our lives, our schooling, on hold and just see,” recalls
field of electronic music began to pick up the clarion call.
Richie Hawtin. “Maybe this house and techno thing lasts two
Detroit’s so-called ‘second wave’ began to see the value
or three years, let’s have fun. There was nothing to lose.”
of a label community and identity as the floodgates creaked
Having already been DJing for a couple of years in Detroit,
open. Pioneering techno records subsequently established a
most notably as warm-up at The Shelter in Saint Andrew’s
label style and ethos, often based around high school
Hall, Hawtin had already invited Mills, then locally known on
friends and small clubbing cliques, such as Carl Craig’s Planet E to Octave One’s 430 West. And then there was the
DISCO_POGO_129
Detroit airwaves as ‘The Wizard’, to come and play at his
thing but music that really approached the intricate details
club in Windsor around 1987-88.
of the sound.”
“Everybody knew each other,” he says. “It wasn’t that
Armed with a small studio set up of a 909 drum machine,
there wasn’t a little bit of friction here and there. I’m not
Yamaha DX 100, a couple of small synths and a little pocket
gonna say it was all like, you know, roses, but on the whole,
recorder bought in New York’s Chinatown, Mills set about
everybody had their camps. Derrick had his camp; Juan,
his new sonic lab. While remarkably also recording definitive
Kevin, UR, and a lot of them had grown up together in high
techno releases ‘Waveform Transmissions Vol.1’ for Tresor
school and just started making records together. We were
and parts of X-103 in the same period it was this new sound
accepted as part of the techno family and community by
he kept coming back to.
most of the gang, but we were still latecomers. And we were still in our own little bubble.” It’s localised moments like these that often caused skews
“I would make samples of it and then take it to the club and test it at Limelight and then go back to my apartment and come up with something else. It was a constant system
in techno’s development around the world. The 90s are
of creating things, testing things. So by the time I came up
littered with many significant regionally contained
with the first release I was pretty much sure that the
outbursts in the evolution of techno’s sound structure. In
‘Tranquillizer’ EP was what people needed at the time.”
Berlin, Mark Ernestus and Moritz von Oswald’s immersion in
Not only were his and Hood’s early releases on Axis set to
Jamaican dub reggae culture was the catalyst for their
pivot the shape of techno for years to come, the label’s
landmark Basic Channel releases. There was Robert Hood’s
artwork and gold, silver and black palette perfectly
Pavlovian reduction on the game-changing ‘Minimal Nation’
reflected the label’s visionary sonic direction while
that emerged from his and Jeff Mills discussions and
referencing as far back as Man Ray’s 1920’s ’solarization’
refinements amidst a backdrop of increasingly volcanic
process and Filippo Tommaso Marinetti’s 1909 ‘Manifesto of
bpm rave eruptions in the outside club scene.
Futurism’. This wasn’t a bastardized cartoon rave sample for
Additionally, there was Regis and Surgeon’s Brumbrutalism on their Downwards label, Plastikman’s embryonic
the pilled-up ‘E’ hordes. This was techno redefined as art. While we now live in an era of constant and instant
TB-303 meltdowns at his own JAK parties in Detroit’s
connectivity, the early part of the 90s saw techno
abandoned Packard plant and Aphex Twin’s unique, playful
communities often growing in small hermetically sealed
wizardry infused with mischievous Cornish myth-making.
enclaves, where overseas information was often scant, with
Elsewhere in Germany there was Frankfurt’s fusion of
only new vinyl releases providing sonic clues and coded
trance and techno where chief orchestrator of hedonism,
messages for others to seek out.
Sven Väth held court at The Omen’s legendary endurance
“Everything was very regional,” states Adam X who in the
fests. And Wolfgang Voigt’s (aka Mike Ink) myriad voyages as
early 90s was running Brooklyn’s Sonic Groove Records shop
Studio 1, Profan, Auftrieb, GAS, Wassermann and Freiland
alongside Heather Heart and his brother, Frankie Bones.
would set the tone for Cologne’s mighty Kompakt empire.
“Especially before the internet and before the world became
While all can stake a claim to moulding techno’s malleable
much more connected through it. Many people buying
clay into something new and beautiful, bending the world to
records were unaware of what was happening in other
each’s own futuristic vision, crucially they were all allowed
scenes outside of their own city and country. There was
to grow roots within a localised cocoon, shielded from global
little connection outside of the music itself which defined
scrutiny before finally emerging as an artistic fait accompli.
the identity of different places.”
Another transformative moment arrived in 1992, when
These local identities started to take hold. Techno
Jeff Mills relocated to New York to take up a residency at
outposts established further afield as labels, record shops,
the Limelight. With an office provided in the back room of
clubs and distributors built themselves around localised
the Palladium as part of the deal, the premise was to
scenes. Damon Wild’s Synewave and Lenny Dee’s Industrial
continue to run Underground Resistance alongside Mike
Strength added to the growing New York scene that also
Banks but in reality, Mills was beginning to formulate a new
featured Frankie Bones’ ‘Bones Breaks’ releases and ‘Storm
label sound and vision.
Rave’ parties. There was Woody McBride’s and Kurt Eckes’s
“Essentially, these were the things that I probably wish we
Midwest Drop Bass Network, Sven Väth’s Frankfurt-based
could have done while I was in Underground Resistance,”
Eye Q and Harthouse, the embryonic Soma, spearheaded by
states Mills. “A type of music that was deeper, that was
Slam and Glasgow’s crosstown record shop/distribution
more spiritual, I suppose. And also what reinforced that was
network established by Rubadub, Eric Morand and Laurent
the opposite of what was happening on the night at the
Garnier’s Paris-based F Communications and Stefan
Limelight. It was a really hardcore, really heavy type of
Robbers’ Eindhoven-based Eevo Lute.
atmosphere. And I was thinking, what might people want to
Everywhere you cared to look there was activity.
hear after that? What might they want to hear the other
Rotterdam had Bunker and Clone. Chicago’s Relief was
hours of the day? What type of electronic music could that
under the guidance of Cajmere/Green Velvet’s Curtis Jones
be? And so in many conversations with Robert Hood
and the so-called Sound of Rome was spearheaded by Leo
because he was with me at the label at the time, we were
Anibaldi, Andrea Benedetti, Lory D, the D’Arcangelo brothers
having discussions of a certain type of music that was more
and Marco Passarani. There were other labels such as ACV,
‘mental’. That wasn’t overbearing. Not just a bombastic
the sonic destruction of Regis, Female and Surgeon on
spectacle type of you know, ‘Punisher’, ‘Seawolf’-type of
Birmingham’s Downwards, and the network emerging from Mark Ernestus and Moritz von Oswald’s Hard Wax Berlin
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record shop.
“It wasn’t that it was music without tradition but it was genuinely experimental music that for the first time ever could reach the masses. It broke the whole DNA of rock’n’roll because it was about repetition and reaffirming sound.” KARL O’CONNOR (REGIS)
London’s nebulous scene, meanwhile, housed everything from Steve Bicknell and Sheree Rashit’s legendary nomadic LOST parties, Peter Ford and Mark Broom’s Ifach, Akin Fernandez’s Irdial~Discs, Infonet techno upstarts Bandulu, James Ruskin and Richard Polson’s Blueprint and Dave Cawley and Alex Knight’s Fat Cat Records shop. That’s alongside a raft of memorable parties like Andrew Weatherall’s Sabresonic and Bloodsugar, Mr. C’s Subterrain at The End and Carl Cox and Jim Masters’ midweek shebeen at the Velvet Rooms. Even deepest Cornwall held a ‘Kernow’ seat at the table via Grant Wilson-Claridge and Richard James’ Rephlex. Other labels such as Berlin’s Tresor, Saskia Slegers’ Djax, the (then) St. Albans-based Peacefrog, Sheffield’s Warp, London’s Novamute, Ghent’s Music Man and R&S all cherrypicked and nurtured worldwide talent, making global stars of CJ Bolland, Aphex Twin, Luke Slater, Neil Landstrumm and Richie Hawtin to name a few. Having bought his first synth in 1985, Downwards Records boss Karl O’Connor (Regis) had grown increasingly frustrated trying to emulate alternative and electronic bands like Coil, Swans and Depeche Mode. It was the rudimentary rawness of dance music that made him realise he could go back to basics with his old equipment and come back from an increasingly isolated electronic hinterland to face a primed audience who were ready to embrace a new brute force. “Before 1988, electronic music meant something completely different,” he recalls. “Now when we talk about electronic music, people mean dance music, essentially. That’s not electronic music to me, but by the early-90s we were locked. Lots of people arrived at the same place from vastly different directions. A lot of people could have been into hip hop. Lots of people could have been into soul music or R’n’B. And then there was people like me whose idea of electronic music was completely different. But we arrived at
Slam in their studio in Hidden Lane, Glasgow, 1995
this point. “It wasn’t that it was music without tradition but it was genuinely experimental music that for the first time ever could reach the masses. It broke the whole DNA of rock’n’roll because it was about repetition and reaffirming sound. It wasn’t verse, chorus, verse and for the most part even melody as well. And it used all these very experimental things that people like John Cage and Stockhausen were doing before. That’s what drew me towards it. It had real potential and it had the momentum of this youth kick.” As with all new forms of music there was a fair amount of fumbling into the unknown, which often led to numerous misinterpretations and occasionally ‘heroic failures’ as Slam’s Stuart McMillan was about to discover. “I guess your geographical position will always determine
Andrew Weatherall, 1990
at that point, how your music sounded,” he says. “So, you know, something like ‘Positive Education’, for example, was us trying to make a Detroit record. But obviously putting the influences we had from playing in Glasgow into that record.” Tony Child’s (aka Surgeon) first attempts at making electronic music were essentially deaf, based around the only point of reference he had, a Northampton school library book called ‘Making Music with Tape Recorders’. DISCO_POGO_131
House Of God event at The Que Club in Birmingham, featuring Surgeon and guest live act Minimal Man (Peter Ford and Ian Loveday, aka EON). Photos: Terrence Donovan
Having only read about but never heard nor experienced
had not experienced what a rave was to be honest. But we
‘music concrete’ he was subsequently told by a friend that
were trying to make music for it. Things like ‘The Punisher’
his initial musical sketches sounded like Coil (a band who on
and ‘Riot’ and all these things, but we really did not know
further investigation opened up a path of discovery that
because we had never been to a rave.”
eventually led to the release of the ‘Surgeon’ EP on Downwards in 1994). Even with their iconic early Underground Resistance releases, Jeff Mills freely admits that both he and Mike Banks were, basically, feeling in the dark. “There was no real
As the globe’s techno scenes grew, in what were essentially loosely connected localised scenes, they also began to split and fracture. “Slowly as we got into the mid-90s it was full on,” recalls
indication that gave me an idea of where this was going to
Blueprint’s James Ruskin. “You went to a techno club or you
go. I mean, I wasn’t really involved in rave because Mike and
went to a house club. The lines were kind of drawn in the sand.”
I, we were not really invited over. By the time we started I
Nowhere were these divisions more apparent than the
think the biggest, most famous events in Europe, in the UK,
canyon-like fissure that separated Dutch club culture at
in Belgium and in Holland had already happened. We really
the time. What had started out as an open and freemoving spirit of acid house adventure was now starkly
132_DISCO_POGO
polarising between two diametrically opposed scenes. The
housier-edged ‘mellow’ camp found champions in DJ Dimitri and DJ Remy whose sets at Amsterdam’s Roxy connected with a more cosmopolitan clubby crowd. An hour’s drive down the coast, however, and gabber (Dutch Hardcore) was erupting like a 160bpm jack hammer, spearheaded by the likes of Rotterdam Records’ Paul Elstak, whose first label release - De Euromasters ‘Amsterdam Waar Lech Dat Dan?’ (‘Amsterdam, Where Is That?’) - was a thinly-veiledpop at the Dutch media’s focus on the music emanating from its capital. “Both scenes were so full of themselves, so to say,” remembers Delsin Records boss Marsel van der Wielen. “Locally, party-scene-wise it (techno) stayed pretty underground, as it was smashed between the mellow and gabber scenes. I was at the first Autechre performance in 1993, and when Underground Resistance performed in Utrecht there were only 30 people. It was always the same guys at these events like Stefan Robbers (Terrace/Eevo Lute) and Jochem Paap (Speedy J).” And yet by the end of the decade, and against the odds, techno had not only formed a bridge between these two antipodal factions, it had usurped them as dancefloor’s
Soma crew, 1995
heir apparent. Key to the viral-like spread of techno in the Netherlands and across the world were the club nights that acted not only as a local hub for an ever-growing community of techno evangelists, but also key stopping points for techno’s winged couriers as an emerging international DJ circuit developed, turning underground mavericks into air mile shredding magazine cover stars. These cathedrals of sound drew people together from all walks of life under a communal euphoric experience, something that Andrew Weatherall often noted went back hundreds of years via the church’s use of smoke, coloured lights and music to coerce a populace under one united thought. “When we started the club night Slam in 1988,” remembers Soma’s Dave Clarke, “it was people from all over the city (Glasgow). West End students, trendies, gangsters and East End hoodlums. They were willing to get together and not have an angry head on their shoulders. It was all about embracing the new. Embracing each other. There was an initial utopia, I guess.” It was this coming together of different tribes that Surgeon recalls as a key part of Birmingham’s nascent techno evolution around 1992/93. Alternating fortnightly
“You had punks, heavy metal people, hippies, queer people, like just everyone. All of the different kind of outsiders all seemed to feel welcome at this place… Anyone who walked in there was just like: ‘Holy Fuck, what is going on here?’” SURGEON ON BIRMINGHAM CLUBS HOUSE OF GOD AND THIRD EYE
between Third Eye at Snobs and House of God at Digbeth’s Dance Factory, he honed his craft with elements of some of the records he had been introduced to through John Peel’s BBC Radio 1 show. “I remember at that time there were a lot of people who were kind of interested in dance music, but they really didn’t
LOST’s Sheree Rashit is another to recall the DIY, just-do-
feel like they could go to a club. They didn’t feel welcomed or
it ethic that prevailed at the time. “From a UK perspective,
at home there, but House of God and Third Eye were these
there was this sort of almost punk attitude,” she says. “And
places where pretty much anyone could feel welcome. It
when I say that I think of Andrew Weatherall who totally
was basically all the different kind of freaks, oddballs and
embraced so much. This just get-up-and-do-it attitude. So
outsiders. You had punks, heavy metal people, hippies, queer
I think it changed lots of lives because people were able to
people, like just everyone. All of the different kind of
be involved. They may have previously appreciated music
outsiders all seemed to feel welcome at this place. And I
and the effect it had on them but now they were able to be
think that was very special and very unique to that event.
part of that. They made that their careers.”
Anyone who walked in there was just like: ‘Holy Fuck, what is going on here?’”
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Such pioneering techno promoters were willing to take
“We had this incredible historic situation of the fall of the
the risks based on zero expectations, sometimes taking
Wall, and this was the number one media subject
months and multiple phone calls to finally trace the artists
everywhere,” he says. “When the Wall was open, there were a
they wanted to work with. This was simply a case of giving
lot of opportunities. The first point was euphoria, incredible
this new music a platform and the right environment to a
euphoria, East and West got together. Second, the police
crowd who were also searching for something new.
had no time to control anything, you know, they had to
As James Ruskin recounts: “There were very few
check the traffic between East and West and all the trains
businessmen involved at this stage. The nights were
and all that stuff. So they had no time to stop a club or an
promoted by DJs and fans of the music. The labels that were
illegal club.
cropping up were run by the artists, the distribution
“The third thing was we had no curfew in Berlin. Since
companies were run by the people that didn’t fall into either
1949 we have no curfew. We could have been open all-night-
of these categories. So you have this little sphere of people
long. That was a law that was a huge advantage. And the
holding this thing up.”
fourth point was a lot of empty spaces in East Berlin. And
French techno royalty Laurent Garnier concurs, reflecting
then everybody tried to do something. It was cultural
upon the importance of community in elevating this
energy, anarchy, you know, and you could do what you
burgeoning scene.
wanted to do.”
“I think to create something strong, it’s vital to have a
One such empty space at 126 Leipziger Strasse, an
residency,” he says. “To have a rendezvous, a weekly place or a
underground bank vault of the Wertheim Department Store,
monthly place where your crew, your crowd, your community
led Hegemann and Achim Kohlberger to establish Berlin’s
can get together, feel safe, or feel at home. I always liked
iconic Tresor nightclub and subsequent label in 1991. Now 30
labels that work like a family because I think they’re always
years later, and after 1000s of incendiary, sweat-soaked
more prolific music-wise, like we try to do with Fcom. Like the
parties, 100s of genre-defining releases and a club closure
Rex or a residency or a group of people that work together,
and relocation and rebirth, the institution that was to play
put their ideas together, you know, mix their ideas to be able
a major role in evolving and spreading the gospel according
to think in an inventive way to build something. I always
to techno throughout the ensuing decade still stands by its
believed what built my career was the fact that I kept my
adopted logo: ‘Tresor Never Sleeps’.
residency for all these years. And I’ve been faithful to a lot of
If clubs were techno’s night-time home, then the record
places around the world, even though now I don’t have a
shops that supported the music became the daytime hubs,
residency anymore. I feel that I have some kind of connection
meeting points and sources of information for local
to some places around the world where I go back often or
communities and visiting DJs to forge new links. With hot
often enough to make people feel that together we are part
new releases and white labels paraded on their walls, racks
of something. I think this is very, very important.”
sub-divided into genres and label back catalogues, and the premises’ often strewn with party flyers, the record shop’s
If one city, more than any other, can claim to have
role as a connective node simply reinforced the emergent
universally embraced techno into the very fabric of its
trans-global techno network.
society, then Berlin surely has techno blood pumping
From 1989 to 1997, Fat Cat Records, among a host of
through its veins. The 90s were ushered in on a sea of hope
others, played a central role in bringing London’s local
as the Wall fell and the city reunited after nearly 40 years of
electronic dance music community together. As shop
division and suspicion. As the East re-engaged with the
co-founder and DJ Alex Knight recalls, the connection with
West, a multitude of new possibilities unravelled.
other cities’ stores and distribution outlets was integral to
A somewhat fortuitous Westphalian, Dimitri Hegemann, found himself at the very epicentre of this seismic cultural
their mutual survival. “There was Submerge in Detroit and before that you had
shift. Having relocated to Berlin in 1978 (his musical curiosity
Watts in New York and everyone else that were kind of
had already led him to some of Can and Kraftwerk’s earliest
shifting US imports across the UK,” Knight says. “You had
live shows in his hometown district of Soest in 1970, at the
Rubadub in Scotland, but our hook up with Hard Wax in
tender age of 15), the 80s found him hanging out at all-night
Berlin was quite pivotal in terms of the introduction of new
Berlin parties with Nick Cave and The Birthday Party, tour
music and new labels. Basic Channel for one. And we had this
managing Henry Rollins, signing Sheffield’s Clock DVA to his
kind of reciprocal relationship. We would create a box and fill
Interfisch label, putting on small acid house parties for 150
it with music from the kids in London bringing in records –
people at UFO and co-founding Berlin’s avant-garde
white labels, promos and decent stuff. We would take five of
electronic music festival Atonal in 1982.
each and we put it in a box up to 100 records. When that box
On a visit to the industrial based Wax Trax label in
was full, we packaged it up and sent it to Berlin. And Hard
Chicago in 1989, a rummage through a bucket full of label
Wax would do the same for us. So once a month, we’d get this
boss Jim Nash’s unwanted demo cassettes led him to
big box and inside there’s all these German white labels and
Detroit’s ‘Final Cut’, a new industrial outfit that as chance
that’s how we learnt about those records.”
would have it included Jeff Mills. A life-long bond was
The information flowed. City-to-city, store-to-store, the
formed. If anyone was to find themselves in the right place
predominantly lyric-free records spoke one universal and
at the right time, then Hegemann was the right person. By
understandable body language.
1990 the stars aligned.
Techno’s rise through the 90s owed a further debt to its prominence on specialist radio shows such as Colin Dale’s
134_DISCO_POGO
Abstrakt Dance and Colin Favor’s Kiss FM show, whose
Top: The Vault Tresor. Above: Club manager Regina Baer and Dimitri Hegemann. 1992. Right: outside Tresor.
unsigned ‘Demo DAT’ section showcased a host of new talent including a first airing of Aphex Twin’s ‘Digeridoo’. The sonic flames were further fanned by printed media, as magazines and fanzines grew, many forged from the same just-do-it attitude that reported first hand from punk’s 1970 front lines. Magazines such as the UK’s Jockey Slut, DJ, Mixmag, Generator, Update and Muzik; France’s Coda, Eden and TRAX; Germany’s Frontpage, Groove, De:Bug, Spex and Raveline; Holland’s Disco Dance, Bassic Groove and EP Connexion; America’s URB and XLR8R all hastened techno’s irrepressible trajectory. Technical magazines such as Future Music began to run features from DJ/producers’ bedroom studios and serious music magazines such as The Wire dissected Drexciyan Afrofuturism. Elsewhere, the club culture-splattered musings in Leeds’ The Herb Garden owed just as much to the sardonic football terrace witticism of Liverpool’s The End and London’s acid
“There was a unity on the dancefloor, a comradery of counterculture pushing back against pop culture, against racism, pro-gay rights at a time when tolerance was very low… people singing Joe Smooth! Yes, it was fuelled by ecstasy but what a great catalyst for change.” DAVE CLARKE
house bible Boy’s Own, as they did to the preposterous silliness of comics like Viz. By the mid-90s, Nottingham’s staunchly techno-based Magic Feet fanzine emerged, dedicated solely to the genre. While primarily a celebration and platform for the music and scene, it critiqued and celebrated in equal measure, unafraid to voice opinion or prick perceived pomposity.
DISCO_POGO_135
From today’s vantage point, it’s clear techno has achieved some kind of universality. The downside is a rampant commercialisation and homogenisation of a genre that had often been seen as risk-taking, visceral and uncompromising. Techno has always tried to carry the torch of futurism, but is it possible for any genre to break the constraints of time? Can techno really say it is still the future some 30 years later, or has its moment in the sun withered and died? Is anything new and ground-breaking still achievable? “I think what’s happened is that we’ve kind of arrived there,” ponders Luke Slater. “For better or worse I’m not sure the word techno should relate to the future anymore because everything I could have ever wished for involving techno has happened. Everything has adopted the concept of it. Lift music, restaurant music, every kind of music seems to be based around the original concept of putting electronic beats together. For me it’s everywhere now.” “For me, there’s no golden age,” adds Laurent Garnier, a man whose lifelong dedication and passion for techno and electronic music now sees him stand alongside such musical greats as Quincy Jones, Bob Dylan, Paul McCartney and Miles Davis in receiving the Légion d’honneur (the highest Magic Feet magazine, 1996
French order for military and civil merit). “I think it was the naive time where we didn’t know where the hell we were going. And it was a time where not everything had been written yet. Not really knowing where the fuck we were
“I had got into techno through rave and I wanted to be
going. But it was a bit freer of any conception, I guess. The
involved,” states founder and editor, Tom Magic Feet. “I
big difference with now is we have 30 years’ of history of
thought doing a fanzine would be a way to do this, to get
this music and whatever you’re listening to today, cannot
lots of free records and to make a living without having to
any more be super-front forward.
work too hard! At the time, techno was somewhat
“Even now, the sound is still forward-thinking music-wise,
marginalised in the music press, such as it was, so I thought
but I feel like all the music I’m listening to nowadays from
the music could do with its own dedicated magazine.”
not just techno but from house and electronic music, I kind
After years of scraping the funds together to produce
of heard it before. It’s not a bad thing. It’s not a criticism. It’s
each issue, Magic Feet finally succumbed to financial
normal. Because after 30 years’ of experimenting with
inevitability in 1999. A somewhat prescient fate that
minimalism, noise, hard music, soft music, deep music,
awaited much of club culture’s printed propaganda in the
whatever you want to quantify it, we’ve gone into all sorts
years to come.
of different kinds of directions. And unless we quit what
By the end of the 1990s, techno and electronic music had
we’re doing and completely change our way of producing
become synonymous. From Japan’s Ken Ishii and Fumiya
music I don’t think there is much space nowadays to be able
Tanaka to Stockholm’s Adam Beyer and Cari Lekebusch, via
to be super inventive.”
Naples’ Marco Carola and Gaetano Parisio, DJ Hell’s Munich
It’s a construct that also sits uneasily with Dave Clarke, a
Gigolo invasion and Chilean ex-pats Ricardo Villalobos and
man whose DJ and production prowess were to earn him
Lucian Nicolet, a vast supporting network had globally
the nickname ‘Red Baron’ from John Peel. “When I was
connected this new sonic ‘revolution for change’.
making music from ‘87 onwards I had a ‘computer’. People
And while a roll call of essential clubs, too numerous to
had word processors, but no-one had a computer, so Juan
mention, had created a global bedrock of like-minded
Atkins’ lyrics would resonate, and we would really feel
communities, festivals such as Barcelona’s Sonar and
futuristic as people thought we were strange with our
Amsterdam’s ADE expanded techno’s reach into the wider
weird equipment. Techno, house and electro led the music
music industry. Large techno events such as Mannheim’s
production revolution. We all pushed things in ways that
Time Warp, Fraga’s Monegros and Amsterdam’s Awakenings
were not invented or formalised yet. So yes, we felt like the
simply served to reinforce the universal approximation of
future, but technology caught up with everyone. Even a
techno by an ever-growing global following. Techno tents at
basic smartphone today has 100s times more grunt than
festivals such as Lowlands, Pukkelpop, Tribal Gathering, T in
the equipment we were using. That is not the future, that is
the Park, Creamfields and Glastonbury were pulling in tens
the present surely?
of thousands of new recruits and Berlin’s iconic Love Parade
“Techno is now mostly a pop music of our time. Of course
party witnessed one million people uniting on the German
there are still pioneers, young and old pushing through, but
capital’s streets every year.
most people rely on PR to get the attention. Tracks themselves rarely have a long shelf life and people that go
136_DISCO_POGO
to the big commercial events are not interested, so long as
Jeff Mills, Dimitri Hegemann, Laurent Garnier
“There were no rules, there was no industry, there was no handbook on how to make techno, how to distribute techno, how to run a business, how to have a DJ career when we started.” RICHIE HAWTIN they have a great time, this is fact. Some artists are feeling
“And I think that’s really the important distinction. I think
it too, to quote The Fatback Band: ‘Worked years perfecting
that the futuristic life force is still there. If we’re looking at
my craft, now my boss is giving me the shaft. Is this the
techno to be the sound of the future, perhaps it doesn’t
future?’ This is how they feel, but things change and so they
sound so futuristic as it did 30 years ago because now we’ve
should! The status quo has to change, and I am sure that for
just heard so much of it. And perhaps the sound hasn’t
some, 2020-2030 will be the golden age.”
changed as drastically as you would expect because it has
“There were no rules, there was no industry, there was no
become its own artform with its own set of themes and
handbook on how to make techno, how to distribute techno,
frequencies. But I still think the intention of techno is to
how to run a business, how to have a DJ career when we
push for, explore and create an imaginary sonic universe.
started,” declares Richie Hawtin, a man whose Plastikman
That is perhaps by definition, a vision of the future.”
alter ego not only helped to redefine the notion of
As one of techno’s key visionaries, Jeff Mills’
minimalism, but whose subsequent live shows went on to
groundbreaking releases on Underground Resistance, Axis
raise the bar in the presentation of techno as a combined
and Tresor advanced the concept of techno through the
audio and visual experience. “We wrote those books over the
90s. His lightening, three-deck wizardry brought
last 30 years. That was an incredibly exciting time, but I
dancefloors to the edge of chaos, and his pummelling,
think the ethos of always looking forward in electronic
brain-frying, off-the-cuff 909 workouts are just as likely to
music and techno is still there. I think that electronic music
sit in the middle of orchestras, live bands, cinematic
is still based upon synthesised sounds and sounds that are
reinterpretations and A-list attended fashion shows. He
coming or built, created from technology that is also
remains cautiously optimistic.
continuing to evolve and move forward, which still allows there to be this life force of the future within the music.
DISCO_POGO_137
“I think techno music as an ideology, I don’t think it showed us anything new, it kind of reminded us of this need to be able to find yourself or find out what life could be about. Techno is pretty much a romantic way of thinking about the future.” JEFF MILLS
“This type of thinking was there before techno,” says the
“You can begin to see signs of it now. I mean, we’re in the
man whose 1997 techno call-to-arms, ‘The Bells’ has now
2020s. It’s reflective of 100 years ago, in the early 1920s,
sold north of half-a-million copies. “The more recognisable
after the plague, after the war, people were questioning the
elements of what people would say techno is all about, were
world and questioning themselves and it began to show up
already there long before Juan (Atkins) came around. When
in art and began to show up in music and began to show up
Kraftwerk came around, it was there. And so, if anything,
in our landscapes. You can kind of see the same thing
techno was a reinforcement of a certain type of ideology
happening now. Even all the negativity that you see, it was
that probably started and was more prevalent in the 1930s.
the same thing 100 years ago. And so I think techno music as
This idea of thinking free with art and Surrealism and
an ideology, I don’t think it showed us anything new, it kind
Dadaism, and in the Futurist Manifesto, and embracing
of reminded us of this need to be able to find yourself or
technology, the electric light and all this stuff. It was a
find out what life could be about. Techno is pretty much a
systematic reinforcement every 30 years; and then the 1960s.
romantic way of thinking about the future.”
Humans seem to go through this self-reflective realisation and they react to it. So 1930s, 1960s, 1990s.” (A theme explored on 1994’s eighth Axis release, ‘Cycle 30’). 138_DISCO_POGO
Free To Do What We Want To Do Rave’s free party movement reached its zenith 30 years ago, when the likes of the DiY and Spiral Tribe sound systems were shepherded onto six square miles of common land in Worcestershire. Over 30,000 revellers eventually decamped upon Castlemorton, creating a town “ready to party”. As a new memoir from DiY founder member Harry Harrison and documentary reveal, however, it wasn’t just about hedonistic seven-day benders. DiY associate Tim Wilderspin remembers more idealistic times… When Harry Harrison set foot in Nottingham’s Garage club
Incredibly tall, in contrast to Pete who would become his DJ
in 1989 for his 23rd birthday, he was effectively boarding a
partner, he was also there to study. A lover of hip hop and
runaway train – a train that would constantly threaten to
flamboyant dancing, “he was like the rhythm section of DiY,”
derail, had nothing to eat in the buffet car and certainly no
Harry surmises. Rick also had the ability to fall asleep on his
quiet carriage. For this was the first of countless nights the
feet, like a horse, and skin-up whilst unconscious.
infamous DiY Sound System would promote over the course of three decades of dance, drugs and dissent.
They were soon discovering the joys of ecstasy and house, via Graeme Park at The Garage, and moved in together in
Once dubbed ‘The most dangerous people in Britain’, the
early 1990. Amorphous plans were fermented over late-
core figures of this collective were Harry, Pete Woosh, Rick
night discussions wreathed in smoke, when one night a
Down and Simon DK. And, actually, they were among the
friend of a friend knocked at the door to sell them some
loveliest people one could ever meet (I know, having been
speed. It was Simon DK. This quietly charming ex-punk
involved as a DJ/producer from early on), but they wanted
would go on to be “The Keith Richards of British house and
to smash the state, using ‘fun’ as a weapon: extreme fun.
DJ of the month in i-D, The Face and DJ mag,” yet he had, as
Their genesis can be traced to Bolton in the early 80s, where teenagers Harry and Pete bonded over a love of Factory Records and anarchist literature. “Small in stature
Harry further writes: “No interest in wealth or status… and a pathological ability to fuck up.” Prompted to do it themselves for Harry’s 23rd after
but great of heart” Pete played “music from genres I didn’t
attending some disappointing, pricey raves, DiY embarked on
even know existed,” according to Harry in his eye-popping
a succession of chaotic squat parties. But it was their love of
new memoir ‘Dreaming in Yellow’, an account of the DiY
the odd bucolic bender at the free festivals that led to the
Sound System.
moment, at Glastonbury 1990, when a great coming together
Ending up in Nottingham, where Harry became a student, they met another kindred spirit in Rick Down from Stockport.
occurred that would characterise an entirely new movement. Arriving at the ramshackle free field with nothing but decks, Harry writes of bumping into Jack, a DJ they’d
140_DISCO_POGO
recently enjoyed at a Nottinghamshire house party. He was
From l-r: Harry’s ex-partner Barbara, Harry, Simon DK, Pete Woosh and passing friend. Photo: Casey Orr
to become one of the crew’s most popular DJs and, crucially,
reticent, but the younger ones, calling themselves The Free
act as the bridge between the travellers and ravers.
Party People, rushed at it headlong.
“Jack excitedly informed us that some travellers he
Soon, other sound systems began to get involved, most
knew had set up a marquee. They had a sound system, he
notably Spiral Tribe, who’d done a few squat parties in
had records … but did we know anyone with decks? Well,
their native London. Their chief instigator was Mark
funnily enough…”
Angelo, who tells of their epiphany with the travellers and
DiY strode into that marquee and, according to Harry: “Our world would never be the same again.” Beautifully elucidated in the book, a mythical weekend
DiY at Longstock (a site where travellers had been forced to celebrate the Solstice in June 1991, instead of Stonehenge); but he also talks of witnessing, in microcosm,
ensued: travellers grooved with clubbers, a goggle-eyed Bez
the forces they would come up against later, on a grand
communed with a horse; the KLF’s Jimmy Cauty also
scale at Castlemorton.
appeared with a demo, ensuring future top five single ‘What
“There were a load of little kids, all naked, playing in these
Time is Love?’ was given its first public airing. DiY, however,
big muddy puddles and just loving it,” he recalls, “and these
weren’t the only Petri dish for this social experiment.
cops, including the chief, were just standing there, arms
Wandering about, Harry discovered a young DJ Harvey
crossed with sneers on their faces, just calling to these kids
spinning for Tonka – the first house sound system in
and their mothers about how disgusting and filthy
existence – creating similar scenes in another marquee.
everything was, and it was just utterly shocking that they
From this point, a brand new culture emerged. The
were stooping to such low levels to reinforce that sense of
travellers got a taste for house and ecstasy and began to invite urban ravers onto their sites to play, often for days on
authority – over this really playful, joyful scene.” It wasn’t just the travellers’ lifestyle the police and public
end. These became known as free parties, due to the
didn’t understand, they could never get their heads around
completely voluntary nature of everyone’s contribution. The
the concept of a free party: that anyone on Earth was free
older travellers, perhaps recalling the extreme police violence at 1985’s Battle of the Beanfield, were initially
DISCO_POGO_141
Alan Lodge
Alan Lodge
Clockwise from left: First event as ‘DiY’, November 1989; Harry at the Criminal Justice Bill Demo, London 1994; Ravers and travellers united at Castlemorton; early DiY publicity photo, 1991; Full DiY rig, Plumpton party 1992.
142_DISCO_POGO
Alan Lodge
David Bowen
“We never really knew what that mission was, but we just knew what it wasn’t. I think we would’ve died for it at one point. We would’ve laid down our lives for what we were trying to do.”
Clockwise from above: DJ Digs, Reclaim the Streets; Still smiling, packing up early party; Chipping Sodbury, Avon Free Festival 1991; Simon DK, Damien, Jack, early acid house party.
DISCO_POGO_143
to attend and, unprecedented in youth culture, no one was
Indeed he was. Whether playing in the crazed cauldron of
in charge or profiting from it, contrary to the very fabric of
Bounce or the bracing wilds of a hillside, he never failed to
capitalism.
deliver a throbbing revelation of what music could do to your
For charismatic motormouth Harry, this was the least of it: “To me, the most fascinating thing is that ecstasy and house music arrived at the same time. The coincidence is
body and soul. Well, except when he was being held up by two people and trying to play a slipmat, but that was rare. By 1992, what had been a curious, eccentric aberration of
just extraordinary. It’s almost like it was planned and that
dance culture was now turning into an essential lifestyle
there is a God and there’s a God of pleasure. They both
choice for the savvy, young gadabout. DiY and Spiral Tribe
combined so beautifully.”
were seeing numbers rocket at their parties, and they were
Alongside Harry’s book, a film ‘Free Party: A Folk History’ is currently in production that will try to evoke the thrilling
soon doing them every weekend, including holding them in quarries and disused airbases.
culture that was exploding back in the early-90s. For film-maker Aaron Trinder, it was the extreme cross-
Ever since the 1990 Entertainments Act which penalised
pollination of diverse social groups that was so startling.
anyone found guilty of organising an illegal rave with a fine
“I remember standing next to a Yardie,” he says, “with gold
of £20,000, it had been a game of cat and mouse involving
teeth, speaking patois, and both of us seemingly best mates
last-minute announcements on pirate stations or
for the ten minutes we were chatting, next to a crusty with
answerphones. As the scene escalated, the battle between
a dog, next to a Hooray Henry with a comb over. This
the scowling state and the beaming bacchanals would take
amazing combination of people who would usually hate
some nasty turns.
each other before; and perhaps since. And I think when you
“We were relentless,” Harry states. “We were on a mission.
get all those people together in the same space, it felt quite
We never really knew what that mission was, but we just
alarming to the status quo.”
knew what it wasn’t. I think we would’ve died for it at one
Previous music revolutions were generally soundtracked by one type of sound. Not so here. Spiral Tribe and DiY couldn’t have been more dissimilar. The Spirals, along with
point. We would’ve laid down our lives for what we were trying to do.” Prevented from accessing a site at Moreton Lighthouse on
many others, favoured a quick-fire breakbeat sound,
the Wirral in July 1991, DiY took the snap decision to ram a
incorporating techno and hardcore elements.
line of police Land Rovers and a policeman was run over.
“It was heralding new possibilities,” Angelo enthuses. “It
When the full riot squad turned up, countless locals, scallies
was as if it was an alien language, coming from some
and gangsters emerged from a nearby housing estate in a
distant, unknown future and sort of beckoning people
surprising show of support for the party interlopers.
towards that.”
Incredibly, the party went ahead. There then ensued what
By contrast, DiY’s sound was more submerged in Black
Harry’s describes in the book as: “The single most infamous,
American club music. “We were house purists,” Harry states.
lawless and deranged event that DiY were involved in, which
“From 91/92 the music went everywhere… drum’n’bass,
is quite a claim.”
techno. We just stood our ground really. That’s where the magic lay.” By 1991, DiY had their own huge, purpose-built sound
It wasn’t just the police that could ruin things. Hardened criminals would ramp up the instability by marching in and attempting to rob, selling dud pills or raiding a contribution
system and were running their highly successful Bounce
bucket for the generator. Harry recalls a lot of enmity
club nights to help fund the free parties. However, in a
between the gangsters and travellers at Moreton Lighthouse.
typical display of either anarchism or downright flakiness,
Spiral Tribe developed a neat trick to offset this: “When
they had such huge guestlists they were tossing all the big
we were fluffy and colourful, we had more robberies and
bucks away.
guns on the dancefloor,” Angelo says. “So we just painted
“People were always saying we could make more money,”
everything black: the buses, the trucks. We shaved all
Harry laughs. (It was like) We know that! We’re not trying to
our heads and wore black, and the next weekend the
make money; we’re trying to change the fucking world.” By
same wannabe-gangsters were down but were too busy
dint of a no-nonsense desire for action and lack of aptitude
dancing and having fun to cause any trouble.” He laughs:
for DJing, Harry had naturally become DiY’s central
“They liked it more. It was a facade and it worked. That
organiser.
was our shield.”
As Digs and Woosh, Rick and Pete were connoisseurs of
As what would become Castlemorton approached, Spiral
eclecticism at their Serve Chilled nights, and other DJs were
Tribe were left in little doubt about what the police were
beginning to feature in the collective like Jack, Emma, Pezz
capable of. On Easter Monday 1992, at the end of a three-day
and Pip; but DiY’s signature sound was truly helmed by the
party in an Acton warehouse, massed ranks of riot police
figurehead DJ, Simon DK.
outside began kicking and using batons on late arrivals.
“American house was all he bought,” Harry gleefully
“They’d all come in, covered in blood, screaming, into this
remembers, “He knew fuck all about hip hop, he knew
party with a thousand people in there,” recalls Angelo. “And
nothing about soul, funk or disco. He just became obsessed
this went on for two-and-a-half hours. Finally, they came
with this slice of music. And because he was just so utterly
through the walls, smashed them down, there was water
stuck to his groove a lot of people say he was the greatest
flooding everywhere. It was absolutely brutal; they were just
DJ they ever heard.”
beating everyone to the ground. They smashed all our equipment - everything - smashed the decks, kicked in all
144_DISCO_POGO
the speakers.”
So it was that, about a month later, Spiral Tribe found
The outraged tabloids bewailed supposed excrement and
themselves effectively limping onto the site of what would
rubbish everywhere, though Harry notes: “The atmosphere
become the largest illegal rave in history, battered and
was less of a drug-crazed dystopia and more of a village
bruised and sonically depleted.
fête – some kind of English Shangri-La.”
“It’s complete bullshit that we were the loudest at
Angelo laughs recalling watching footage from the police
Castlemorton. It’s a secret,” he laughs, “but we were the
helicopter in the subsequent court trial. “Everywhere it
worst! Bass bins were flapping, it wasn’t good.”
showed was absolutely spotless! Zooming in on people
Much has been written about Castlemorton and ‘Dreaming in Yellow’ covers it with aplomb. What’s clear is that this six square miles of common land in Worcestershire
picking up dog-ends and putting them into plastic bags, everywhere was just clean!” Spiral Tribe’s unrelenting stamina had meant they were
was where the wave finally broke. The alliance between
the last to leave. The police finally swooped, and 13 members
rustic travellers and urban ravers would reach its colossal
were arrested.
apex. Upwards of 30,000 people poured into the valley below
Lasting ten weeks and costing £4 million, the court case
the Malvern Hills to dance and carouse for a week, having
demands a book of its own. It involved breasts being bared
been shunted around county lines by police eager to stop
in the courtroom and, according to Angelo, a senior police
the Avon Free Festival.
officer going turncoat against the government who wanted
“I remember standing next to a Yardie with gold teeth, speaking patois, and both of us seemingly best mates for the ten minutes we were chatting, next to a crusty with a dog, next to a Hooray Henry with a comb over.” From around 3:30pm on Friday 22nd May, when the first
to demonise Spiral Tribe in order to push through the
travellers were being reported by locals, a vast swarm of
oppressive legislation they were already preparing. The
vehicles roared in from all sides. By 6 o’clock it was on the
policeman in question, Superintendent Clift, had funnelled
national news, with the police urging young people to stay
the “36-mile convoy” onto the common that day “for
away. Which, naturally, had the opposite effect.
humanitarian reasons” and didn’t want to be an instrument
Alongside around eight other rigs, including Circus
of the state. Despite his unforeseen transition into star
Normal, Bedlam and Adrenalin, DiY and Spiral Tribe
witness for the defence, the judge and prosecutor still didn’t
assembled their gear with the quicksilver panache of an
expect the outcome.
elite squad. “‘As far as the eye could see, a town was being assembled,” Harry writes in his book. “A town unlike any other, a town with sound systems instead of monuments, a town almost exclusively under 30 years old, a town ready to party.” The helpless police were criticised for adopting a policy of containment. Some have theorised they did it deliberately,
“When the jury said: ‘Not guilty’, the judge went deathly white… and the prosecutor went throbbing purple!” Angelo cracks up. ”He was banging the desk like he couldn’t believe it.” As we now know, despite large-scale protests, it didn’t stop the Criminal Justice and Public Order Act coming in two years later, essentially criminalising the free party lifestyle.
to affect a watershed moment in the hope the government
“Yeah, it was beautiful house music, but we were trying to
would give them more draconian powers to stamp out this
smash the state.” Harry insists. “We were trying to confound
culture irrevocably.
opinions about everything. We were trying to usher in a new
Musically, DiY were rapidly converting fresh disciples as folk wandered passed their pristine rig. They ploughed their
fucking consciousness and destroy barriers.” Spiral Tribe decamped to spread the free party ethos to
unique deep house furrow, with its spacious, more soulful
Europe, creating their large-scale Teknival events and
grooves, but also took things downtempo on the sun-
making records. DiY kept doing small free parties, largely
soaked afternoons, playing hip hop, soul, funk and even
undisturbed in Derbyshire. They also took their brand of
John Coltrane.
‘liberation through fun’ to San Francisco, Dallas, France and
As Harry records: “Our music at Castlemorton was probably the most effective PR we ever did. Many, many
Holland, and had over 80 releases through their label. For the central figures, the profound exhaustion of
people have told us since that musically we saved their lives.
partying nearly every night for years took its toll, with
They came to our tent and never left.”
addictions and rehabs a-plenty. Today, brimming with life
At one point, a new-born baby was brought out, so Jack
and razor wit, Harry is the consummate survivor. A drugs
played ‘We Are Family’ by Sister Sledge. People held hands
worker in Wales and, as his book so eruditely testifies, a
and some cried.
gifted writer. Simon DK is also in Wales but veiled in mist:
“It was just golden.” Harry recalls. “It wasn’t really DiY crew anymore, it was a mass, huge generation really.”
DISCO_POGO_145
“We just painted everything black: the buses, the trucks. We shaved all our heads and wore black, and the next weekend the same wannabe-gangsters were down but were too busy dancing and having fun to cause any trouble.”
146_DISCO_POGO
Alan Lodge
Clockwise from left: Castlemorton at dawn; Simon DK, New Year’s Eve near Bath 1992; DK in the Dolly, DiY Free Party, location unknown; Scoraig party boat, Solstice 1993.
Tony Davis
Alan Lodge
Alan Lodge
Clockwise from right: Full DiY crew at The EndUp club, San Francisco 1993; Castlemorton; Castlemorton; Swimming Pool Ibiza 1994;
DISCO_POGO_147
Alan Lodge
David Bowen
Above: Castlemorton: DiY Marquee. Right: DJ Emma
absent from any DiY events for several years now and with
As far as I’m concerned, Pete was one of the most
zero social media profile, he seems to have become a
inspirational and original thinkers I’ve ever met. And when I
recluse. Rick/Digs, the ‘ace face’ of DiY and never one to be
reflect on the sheer number of people who had
thwarted by a boundary, has transitioned into Grace Sands.
transformative experiences to his DJing over many years, I
Living in London, her DJ career is in rude health, as a regular
think it’s not much of a stretch to see him as a sort of
at Adonis and Block 9.
shamanic folk hero.
At DiY’s 30th celebrations in 2019, events at the licensed
Harry’s book richly evokes the bumpy ride of those
venues spilled over into a full-blown, impromptu free party
volatile times and Aaron Trinder’s ground-breaking film is
on the Forest Recreation Ground, right in the centre of
equally set to be a triumph. But there’s a gaping hole at the
Nottingham. Incredibly, it went undisturbed, so much so
centre of all these histories you can’t easily explain to future
that by 6:30am, even Harry was thinking of ringing the
generations. And that is how powerful and unique the
police so he could get some sleep.
pleasure was. During lockdown, I dreamt I was back dancing
A year later, people lined up at the same spot to pay their
in the wilds, bodies in motion, spirits soaring, smiles flashing
respects to Pete Woosh. Diagnosed with cancer in 2015, he
freely between strangers and friends. A divine sense of
had taken a typically unorthodox approach to his
belonging, in a storm of pure chaos.
treatment, solely using natural remedies. He also reinvented
On waking, I realised I’d forgotten - because it’s easy to
himself as ‘The Peaceful Ones’ and began to play
forget - that dancing in tribal communion with others is
immaculate, pan-genre sets and release an enormous
better than any art, any painting or sculpture. It’s better
amount of music on his Spirit Wrestlers label.
than any song, album, book or film you may languish in. It feels like the pinnacle of living. But you forget. You forget
148_DISCO_POGO
the pleasure… the pleasure.
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GILLES
PETERSON Photos: Matilda Hill-Jenkins DISCO_POGO_151
“I’ve Always Been Like This”
Gilles Peterson has a lot of history. He is behind the decks in the Brownswood Basement, where he’s been variously living, recording and hosting musical royalty for nearly three decades. He’s broadcasting his weekly show for Worldwide FM, the station he founded in 2017, and his guest is another man who has been around the block a few times: Ashley Beedle of Black Science Orchestra and X-Press 2 fame. They’re reminiscing about shared dancefloors, specifically
the Monday night Bar Rumba days between 1993 and 2005
Gilles Peterson is
when Peterson ran That’s How It Is with James Lavelle. It
still living the dream.
came together, and where seemingly disparate songs like
Now in his fifth decade
Work’s ‘The Nervous Track’ could be big tunes. They laugh
in the music business –
up early so that they could tumble out of one basement and
in which time he has
was a place, says Peterson, where all the different scenes Josh Wink’s ‘Higher States of Consciousness’ and Masters At about the record shop round the corner which would open into another one. Neither can remember what it was called. The conversation moves on to an even earlier shared dancefloor, at a night Peterson ran with Chris Bangs at the
helped reshape British
Cock Tavern in Smithfield Market around 1988 and which
music culture thanks
and free jazz, with one strobe. It’s where, says Peterson
to his tireless championing of new artists – he remains fully focussed on what comes next. Not even losing his laptop can
moved to Lauderdale House in Highgate, playing acid house off-mic: “the jazz scene started doing Es”. It’s not all olden days jibber jabber, though, as evidenced by a spin of the Black Science Orchestra mix of Emma-Jean Thackray’s ‘Venus’, which Ashley Beedle has transformed into a certified dancefloor banger, and a discussion about Peterson going to see new Brownswood signing Secret Night Gang later that evening at Ally Pally, where they’re supporting Khruangbin. After the show, Peterson drops his wiry frame into a chair and exhales. I should say at this point that I also have a show on Worldwide FM, and therefore understand at least something about the concentration required to do radio. It
derail him. “There’s
uses up a lot of energy and he’s briefly in the Gilles Peterson
just so much new stuff
Peterson, a man who buzzes harder than a buzzing fly, it
constantly coming that
version of a zoned-out micro-slump. But this being Gilles doesn’t last long. It’s going to be a big year, he says, describing new Brownswood releases from South African vocalist Sibusile
I don’t have to live
Xaba (“very International Anthem, like Irreversible
off the old stuff,”
unannounced Yussef Dayes album, more music from Daymé
he tells Emma Warren…
will appear in the US via Chicago’s aforementioned
Entanglements done electronically”), an as-yetArocena, and Tom Skinner’s ‘Voices of Bishara’ album which International Anthem. DISCO_POGO_153
In addition there’s an album with Herbie Hancock’s
who adds that more than half of 6 Music’s most listened to
guitarist Lionel Loueke – unannounced, ‘til now – which
‘on demand’ shows each year are regularly Gilles Peterson
began life as DJ edits that Peterson made with friend and
programmes, with the rest usually specials relating to
producer Alex Patchwork. There are gigs lined up for
gargantuan figures like Bowie.
STR4TA, his brit funk collaboration with Bluey, not to
Peterson’s Club Lockdown shows during the pandemic in
mention his connection to a limited edition, under-the-
2021 broke previous records for listen again on the station.
radar, post punk-styled release.
Further back, of course, there are myriad pirate radio
The unending workload and abundant enthusiasm explains, at least partly, why he’s such an authoritative person in UK music. In terms of broadcast influence, he’s the
histories, where he learned from the brilliant selectors, presenters and promoters he played alongside. While he might not run clubs anymore (“I just run festivals
closest thing the 90s generation have to John Peel,
now,” he deadpans, citing the annual We Out Here in
especially since the departure of the differently Peel-ish
Cambridge and Worldwide Festival at Sète, France), he has
Andrew Weatherall. Peterson might not yet have the
put in the hours over the years. There were the late-80s
National Treasure status that Peel rightly earned over his
Cock Happy nights he was discussing with Ashley Beedle,
lifetime but he’s certainly in the same realms.
and the aforementioned That’s How It Is, as well as Talking
He’s probably the UK broadcaster with the longest-
Loud and Saying Something, more generally known as
standing connections to American hip hop, particularly the
Dingwalls, which he ran on Sundays with Patrick Forge
soulful strands that developed out of rap’s margins.
between 1986 and 1991 – and which recently returned with
“Anderson .Paak, I brought him over for his first London trip
regular and joyful-looking one-offs.
for the Worldwide Awards where he did a legendary duet
He also ran Tea-Time on monthly-ish Sundays in Paris for
with Little Simz,” he tells me later, in a quick phone call while
five or six years (“Body & Soul-style, 3pm to midnight”) at La
he’s walking to the train station. “People forget. Sa Ra
Bellevilloise, a building which once hosted the French
Creative Partners and Jay Electronica coming to the UK.
capital’s first workers’ co-operative. And of course there
Robert Glasper’s first show in the UK and Kamasi
were, in the recent pre-pandemic times, regular slots in
Washington’s first in France… I gave FlyLo his first producer
Japan, and the US.
fee in a brown envelope in Old Street for his track on
Gilles Peterson’s background is well known to music
‘Brownswood Bubblers Volume 1’. The Roots, we had them in
lovers, especially those in the UK, France and in the US, but it
and out of the office for the year when they lived in Kentish
is still worth recapping the label side of his musical life.
Town. Madlib. Dilla.”
First, there was Acid Jazz, which he set up in 1987 to release
The index to Dan Charnas’ brilliant new book ‘Dilla Time’
his long-time friend and co-conspirator Rob Gallagher’s first
lists Gilles Peterson six times, in sections that describe his
Galliano record. He left Acid Jazz to set up Talkin’ Loud in
early support of the music and which draw from interviews
1990, with Norman Jay coming onboard to run his own side
he broadcast. Ross Allen appears too, hiring the artist then
imprint and to support with A&R, leaving four years later.
known as Jay Dee to remix Spacek’s ‘Eve’ and interviewing
The label released heavily influential records by Young
him on his NTS show in 2001. DJ and BBE label boss Peter
Disciples, Omar, Nicolette, 4Hero and Reprazent not to
Adarkwah is a more embedded part of the story, but then
mention MAW’s Nuyorican Soul album and Carl Craig’s
he’s the person that invested in Dilla as a solo artist, signing
Innerzone Orchestra. Plenty of influential people passed
him back in 1999 and releasing ‘Welcome 2 Detroit’ two
through – DJ Paulette was the press officer for a while
years later. Westwood appears once, in a somewhat
– and like all endeavours that might superficially appear
disparaging footnote, the interview being ‘somewhat less
like solo missions, it was the fruit of multiple labours, with
revelatory on the music side and more about James (Dilla)
hard-working music heads making all of it a reality behind
and his crew’s porn film preferences’.
the scenes.
Peterson’s music-first connections with various
In 2006, he started Brownswood Recordings with a new
generations of American artists have created strong
team, who help make Gilles’ current visions a reality. People
relationships, he says. He pauses and grins. “Americans are
forget about the ‘Brownswood Electric’ compilations, he
super grateful, then they become massive and don’t answer
says, which scooped up early releases from the likes of Joy
your call,” he says, clarifying that he means hip hop
Orbison and Koreless. The Brownswood Bubblers series ran
performers, not the DJ world. “I’m there for the bit on the
from 2006 to 2018 and included early or first releases from a
way up and the bit on the way down, although now I’ve got
long list of high-flyers a handful of which include Flying
good numbers on social media they stay with me while
Lotus, Bullion, The Invisible, Floating Points, Ghostpoet, Zara
they’re up too.” At the time of writing these ‘good numbers’
McFarlane, Hiatus Kyote, Dean Blunt, Emma-Jean Thackray
see him sitting at 197k on Instagram.
and Wu-Lu.
It is Gilles Peterson’s deep involvement in multiple aspects
Manchester’s Secret Night Gang, south London keyboard
of UK music culture that cement his importance. Firstly,
player DoomCannon and the ongoing Future Bubblers artist
there’s the radio. His award-winning BBC shows (1998-2011
mentoring programme. In short, there’s been a lot of bubbling.
The philosophy remains with recent signings including
on Radio 1 and 2012 to the current day on 6 Music) have been
Curation has become more difficult with so much music
among the broadcasters ‘most listened to’ specialist shows
being released, he says. “It’s much more difficult to be
for years, according to his former producer Jesse Howard,
precise, to really be on top of everything from Amapiano to some new thing coming out of Belgium.” There’s a
154_DISCO_POGO
difference, he says, between thinking something is good and
“I’m there for the bit on the way up and the bit on the way down, although now I’ve got good numbers on social media they stay with me while they’re up too.”
having experienced it. “You can’t just throw things together
I connect people, and I like it. A lot of DJs are socially inept,
from what people are telling you, you’ve got to experience it
or they were insecure socially at one stage – I certainly was
and live it. Even when I was DJing a lot, I would still find time
– so that’s probably why I enjoyed the DJ role, ‘cause you
to go clubbing.” On a personal note I recall bumping into him
could be in it but not be in it.” Just before the pandemic he
in various niche places where I didn’t see many music
tried to get into meditation. “People were like: ‘Gilles…’
industry people (a DMZ in the mid-late 2000s or at one of
Maybe I was being more volatile mood-wise than I had been
Alabaster dePlume’s Peach events around 2017) and I won’t
and people were saying this would be good for me.” He
have been the only one having this experience. “I was DJing
pauses. “I don’t think I suffer from ADHD,” he says, “but some
every weekend. I was super busy but I made sure, because
people might say I do.”
[going out] is part of it.” In order to keep going out, he had to make a few decisions.
It’s funny, loads of people are currently seeking an ADHD diagnosis, but not Gilles. “Evidently, people think I’m quite
“You get to a point where you have to see how you’re going
hyper, but I’ve always been like this. I think life’s interesting
to navigate the next 20 years, so you can be a good parent
that way. I think you get to a stage where it’s dangerous to
and get your shit together. We can see the damage it’s done,
do things that aren’t good for you. We all want to sleep
the lifestyle. I didn’t want to be a victim of that. I probably
better, eat better, rest better, exercise. If then I’m still nuts…
am – I am certainly a victim of all that – but there was a
[trails off]. Before self-analysing myself I wanted to get
moment when I was going to France a lot and there was a
myself in order.”
decision in my head: are you going to go down the Serge Gainsbourg route?” He knew loads of what he describes as “out of shape
There’s an intergenerational aspect to Peterson which is an important part of his success, and his ability to remain interesting and relevant. Partly this is to do with the long
chain-smoking savants”, which he admits had a certain
view that comes with decades being immersed in a rich
charm. “I thought fuck it, I’ll keep being that bloke. Or, I’ll
musical universe. His interviewees and the artists whose
have to get my shit together. A lot of the people who were
music he shares give him an extended perspective, into that
that person aren’t here anymore.”
of people born in the 1920s like Marshall Allen, and into the
“I think a lot of people who are addicts of some sort or another, we have to make sure we go for the more wholesome addictions in life. For me, certainly, since my late-30s, running was my saving grace.” Having said that, he says, there are always exceptions.
generation born in the late 1990s and early 2000s, like
Like 95-year-old Marshall Allen, who played with Sun Ra and
Londoners Muva of Earth or Jelly Cleaver, who recently
now leads the Arkestra, and who he brought to the
featured on his shows.
Worldwide Awards that he’s been running as a live event
He tells a story about Warp and Rephlex artist Leila Arab.
since 2004. “After soundcheck he’s smoking away, looking
“She’s a friend of mine but she’s maybe eight years younger
for some Courvoisier. He’s 95. He was in the Second World
than me,” he says. “I’d been doing Talkin’ Loud, I remember
War. It’s different strokes for different folks, isn’t it?”
going to her house. I’m probably 29 at the time. She was
Part of the way he manages things is by running between
saying to me: ‘You old cunt, you’re fucking out of touch, I
eight and thirteen miles weekly, as well as swimming
don’t want to sign to you because you don’t know what’s
regularly. He’s done marathons in London and New York,
going on in Sheffield or whatever, you’re just in your thing’. It
DJing after one in a fundraiser for the Steve Reid Foundation
really hit me hard. She really meant it. That’s how she is,
where he agreed to play for the same duration as his run
super brutal and straight-forward, but it was good for me
(4hrs, 17mins) and where he was joined by Louis Vega and
because it made me realise, even though I was under 30,
François Kevorkian.
that it’s a young person’s game, the music industry. It
More recently he got into bikes. “I became one of those
struck a chord with me deep down, to look at what was
wankers in lycra, joined a gang of blokes who’d ride to Essex
coming next. Fortunately for me, as a DJ, that’s a great way
from east London on a Sunday morning. They were quite
to maintain a connection with people.”
good, going down blind hills, and I was like: ‘Mate, I’m too old
The intergenerational aspect might seem obvious now,
to be falling off’.” Now he’s into “the trails thing” and is
but it wasn’t when he started. Until at least the early-2000s
aiming to do the Trail du Mont Blanc, which involves running
many aspects of British youth culture still revolved around
160km over six days. Constant motion remains an important
sticking up two fingers at family, or at what had come before.
part of his life. “I think a lot of people who are addicts of
Diaspora communities with a more respectful attitude to
some sort or another, we have to make sure we go for the
elders have changed this. Peterson was born in Normandy
more wholesome addictions in life,” he says. “For me,
to a Swiss parent and a French parent and therefore came
certainly, since my late-30s, running was my saving grace.”
with a culturally specific perspective of his own.
Is it a counterbalance to the intensely social part of music culture? “Yes. I’m regarded as someone who’s very social.
DISCO_POGO_157
“It’s true,” he says. “Someone like Leila I related to, she’s
the table and next thing I’m interviewing him. Then I’m like:
Iranian, it’s a strong family unit. I grew up around
‘Fucking hell, I’m on in half-an-hour’.” His attempts to
Lebanese and French. Family was important. I remember
scarper up the road were foiled by the fact that his laptop
being a bit surprised by my friends and how little they
had disappeared from the hotel table, along with the USB
visited their parents.”
containing all his music.
His parents returned to continental Europe along with his
“There’s 1,500 people and they’ve not been out for two
older siblings when he was in his late teens. “The only reason
years, because it’s a certain demographic,” he says. “They’re
I stayed was because I had two decks and I could just about
really excited. It’s Friday night. Rich Medina’s on, he finishes
make it work, so it was fine by me. Before I knew it, they’d
his set with ‘Southern Freez’ and he does the big
gone.” Having parents abroad meant that he absorbed radio
introduction. I’m in pieces.” He played 90 minutes with
from elsewhere. “I’d go to France a lot. I was very inspired by
Norman Connors records and a small pile of vinyl he
Radio Libre. My main influences were Radio Nova in Paris,
happened to have with him. “I was so stressed out,” he says.
pirate radio, and the specialist shows you’d have in the UK.
“Then I saw Rainer Trüby, and I said: ‘Got a cigarette?’ I
That helped me find my sound.”
hadn’t smoked for two years. That’s how bad it was.”
Radio was there right at the start of Gilles Peterson’s
In case you’re wondering, his laptop wasn’t backed up. “I
musical excursions. He got his first decks aged 15 and within
hate the cloud. It sucks up your music then the quality of file
a few years teamed up with his next door neighbour, Ross.
is shit, so you end up with crap files. I switch all that off.”
They gave themselves radio names, meaning that Ross
Lockdown meant he’d got out of the habit of regularly
Tinsely became Ross Travone and Gilles Moehrle (his first
backing up his files, which meant he lost everything
name pronounced the French way, to rhyme with ‘heel’)
including “all the new albums I’ve been doing”. He’s breezy
became Gilles Peterson. They’d record 45 minutes each onto
about it, though. “It’s a whole new start. Musically, there’s
cassette, and then Mr Moehrle Senior would drive the pair to
just so much new stuff constantly coming that I don’t have
the uplands of Epson Downs.
to live off the old stuff.”
“I bought a transmitter from a local engineer bloke who did
His recent Boiler Room set at Sounds of the Universe as
pirate rigs,” says Peterson, explaining that they’d put the
part of Technics’ 50th birthday is an example of not living
aerial up a tree, connect it to the transmitter, connect that to
off the old stuff, and is also a lens through which to see
a car battery and to the cassette player, and press play. They
some of the complications that surround his work. His son
called it Civic Radio and the Civic Radio phone line led to the
had pointed out that the set had got a lot of views (at that
phone box by the nearest pub. “My dad would drive up, help us
point, 20,000; currently tripled) and that it had attracted
with all of that shenanigans, and we’d get a phone call in the
some opinion. The vast majority of the 130-plus comments
phone box. One phone call. But that was enough, right?”
are various iterations of ‘we love you, Gilles’, but the first
Civic acted as a calling card to get shows on established pirates including Solar and Horizon before joining pirateera Kiss FM, making it the Year Zero of Peterson as an
three were negative, including one which stated: ‘This guy is one horrid ego-maniac’ and this was the comment he saw. He mimes deflation. “I’ve got such an amazingly blessed
internationally-renowned champion of new music. It also
life. I wake up, I’m excited. [But] I’m aware that people have
gave him his first experience of being busted.
had a shit time of late. You read that comment and you
“Other pirate firms would want to know where the signal came from,” he says. “I was busted by Jeremy Vine of Radio 2. I bumped into him in the lift at the BBC a few years ago.
think: ‘Fucking hell, I shouldn’t be doing Boiler Room’. I’m finding it difficult to navigate in some ways.” Navigating music culture has changed since George
He goes: ‘Gilles Peterson? I know you, I busted you in 1982 or
Floyd’s murder. The global response to this particular
whatever’.” It turns out that Jeremy Vine had a little pirate
incident necessitated an update of awareness and actions
set-up himself. “It was a bit of fun,” he explains. “It’s what
in relation to what academic Reebee Garofolo called ‘Black
people did, back in the time of CB Radios. They’d track you
roots, white fruits’. The ‘Lockdown FM’ book that Gilles
and go: ‘hello! caught you!’. What you didn’t want was to get
published last year reflects something of his individual
tracked down by the DTI.” He pauses. “We’re doing history
response and that of his station, Worldwide FM.
here, aren’t we?”
A chapter begins with text on a black square in reference to the Blackout Tuesday online protest and features
It’s hard not to ‘do history’ with Peterson, because as we’ve
photographs by Dobie from the London BLM protests. Gilles
already established, he has a lot of it. A more recent
contributes ‘songs of resistance, protest and freedom’ and
experience involved losing his laptop whilst interviewing
there’s a piece by Talkin’ Loud co-pilot Paul Martin
legendary American drummer Norman Connors at the
describing the unquantifiable benefits that Black music and
Southport Weekender. He’d found the hotel Connors was
culture brought to his ‘white, suburban’ beginnings.
staying at and went to locate him and interview him before heading on site to DJ. “It was like being 17, doing pirate radio. I’d got a bag of my
There’s a transcript of breakfast DJ Erica McKoy’s powerful introduction to her show on June 10, 2020, and on the following page, a piece where she describes having
Norman Connors albums, I went into reception, then I heard
removed herself temporarily from her role on the station: ‘in
American voices down a corridor and he was there, finishing
protest and to remove my presence as a Black person... I
off a hamburger with Dexter Wansel (producer of the jazz
needed the station I love to recognise the voices of their
funk classic ‘Life On Mars’). I put my records and laptop on
Black presenters and DJs and to move even more mindfully than before through topics of Blackness, as music of Black
158_DISCO_POGO
origin is at the heart of the station.’
“I was busted by Jeremy Vine of Radio 2. I bumped into him in the lift at the BBC a few years ago. He goes: ‘Gilles Peterson, I busted you in 1982’... It was a bit of fun. It’s what people did, back in the time of CB Radios”
DISCO_POGO_159
I ask him: How did you, individually, and with the entities you’ve got around you, navigate the Black Lives Matter question? “I went through it, in terms of myself, inside,” he says, before stopping and starting again. “George Floyd was murdered; I was on the radio that weekend and I did a thing then. I didn’t talk about it, I played relevant music. Then the following week, my friend, a Black friend from Brixton who I’ve known for years, called me up. She says: ‘Gilles, well done for doing what you did last weekend, but you need to do more’. I felt like I couldn’t just hide behind playing some tunes. That following Saturday I made a statement over the top of Bukem’s ‘Horizons’ during my opening link. It was explaining who I am, a white guy, we’ve got to make a difference. I was in a conversation.” I pause and he carries on speaking, perhaps aware of the weight of his words and the sensitivities of the subject.
One thing that hasn’t changed is Peterson’s immersion in
“There are Black people who are basically beginning to
music. The Brownswood release of STR4TA’s first album
question what my role is, so I had to respond to it. I was
‘Aspects’ and a follow-up this autumn reunited him with
talking to a lot of people at the time, just to find my place. I
someone who’s been intermittently present throughout the
was suddenly like: ‘Fucking hell, I’ve spent 30 years of my life
decades: Incognito’s Bluey. “He’s the first person who
playing Black music, I’d better give my whole record
accepted an invite to be interviewed when I was running my
collection to SOAS [London’s School of Oriental and African
imaginary pirate radio station in my garden shed,” says
Studies] or whatever’. Those were the sort of thoughts I was
Peterson. “He came all the way down from Tottenham.” They
having. And spending a lot of time talking about it and
connected again when Talkin’ Loud released Incognito
getting criticised.”
albums in the early 1990s.
Some of those conversations circled close to home, which
The idea for STR4TA, though, came from an unexpected
is unsurprising given his proximity to many great British
source: Tyler, The Creator. Peterson read an interview with
artists who experience racism first-hand. He’s known
him, where he said that he ‘owed everything to brit funk’. I
Cleveland Watkiss for decades, including releasing the
thought: ‘Fucking hell, I’d better do that brit funk record
‘Kamikaze’ 12-inch on Talkin’ Loud in 1997. In spring last year,
with Bluey’.” Sometime later, he asked the rapper about it. “I
Gilles posted a question on social media, as presenters
said: ‘Hey, man, I didn’t realise you were into Freez and
often do, to get listeners involved in the radio show. “I said:
Hi-Tension and all that stuff’. He then said: ‘No, I didn’t mean
‘I’ve spent the last 25-30 years trying to find a sentence to
that. I meant Brand New Heavies, Galliano, Jamiroquai. He
describe my show. I need a sentence’.
meant acid jazz; he didn’t mean brit funk – but by then I’d
There was a massive response: ‘eclectic goodness’, loads of stuff. Then Cleveland wrote: ‘It’s Black Music!!!’ Then
done the STR4TA record.” We’re finishing up and we circle back to an earlier
someone screenshot it and it became people questioning
question about what he’s carried with him to this point,
my role. It turned into a thing.” In response, Gilles invited
from these decades deep in music culture. “This is what I
Cleveland Watkiss onto his 6 Music show to extend the
would be doing if I was 17,” he says. “I’m living the dream, still.
conversation outwards. “You can’t in any way avoid the
Seeing Kokoroko at The Fridge where we used to do all our
subject,” he says. “You can’t hide or be quiet. It’s changed
Talkin’ Loud parties back in the day, seeing them capture
everything.” Like the rest of us who benefit from Black music
the essence of Aswad, King Sunny Adé, Soul II Soul, Galliano
without experiencing racism, he doesn’t have all the answers.
– in that room. They were really good. I was like: ‘This is it. This is the band that is so London, they are on another level.’
160_DISCO_POGO
It was the most brilliant full circle.”
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Featuring tears, tantrums and ‘Teenage Kicks’, this is the behind-the-scenes story of John Peel’s unforgettable Fabric mix, as witnessed by the legendary broadcaster’s friend: former Fabric employee and Jockey Slut journalist Nick Doherty. A friend of whom Peel once knowingly enquired: “Are you actually doing anything there or just trying to look cool?” 162_DISCO_POGO
John Peel playing in Fabric’s Room Three in 2002.
I
t’s sometime in August 2002,
Another time, at his 65th Birthday party at Peel Acres – an
and on London’s Holloway Road
occasion when, incidentally, I learned of snake-hipped 80s
four men are huddled into a
footballer Pat Nevin’s love for both Peel and Jockey Slut – he
recording space estate agents
admonished me for asking if he was having a good time: “Of
would call ‘compact and
course I am, it’s my fucking birthday.” (He later told me he
practical’. At his computer, a
found that question condescending from younger people,
studio engineer is encoding vinyl
and I’ve never asked it of anyone older since.)
records to lay into a mix. What
Even Geoff gets chided today. Casually dipping into Peel’s
might normally be a mundane
record box to gawk at THE copy of ‘Teenage Kicks’, the one
and perfunctory task is
with John’s handwritten label and asterisk rating, Peel
enlivened by the man guiding
peers over his shoulder and says, firmly: “Would you kindly
him – Radio 1’s legend-in-his-
put that back?”
own airtime, John Peel. The four of us – John, engineer Elliot,
We break for the day with the tracklist unresolved. As he
Fabric’s record label boss Geoff Muncey and myself – are
leaves the building, I ask John if he’s taking his record box
there to make ‘FABRICLIVE 07’, an early entry in the London
home with him. “It’s OK,” he says. “I trust you.”
club’s CD series that will run for over 15 years. Having provided a longlist of tracks for us to clear, John
After he leaves, Geoff and I agree to go with our preferred order. It makes me feel shit just thinking about how we
gleefully plucks the approved vinyl from his record box – the
defied John. But that’s nothing compared to how I would
box which, years later, will have its very own Channel 4
have felt had anything happened to that record box.
documentary – creating a setlist he’ll come to term “mood-
Especially as – being young and stupid – I inexplicably
demolishing, rather than mood-building.”
choose to take it with me to my DJ gig at the Elbow Rooms
Throughout the day he’s extolled each song’s virtues, being particularly pleased that Joy Division’s ‘Love Will Tear
on Old Street later that night. It’s a completely futile exercise in the end. When I get to
Us Apart’ – a track never licensed to a compilation and
the club the little adaptor on the decks is missing so I can’t
initially refused to Fabric – has been escalated up the chain
even play the old 45s I want to because they don’t have a
of command at Warner Music and received a last-minute
spindle hole. I take it back the next day to finish the mix, the
exception on the basis that it’s for John. Result.
shame and horror of the potential consequences hitting me
But right now, breaking the mood of creative collaboration, there’s a big problem. John has spent the last
hard years later. With the same cloying bravado of a young, idiotic, music
five minutes in floods of tears. This itself isn’t a surprise
industry type, I’d already laid down the start of the mix
– during the last year of getting to know him and will
without John. I’d arrived at the studio a bit before him and
confirm again many times, tears are common-or-garden
used another piece of his favourite vinyl, Peter Jones’ BBC
Peel behaviour and you never know what mundanity will set
radio commentary of Alan Kennedy’s goal against Real
him off next. As he told Jockey Slut that same year: “I’m sure
Madrid in the 1981 European Cup Final, over the top of a
a psychoanalyst would come up with something fantastic.
track I’d heard him play on his show – Asa-Chang & Junray’s
Until I met Sheila I don’t remember ever having cried before.
hypnotic and beautiful ‘Hana’ (I never did find out what the
Since then, I’ve become absolutely terrible. I’m not proud of
two experimental musicians from Tokyo made of that).
it. At times it’s actually very embarrassing.” Today’s trigger is the recording of ‘You’ll Never Walk Alone’
To start the mix for real, I also loaded in the Soledad Brothers’ 12-bar blues number, ‘Bring it On Down’, which I’d
by the Kop Choir – the sound of Anfield, home of his beloved
heard played on his radio show a few weeks before and, for
Liverpool F.C., in full voice (a song that so reliably fires the
the umpteenth time in my life, stopped what I was doing to
Peel tear ducts, I even see him lose it one night to a feeble
stare at the radio. In one of those opportunities too good to
ringtone version on his Nokia).
pass up, the vocal on the Soledad track starts with a spoken
John wants it to close the mix. It was always his finishing
line of barroom drawl – ‘My name is Johnny, you deal with
track as a touring DJ - the 70s and 80s incarnation, when he
me now...’ – giving Peel the ideal platform to work from. I
took the John Peel Roadshow to “resentful students who
was pretty sure he’d love it, and thankfully I was right. What
wanted chart hits and beer-drinking competitions” – and
came next was a set I’d come to know well, with most of the
he’s convinced that fading out with the Kop singing is the
tracks featuring in his prior DJ appearance at Fabric.
perfect finale. Huddled in a corner, Geoff agrees with me: the mix should
That night – Friday, February 1, 2002 – can only be described as Peelmania. I did the warm-up set for him in
end with the track most synonymous with Peel, ‘Teenage
Fabric’s Room Three – a small club-within-the-club – and
Kicks’ by The Undertones. The air is heavy. John is visibly
you genuinely couldn’t move in there (an eight-months
pissed off with the disagreement, adamant about the issue,
pregnant woman sat on the step next to the DJ booth all
and – understandably – feeling a little bullied. It’s a standoff.
night, determined not to miss anything). At one point,
It was easy to know if you’d overstepped the mark with
observing my attempts at filtering on the mixer, Peel leant
John. Sitting in on his radio show for Jockey Slut once, I got
in and asked: “Are you actually doing anything there or just
bollocked for nattering with his producer, Louise, while a
trying to look cool?” “A bit of both,” I said, rumbled.
record played: “I’m sorry, am I getting in the way of your conversation?”
Despite the lack of DJ dexterity, the next two hours were unpretentious muso bliss – track after unexpected track, as gloriously shambolic as his radio shows, capturing the
164_DISCO_POGO
man’s esoteric attitude and lack of prejudice: Status Quo,
happy hardcore, dub reggae, rock’n’roll, techno, and
be escorted back to my car by a phalanx of policemen and
country-style cover versions of the Sex Pistols.
on one occasion, in Silith near Carlisle, I had to be led to the
At the end of the night – even in those simpler times
border. So, Fabric was amazing, fantastic. It was as great a
before omnipresent smartphones and celebrity selfies – it
night as I’ve had in my life, and people will say: ‘Oh, he would
took him a full 15 minutes to leave the club with scores of
say that wouldn’t he?’, but it actually was. The fact that
people shaking his hand, singing ‘Teenage Kicks’, and
people were singing ‘Teenage Kicks’ eight minutes after I’d
chanting his name. Out on the street he was scrambled,
finished was unforgettable.”
adrenalin pumping from his performance, unable to remember where his cab should take him. When asked about his Fabric appearance, he told Jockey
John only ever had one non-negotiable demand when playing Fabric, that – having suffered a brain haemorrhage in 1996 and a relapse in 1997 – there would be somewhere
Slut: “I was amazed to be asked and very, very scared, and it
safe for his wife Sheila to sit, listen, and have a drink (he
was just fantastic. It was much better than the gigs I used
remained livid, years later, that a popular comedian had
to do in the 60s, 70s and 80s. They were all nightmarish, not
booted Sheila and his family out of one such area at an
just for me but for the audience. A couple of times I had to
event he’d compered at Anfield: “just so some of his idiot cronies could sit there.”)
166_DISCO_POGO
“I like stuff that people think is uncool. I love it when people say to me: ‘You shouldn’t play that, it’s uncool.’ I think: ‘You’ve completely missed the point’, as they did with punk when I first started playing that.”
John chose his favourite Thai restaurant in Maida Vale as the venue for our chat – as no-frills and welcoming as you might expect – and, alongside my research, I had a sheet of questions from Jockey Slut readers and musicians associated with him. During the couple of hours we sat there – captured on my Sony Minidisc which was pretty much equivalent to rocking up with the Metaverse in my pocket – he only refused to go on record with one question: “Is it true you made the beast with two backs with Germaine Greer in the 60s?” There were two problems with this. First, he hadn’t heard that expression for the physicals before and I had to explain its likely etymology. Second, there’d been some legal drama in the past and, when I investigated it a bit, some to-thepoint comments from Germaine about the contents of the Peel Y-fronts, a no doubt justifiable response to his talking out of school. He asked that Jockey Slut not publish anything and, at least for a while, seemed a bit flustered by it all. This being 2002, the awkwardness was broken by everyone at the dinner table lighting up fags, and John going into a tirade about how lovely the smell of tobacco is until it’s lit. The musicians’ questions floored him, though. When I asked Howie B’s question: “When do you decide what’s going It’s Sheila I speak to on the phone, when I call to get feedback
to be played on your radio show?” he shot back,
on the promotional copy of ‘FABRICLIVE 07’ with its special
incredulously: “Is that from THE Howie B?” More than any of
cover design featuring Liverpool’s famous number 7, Kenny
his other responses, it was this reaction that taught me
Dalglish. I should be speaking to John but having seen that
most about who John was, why he did what he did, and how
we’ve gone against his wishes with the tracklist he’s
he’d remained so relevant and dedicated: he never lost his
seemingly refusing to talk to me.
fascination or admiration for musicians. His professional
“Don’t worry, he’s just being silly,” says Sheila, “he’s sitting in purpose was to wonder at their achievements and promote his favourite chair, drinking red wine, crying. He loves it.” I didn’t have to work hard to get John talking endearingly about Sheila. When I sat down with him for Jockey Slut in
their endeavours. This is why his support for happy hardcore and other unpopular genres is so explainable. He liked it enough to
April 2002, he spoke at length about her, remembering how he play it, sure, but what mattered was that someone had passed her a handwritten note when they first met, how,
made it in the first place. As he said in the interview: “I like
when they first got together, the song ‘Band of Gold’ seemed
stuff that people think is uncool. I love it when people say to
to be on the radio every time they had sex, and how he came
me: ‘You shouldn’t play that, it’s uncool.’ I always think:
to nickname her ‘The Pig’. But even that Jockey Slut interview had thrown up its own challenge.
DISCO_POGO_167
168_DISCO_POGO
“It was much better than the gigs I used to do in the 60s, 70s and 80s. They were all nightmarish, not just for me but for the audience. A couple of times I had to be escorted back to my car by a phalanx of policemen and on one occasion, in Silith near Carlisle, I had to be led to the border.”
fear of the axe or a sideways shunt to a sister station with each successive regime change. The press campaign for the album backed this up. Convinced we had a shot at the cover of the NME, we were told in no uncertain terms by the Editor that: “Peel is too Radio 4 these days, he’s not really for us.” What was true was that his Radio 1 counterparts – Pete Tong, Gilles Peterson, Fabio & Grooverider – were popular, contemporary, club and festival DJs and, save the odd appearance at the Sonar Festival or Tribal Gathering, Peel was very much not. Which might be why he met playing at Fabric with such enthusiasm. In what was to be one of the final times I saw John, we were sat in a Smithfield pub, The Butcher’s Hook and Cleaver, having a drink after some Fabric promotional work. I asked him how his autobiography was coming along and what deadline he’d been given. “They haven’t given me one,” he said, “so I suppose it’s just the ultimate deadline.” As the pub’s name suggests, ‘The Butchers’ sits directly opposite the Smithfield Meat Market and, right next to it, is a small but pristinely maintained garden - the Smithfield Rotunda. The gate to the Rotunda is opened every day and, years later, I realised that’s probably for the benefit of patients at nearby St Bart’s hospital. For the Fabric team, it’s usually the pub’s unofficial beer garden and we would head there most sunny evenings. On this cold morning – Tuesday, October 26, 2004 – I’m in the Rotunda alone, reeling from the news John has died whilst on holiday in Peru. I send a text to his son, Tom, but beyond that I’ve no idea what to do. In the coming days I’ll
‘You’ve completely missed the point’, as they did with punk
write to Sheila, as thousands of others do, and give quotes
when I first started playing that. People would write in,
to the music press on behalf of the club. Fabric immediately
really disturbed, saying: ‘You’ve made a terrible mistake.
donates the revenue raised from ‘FABRICLIVE 07’ to
Don’t you understand? This is not good.’ It was exactly the
Médecins Sans Frontières, John’s favoured charity.
same with happy hardcore – I loved happy hardcore
Two weeks later, I’ve borrowed my dad’s battered Peugeot
because the dance music fraternity by and large seemed to
406 Estate to take the road to Bury St Edmonds for his
disapprove of it. Our Thomas adored it. He’d have those
funeral. Despite offers I’ve elected to go on my own, which
box-set things of eight cassettes of somebody’s set at some
turns out to be a mistake. Flying solo at a wedding makes
awful place in Luton. He’d be playing them in his bedroom
you feel like a novelty; doing it at a funeral makes you feel
and I’d think: ‘Actually, that sounds really good.’ So, anything
like an oddity.
that people tell me I shouldn’t play tends to be what interests me the most.” On ‘FABRICLIVE 07’ John chose possibly his all-time
This becomes clearest when, as available car seats are divvied up to get people from the service back to Peel Acres, the brilliant American singer-songwriter, Nina Nastasia,
favourite piece of happy hardcore – ‘Identify the Beat’ by
wins the Shitbox Lottery and gets a spot in the 406. The car
Marc Smith and Safe ‘N Sound. Underlining his point, it
is filthy on the outside and much worse inside, and the
completely split the camp at Fabric HQ with a general
experience seems to top off a quite wonderful day for poor
feeling that it didn’t fit the club’s music policy and should be
Nina.
removed. To his credit, in what was undoubtedly the right decision, Fabric’s owner Keith Reilly kept it in. For so many years Peel just about survived changing
To break the ice, I ask her if she wants some music on. Getting the merest shrug, I pass her my ‘radio on a rope’ which I’ve brought along from my shower at home because
audience tastes and the continual drive to refresh Radio 1 to
dad’s car stereo is knackered. She doesn’t laugh and we
attract younger demographics (he’d often quote a factoid
putter off, very slowly, in silence.
that the Peel Session had the station’s youngest average
The service had a fitting sense of occasion, with hundreds
audience, which might have been one of those facts no one
congregating on the Cathedral of St. James’ lawn, listening
wanted to check in case it proved to be false).
to a broadcast on a PA. Inside I’m reduced to audio-only too.
At that time, he’d also built a parallel audience for his
In my haste to sit down I’ve taken a seat directly behind a
Radio 4 show ‘Home Truths’, focusing on life at Peel Acres,
huge pillar. John’s producer Louise comes to re-seat me
and had become a National Treasure before the term was in
with her nearer the front, but for whatever reason I decline.
full circulation. He never seemed at ease with it, and sometimes it felt like he was hanging on in there, living in
DISCO_POGO_169
“I remember when he played...” “I was heading to Final Frontier in my secondhand Volvo 440 when I heard John play my remix of the Chemical Brothers. I was astonished. I mean, John had already been extremely supportive with previous tracks I had made or remixed, but here was John again beating all the other specialist DJs on Radio One by some weeks. I went into that club on cloud nine. Whenever John played my music or remixes I always seemed to be in a car thinking ‘wow’ and each time felt as special as the first.”
Dave Clarke “I remember hearing him play ‘Hong Kong Garden’ - it was probably 1978. I just said: that’s fucking it! Ten years later, I was mixing Siouxsie and the Banshees in London. Mental!”
Howie B “I remember when he played our cover of Prince’s ‘Sign of the Times’, ‘Sine of the Dub’ back in 2004. I’m sat next to Jo Whiley, but it isn’t the time to tell her how
It was the first release on Hyperdub and I’d been
great I think she is so – fittingly – I spend the time in silence,
told he was going to play it. At that moment, I
just listening.
was driving around the motorways of Glasgow
The service is exquisite. We hear Howlin’ Wolf’s ‘Going
and I tuned in excitedly to hear the first time
Down Slow’ which might be the most apt funeral song
some of my music had been played on national
possible, and a reading of Shelley’s poem, ‘Love’s Philosophy’
radio. Much to my surprise, instead of playing the
– a final paean to Sheila, ending with the gut punch: “What
track at 33rpm, for some reason he played it at
is all this sweet work worth/If thou kiss not me?” Then on
45rpm. Instead of a slow motion, deep and
the lighter side there’s some top-grade reminiscence from
dubbed out slice of dub poetry, it turned into
John’s brother Alan who, remarking on how to be more
something much funnier.”
successful with women, provides a canonical piece of advice
Kode9
to John: “Just always remember, they like it too.” The service is top-and-tailed by John himself. Firstly, his
“I remember when he played a track by Pere Ubu,
entrance to the cathedral, carried by his family. As our
‘The Final Solution’. I think it would have been late
heads turn in the pitched silence it’s like a single, shuffling,
1976, as I was at college in High Wycombe. It was
snuffling mass, the awe of the moment plain to all. And at
such a weird track to play at a time when we
the end, cutting through the dense atmosphere is his voice
were still in the fag end of pub rock - such a blast
– played to us one last time: “I’m fabulously lucky, I’ve got
of energy, it just blew me away. The next day I went
everything I wanted as a kid, a house in the country, an
up to London to hunt out a copy – Rough Trade
astounding wife, and a job on the radio. I don’t know what
possibly. I bought the 7-inch and I still have it.”
could be done to improve it. If I drop dead tomorrow, I’ll have
Jon More, Coldcut
nothing to complain about – except that there’ll be another Fall album out next year and I won’t get to hear it.” It’s
“The first time I heard Underground Resistance,
warm, unexpected, and somehow reassuring.
early releases on Warp Records, and grime was
Then right at the end, someone presses play on
on his show. All of which went on to have a big
‘FABRICLIVE 07’ and the Kop Choir sings ‘You’ll Never Walk
influence on my musical life. I’ll always be
Alone’, the track never seeming so apposite. As the strains
grateful for that. I loved the fact that whoever
fade, just as I’d heard a hundred times prior, there’s Billy
tuned into John Peel‘s radio show was always
Doherty’s short drum intro, a clang of John O’Neill’s guitar,
going to hear something unexpected or unknown
and the urgent scream of Feargal Sharkey’s vocal as
that may turn out to be really significant to the
‘Teenage Kicks’ erupts into the vast space.
musical landscape.”
I’m sorry John, but I think that settles it. It really was the only way it could end. 170_DISCO_POGO
Surgeon
…We have drift off www.chillouttent.com
HIGHER LOVE Photos: Vanessa Goldschmidt
Teneil Throssell wasn’t meant to be a DJ. Nor was she supposed to release the most vital electronic music debut album in years. But, as HAAi, she’s done both. This is what happens when you don’t grow up with dance music discovers Paul Flynn…
DISCO_POGO_173
When she began occasionally dropping DJ Misjah
have already been kicked off,” she notes.
and DJ Tim’s lunatic mid-90s Dutch techno
“Brisbane is kicking off tonight.”
barrel-thumper ‘Access’ into one of her epic DJ sets,
HAAi is two-thirds of the way through an
HAAi had no idea that she was reviving the short,
eight-date tour of her homeland. She is a hairpin
forgotten lifespan of an unlikely super-gay classic.
bend DJ, with a taste for the unsettling, shadowy
“What?” she says, registering the thought. “It’s
musical patterns which emerge between white
amazing to hear that there is Queer history to a
light and pitch black. Her day-job is techno, but
record. That is blowing my mind.”
her moonlighting instinct is to rove around the
For most of 1996, ‘Access’ slotted onto the
edges of all marginal noise. Soon she will release
rotating playlist of Trade’s peak-of-the-party
her first mission of intent, ‘Baby, We’re Ascending’,
favourites. Most Sunday mornings, its
a bold debut for HAAi as an electronic artist and
executioner’s bass stabs could be heard
a record which both confounds and compounds
exploding from a Clerkenwell Road doorway
her brilliant work as a DJ.
shrouded in dry ice while a muscled army of
When she signed to Mute records, she inked her
topless, wasted gays enacted their equality
deal in the lineage of The Bad Seeds and
clapback from the subterranean dancefloor
Throbbing Gristle as much as Cabaret Voltaire
below. No record quite encapsulates the last, livid
and Fad Gadget. She can remember every detail
battle-cry of the defiant fightback to the close of
of her first meeting with Daniel Miller, outside a
the first AIDS pandemic than ‘Access’, making it
café by London Bridge.
the accidentally pummelling ‘William Tell Overture’ of HIV. “Really?” HAAi looks aghast. “Wow. Wow, wow, wow. I’m obsessed with that track.” It is 8.30pm, in Brisbane on a Friday night. The
“One of the greatest things about working with and having become friends with Daniel – which is quite a crazy thing to say – is that despite the fact he’s an important label owner, he’s also an artist.” She says he was pivotal in making
musician is talking over videocall from a
suggestions which ended up shaping the record,
municipal square in the centre of town. She’s an
encouraging her to stamp her voice figuratively
open, curious conversation. At midnight, she will
and literally all over the album. “Daniel was always
headline her first warehouse party in the city. The
respectful of what I wanted to do,” she notes.
hazy shadow of a shopping mall is outlined in the
Miller is not HAAi’s only legendary endorsee.
near distance and early doors Friday night
After she played before him on a festival bill,
revellers bump into her, adrenalized by the
Richie Hawtin attempted to sign her for his
drunken scent of the weekend. “The high-heels
curated stage at the Detroit Techno festival, ‘Movement’ for two consecutive years. He
“She really took me under her wing. Physically, in fact. Gave me this life-affirming moment. I feel like that really shaped a lot of how I chose to approach music and DJing.”
eventually booked her on a hand-selected line-up to play The Vaults of Tate Modern last autumn at an exquisite art/fashion rave for Prada. “Again: mind blown,” she says. “Just as a human being, he really gives a shit. About music. About people that are coming up. He’s still pushing the boundaries.” When she witnessed HAAi playing one of her old six-hour residencies at the Brixton basement, Phonox, The Blessed Madonna wrapped her arms, quite literally, around HAAi to introduce herself. “Marea was one of the first, when I was new and underconfident, she really took me under her wing. Physically, in fact. Gave me this lifeaffirming moment. I feel like that really shaped a lot of how I chose to approach music and DJing.” In September 2020, HAAi lent a powerful, twisted remix to her friend, the xx singer Romy Madley Croft’s debut solo single, ‘Lifetime’. Romy returned the favour in January this year with her production partner, the ubiquitous Fred Again forming an irresistible trio for the one-off single, ‘Light’s Out’. Romy and HAAi met in the toilet queue at a Gucci party, a useful enough analogy for the manner in which they’re shaping and feminising the sound of new Queer London at its top tier. DISCO_POGO_175
HAAi’s current spell in Australia began with an LGBTQ+ rave in the desert, two hours’ drive from Melbourne. Back in the city, she was reunited for an emotional moment, sitting in a room for the first time in years with her mother and sister. Old friends back home have joked that she’s no longer Aussie. In London, where she’s lived for over a decade, she is nothing but. HAAi was born Teneil Throssell and raised in the arid provinces of remote, red-dirt, coastal North-Western Australia. “There can be so much naivety around how I play sometimes,” she says. “Quite often, there will be tracks that I’ve just discovered that people have been playing for fucking decades. For me, they have this whole new energy.” At 37, she is still educating herself by instinct on the active ingredients that constitute her dancefloor. You don’t get so much in the way of disco education where she grew up. So Throssell is pleased when occasionally she hits on something which reflects a direct intersection of her interests. “You see, this is what happens when you don’t grow up with dance music,” she says. Like so many Queer teens before her and since, Teneil Throssell moved out of home as fast as she could. “Small-town life was 100% all I knew,” she says. “As soon as I got my license, I drove the hell out of there. When I was 17. Bye.” First Perth for a couple of years, then Sydney, all the while harbouring low-level rock star
“There can be so much naivety around how I play sometimes. Quite often, there will be tracks that I’ve just discovered that people have been playing for fucking decades. For me, they have this whole new energy.”
ambitions. “I don’t know if it was ‘rock star’,” she clarifies, “but I wanted to make a career out of
One night, she asked her manager if she could
music and I wanted it to be sustainable, to not
play records at The Market Bar. “I just weaseled
have to do three jobs to make it on tour.”
my way into it,” she laughs. It satisfied her
Her most visible band was Dark Bells, a dreamy,
musical instinct - and in time led to the
indie two-piece with an appealingly interior, if
promoters of Phonox offering her a weekly
anachronistic sound. “With the kind of music we
Saturday night residency, an unprecedented
were making, unless you’re a band that has a
move that was truly the stuff of dreams. But
really mainstream appeal,” she says, “there’s a
something more emotional underpinned the shift.
ceiling to how much you can do here.”
“When I reflect back on those times – because I do
At the start of the 2010’s, Dark Bells decamped
think about them so fondly – I remember the
to London, in search of the corner of Dalston in
feeling that I had when I was playing records for
thrall to the psyche pop of The Horrors and Toy.
the first time versus the feeling I had when I was
“It seemed like that was a bigger pond for us to
playing live instruments.” Something had clicked.
be in.” They quickly became entrenched among
“I tried so hard,” she says of her old band. “I
the rotating cycle of Shacklewell Arms regulars.
played and played and tried so hard at it and
The whole micro-scene felt unnervingly straight
never felt like I peaked at playing my instrument.
for Throssell.
You always felt like you were struggling to keep
With no independent income to support her,
up with everyone else. Whereas when I was
she took bar shifts at the Ridley Road Market Bar.
playing records, it was something that I felt for
A whole new East London opened out to her. “It
the first time… anxiety-free doing. I felt comfort
was around the time that Dance Tunnel opened
from the music that I was playing. I never thought
and there was such a buzz around that place,”
that would be the case, but it was something
she says of the fondly regarded club tucked
that I took to much more naturally than playing
underneath Voodoo Ray’s pizza walk-up on
guitar.”
Kingsland Road.
Throssell found her calling without looking for it. “Fully. That’s the thing. What made it really
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anxiety-free was that I didn’t have any ambitions
of what to do with it, outside of the fact that I
The title was judiciously chosen. “I feel like with
really loved doing it. I didn’t see anything beyond
the album itself I’ve flown the Queer flag hard,”
it. Then I just got dragged along with it a bit. Until
she says, “which has felt like the right thing to do
it kind of made me realise that it was something I
for me. It’s hard to explain but it’s just a feeling I
was beginning to make a career out of.”
have, how I feel like my life has kind of gone over
There was a further element of freedom to be
the last few years. In terms of love, in terms of my
found in the night. It looked and felt a bit more
work. Emotionally, everything felt like it was on
like her. “I think I found that more and more, the
the same ascent.”
deeper I got into the electronic side of music, too.
It is the sound of a very specific corner of
When you come up in bands, it can be, as a female
Queer London, distilled into a noise that is both
in an all-male band… look, there really wasn’t a
hard and hopeful, like walking wired into the
lot of Queerness around.”
cacophony of a backstreet in Hackney Wick at
Teneil Throssell’s blossoming in electronic music chimes with a wider story emerging out of Queer London; a picture just sharpening into
3am on a Saturday and hearing all the strains of all the noise of the city’s night-time at once. “That,” she says, “is a very nice thing to hear. The
focus, of boundaries being re-written, values
last thing that you’d ever want to hear someone
re-ordered, priorities re-established. The
say about a record you’ve made is that it’s ‘nice’.
conversation around lesbian and gay London
It’s got to be something that stays with people,
broadened, starting with the initialism LGBTQIA+,
not an easy listen that stays with everyone.”
then the legitimising of an extended rainbow flag. The old guard monopoly of white gay men who ruled the metropolitan taste of Vauxhall and Soho had started to look rusty and old in a city which aggregates its value on housing the new. A Queer flavour of bohemianism recognised the primary shift from sexuality to gender as the equality issue of the day. Female and femaleidentifying nights blossomed in the nightlife, starting on a stretch at the top of Hackney Road, then fanning out to Hackney Wick, Dalston and Tottenham. As Throssell shifted into her persona of HAAi, she was perfectly poised to watch it all unfold from the centre. “That band scene,” she sighs. “I spent so much searching for my own space in that world that my Queer existence didn’t even get a look in. It was more about trying to have some sort of presence in a scene like that. It wasn’t until later that I even thought about how important it was to own that space as a Queer woman. It wasn’t until I was in electronic music, I guess.” ‘Baby, We’re Ascending’ may be the soundtrack this shift has been waiting for. The first featured guest is Kai Isaiah Jamal, the non-binary street poet and muse of the late Virgil Abloh. Together, they’ve fashioned another homage to Queer history, built for the future in ‘Human Sound’. The record is its own world. On first listen, it can be delightfully scary (“I’ve had that a bit,” she nods), shifting the axis of interest away from the centre of the dancefloor to its shady nooks, the corners of the disco where time fractures, bodies distort and conversations start. It is fashioned as a complete piece, to dot in and out of frequencies, wafting through curious wavelengths, shifting pitches, rhythms and tempo. It bends with exactly the nerves of steel Throssell has perfected as a DJ. Slowly it reveals itself. 180_DISCO_POGO
The birth of Jockey Slut…
Wrote For Luck was born. We were 22 and used to
frequent the Haçienda. Paul liked the
Pixies and I liked Prince, but by 1992 we
both loved dance music in all its forms,
from Belgian techno like Frank De Wulf to the poppier KLF, via the beige-but-
fun M People and the house music the Haçienda fed us. It too had a 2am
On the second anniversary of the
curfew, though we’d queue up before
passing of Andrew Weatherall, techno
9pm to get in, so a good five hours of
artist Daniel Avery posted a video clip
dancing was always in the bag by the
of dance music’s North Star from the
sweaty end.
late-80s. In it a long-locked Weatherall
do a T-shirt to try and make some cash.
At the club you were too busy dancing
We liked the sloganeering of the Manic
in a fug of smoke to chat and so all talk
Street Preachers, so he suggested we
was saved for the afters. Clubs closed
print an inflammatory one with
earlier back then – usually at 2am –
‘Factory’s Fucked’ across it. Factory
and everything felt new and exciting
owned the club we had just been
with thoughts and chat verging on the
dancing in and they had recently gone
idealistic: ‘Let’s start a record label to
bust with the Happy Mondays ‘Sunshine
put this music out; let’s start a T-shirt
and Love’ single their last breath. We
company so we can make our own
quickly shelved that idea as we loved
clothes; let’s put on our own club
Tony Wilson too much and we moved on
nights and hire our own DJs.’
to the slogan ‘DJ Sluts’. These were the
It was into this environment that 182_DISCO_POGO
At the afterparty Paul said we should
extolled the virtues of the afterparty.
blokes that would hang around the DJ
Jockey Slut, the magazine Paul Benney
booth trying to sneak a look at the
and I started work on 30 years ago,
records the DJ was playing – they were
collared before a club, interviewing him on beer crates in a back room. He swore a lot and – as we didn’t know what we were doing – we printed every swear word, fucking this and fucking that. His mum wasn’t best pleased. Joanne Wain caught The Grid before they played live at the Academy – the band comprised Soft Cell’s Dave Ball, Richard Norris and Alex Gifford who would later grace the cover in 1997 with his own band The Propellerheads. Ever the indie kid Paul wrote an opinion piece where he compared the thrill of Nirvana and Therapy? to the rush of techno and – with a slight return to the ‘Factory’s Fucked’ tee – we poked fun at Anthony Wilson’s recent signings (anyone recall The Adventures Babies or The Wendys?) this time really biting the hand that feeds, as the Haçienda had booked the back cover advert space. We redressed the balance by putting the Haçienda FM radio show hosts on the cover, including Dave Rofe who went on to manage Doves. Again not knowing what we were doing the cover featured one person – Pete Robinson – looking down and away from the
The first issue... featured David Holmes. He swore a lot - and as we didn’t know what we were doing - we printed every swear word. His mum wasn’t pleased.
camera and Rofe wearing sunglasses. We found out later from a professional editor that eye contact from a magazine’s subjects was crucial. We also managed to fill the last remaining blank pages of our flat plan with two professional writers. Temperance club DJ Dave Haslam had run his own fanzine Debris previously so knew how we felt about the need to start something of our own. He wanted
usually called ‘trainspotters’. This then
Paul had left Manchester to try and
to write about the white label record
got finessed to the more opaque
find a job in London writing for any of
and its importance in dance music
Jockey Slut, the T-shirt ditched entirely
the music press – the NME, Melody
before its purity gets subjected to
and the idea of doing a Manchester
Maker – to no avail. So he came back
hype, packaging and plugging.
fanzine talked about into the wee
up North and we thought let’s do our
small hours.
own thing, the NME weren’t that
Savage who we admired for ‘England’s
That year I was taking a sabbatical
The second proper writer was Jon
interested in dance music anyway. My
Dreaming’, his tome on punk rock and
at what is now called Manchester
Christmas break was looming, so we
‘The Haçienda Must Be Built’ oral
Metropolitan University (we had both
took one of my empty flat plans, sat in
history book. We discovered he was
graduated from its final year as a
the Union bar and bashed out 28 pages
taking part in a debate about popular
Polytechnic that summer). I was on the
of content in an hour, leaving a few
culture in the Cornerhouse bar with
Student Union staff as editor of the
blank pages for features we hadn’t
Paul Morley and the Modern Review’s
monthly student magazine Pulp. This
thought of yet.
Toby Young and Julie Burchill. During
meant I had access to an Apple Mac
The first issue had the slogan ‘for
the talk Savage said he wanted to
computer (black and white, with an A4
punks, bums, drunks and junkies’
write 1000 words about this exciting
vertical screen) and had learnt how to
across it. To this day, I have no idea
new artist Aphex Twin but his usual
layout a magazine on a flat plan – a
why we settled on this for a dance
outlets – the broadsheets – didn’t want
sheet of A3 paper with empty pages on
magazine, but I guess it was in-
to know.
to fill with ideas – plus a little about
keeping with our love of the Manics. It
the design and printing process.
featured David Holmes who we
DISCO_POGO_183
The inkies still favoured covering shoegaze bands over Andrew Weatherall and LFO. They probably thought it was a passing fad, a bleepy annoyance that would eventually go away.
By the middle of 1993 we were lugging copies of the magazine to record shops around the country. We also carried on using the University office and I received a fine from the Students Union when my sabbatical came to an end. Just before I left, we’d cheekily used their phone line to call dozens of record shops across the UK asking if they’d stock it. I didn’t know the Union received weekly itemised bills. Rumbled!
So we approached him in the foyer
We were bowled over by the reaction
The magazine’s first proper
afterwards and told him about our
to the first issue – the name of the
exposure to the public was also one of
fanzine, saying: “We’ll happily take your
magazine certainly drew attention –
the reasons we decided we needed to
unwritten 1000 word Aphex Twin
and for the second issue we had
look beyond Manchester. We asked if
article, but we don’t have any money”.
journalists like NME’s Mandi James
we could sell the magazine at a club
Perhaps surprised by our enthusiasm
asking to contribute. By the third issue
called Space Funk on a Saturday night
he agreed on the spot to write it for
Weatherall agreed to grace the cover
in January 1993. We were to be set up
free and we left in slight disbelief. A
and get his tattoos out, really helping
with the mags in the cloakroom (no
fortnight later It arrived – by fax – into
to put us on the map.
doubt bringing lots of penny coins for
the student union office. It was pretty
The magazine also picked up a
change due to its clumsy price).
dense prose and even had footnotes.
designer who would stay with us for
However there was a huge ruckus
But we were delighted with it and
the tenure of the Manchester edition
between two rival gangs and everyone
made his name bigger on the cover
– Graham Peace. He was similarly
in the club had to flee to escape a
than his then little-known subject.
imbued by the spirit of the times
frightening, bloody, Wild West-style
approaching us in a club. His skills? He
fight. We left the magazines behind. It
issue was mainly Manchester based –
had qualifications in interior design –
was also a turning point for
including two pages on the ground-
that was close enough for us!
Manchester as gang related issues
The rest of the content of the first
breaking gay club Flesh. I don’t think
were really blighting clubland and it
we thought further afield than the city
would soon be nicknamed Gunchester.
we lived in at the time. There was no
We decided for subsequent issues we
visionary plan, other than to cover the
would also focus on the rest of the UK
clubs and emerging DJs we liked (there
and try and reach beyond the punks,
weren’t many ‘bands’ in 1992). The
bums, drunks and junkies of this
other dance mags were still concerned
exciting new scene.
about bpm counting, DJ equipment
JOHN BURGESS
and handbag house clubs. The inkies (NME, Melody Maker) still ghettoised dance music to a solitary page and favoured covering shoegaze bands over Andrew Weatherall and LFO. They probably thought it was a passing fad, a bleepy annoyance that would eventually go away. We printed 1000 copies of the first issue, not having researched whether there were that many interested parties in the city – and it cost £800 to print covered by £400 of adverts and £400 of our own money. We sold each copy for 99p from record shops including Eastern Bloc, Underground and Piccadilly Records, and also sent it to John Peel who – to our delight – gave it a plug on Radio 1 and read out our home address so you could send off for a copy with a cheque.
184_DISCO_POGO
THE ARCHIVE IT'S TIME TO GO BACK - WAY BACK - AS WE REVISIT OUR SNOTTY-NOSED, FORMER SELVES WITH A SELECTION OF ARTICLES ORIGINALLY FEATURED IN JOCKEY SLUT...
THE ARCHIVE / DON LETTS / ORIGINALLY PUBLISHED DEC/JAN 2001/02
The Undisputed Don Shooting The Clash on Super 8, turning his honky brethren onto reggae and providing samples and cut-ups for Big Audio Dynamite, Don Letts was an inspiration to the likes of Andrew Weatherall and the pioneers of the late-80s acid house explosion. Here’s what happened when Andy met Don(ny)…
the stairs. Patti Smith used to come and check me out. So did Bob Marley.” Weatherall: “Did Marley buy anything?” Letts: “He wasn’t gonna be seen dead in that stuff. He took the piss out of me for wearing bondage trousers. He said I looked like a ‘blood claat mountaineer’. He’d just seen the Daily Mirror version (of punk); he ended up hanging out, hearing it for himself and writing ‘Punky Reggae Party’.” Weatherall: “Was the Roxy your first professional engagement as a DJ?” Letts: “Yes, but I never felt comfortable calling myself a DJ. It was John Lydon who used to say, ‘Oi, DJ Don Letts’ to wind me up. The accountant for Acme Attractions started the Roxy, and he was thinking since this music’s getting a reaction down there, why don’t we have a go? I used to turn my back to the crowd and if people made requests I’d go: ‘Fuck off’. I had one deck. The gaps between the records were crucial.” Weatherall: “Did they accept a reggae DJ immediately?” Letts: “Truth be told, there weren’t any punk records. I did try and flash in the odd thing I thought they’d relate to – the Dolls, MC5, the Stooges. I’ve got big ears, man. I got every Velvet Underground album.”
Words: Toby Manning. Photos: Steve Lazarides
Weatherall: “As with Shoom, which everybody claims to have been at, how many people do you really think ever went to the Roxy?”
Andrew Weatherall is running late to meet one of his
Letts: “I dunno, a couple of hundred? But when a couple
heroes, DJ and filmmaker Don Letts, and has just realised
of hundred people are pogoing it looks like thousands.
he doesn’t have a Dictaphone. Not that he’s worried.
The Roxy was a shithole, but it pulled all these people
Weatherall, like Letts himself, is a product of the DIY ethic.
together – all movements need an HQ.”
Starting as a fanzine writer, blagging it as a DJ, finding
Weatherall: “Your compilation is an ideal way to
himself as a ‘journalist’ for NME, a review turning him into
introduce someone who doesn’t know anything about
a first-time producer – for Primal Scream.
that music as well as a snapshot of the time.”
Just as Letts managed to combine Black reggae and
Letts: “Yeah, there was a lot of experimenting going on
white punk cultures, so Weatherall has embraced an
in those days, pushing the drum and the bass centre
eclecticism which no one could ever call ‘commercial
stage, the mixing desk as an instrument, the whole
sell-out’. So when Weatherall heard one of his heroes had
12-inch thing.”
put out a definitive document of the punk-reggae melting
Weatherall: “I’ve got a couple of theories about the punk
pot, he contacted Jockey Slut and earned himself another
and reggae crossover. One, rebel music – punks are
music journalist commission.
outsiders like Rastas. White kids wanting to be down with
Spliff in hand, looking exactly as he did in Big Audio
the brothers. Or like you said, you were the only DJ and
Dynamite 15 years ago, Letts is waiting for him at the door
played them shitloads of reggae so they couldn’t listen to
of his west London apartment. Here’s what two
anything else.”
generations of punk ethics had to say to each other.
Letts: “All three of those things. Let’s be bloody honest about this. Whenever white subculture has wanted to
Weatherall: “Do you think Acme Attractions, the clothes
align itself to any music, it’s always been Black. Right back
shop you worked at in the 70s, has been overlooked in
to the Stones listening to Blind Lemon Motherfucker from
favour of the McLaren-Westwood axis?”
the Mississippi delta. But I wasn’t from the Mississippi
Letts: “Not for the people who know. There were two
delta – I lived next to the River Thames. I was the man next
happening shops on the King’s Road. Our shop was
door. I grew up with people like John (Lydon) and Joe
actually cooler; we represented the way London was
(Strummer) and Paul (Simonon). I went to this grammar
going, because all the different factions and tribes would
school where for the first four years I was the only Black
meet down there. I used to pump reggae all fucking day
man, so I was totally swamped in white man culture. I was
long, pissing off the people in the antiques market
turned on to my white bredren by their music, like the
upstairs. And it was the music that got the people down
Stooges and Beefheart, and I turned them on to reggae and maybe a bit of weed.”
186_DISCO_POGO
DISCO_POGO_187
Weatherall: “I’d like to ask about what I think is just as important as the music... the clothes.“ Letts: “When I left school, I was straight down the bloody
taken over the asylum, the kids are being fucked over, they’ve become fans again, which makes it really easy for the music business to take their money. The backlash is
King’s Road, it was like joining a magic circle. Fashion at
remarkably overdue. End of the 50s, 60s, 70s, the end of
one time was the subversive art form. We used to get our
the 80s, was creatively and culturally interesting. Now I
arses kicked for the clothes we were wearing.”
don’t know what the fuck is going on.”
Weatherall: “When you get older you don’t need that so
Weatherall: “Does ease of access – which should be the
much, ‘cause you have more sense of your own identity.
ultimate culmination of punk ideals – lead to cultural
You don’t have to have the badges. You can create your
overload and lowering of artistic standards?”
own system and your own badges.”
Letts: “Yes, but you can’t control that, it’ll eventually find
Letts: “Yeah, you can’t buy an attitude.”
its rightful role in the scheme of things. Right now it’s a
Weatherall: “Talking of which, what about the hair?”
bit out of whack.”
Letts: “I was looking for my own identity in all this white culture. You have to be careful, like they say, ‘You can cross over, and you can’t get Black’. Through reggae music, I
Weatherall: “Any parallels in the last 20 years with what you experienced with punk?” Letts: “Hip hop – that was Black punk rock. I was in New
identified with Rastafari and got the dreadlocks. Now
York with the Clash when the whole hip hop thing was
dreadlocks don’t mean diddly squat.”
first happening.”
Weatherall: “My one regret about acid house was I was too busy getting twatted to realise I was in the middle of important social history. Did you have a sense of that? Is that what made you pick up the camera?” Letts: “The great thing about punk rock was everybody
Weatherall: “What about two-step? Kids on council estates doing their own pirate radio?” Letts: “So Solid Crew and Oxide Neutrino – for the first time the Black British music scene is looking really happening. Drum’n’bass was too radical for the business
could do it. It wasn’t, you’re the fans and you’re the star.
to put it on the shelf, but right now they’ve got over the
The stage was full up, so I became a Super 8 terrorist. And
emulation of the American sound. Fuck you, America, this
then I read in the NME one day: ‘Don Letts is making a
is us!”
movie’, and I thought: ‘Oh, that’s a good idea’.” Weatherall: “Was Steel Leg vs The Electric Dread (1978 PIL side project) your first musical outing?” Letts: (laughing): “You dug up that shit! Keith Levene and Jah Wobble had blagged some extra time out of Virgin.
Don Letts: A History
Then they asked me to make up some lyrics and I came up with this thing of ‘Haile Unlikely’. The next thing I know
As he admits himself, Don Letts’ entire career is a
there’s a record out and I was a bit pissed off. The lyrics,
classic case of ‘right place, right time’. A Black Rasta
they were like: ‘Everybody’s wearing red, gold and green,
should have been a fish out of water in the white punk
they look like fucking traffic lights’. I was putting my head
scene, but Don Letts was at its apex. He worked in the
on the chopping block. But that doesn’t count.”
right clothes shop (Acme Attractions) where his reggae
Weatherall: “What’s the first thing that counts?”
tunes were so popular that despite no DJing
Letts: “BAD. Which I’m really proud of.”
background, he got the right DJ gig at the right club
Weatherall: “With the recent Clash hysteria, do you think
– punk haven, the Roxy.
the importance of BAD has been overlooked?” Letts: “I keep seeing these things – ‘I love the 80s’ and ‘I
Simply filming his punk friends for his own amusement, he found he was documenting a moment
love the 90s’ and the 80s is Boy George, padded shoulders
in history, and – by default – his first film, ‘The Punk
and cocaine. But BAD was one of the most interesting
Rock Movie', was born. Letts became punk’s in-house
musical propositions of that time. Jamaican basslines,
filmmaker, making videos for everyone from The Clash
Mick Jones’ hardcore white man rock, Greg’s New York
to the Pistols to Public Image Ltd. What’s more, as the
beats and my samples and cut-ups. A potential fucking
crucial link between punk and reggae, he also created
nightmare, but when we got it right it was a beautiful
videos for Bob Marley and Jimmy Cliff, and surprise
thing.”
80s number one, Musical Youth‘s ‘Pass the Dutchie'.
Weatherall: “I don’t think people see it in its proper
In 1984, he wound up ‘playing’ keyboards for
historical context. I remember going to see you in 1985, so
ex-Clash man Mick Jones’ Big Audio Dynamite – one of
house and techno wasn’t that much of a surprise to me.”
the first white acts to incorporate hip hop rhythms
Letts: “Exactly.”
and ideas (Letts was essentially sampler-in-chief). He
Weatherall: “Do you think that we look at punk rock
still writes lyrics for ex-BAD-ers Dreadzone, but these
times through rose-tinted glasses and by doing so negate
days mostly works as a filmmaker, making
the punk ethic, which was never about nostalgia?
documentaries on Lee Perry, Marley and old
Letts: “I’m really uncomfortable with this whole culture of nostalgia. The only thing that’s interesting about punk
compadres The Clash, while his 1997 feature film ‘Dancehall Queen’ was an enormous hit in Jamaica.
is to look at it and see how you can move forward. If you look at the shit that’s going down now, the lunatics have DISCO_POGO_189
THE ARCHIVE / FRANÇOIS KEVORKIAN / ORIGINALLY PUBLISHED DEC/JAN 2001/02
An Audience With François Kevorkian His name is synonymous with disco-crazed house, but he found getting into Studio 54 a bind. He was a student agent provocateur ‘cause he wanted a holiday, and he reckons he could probably have Tenaglia in an arm wrestle. He is, of course, François Kevorkian and he's here to answer your tricky posers. Unless it concerns Kraftwerk, or The Smiths, or... Words: Chris Blue. Photos: Pav Modelski
François Kevorkian stands astride the
What's it like in Kraftwerk's Kling
How did you come to remix ‘This
music scene like a colossus, one foot
Klang studio?
Charming Man’ by The Smiths?
planted in late-70s/early-80s New York
James Scott, London
Richard Corrigan, Manchester
disco, the other in Body & Soul, the club
“Many people have tried many angles
“Let me set the record straight (sighs,
of legend where he, along with Joe
with this question previously. And
visibly deflates and pauses for what
Claussell and Danny Krivit, keeps the
they've all met with the same wall of
seems like a very long time). I got called
sequinned dream alive. His unparalleled
silence that you're gonna meet today.”
to do the mix. I did the mix in eight hours.
résumé includes time DJing at The Loft,
Then I went on to the rest of my life.”
a prolific stint A&Ring at Prelude (the
You remixed a lot of people. Who was
label on which disco classics like
the most fun to work with and who was
How have the events in New York
D-Train’s ‘Keep On’ were released),
the least?
affected you personally?
numerous remixes for big names like
Emanuel Lloyd, Washington
Karen Loughton, London
Kraftwerk, Pet Shop Boys and The
“The least fun was definitely George
“Club Vinyl, where we do Body & Soul, is
Smiths, ownership of the Wave label
Michael and Wham!. They stuck me in
600 yards from the World Trade Center
and a close friendship with one Larry
the studio with their advisor or
and we weren't able to get to it for a
Levan.
whatever they called him, and the guy
couple of weeks, but now we’re
always had something to say about
re-opened. It's just weird to me when
he's, somewhat predictably, smaller
whatever we did. After it was done they
we're playing music to be so close to
than you expect. Nor is he as fierce as
didn't like it and they said: “Well, you're
something like this.”
his reputation suggests. In fact, far
the guy who mixed D-Train. How could
from being truculent, he is urbane, a
you not make our record sound like
You don't DJ that much in the UK. Do
rapier-like raconteur, and, all in all,
D-Train?” George Michael went on to
you find the British scene lacking?
great company. He's also in touch with
slag me in the press and I didn't think it
James Matthews, Chester
his feminine side. His favourite word?
was called for. He's gone on to
“I've been fairly successfully playing in a
Sweet.
subsequently show he has a great
lot of the big major venues in London
talent both on mic and for lawsuits.
through the 90s. But I'm evolving and it's
to play a couple of rare gigs at London’s
One of the best was the time I went in
been more difficult for me to connect
Plastic People – he breaks off from
the studio with this tape by this very
with the audience in a big club because
emailing friends on his Titanium iMac
eccentric avant-garde composer called
they seem to be already trained, or be
to answer your questions and in the
Arthur Russell. He had this project
accustomed to, a certain style of music
process prove that though he may have
called Dinosaur L. It was really low
that is quite – whatever way you want
remixed Dinosaur L’s ‘Go Bang’, he sure
budget, so I went in the studio with the
to call it – banging, slamming. And I'm
ain't no fossil.
assistant engineer, and I did everything
not sure I always equate music and
all by myself. It was a song called 'Go
hammers. I know there's plenty of
Bang'. I was really proud of the way it
people that seem to be enjoying the
turned out.”
kind of music I play, but they don't seem
Given his immense musical stature
In his hotel room – he's in the country
to be the big club crowds. The large 190_DISCO_POGO
DISCO_POGO_191
192_DISCO_POGO
venues seem to me almost, like,
Billboard magazine who was throwing
a long time and we had kind of fallen
utilitarian. The music becomes a
his own party at Studio 54 being
out after he went into all that heavy
backdrop, the wallpaper to which you're
refused admission. He was paying for
drug use. But then, in the last part of all
having your drug experience. I don't
the party.”
that I understood that it wasn't gonna
want to be an accessory to drug use.”
get better so I might as well make the Do you get pissed off with the cult of
best of it. We started doing some work
What do you think of the French music
the Paradise Garage?
together in the studio and I thought it
scene at the moment?
Amanda Bowyer, St. Austell
was a step towards keeping him
Adam Mitchell, Windermere
“It's a fact that this was truly a club
motivated to stay away from all that.
“I've got to be honest with you – I'm not
that was unlike any other. I mean, it's
But it didn't work.”
really in touch with the specifics of the
not for nothing that when they put
French scene just because I'm French.
Ministry of Sound together they tried
Do you still meditate before DJing?
But I like up-and-coming producers
to make an exact copy of it. In some
Ravi Begun, Birmingham
like Julien Jabre and DJ Gregory, who
ways it's very beautiful that there are
“Huh? Still, meaning I used to? Erm, I've
did that ‘Africanism' record.”
people who are touched, who
never had the habit of meditating
understand why that place was
before DJing. That's an hilarious one.”
You don't drink, don't smoke. What do
different. The reason was that the
you do?
people who were involved with it from
Is there anything to be learned from
Victoria Jones, Bangor
the top down really loved music. The
the pioneering DJs of the 70s? And if
“I was addicted to nicotine but gave up
owner was on the dancefloor dancing.
so, what?
12 years ago. It's the most difficult thing
If those kind of things are remembered
Jean-Pierre Gaston, Lyons
I've done in life. I'll drink a glass of wine,
I think it's very positive because it's a
“Well, there were no rules. A lot of
whatever. It's not like I'm some kind of
good antidote against your average
people today are very conformist. They
puritan.”
superclub brand who are really not in it
play for the mix not the song. You've
for anything of that sort.”
got to be a creator not an imitator. Like
Sometimes you’re FK and sometimes
Joe Claussell and his cross-over thing,
you’re François Kevorkian. Who do you
What do you think of Daft Punk doing
or Richie Hawtin integrating new
prefer?
The Gap adverts? Would you ever
technology into DJing.”
José Martinez, Madrid
endorse anything, or do you agree with
“From the early days, I kinda liked to be
Bill Hicks that anyone involved in
Do you see Danny Tenaglia as one
referred to as François K. From time to
advertising is sucking Satan's cock?
of your peers and have you ever
time, when I've done something like the
Peter Page, Canterbury
been tempted to go down that prog
Depeche Mode album or Kraftwerk,
“You know what? I don't really think it's
house route?
they wanted to use my full name.”
Daft Punk doing The Gap; it's The Gap
Kay Daniels, Glasgow
doing Daft Punk. If you say advertising
“It's really simplistic to think of Danny
Did you participate in the hedonism of
is an evil thing, I think you're a very
as a one-dimensional person because
the disco era?
hypocritical person. I could suggest a
he's a very, very sophisticated DJ. I've
Chris Cottingham, London
couple of islands where you could go
been a few times to his Friday night, Be
“Not really. I dabbled and experimented
and live.”
Yourself, at Club Vinyl where we do
with stuff in the early-70s, but by the
Body & Soul and there's some stuff that
time of the disco era I had made a
You're reputed to have unreleased
he's playing where I think sometimes
decision. I was working in the studio and
mixes by Walter Gibbons. Are there any
we meet.”
doing all these things where I felt that
plans to release them?
being precise and having all my brain
Bill Brewster, London
You're in an arm wrestling competition
cells working was kinda mandatory. I
“When Walter passed away, I went to
with Danny Tenaglia. Who would win?
had pretty much decided I was not
the apartment where he was living and
Abby Oliver, Hull
going to be doing coke or smoking a lot
the executors of his estate were going
(Very long pause) “Erm, I think both of
of pot. I was also married and had had
to trash everything and throw it in the
us are probably not that well exercised
my promiscuous years before that. That
garbage. I looked through and what I
[sic]. I'm a little bigger so I might be
time in the early 80s is where most
thought was unique and needed to be
stronger. I don't know.”
people started getting AIDS. I was maybe
preserved I put into this big bag and
not the most interesting person in
the bag’s been closed ever since. It's
Is it true you were expelled from
terms of my sexual exploits, but I'm still
not my property.”
college for starting a general strike?
alive to talk about it.”
Uwe Nussberger, Frankfurt You toured Japan with Larry Levan just
“That was one of my major
Could you get into Studio 54?
before he passed away. What are your
accomplishments in 1972. I was able to
Lawrence Levy, Hexham
memories from that time?
single-handedly convince 5000 people
“Not by myself but with my friends who
Jim Costello, Coventry
that they should go on strike. Why? I
were regulars. It was like this insane
“It was incredible. The parties were just
wanted a holiday. And it was a laugh.”
pecking order. I saw the editor of
magical. You know, we were friends for DISCO_POGO_193
THE ARCHIVE / JOHN PEEL / ORIGINALLY PUBLISHED 10TH BIRTHDAY ISSUE 2002
Have You Ever Ridden a Horse? John Peel The Evergreen DJs’ DJ on breaking wind, nail clippers and his respect for the bloke who's working on his windows... Words: John Burgess. Photo: Eva Vermandel
stuff for Radio 1 – is a nice man; I'd put him on, and I'd try and get people like Jeff Mills.” You name checked Jeff Mills on 'Room 101'... “It's one of those things. It's the nature of what you do that you get to meet these people usually only once. We were thinking about that the other day sat around the kitchen table, the number of famous people I've met once so none of them become mates. Jeff hardly ever pops by. I've only met him a couple of times, as I have Richie Hawtin, Dave Clarke and Carl Cox.” Who or what is your sartorial inspiration? “I don't think I really have one. By nature
What were you doing ten years ago?
that is when I'm 'playing out', as you
I'm a scruffy bloke, probably because I
“I have absolutely no idea. Roughly the
young people say. When I've done
was compelled to wear smart clothes
same as what I'm doing now, though
Fabric or Sonar I've danced to quite a
throughout all of my childhood.”
back then we had all four children at
few records.” If there was a website devoted to a
home still so it would have been a very How would you describe your DJing skills?
part of your body, what would you least
“Virtually non-existent. Because of the
like it to be?
And what's been your personal
music involved I don't think anyone
“My stomach.”
highlight of the last ten years?
could mix them in the approved
“Staying alive and continuing to do
manner. All I can do is creative segues.”
different setting.”
Kiss have their own condoms and credit cards. What would you like to endorse?
what I like doing.” Are you going to throw a track in at the
“Something equally useful. Nail
Best album of the last ten years?
wrong speed for authenticity on your
clippers.”
“This is fantastically uncool but one of
forthcoming Fabric mix CD?
my favourites is the first LP by Laura
(Laughs) “There's a great temptation to
If your name was followed by a noise,
Cantrell ('Not the Tremblin' Kind')
do that. It's an idea. I'll think about that.”
Intel Pentium processor-style, what would it be?
because I can sing along with it. It's a country record really but she's a money
Is 'Teenage Kicks‘ on there?
broker in New York.”
“It certainly is.”
Has Jockey Slut ever been of any use to
Any curveballs on there?
choose to describe you?
you at all?
“There’s a few African tunes on there, a
“I'll ask her. (Shouts) She: ‘What three
“It has, actually, as a reminder to me of
few reggae things. I wanted to put a
words would you use to describe me.
the life I'd be leading if I were 30 years
Status Quo track on there, but they
You know, lazy, fat, bald?’ (Sheila: 'Kind,
younger.”
said there was unease in the office
good-looking...') Be honest...”
“The sound of breaking wind.” Which three words would your wife
about that and I'm too old for Ever felt like moving to London like
confrontation. I was going to put
Bookend your record collection.
we did?
'Down, Down' on there because
“The first was 'Blue Tango' by Ray
“No, I did exactly the opposite about 30
whenever I play it people think, 'Oh, this
Martin and His Concert Orchestra. The
years ago and I've never regretted it. I'm
is so uncool'. Then they think: 'Let's go
last record, for a friend who's
not a city person and neither is my wife.”
for it!’.”
organising a country and western
Have you danced to a record in public
If Fabric asked you to curate the whole
From the quintessentially uncool to the
since 1993?
club, who would you choose to play?
quintessentially uncool.”
“I’m not much of a dancing man. Only in
“People I know and like. Our daughter
a limited way most people wouldn't
Alexandra’s boyfriend Ashley, who does
Name three Johns you admire?
recognise as dancing. The only time I do
drum‘n’bass stuff in the basement of
“John Walters, who was my producer
his house. Paul Thomas – who does
for 20 years or more. 'She!' Sorry, my
night, was a line-dancing compilation.
194_DISCO_POGO
wife does a lot of thinking. (Consults
What nicknames have you answered to?
Have you ever ridden a horse?
wife) John Ayton, who's working on our
“I used to be called Cake because I had
“Actually, I have. But a very long time
windows at the moment. He's a
some problem with the secretion of
ago. Our daughter Alexandra had a
carpenter and plumber and everything.
sleep. I used to get so much sleep in my
horse, and I was scared stiff of it, but I
There's so much of his input into the
eyes overnight that I had to be led to
did ride a horse when I was on holiday
house in which we live that if he moved
the sink to wash it all away.”
in Cornwall when I was about ten. Oh,
we'd have to move as well. (More discussion) John Smith.”
actually, I used to ride them fairly Who would play you in John Peel –
regularly when I lived in the States.”
The Movie? If your TV was jammed on one
“Our son William as he's very like me.”
programme forever, what would it be? (Discussion with wife that features 'The
What's your most overused phrase?
Office’).“Peter Kay I could watch. (To
“To Sheila: Are you going to be on that
wife) 'Well, it's got to be something!'”
phone much longer?” DISCO_POGO_195
THE ARCHIVE / THE AVALANCHES / ORIGINALLY PUBLISHED APRIL 2001
Aussie Rules Broken legs… comedy Russian R’n’B alter egos… horses in the studio… lawsuits filed by fans… buying records from the dead… The Avalanches are the most exciting band in aeons, a sweaty riot of disco, pop and punk attitude. John Burgess falls (down) under their influence and meets a sextet who are, as he puts it: ‘one big wow’… Words: John Burgess. Photos: Ben Saunders
One of the perks of being a music journalist in the 90s and
I was one of the lucky ones to see the band perform live,
early-00s was the deep pockets the music industry still
not just on the Australian tour but also at Camden’s
had to send writers off to far-flung places, often with an
Electric Ballroom in 2001. They were truly great live –
artist who may only have a promising single to peddle. The
unpredictable, chaotic and both punk and super pop.
entire Jockey Slut office had fallen in love with Australian
Sadly they were prevented from touring UK festivals in
band The Avalanches around the turn of the millennium
2001 as Darren – the frontman – kept breaking the same
and they had something more substantial than a single to
leg he snapped prior to the Byron Bay gig I witnessed.
discuss. Their debut album ‘Since I Left You’ was ready
This no doubt hampered them from succeeding beyond
– and I was chosen to fly to Melbourne to join them on
their cult status, a situation made worse when we heard
their summer tour in January 2001.
nothing further from them for many years. The yawning
The difference with the financing of the trip was that their
gap between releases made the Stone Roses seem prolific
label didn’t have a hefty slush fund so couldn't truly afford to
– just the 15 years between their debut and 2016’s brilliant
send me. The band were on a subsidiary of XL Recordings
'Wildflower'. In that time the six-piece I met shed four
called Lex and the label manager – Leo Silverman – paid for
members leaving just Robbie Chater and Tony Diblasi.
me to accompany him on the tour from his own wallet. To the converted there was a strong belief in the-then
Reflecting on ‘Since I Left You’’s importance now it’s revealing how prophetic of the decade ahead it was. The
sextet, a band clearly drunk on ideas. Everyone that came
more beatific tracks perhaps informed sampledelic
into contact with them got a little woozy too. One friend
chillwave acts like Panda Bear; their cut’n’paste DJ
of mine even wrote them a poem thanking them for
approach using cheesy pop with hip hop – captured on
colouring our lives. They had made an album that sounded
their Gimix mixtape that trailed the album – chimed with
like Coldcut making whoopee in Brian Wilson’s sandpit
2manydjs and Erol Alkan back when he was mashing up
and It had soundtracked the Jockey Slut office since 2000,
bootlegs, and their genuine love of using acts like Cyndi
while it languished in sample clearance hell. We had
Lauper, ELO and Wings in their sets no doubt sparked a
already featured the band twice in the magazine, but this
light bulb moment in fan Sean Rowley’s head when he
would be their first front cover.
started his Guilty Pleasures nights in 2004.
I joined the band at sun-kissed hippy locale Byron Bay
It was - and remains - a very important album. One
and I recall my surprise that the band members looked so
person who finally succumbed to the band and their
pale and sleight. They were obviously more at home in the
promise was XL’s Richard Russell. Leo Silverman told me
studio or flicking through record racks than hitting the
that after reading this Jockey Slut article Russell was
beach or getting buff. When the tour moved on to their
convinced the band should be elevated from Lex to XL and
hometown of Melbourne it became clear why the band
the album given proper support. Making this one press
sounded like they did. There’s no bay, no surf but
‘jolly’ where the money really was well spent.
hundreds of bars for bands to play in and countless second-hand record stores to sift through.
Sunday January 21. The Big Day Out, Gold Coast, Australia.
onstage months earlier). A rogue splinter was then thrown
The Electric Light Orchestra’s triumphant ‘Living Thing’ –
by a fan which scratched the face of a law student. What
all pomp, strings and strained falsetto – booms forth as
are the chances…
gold glitter spirals downwards over the elated throng.
“There’s gotta be limits,” sighs Darren of their still
Down the front, outstretched arms are flecked with
nascent live set. “First there was the broken leg, then the
champagne spurting from a bottle grasped by a cackling,
guy with the splinter in his head…”
wee Tasmanian devil. In the pit, a chap called Darren, who
Limits, it seems, aren’t part of The Avalanches’ future
looks like KC (of & the Sunshine Band fame), adds to the
plans. “We’ve got a lot of ambitions for the live show,”
spectacle by erupting awkwardly from a wheelie bin while
Darren spouts eagerly. “I’d love to do a TV special where all
his band mate James, sporting a straw hat but no
the samples are performed live. We’d have horses in the
underwear, eclipses these antics by simply parting his red
studio which we’d whip. Mexican guys will be mic-ed up
sarong. The rest of the band, fists skywards, are soaked in
and we’ll direct them. We’d like child proteges, kids who
sweat and, in one case, a little blood. It’s not, however,
have mastered the piano, to play the samples.”
been one of The Avalanches’ most eventful gigs. Several days previous, outside a small social club in the
The most – justly – hyped band in years have been preparing for these extraordinary live shows over recent
Great Northern Hotel, Byron Bay, The Avalanches are
months while their debut album, ‘Since I Left You’, was
facing legal action from a ‘fan’. After reaching the
halted by sample clearance, being, as it is, stuffed silly
conclusion of a set that had weaved its way through
with nearly a thousand snippets from Other People’s
theremin abuse, punk rock, turntablism and bursts of
Records. A Marge Simpson soundalike, whom the band
Cyndi Lauper, Darren, in a possible tribute to The Who, had
refer to as ‘The Detective’, has been busy clearing each
destroyed a pair of wooden crutches (he broke his leg
magic moment. The last to receive the green light was by DISCO_POGO_197
Kid Creole and the Coconuts. The use of the bassline from
Robbie started the band with Darren Seltmann, who is a
Madonna’s ‘Holiday’, a crucial part of the segued album,
pretty complex individual. A lapsed Christian, Darren, who
was granted by the queen of pop herself. A first,
has developed tinnitus from playing in bands for years,
apparently. But then it is a very special debut. ‘Since I Left
has created an alter-ego – Hanky Bean, a Russian R’n’B
You’ seems as much about The Beach Boys as the Beastie
singer with a taste for anal sex – and was once asked to
Boys. Rodgers and Hammerstein, Coldcut and Barry
slaughter a lamb, the kosher way, so he could make up his
Adamson drift surreally through the mind too. It should be
own mind about carnivorous pursuits. He once bought a
a kitchen sink mess, but through sheet pop savvy it’s a
duck to slay and cook but instead named it Ming and
triumph. From lump-throatening melancholic moments,
found it a home. His favourite meat? “Duck,” he says. Told
like the beautiful title track, through the cartoon goonery
you he was complex.
of the funky ‘Frontier Psychiatrist’ and the mutant coffee table touches of the outro, it rocks against the orthodox. Such a schizophrenic sound could only come from six like-minded but very different souls. This multi-cultural
“I love the way new melodies can come from cutting up so many little bits of noise,” Robbie says of their delayed labour of love. “Noisy, sampled pop.” The Avalanches didn’t always sound like this. As a
mash-up from Melbourne could have the same pop effect
four-piece, before the DJs James and Dexter came on
as The Spice Girls. Which one’s your favourite? There’s
board, they were akin to the chaotic punk groove of The
Filipino James De La Cruz, who’s thoughtful (he buys
Fall. Jamming in their lounge, from their ‘stage’ – a sofa –
Jockey Slut some First Choice and Nina Simone records
they would drip wax onto records so they’d get stuck in
out of the blue) but prone to dropping his pants on stage.
different grooves which they’d then improvise over. Then
Diminutive Dexter Fabay is the ‘Tas Devil’ who claps his
Robbie did a course at university that allowed him access
hands staccato-style when excited. Crisp-shirted Tony
to a recording studio after hours and the band went
Diblasi is a Sicilian who likes mimicking Russians.
sampledelic. As Robbie has spent so much time sat, alone,
Gregarious on stage, he was responsible for landing on
in front of a computer monitor painstakingly piecing
and breaking Darren’s leg last year, though Robbie claims
together their opus, it’s no surprise he sometimes refers
“he looks after us all”. Gordon ‘Gordie’ McQuiltern has
to it as his own. The biggest party on the block to them
cartoon big eyes which will seal his face with the tweenies.
sounds like anything but to him. “Making the record was a
Like Tony, he mimics accents and is always the last to go
low, pretty personal process,” he says. “The record, to me,
to bed. He is also a tad nervous and once enquires of
feels like lots of lonely, late nights. It’s so time-consuming
Jockey Slut: “Am I boring you?” when he is doing anything
making a record like that it becomes personal.”
but. Robbie Chater is the quietest, bean-thin, inquisitive,
The hunt for the golden samples – including horses,
restless and fiercely ambitious. He has a strange habit of
birds, harps, film dialogue and Boney M – seems fiercely
wearing a jacket to the beach when the sun has its hat
competitive and can even lead to friction, as Gordie
very firmly on indeed.
recalls. “Once I was on my way to a record store in my car (he drives a fabulous bright orange 70s Peugeot). Robbie asked where I was going and if he could join me. We pulled up outside the store and as I was parking Robbie jumped out of the car and ran into the shop so he could start looking through the seam of new records ahead of me. Now we have to take it in turns or we’re, like, grabbing at things: ‘I saw it first’.” Darren side-steps this problem by simply buying entire record collections, either from folk who have ‘switched to CD’ or from the recently deceased. “The biggest was 5,000 LPs and 10,000 seven-inches. I went to see this old guy who was moving out of his house and I bought a bunch of records. He died two weeks later because the move upset his balance.” We’re driving through the strange environs of Byron Bay in a purple ‘people carrier’, arms out of the windows, Neil Young crooning from the stereo. It resembles a hastilyassembled Wild West stage set which, as in ‘Blazing Saddles’, looks like it could collapse at any moment. Instead of guns and saloons, though, the stores here seem to sell nothing but tofu. In Byron Bay you can take home a picture of your aura for a few bucks and have your chakra realigned for a few dollars more. This is prime hippy surfer paradise and bronzed, fit, relaaaaaxed, young things are its inhabitants. It is also one of the prime escapes for the
198_DISCO_POGO
city-dwelling Aussies of the nearby Gold Coast and Brisbane. “It’s a weird set-up in a weird town,” muses Tony as we enter ‘The Backroom’ of the hotel, the 500-capacity location of tonight’s gig. Neon ‘Miller’ signs line the bar, signed photographs from ABBA tribute bands are pinned on the walls and there’s a chaotic montage of photos from their regulars, no doubt accrued from hundreds of bingo nights. It does, surprisingly, have a jolly good sound system, though, which is issuing forth some old Crowded House hits as the band excitedly set up their equipment for the soundcheck. Hours later pretty young things and Limp Bizkit fans (they pollute Australia) fill the carpeted floor as Dexter spins Arrested Development, Aaliyah and Suzanne Vega. He was placed second in the World DMC finals last year. Was he too pop to take pole position? “It’s too easy to use hip hop,” he smiles. “I was fucked too. Jet lagged. I was sick of my routine, but when I performed, I forgot it was falling on fresh ears so the balance in that room was strange. I couldn’t be bothered and everyone was losing it. They liked it a lot.” Backstage sitting in front of an eight-foot mirror covered in peeling band stickers, James is sitting, stamping his feet and jerking his head at nothing in particular, while Darren’s fated crutches are propped against the wall. Ben, a 21-year-old in the audience, is already a devotee of The Avalanches and has made ten of his mates pay fifteen dollars to see them tonight promising them a good time. “I saw them last year,” he shouts over Dre and Snoop Dogg. “They play straight-up funk, they’re fun, the ultimate high school pranksters. They’re the Beasties meets… someone electronic.” His vague analogy is left in mid-air as Chris Farlowe’s 60s soul classic ‘Out of Time’ heralds the arrival of The Avalanches and they launch into a song that uncannily
after their entrance) and return for many ‘encores’.
matches Ben’s description, with Darren stuttering like
‘Electricity’ is halted halfway through as the band exit
Mike Diamond over a soundtrack that recalls Stereolab.
stage right, leaving Tony with a huge question mark over
There’s almost too much to take in at once: Tony salutes
his head as Marvin Gaye’s ‘What’s Going On’ drifts across
then folds his hand into the shape of a duck as if he’s
it. Another sampled horse neighs, another chap falls over.
casting shadows on the back of the hall; Dexter pogos
Cue ‘Living Thing’, glitter, champagne and the demise of
furiously on the spot, putting out an imaginary fire;
the crutches.
Gordie’s hand hovers across his ululating theremin; Darren
“There’s a lot to take in isn’t there?” Dexter says of the
holds his microphone as if he’s wiping dribble from his
show the following day. “There’s not many slots you can
chin, and assorted Avalanches seem to fall over a lot.
put us in.”
‘Frontier Psychiatrist’ – an Australian single which has made ‘you’re crazy as a coconut!’ a catchphrase has the audience
James, a cigarette sticking out of his shirt buttonhole, is
bouncing higher than Dexter. They are one big ‘wow’.
crashed out on a sofa, thinking about the rise of the band
Like on Lauryn Hill’s memorable ‘Miseducation…’ tour, the DJ and his record collection are used as a major part
he joined just over a year ago. “From smoking in a grungey, smelly house to going to the UK. It’s going to be fun.”
of the show as Dexter fills the gaps between their own
Tony, whose unusual onstage dancing the others refer
material with classics like ‘The Theme from MASH’ and
to as “extreme crazy animal funk”, harks back to their early
Wings’ ‘Band On The Run’, and creates live ‘bootlegs’ by
days, contrasting it with their new-found fortune. “I lived
throwing Madonna over Bob Dylan. The boys, meanwhile,
with Robbie for six months, seven years ago. Two little
all swap instruments, with Dexter playing keyboards and
mattresses on the floor in the same room, living in each
singing through a vocoder on ‘Electricity’, James banging a
other’s pockets. I was bumming around, living on the dole
tambourine so hard his hand later swells, Darren taking to
and I thought: ‘Fuck it, see how it goes’, joined the band
the drums for most of the set and Robbie swinging a bass.
and three months later we were playing in front of 3000
They also leave the stage frequently (even five minutes
people with the Jon Spencer Blues Explosion.” DISCO_POGO_199
Right now they are all waiting to be shot for their first
“There’s loads of op shops and thrift stores,” Gordie
UK front cover. Your lives are going to change dramatically,
affirms, “so it’s easy and cheap to set up home. All our
I tell them. “What do you mean?” panics Dex. “You’re
records, furniture and clothes are from there.” Which may
scaring me. I don’t want nothing to change! Aah, shit.”
explain his Guns N’ Roses cap. “When we started, we
On another sofa, in another apartment, Robbie and
bought crazy old organs and shitty guitars for fifty bucks.
Darren, the band’s nucleus, seem deflated from the
There’s no bay, no surf, but there are hundreds of bars for
previous night and the threat of legal action hanging over
bands to play in.”
them. “We’ll know not to do that again,” Darren admits
One such place is home to Dexter’s Lounge every
with a sigh. The despondence doesn’t last long though.
Tuesday night where, according to the chalkboard
They remember their New Year’s Eve gig, which included a
outside, ‘Dexter plays whatever the funk he likes…”, from
live brass band called The Syncopators. “They’re in their
The Chi-Lites, Phoenix and Dennis Wilson to Daft Punk, OI’
50s and all have Tourette’s syndrome,” Darren explains,
Dirty Bastard and Alan Braxe.
adding that “at our early gigs we could only fit one song of
All the band are here chatting and getting drunk.
samples on the disc, so we had to entertain the audience
Jockey Slut is introduced to their girlfriends, relatives,
with bits of stand-up comedy”.
mates and extended family. Tony is showing off some new
Has it been difficult turning an album of samples into a live show I ask? “Yeah,” Robbie nods, resplendent in a T-shirt for a local
trousers and another crisp shirt, while Robbie is propped up by a fruit machine in the corner. “We’re so close and we’re always sharing music,” he says, looking over at the
building firm which boasts ‘The best lay in town’. “We had
band’s DJ wing. “It’s really funny that Dexter hadn’t heard
to come up with something loosely based on it. We always
The Beatles’ ‘Sgt. Pepper’s…’ until recently and so he’s gone
wanted it to be a party we happened to be playing at,
bananas for them. James is always bringing brilliant
rather than a gig. We want to walk off when we play a
dance and house records. It’s grown really organically.
certain record and come back on when we feel like it.”
James’ sets are all house and The Beach Boys.”
Are you, perhaps, expecting too much of your audience?
As that unlikely fusion of styles has already made them
“Yeah,” Darren smiles. “Bring on the dancing dogs.”
cult heroes in the UK, we talk about their imminent visit to
After staying in the gaudy Gold Coast, where their
Europe where they will DJ, play live and no doubt end up
triumphant Big Day Out appearance takes place – all
on the cover of Smash Hits with ‘Which is your favourite?’
casinos, strip bars and flash hotels – you can see why
emblazoned across their pearly whites. Which is a good
Melbourne is home for The Avalanches. It’s a sieve-
thing.
headed-dude-free zone that’s full of cult bookstores and second-hand record shops.
Robbie pauses, ponders, smiles. “I hope we’ve got a chance to go where we’re going and to grow,” he says. “We’re young. We’ll make some great records over the next few years.” They already have.
200_DISCO_POGO
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HOW WE MADE...
Altern 8: ‘INFILTRATE 202’ From the most inauspicious of beginnings – a discarded remix project – came one of dance music’s most distinctive anthems: Altern 8’s ‘Infiltrate 202’. Not only did it light up 1991’s long hot summer of rave, but it still cuts the mustard today. One-half of Altern 8, Mark Archer, tells Harold Heath about the track’s inspirations, history and legacy…
– Detroit techno purists – would turn their noses up at. That became the debut ‘Overload’ EP. Even though there were eight tracks on that EP we didn’t come up with the whole ‘8’ thing and even when we did ‘Infiltrate’ there wasn’t an ‘8’ because we really didn’t have a big game plan at the time.”
Influences ‘Infiltrate 202' is somewhere between a collage and a collision, a magpie-like collection of shiny
Photo: Peter Walsh
audio parts gathered from other Mark Archer has made well-respected
records via some judicious sampling
Detroit-flavoured techno; tough,
and re-playing. Its ‘everything-
quality US garage-style house and
including-the-kitchen-sink'
hugely successful, full-on bonkers
production approach defined the UK
hardcore rave. He’s released music
rave template of summer 1991, a
as part of Slo Moshun, Ramone ‘Latin
summer of 5k turbo sound system
Lover’ Ropiak and classic UK techno
water-cooled mega-laser ultimo-
outfit Nexus 21, as well as
raves as dance culture went
recording under numerous pseudonyms
overground. And Altern 8 were there
including Ed ‘Chunk’ Rodriguez, Xen
to provide a Day-Glo musical
Mantra, Trackman and DJ Nex. But
soundtrack that distilled much of
it’s as one-half of Altern 8 that
the previous two years of dance
he’s best known.
music into a single 12-inch release.
Beginnings
“Around that time, the term
Altern 8 began as a side hustle
hardcore hadn’t been coined, but
while Archer and production partner
this was the year where it really
Chris Peat were working on their
started to peak above most of the
pioneering techno project Nexus 21.
other styles that were being played at raves. In 89 and 90 it was very
“We were doing Nexus 21 and Altern 8
much a mishmash of Belgian techno,
started in 1990, because we’d
Italian piano, housier stuff coming
recorded a bunch of tracks that the Network label thought Nexus 21 fans
DISCO_POGO_203
HOW WE MADE...
over from New York and Chicago, Strictly Rhythm house-type stuff, Detroit techno and breakbeats. There were just so many different kinds of styles going on and I wanted to record a tune that incorporated all the things that I wanted to hear in a track.”
Recording “We recorded it in March 1991. Chris was the one who could play keyboards, and I went in with a pile of records and a load of discs that I'd compiled of different drum sounds, keyboard sounds, stab noises etc. The track that actually influenced 'Infiltrate' even though it sounds nothing like it was ‘Pure’ by GTO. It’s got this weird kind of choir bit at the beginning and then some chanting, so I thought it'd be great to have a crowd noise on it to make it sound similar to the GTO track.”
“I’d got the chord from 808 State’s ‘Pacific 202’ sampled on a disc and was like let’s use this pad
The breakbeat in ‘Infiltrate 202’
sound in there. And, straightaway,
is a lift from ‘The Man with The
I started playing the ‘Pacific 202’
Masterplan’ by Quadrophonia, which
chord progression and it just
is itself made from Lyn Collins’
worked. We were like: ‘Do you reckon
classic ‘Think (About It)’
we'll get away with it?!’ It was only on that small label, so we
“Using breakbeats wasn't a new
didn’t really think much about
thing at all. A lot of people had
using it.
been using breakbeats for quite a
“Watch Yer Bass Bins”
“I had an a capella album on the
The tune had an air of serendipity
while and there are tracks from
record deck that I was listening to
to it. Aside from the way the audio
88/89 like KC Flightt that use them
through my headphones while the
parts all seemed to just fall into
to beef up their drums. I also
track’s playing in the studio,
place, it also famously sampled
wanted some sub-bass in there like
spinning different a capellas over
Chris Duckenfield – then of pirate
the Northern bleep techno thing
the top and Candi Staton’s one (‘I
radio DJ duo Asterix and Space with
that was big at the time.
Know’) was kind of in key so we
Richard Benson – saying: “Watch yer
sampled that up. There was no:
bass bins I’m tellin’ ‘ya.”
a Casio CZ101 synth which is in
‘We’ve gone in there to make this
Weirdly, Archer, who’d never met
loads of Belgian techno tunes and a
particular tune’, it was just while
the pair before, bumped into them
lot of New York stuff by Frankie
we’ve got studio time, let’s make
both at Shelley’s nightclub in
Bones. The bassline was from a hip
something. It all came together
Stoke just a couple of days after
house tune ‘Electric Dance’ by
quickly because I'd already got so
sampling Duckenfield.
Jungle Crew. We just replayed it on
many ideas in my head.”
“We got a specific organ noise off
a synth.”
DISCO_POGO_205
HOW WE MADE...
“Going from starting making music in 1988 and then being in the charts in ‘91, it was a proper jump, totally unexpected and it wasn't an aim of ours at all. Suddenly, you've got to start doing gigs like this weird Wednesday night with BBC Radio 1 DJ Mark Goodier, Right Said Fred and the Cookie Crew. We went down well and the crowd were kind of into it, but they were more of a pop crowd – and it was just a completely different side to what we were used to doing at the Eclipse, Shelley’s and Amnesia House.” The video was played on ITV’s ‘The Chart Show’ and children’s Saturday morning TV shows and ‘Infiltrate 202’ eventually reached number 28 in the UK national pop charts, taking Altern 8’s hardcore rave
Photo: Peter Walsh
aesthetic directly to the masses.
‘Infiltrate 202’s Legacy Along with other classics from Liquid, SL2, Bizarre Inc, Acen and Manix, Altern 8’s ‘Infiltrate 202’ consolidated the emerging UK hardcore rave sound of ‘91, bringing all the elements together: breaks, sub-bass, euphoric pads,
Furthermore, ‘Infiltrate 202’
In July they were booked for a PA
disco vocal samples and a devil-
might never have happened at
at the Eclipse club in Coventry –
may-care sampling attitude, and
all if Network’s Neil Rushton
where they’d previously played a
created a foundational UK rave
hadn’t commissioned a remake of
few months earlier as Nexus 21 – and
track in the process.
War’s memorable rock-cum-funk
the pair first adopted their iconic
cut ‘Low Rider’.
chemical warfare suits and
“When we made the tune, we didn't
facemasks, carefully personalised
know how long it was gonna last
with Tippex and highlighter pen.
for. We thought that if it lasted
"I’m not sure why they wanted a Nexus 21 remix or what we could have
for another year we'd be happy. And
even done with it. It was one of
“We didn’t want to look the same as
31 years later I can still play it
those ones where you just basically
Nexus to anyone. Because naively I
out. I used to think that if in
write them a new tune. We tried to
thought, people in the crowd would
1990, if you went back 30 years and
do a Soul II Soul tempo remix but it
be like: ‘Well, hold on a minute. I
plucked a tune out, you wouldn't be
never came out and I’ve not heard it
saw them the other month!’ Whereas
able to play it at a club or a rave,
since that session. But we had some
most of the people wouldn't even
whereas to be able to play
studio time left so we made
know that there was anyone on stage!”
‘Infiltrate' now and it still get
‘Infiltrate 202’, took it to
the massive reaction that it does
Network and said you can use this as
The PA was also where the now-
– it's way more than I could ever
the follow up to the ‘Overload’ EP.”
necessary video for ‘Infiltrate
have imagined.”
Hitting The Pop Charts
202’ was shot.
‘Infiltrate 202’ was released on
“The label knew that it was doing
promo in the spring of 1991,
well because of pre-sales and
followed by a full release in July.
projected chart positions. They
With BBC radio support the duo found
said it looked like it could
themselves in possession of an
actually do something, so they
actual national hit.
asked us to record the Eclipse gig to make the video. It was all done
206_DISCO_POGO
on a budget of about £500.
CRATEDIGGING WITH...
RAW SILK “Nostalgia and Nouveau!” Dynamic DJ duo RAW SILK let us into the secrets of their record collection... PHOTOS: MATILDA HILL-JENKINS
RAW SILK are DJs Grace and Steph,
The success of their RAW SILK
a pair of best mates whose sets
parties led to DJ bookings in Ibiza,
weave together house, disco, new
Glastonbury, Fabric, e1, the Sub
wave, synth pop and forgotten 90s
Club, AVA, Love International, Lost
remixes, taking a celebratory
Village, Gottwood and more, their
approach and creating not so much
music-first, party-friendly style
a smooth DJ journey, as a where-
finding them plenty of fans.
the-hell-are-they-going-to-take-usnext? adventure. The pair met in Australia in 2015
Steph says: “When we started we played quite a lot of disco, but as we’ve developed into more like
and bonded via a summer spent
‘club DJs’ we’ve definitely gone a
enjoying Melbourne’s inclusive club
little bit more clubby with our
nights and day parties. On their
tunes. With Grace working in record
return to London in 2016 they began
shops and coming from a more digging
DJing together, setting up their
background, we bring those older
RAW SILK parties in Peckham. The
tracks and then pull in the newer
aim, according to Grace, was to
clubby things. It’s a mash-up of
“recreate the sort of dancefloor
both.”
fantasies that we had in
Grace: “Yeah, it’s like nostalgia
Melbourne.” A mission that was well
and nouveau! And that’s what we like
and truly accomplished. “Our party
when we go out, we like variety: a
started at nine and finished at
bit of slamming acid and then some
midnight,” says Steph. “People were
synth pop. You want to be surprised
dancing on the bar with their tops
and excited by what’s being played.”
off by 10 o’clock – that was the kind of energy we wanted to recreate, which actually did end up happening.”
208_DISCO_POGO
CRATEDIGGING WITH...
TWO WARM-UP TRACKS
GUARANTEED FLOOR FILLER
AHADADREAM: ‘CIARA DRUM DUB’(WHITE LABEL) Flight Facilities: ‘Lights Up’ featuring Channel Tres (Future Classic)
Sally C: ‘Big Saldo’s Chunkers 001’ (Big Saldo’s Chunkers)
Steph: “I’ve picked a Flight
Steph: “She’s just released her
started to get into Ahadadream, and
Facilities track first. They’re two
second EP (the helpfully-titled
he’s got this Ciara Dub that’s just
DJs from Australia and this track
‘Big Saldo’s Chunkers EP 002’), but
the old Ciara tune ‘Goodies’ from
features Channel Tres who’s an
she’s got this one EP with three
the 00s on loop. And this really
American rapper and artist. I’ve
tracks on it. They’re just pumping,
works because of our age group. It’s
played it a few times at warm-up
housey, with a vocal hook and
one of those recognisable tunes
gigs and it’s just nice – kind of
anything off that EP always works
from back then – and it’s got quite
disco-y. But it’s a bit more like
no matter where you’re playing.”
a lot of oomph! If the floor is
modern pop. And it’s got a nice big
Grace: “I agree!”
dying, it’s one of those where if
Steph: “This one is the same kind of thing as the P!nk track – that same nostalgia trip. I’ve only just
you play it everybody comes back.
build too.” Grace: “I think it sounds like the Neptunes doing a dance track.”
TWO SECRET WEAPONS
So, I always have it to hand just in case I need it.”
Steph: “Yeah, it’s kind of got a hip hop element. It’s worked well at a
TOILET BREAK TRACK
few gigs that we played, like when we warmed up for Crazy P; it’s definitely always in the warm-up list rather than one for the main event.”
P!nk: ‘Feel Good Time’ D Bop’s Full Throttle Mix (Urban Division) Grace: “Like I was saying about the Tricia Leigh Fisher track, I keep
Laura Brannigan: ‘Moonlight on Water (Sex on the Beach)’ Extended Remix (White label)
looking for old pop tunes that have
Tricia Leigh Fisher: ‘Empty Beach’ Extended Club Mix (ATCO Records)
had remixes and I found this
Grace: “It’s just a long track I
recently. I absolutely love the
really like because it kind of
‘Charlie’s Angels: Full Throttle’
builds up on its own. And again,
soundtrack and I found out that Beck
it’s by a sort of famous singer that
Grace: “I can’t remember how I found
and other people have done remixes
people might know or might not know,
this, but I was looking for dance
of this track as well. It’s sort of
Laura Brannigan. You can leave it
tunes that are a bit 90s, a bit
recognisable, but it’s really fast,
to develop – I love using filters
breakbeaty and generally a lot of
it’s like P!nk on speed. And it’s
and effects in a really annoying
12-inch releases from the 90s have
got whip sounds too! You want people
way – but this just builds and
been edited in some sort of fun,
to recognise the tunes that you’re
builds and builds, you don’t need
dance way. This remix just works
playing, especially with a sing-
to do any of that.”
because it’s got quite a good build-
along, so it’s sort of not such a
“She’s got a massive back
up, it’s got lots of fun sound
secret weapon. But it kind of is
catalogue, but it’s all quite
effects, it’s kind of like synth
because everyone knows it, but
ballad-y and very rock-pop. This
pop but also sounds quite
also, they don’t know this
track is really good as an original,
dancefloor-esque. It just works. It
version!”
but it’s quite slow so someone
fits into all the categories of the
somewhere has made this extended
tracks that I love, so I always
remix that I can’t find on vinyl
whack it out now. Every single time
annoyingly, but it’s really good.”
we play anywhere!” DISCO_POGO_211
CRATEDIGGING WITH...
TRACK THAT EVERYONE SHAZAMS
WHEN IT’S TIME TO GET WEIRD
Tom Carruthers: ‘Cyclone’ (L.I.E.S. Records)
Mainline Magic Orchestra: ‘Jack Sparrow’ (Public Possession)
Steph: “This is quite recent, it
CLASSIC SING-ALONG
M&S Pres. The Girl Next Door: ‘Salsoul Nugget’ (London Records) Grace: “Can’t go wrong with this.”
was a promo that we got sent by Tom
Grace: “Mainline Magic Orchestra
Steph: “This is one that we used to
Carruthers, and we had some people
are a Spanish band and they’re just
play back in the day at the Nines in
comment on a mix on SoundCloud
a bit weird. They have all this
Peckham. I hadn’t heard it for a
asking us for an ID. Then I played
performance art and images, they do
while until Grace played it
it out and again people were asking
crazy shows, and their music is
recently – and it went down really
for an ID.”
essentially freaky housey pop, with
well.”
Grace: “Solid house tune!“
lots of sort of sound effects,
Grace: I had it on CD single with
strange vocals and fun little flute
three different remixes and I used
bits. So, it sort of fits really
to dance around my room to it when
well into a dancefloor arena. But
it came out. I used to listen to it
it’s also quite strange and makes
on repeat and I’ve now realised that
you think twice.”
I can DJ with it – what an absolute
WELL-KNOWN TUNE THAT WE LOVE
pleasure!”
ONE MORE TUNE! DJ Dove: ‘Illusions’ (Deep Groove Records)
Kris Baha: ‘Starts to Fall’ (Power Station)
Steph: “You couldn’t find it digitally for ages, but I had the
Grace: “And then Kris Baha is a new
record back when we used to do RAW
Australian industrial artist that
SILK in Peckham. We were vinyl-only
makes really heavy, but not fast,
back in the day when we started
dance music. It’s like new beat and
doing our parties and we used to
if I played it solidly, it probably
Steph: “We played this in Edinburgh
play it all the time. It’s from the
would make some people leave. But
at a night called Miss World. It was
90s and it’s one of those tunes that
if you throw it in here and there it
quite controversial because my
I’ve always known, it’s just always
works really well.”
boyfriend wheeled it back, it got
Kelis featuring Andre 3000: ‘Millionaire’ (Virgin)
been around.”
put on Instagram and then everybody
Grace: “I love this tune and I love
was saying: ‘How dare that man jump
it when Steph plays it in the mix.
in?’. And usually I would be like,
It makes me so happy.”
yeah, you shouldn’t be touching my record! But it was actually quite a moment, and everybody probably did want to hear it twice. And because it was my boyfriend, it was kind of ok! But yeah, we played it at the end and everybody just loved it.” Grace: “Yeah, everyone loves that tune. You can’t go wrong with OutKast.”
212_DISCO_POGO
Photo: Luke Dyson
CRATEDIGGING WITH...
AFTERPARTY TRACK
TRACK TO CLEAR THE AFTERPARTY
Grace: “This one time we were having an afterparty in a tent and I put on this really slow, moody Cure track on, and Steph just turned to me and was like: ‘Turn this off, this is horrible, it’s so miserable!’ I love when it’s not the right time and place! Then I played a tune
DB Boulevard: ‘Point of View’ (Airplane Records)
recently and it almost cleared the
Controlled Bleeding:‘Now Is the Time’ (Cleopatra Records)
dancefloor. It was outside, on a lovely sunny afternoon, I sort of
Steph: “I literally will never not
hadn’t skipped far enough through
play this tune at an afterparty!”
the track when I was checking it in
Grace: “Steph’s really good at
my headphones and it sounded like
afterparties. I freak out and don’t
it was electro and I was like: ‘Oh,
know what to play and put on
yeah, I remember this one’. And then
something that no one wants to hear.
when it dropped it was just:
But Steph just knows that smooth, nothing-too-intense, kind-of-wellknown-but-not-house tune that you need to hear at an afterparty. And you realise that some people can do it and some people can’t!”
214_DISCO_POGO
‘Argggghhh!’ – a screamo-Slipknot-
The Cure: ‘The Kiss’ (Polydor)
type track. But not everyone left!” HAROLD HEATH
From the founders of
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MY HOUSE IS YOUR HOUSE...
Justin Robertson INTRO: JIM BUTLER. PHOTOS: MATILDA HILL-JENKINS
“A depository of memory and cosmic
featuring Brix Smith, ready to
mullet. All opportunities were
trigger with shoe racks.” Ask
roll; his burgeoning art career
squandered. Now I must shave. Every
Renaissance man – although he
goes from strength-to-strength,
week without fail, with almost
prefers “reluctant exhibitionist”
and he’s just handed in the first
ritualistic regularity, I maintain
– Justin Robertson to describe what
draft of his second novel – the
the single style option left open
his home means to him and he rather
follow-up to last year’s ‘The
to me: the bonehead of regret. Only
elegantly sums up his north-west
Tangle’.
the shifting complexities of beard
London Victorian terrace thus. Home
“Home isn’t a place where I chill
sculpting offer me any solace.”
for the DJ, producer, musician,
out, as much as I hate that
artist and latterly author, means
phrase,” he laughs. “It’s more a
Beret
being rooted among his
place I rush back to because I’ve
“The deficit of hair has, over the
inspirations.
had an idea. And then I spend all
years, led me to find self-
my time in my laboratory, messing
expression through headwear. The
about with various artforms.”
fedora, the trilby, the prayer hat,
“I live among my various enthusiasms,” he explains. “And that’s quite important for me. I
and the homburg have all seen action
like a sensory overload of
in the theatre of vanity, and I have
different inspiring things, whether
now amassed a couple of boxes of
it be pictures, records or books.
many and varied headgear. This has
Or films. I quite like having these
not always been a smooth passage.
things around me.”
Anyone who has negotiated a club
And despite the importance of
full of psychedelically rearranged
“vibrating off these various
individuals whilst wearing a hat
things”, Robertson declares himself
will be familiar with grasping
to be neither hoarder (“I
hands hungrily clawing at your head
occasionally have purges, which I sometimes regret”) nor completist. “I’m sort of a collector,” he
Hair Clippers “Soren Kierkegaard was blessed with
and the cries of: ‘Oi, Walter White, let us try your hat on.’ “For many years I endured this
says. “I find the things I buy
a fine head of hair that exploded
indignity and many other cries of
useful. They’re targeted purchases.
from his scalp like an insolent
abuse hurled from passing cars by
But there are a lot of them. Books
wave. He had plenty of issues to
angry youths opposed to quality
in particular. And records as well.
worry him as he wandered the streets
millinery. These days I favour the
I still collect a lot of reggae.
of 19th century Copenhagen, however
shallow profile of the beret, they
And psychedelic music. Plus soul,
baldness was not one of them. ‘My
are less likely to blow away in the
funk, jazz. I still buy those on
honest opinion and my friendly
coming climate apocalypse and are
record. I’m a maximalist I suppose.
advice is this: do it or do not do
He adds: “I like the idea that I
it – you will regret both’.
can pick things out. Either on the
Kierkegaard was clearly not
bookshelf or from my record
cognizant with male pattern
collection or my wardrobe and think
baldness.
this is great. I love this. I shall
“Of all the many mistakes in my
wear this today. Or read this. Or
life, it is my failure to have had a
listen to this.”
variety of interesting haircuts
Vibing off this tsunami of
that vexes me most. Ok, I had a
cultural ephemera keeps Robertson
long-hair space rock phase, a
incredibly busy. He’s still out
furrow-browed flat top and a very
DJing most weekends “inflicting my
poor raver bob before rapid
taste on people in acid houses”; he
follicle loss revealed the
has a new Deadstock 33s EP,
limitations to my imagination. No page boy, no French crew cut or
216_DISCO_POGO
pompadour, no perm or even a humble
DISCO_POGO_217
MY HOUSE IS YOUR HOUSE...
less prone to bending at the hands
am also a man of quite limited and
of anti-titfer terrorist units.
specific tastes. I’ll happily have
constructed a time machine. The
Though I do feel there is less
a wardrobe of many similar items
materials were really quite simple
animosity directed towards hats and
that differ only in quite small
to obtain and can be found in most
their wearers in recent years –
details, but otherwise appear, to
thrift shops and eBay stores. One
perhaps it’s due to the ubiquitous
the uninitiated, to be exactly the
denim jacket, a variety of coloured
adoption of the Peaky Blinder
same. Thus, it is with the denim
threads and a selection of patches
8-piece cap or maybe it’s a sign of
mountain. Variations on a theme,
bearing the names of favoured pop
a new enlightenment. Still, I did
but what a lovely tune. Cuts,
combos. With some diligent sewing I
get a cry of ‘Oo la la’ from a group
weights, and vintage vary and
was able to travel back to the home
of smashed youths just the other
that’s enough for me to feel like
counties of the mid-80s. I even
day. Plus ça change, eh?”
I’m really fashion forward.”
added a dash of patchouli oil for
Battle Jacket
“It was for that reason I
the fully authentic experience. Now I only need don the battle jacket to
“I guess almost all objects of
be transported to another time and
interest that one accumulates over
place. It’s really quite
the years only tend to become
miraculous.”
significant with the passing of time, a trinket from a lost love, a
Furniture and Ornaments
photo of a relative sadly lost or an
“I can’t really claim any credit
autograph from a revered icon now
for how our house looks, but I love
departed. Sometimes those objects
it. My wife, along with fashion
go missing or are destroyed by
styling, is a top-notch interior
accident, lost in a move, or simply
designer too. She is an obsessive
“I very rarely buy new clothes these
fall foul to the vagaries of fashion
hunter of beautiful things; she
days, preferring the thrill of the
and the constant reinventions of
sourced all the furniture and its
chase around eBay and thrift shops.
youth. That was the fate of my
100% second-hand gleaned from hours
My wife is a fashion stylist amongst
original battle jacket, discarded
of exploration online and in the
other things and we both share a
in favour of a long mac. This can be
loppis (garage or yard sales) of
passion for an exquisite bargain. I
very disconcerting and upsetting.
Sweden. The area where she grew up,
Denim
MY HOUSE IS YOUR HOUSE...
a small town called Varberg, is rich in second-hand resources which her poor unfortunate family are forced to bring in their suitcases when they visit.”
Records “‘Without music, life would be a mistake.’ Obviously.”
Hilma af Klint: ‘Notes and Methods’ “I’ve never really trained as
Dogs
either an artist, a musician, or a
“These are neither objects, nor do
writer, apart from my own trials
I own them. I really hate that
and errors. I don’t think formal
notion of ‘dog-owning’, it’s very
qualifications are always necessary
‘human’ I guess, trying to
when making art of whatever stripe.
subjugate and direct every living
If you love a subject and think you
thing as if it were a resource. If
have something to add to the
anything, it is they that own me, at
conversation, then that is the key
least emotionally. Both our boys
ingredient. But an empty kettle
are rescues, a Lurcher and a Saluki.
won’t boil so I regularly fill up
We look after them and feed them,
with hours in front of the masters.
constant source of inspiration, her
they in turn, look after me and my
Every couple of months I visit the
work is organically abstract, with
wife. They are wise. They know a lot
Turners at the Tate. At home I turn
a mystical power to it. Beautiful
more about the world around them
to my art books. Hilma af Klint is a
patterns and beguiling shades that
than I do.
connect to unseen dimensions. 220_DISCO_POGO
Proper magic.”
“When we stroll through the woods on our daily adventures, while I
whistle and wave at fellow dog
wielding is a definite hero of mine,
walkers, they are engaged in
though I haven’t ever met him in any
detective work and time travel. By
real sense of the word. I did
scent alone they can divine who has
however offer him a canapé at Peter
passed by, what they had for lunch
Blake’s birthday party. I’m not a
and the relative friendliness of
great one for DJing at celebrity
their intentions. They can project
parties, mainly because I never get
into the future like seers, sensing
invited to do them, but
approaching animals or changes in
miraculously, I was asked to play
the weather long before I have any
at Peter Blake’s 80th birthday
inkling. I’d be lost without them.”
party. This was a total mindblowing honour for me, he’s another
Books
artistic icon in my world, and his
“‘I know that I know nothing’ as the
taste is impeccable. He requested a
old Socratic paradox goes. I’d say
heady brew of 60s freak beat to
that’s an accurate assessment of my
accompany the festivities. He knew
attitude to my own knowledge or lack thereof. In this censorious age we
his sounds. “I picked out a small selection
“The party itself was quite the
might be forgiven for thinking that
that vaguely encapsulates my ongoing
gathering of legends, every
we are somehow saddled with the
studies. Ask me next month and it
rock’n’roll luminary still living
opinions of our former selves, as if
will have changed. Mary Midgley’s
was getting down. Pre-gig I stood
attitudes and outlooks never really
‘The Myths We Live By’; Brian
wide-eyed, and tongue-tied. I
alter but are somehow baked into our
Catling’s ‘The Vorrh Trilogy’;
really wanted to jump into
DNA. But we aren’t born fully formed
Richard Brautigan’s ‘In Watermelon
conversations with Rolling Stones
and we die incomplete, we are
Sugar’; Arthur Schopenhauer’s ‘The
and real live Beatles but couldn’t
experts only in our own ignorance.
World as Will and Representation’;
really engineer the situation or
But we can learn.
Andrew Hussey’s ‘The Game of War’;
muster the courage. So, I stood and
Eugene Thacker’s ‘In the Dust of
nursed my sparkling water and
years and remain a fluid set of
This Planet’; James Hogg’s ‘The
internally swooned. However, on a
vague moral and metaphysical
Private Memoirs and Confessions of a
trip to the bar I did find myself
guidelines rather than an ideology
Justified Sinner’; Markus Gabriel’s
stood between Jimmy Page and Anna
that must be adhered to. I’ve gone
‘Why the World Does Not Exist’ and
Ford. Now is the time I thought. My
from wide-eyed optimist with a
Michael Moorcock’s ‘Jerry Cornelius:
mouth moved, but no sound emerged,
degree of faith in human progress,
His Lives and Times’.”
all I could do was offer a tray of
“My opinions have shifted over the
to something of a pessimist with
hors d’oeuvres to Jimmy. He declined
really hold with neat dialectics or
Happy Birthday Peter Blake Badge
notions of human superiority in
“I was once given a lasso by Jimmy
only evidence that these events
either intellect or moral action. We
Page, but that’s another story. The
really took place and remains one of
are a troubled and troublesome
dark lord of twin neck guitar
my most cherished mementos.”
only a sliver of hope, who doesn’t
species. The thought that I might be stuck thinking what I thought last year, let alone when I was a furrowbrowed teenager fills me with dread. “I am currently what one might call a Discordian sceptic with a taste for the occult. Not the scary demons and rituals type of occult, though they are interesting, but more the unknown aspects of the world around us that we, as faulty creations, fail to grasp. That’s a theme running through my art and my writing, and it really arises from the sort of books I like to read including rollicking weird fiction. I’m a student. I’m trying to explore. I know very little but try to use some of the ideas in the books I read to have a conversation about exactly how little we know.
the offer. This badge, that Blake gave everyone at the party, is my
MY HOUSE IS YOUR HOUSE...
Gibson ‘Chet Atkins’ Guitar “The inventory of items destroyed or mangled by Monty and Harry is thankfully quite a short one, but it does contain some quite significant entries. My wife’s sequin dress, entirely consumed by Monty, resulting in quite fabulous sequinned turds; ear defenders chewed; a tassel from a loafer… “Oh, yes, and my wedding ring finger. Harry took a sudden and unexpected turn in the park whilst I was holding his training line. Snap. I’ve never been an accomplished guitar player, I can rustle up a few chords and the odd lick, but that’s about the limit of my repertoire. However, now I’m even less dexterous on the fret board. Harry is forgiven however, when the squirrel calls one must follow. I’ve got some movement back now, though it looks funny, so I get to strum my lovely orange Gibson again. It’s a quite rare model, I think. A ‘Chet Atkins’ purchased from the esteemed Andy Hackett, high priest of vintage guitars and vintage port.”
prolonged and well-deserved. But
2017, and I find myself in Jagz
words are not enough. The marriage
Kooner’s studio in west London
of scatter-gun cultural venom with
recording a track with Brix for my
“In my youth I was obsessed with The
tight, off-kilter and extremely
Deadstock 33s project. She is
Fall, I still I am guess. I followed
hypnotic rhythm, made The Fall the
fabulous and very lovely too; the
them religiously around smoky
most interesting band around for
results will finally be released
venues with sticky carpets and
years.
this year. She also has her own
Brix’s Plectrum
wind-lashed festivals like a monk
“In my opinion the addition of
plectrums, one of which she kindly
following a holy relic. I was drawn
Brix Smith led them to the pinnacle
gave me. So, I now have an artefact
to the unpretentious, but sharply-
of their powers, where all the stars
to mark the occasion. My teenage
literary, lyrics of Mark E Smith. I
aligned. She added a subtle
self is almost as happy as my
even tried to copy his acid wit and
sunshine to the dour Prestwich
current self. Time travel, see.”
wry observational style in a sixth
pallet, which wasn’t so much ‘pop
form poem I wrote about the
sheen’, which sounds dismissive,
influence of style magazines on
but was really the opening up of
impressionable youths, which I
possibilities for the group. Now
inadvisably stuck to the school
they were firing, acerbic and
noticeboard. The piss taking was
confident, but with a playfulness that, although always present, now
222_DISCO_POGO
became fully realised. So, cut to
WHERE ARE THEY NOW?
Billie Ray Martin Electribe 101 were one of the first – and foremost – groups to emerge from clubland’s late-80s acid house explosion. But after one brilliant album they disappeared. So what happened to enigmatic frontwoman Billie Ray Martin?
Billie Ray Martin, leading light in
“It was worse than that,” says
heads it’s Cabaret Voltaire,
1990s electro crossover act
Billie. “A very bad remark was made
Throbbing Gristle and The Human
Electribe 101 and dancefloor-
when they heard the album.”
League, tails, Martha Reeves,
slaying solo artist of ‘Your Loving
Oh really? What did they say?
Aretha Franklin and Motown. For
Arms’ fame, isn’t where you’d
“They said,” she pauses to take a
every electro-tinged offering,
imagine a Top 10-selling hit maker
breath. “‘What’s with this soul
there’s also a soul-fuelled belter.
would be at 9am on a 21st century
shit?’. After a comment like that,
So you get 1996’s ‘Deadline For My
Thursday morning.
and then getting dropped, and not
Memories’ (featuring several
getting signed by anyone else, we
retooled tracks from the lost
actually thought it was shit.”
Electribe album, just to prove a
“I’m sitting here buried under hundreds of CDs and vinyl and I have to pack them up and send them
It’s nothing of the kind. A sleek
point) and 2001’s ‘18 Carat Garbage’,
all out,” she sighs from her home
electronic soul offering, it’s
which she recorded in Memphis at the
in Berlin.
stacked with sure-fire hits. How
famous House Of Blues studio.
The LPs and CDs are Electribe
the label passed on it is
“I went there to record with
101’s ‘Electribal Soul’, the band’s
unfathomable. They were supposed
Willie Mitchell and the Hi Records
fabled, long-lost second album,
to know what they were doing, right?
stable, because that’s my favourite
which is finally seeing the light
“I know,” she exclaims. “Fuck ‘em.”
sound in the world,” she says. “I
of day via her own Electribal Soul
To the casual observer, Billie
soon discovered you can’t just go
imprint.
Ray Martin might seem like she was a
to Memphis and expect everyone to
flash in the pan – someone who rose
do as you say, they tick differently
the other members of the group had
with Electribe 101, peaked with
there. You need to spend time, get
any intention to ever think about
‘Your Loving Arms’ and probably
to know everyone and then you’re
those songs again,” she says of the
lived off the spoils of a Top 10
going to get a good result.
1991 recordings that were never
hit, coining it whenever one of her
released. Following some decent
songs got reworked. Indeed, ‘Your
up, another one decided not to play
success with their debut, 1990’s
Loving Arms’ is currently destroying
secular music anymore… then the
‘Electribal Memories’, their label
clubs again in the shape of Fred
keyboard player, Marvell Thomas,
declined to pick up the option on a
Again’s ‘Billie (Loving Arms)’.
the son of Rufus Thomas, said,
“I don’t think either myself or
second album.
224_DISCO_POGO
The thing is, she’s hardly been
“One of the musicians didn’t show
‘Listen, I’m just gonna get my guys
idle in the three-decade gap
in for tomorrow’… and Aretha
between Electribe releases.
Franklin’s backing group showed up!
Influence-wise she’s always cited
Which was great, but the sound I got
two sides to her musical coin –
was not the sound I wanted at all.”
WHERE ARE THEY NOW?
An undiscovered gem in her locker is a collaboration with Norwegian producer, Aquavit label boss and DJ, Robert Solheim. The Opiates’ 2011 album ‘Hollywood Under The Knife’ shimmers with lush Kraftwerk-inspired pop hooks. There’s also some killer remixes, among them ‘Anatomy Of A Plastic Girl’, reworked by TG power couple, Chris & Cosey. “I’d covered Throbbing Gristle’s ‘Persuasion’ in the early 90s and we’d stayed in contact over the years. It was a natural thing to say: ‘Hey, do you want to remix this? And they just said: ‘Yes’.” She’s also collaborated with another of her heroes, Stephen Mallinder, on the 2010 Cabaret Voltaire homage, ‘The Crackdown Project’, a rework of tracks from the seminal release. “Cabaret Voltaire never sold out,” enthuses Billie. “They just suddenly came out with ‘The Crackdown’, this incredible dancefloor record. I met Mal during the Electribe days, and I remember telling him just how influential they’ve been. I think he was quite pleased about the whole project. We worked with all these hip electro guys – Celebrity Murder Party, Dunproofin’, Phil Retrospector – who offered to do some remixes. I handed it all over and I was very happy with what came back.” These days, Billie runs a tidy DIY operation, which is home to three record labels – Disco Activiso,
quite started on the fourth one,
Gezeitenraum and Electribal Soul.
but the other three are two-thirds
She is also working on four new
completed so...”
long-players, including a collaboration with brooding alternative British rockers
Things are clearly going well in Billie world. “Yeah,” she beams. “I mean, I’m
Tindersticks inspired by 1970s
overwhelmed, but I love it. I can do
French film soundtracks.
whatever I like, whenever I like.
“The releases are all very
I’m getting more and more support,
different,” she explains. “They
there’s a lot of validation coming
have different themes and
my way right now. I’m still
completely different production.
flabbergasted that I’m working on
When they’re ready, I’m going to
four albums, and I can do that.
put them out six months apart. Fuck
Things have really turned around
it. My last album was ‘The Soul
for me that sense.”
Tapes’ in 2016, oh my god, it’s such
And about bloody time. Not so much
a long time ago. People have been
a case of where is she now then.
waiting long enough, so these are
She’s never been away – you just had
coming out very quickly. I haven’t
to know where to look. NEIL MASON
226_DISCO_POGO
HAVE YOU EVER RIDDEN A HORSE?
TERRY FARLEY How was the Faith party last week? “I was so happy how it went down. We had 1,100 through the doors at Leake Street. It was a great mix of music from spiritual house courtesy of Ash Lauryn to northern soul and disco from Noble and Heath and even a ‘difficult jazz‘ set from Diesel which was a real curve ball.”
How did the Faith magazine/ Defected records hook up come about? “Simon Dunmore was in New York with the Love Injection fanzine crew who told him that Faith was an early influence. He rang me from New York and asked if we would bring it back if they helped? So many printed
He might be an irrelevant pest, but he’s a
mags had disappeared, so we jumped
lovable irrelevant pest – and now with less
at the chance.”
timber and added rotary mixer…
What are the main differences between Boy’s Own and Faith? “Boy’s Own was simply about what my
RRL rail is out of my price range.
the next generation and simply be
mates and me were getting up to at
Korean spicy wings: they’re
themselves. Play the music you truly
the time, so it was more like a
addictive.
love and if enough people believe in
diary I suppose. There were no
made by African artists not tech
boundaries, there were articles
house bros with a sample pack.”
Afro House: the stuff
you, you’ll find your place.”
to my knowledge, never actually
What three things are going down?
What did you do over lockdown that you are most proud of?
kept a frog) to Millwall the dog
“Tories, Tories and the Labour far
“Losing some timber, buying a
who said stuff we would have got
left who seem to conspire to keep
rotary mixer – the usual older
ironed out for saying. Faith,
them in power.”
bloke crisis moments.”
dedicated to house culture.”
Who is your big artist/DJ tip for this year and why?
Which of your own productions are you most proud?
Who would you most like to get for the cover of Faith?
“Ash Lauryn – every now and then
“I played with Pete Heller at the
someone comes along that understands
recent Faith and normally we don’t
“Grace Jones is our Most Wanted
how important the culture and
really play any of our old stuff,
cover star, but we keep getting
community is to the music. Honey
but the wonky chocolate made me a
knock backs. Maybe Keith Haring – we
Dijon is another example. I think
bit soppy and nostalgic, and our
can make that happen I’m told.”
Ash is following that route
dub of ‘Stinkin’ Thinkin’’ by the
musically and politically.”
Happy Mondays sounded perfect. But
about Keeping Frogs (Steve Mayes,
What three things are going up on your barometer right now?
How do you stay relevant?
Primal Scream remix I did of ‘Come
“Prices: even Bicester Village’s
“I don’t. I’m not. DJs of a certain
Together’. But if I’m honest all I
age need to understand that they
did was put back all the stuff that
need to stop trying to compete with
Andrew chucked out.”
228_DISCO_POGO
the one everyone talks about is the
Photo: Heather Shuker
however, is a niche fanzine
Weatherall loved your quote about clubs in Jockey Slut in the early 00s. “It’s just pills and dancing.” Is it still just that?
up in such a lovely part of south-west London.”
Who would play you in Terry Farley – The Movie? “Eddie Marsan. I follow him on Twitter, he seems a good geezer and
“Pretty much so. It goes together
In 1988 what did you think you’d be doing in your 60s?
perfectly – 35 years later nobody’s
“In 1988 I had no idea what I’d be
class London actor.”
come up with a better formula for a
doing in a year’s time. We all
top night out.”
thought it would be an Icarus turnout.
If I could get a message
politically sound. A great working
What three things would you put in Room 101?
Mushroom chocolate or mushroom risotto?
back to 1988 Farley I’d say: ‘Go
“Piers Corbyn, absolute wretch of a
steady on the little fellers,
human being. Boris Johnson, making
“Chocolate. Far easier to get into
concentrate on your craft more and
mugs of a whole nation. Putin – what
a club, imagine sticking a portion
buy a house down Bolton Gardens.
the fuck is wrong with this man?
of risotto into the side of your
That extra £25k would have made you
Dictators I know don’t come in many
shoe (or worse, ‘balls-ing it’).”
an extra £1.5 million by now.’”
shades of nice but fuck’s sake.”
Is Sound Factory your favourite house period?
What record do you regret playing in the name of ‘Balearic?’
“Musically? Probably not, as a lot
“After a trip to Amnesia and watching
If you could curate a three-room club of DJs living or dead who would play?
of that music’s dated badly. But
hundreds of E’d up Europeans dancing
“The big room would have Junior
it’s unimaginable today that anyone
about to Phil Collins’ ‘You Can’t
Vasquez circa 93-95, Danny Tenaglia
would build a big room like that
Hurry Love’ I foolishly tried it at a
and Tedd Patterson – tribal Banji
and then build the whole night
Boy’s Own party down near Brighton. I
madness. The soulful room would
around one DJ on a weekly basis.
literally had 800 people staring
have Frankie Knuckles all night
Other DJs made music simply for
at me.”
long playing 12 hours of
that room and for Junior Vasquez
loveliness. The warmth of that
with his style of playing in mind.
Bookend your album collection?
beautiful man’s soul came out
That’s legendary.”
“First was ‘Tighten Up Vol 2’, the
through the speakers. Then a reggae
entry level reggae record for every
room with Mighty Crown from Japan,
Desert Island Trainers. You can pick one pair.
council estate and youth club kid
Saxon (Sound System), the early 80s
in 1970 (I probably bought it from
crew, and David Rodigan.”
“Stan Smiths. The start of trainers
Shepherd’s Bush Market). The new
being a fashion thing and not
one I’m feeling is the latest
something you played football in at
Horace Andy ‘Midnight Rocker’ album
What film would you most like to re-soundtrack?
night. Still look good.”
via Spotify (I know, I know).”
“’Quadrophenia’ but with all 60s
Desert Island House. You can pick one record.
Who is your sartorial inspiration these days?
“Frankie Knuckles’ ‘Your Love’.
“Japanese teenagers dressing like
Jamie Principle singing like he’s
old Americans from the 50s.
If your entrance to a room was heralded by a sound, what would it be?
auditioning for a late-70s British
American Dad is a reliable
“Theme tune to ‘Minder’ (Dennis
pop synth band, that arpeggio, a
inspiration. It’s all about those
Waterman’s ‘I Could Be So Good
bassline, a very old Italian disco
details that are important to a few
For You’).”
record and a wildly loud snare.
but nobody else.”
American music.”
Which other Terrys do you admire?
What’s your most overused phrase?
“Terry Venables. Chelsea youth, the
“String vest.”
It’s older than most dancer’s dads, but cool as fuck.”
You live in Teddington. Do you now wish you’d been less harsh on the acid teds?
best England manager ever and top my dad and his mates. Terry
Which three words would your wife choose to describe you?
“No, fuck ‘em. Soppy bunch. To be
Scott. ‘My Brother’ was a staple of
“Lovable string vest.”
honest it was really an idea of
the Ed ‘Stewpot’ Stewart’s ‘Junior
picking a tribal enemy for the
Choice’ radio show. Ed Stewpot
Have you ever ridden a horse?
Boy’s Own fanzine. Like mods
was, I guess, our David Mancuso.”
“I’ve ridden a donkey in
pub singer. He also reminds me of
versus rockers. They were harmless
Margate, and I fell off. I was
Benny Hill sung about Two Ton Ted
What nicknames have you answered to in your life?
from Teddington in ‘Ernie (The
“As an apprentice I was called
Fastest Milkman In The West)’ and
Charlie (after a character on ‘The
Benny was a Teddington resident,
Two Ronnies’ TV show). ‘Tel’ is the
so maybe it’s fitting I’ve ended
most used.”
and enjoyed themselves. Mind you
probably nine!” JOHNNO BURGESS
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