Ali Wilson Interview & LIVE set from Sunrise Festival Poland to download ahead of Puzzle Project

You can download this his LIVE set recorded from the Sunrise Festival in Poland this June from
puzzle-project.com and go to Mixes!!

Interview by Ali Cantor

Mr Wilson! How’s tricks?

I’m good thanks mate! :o)

Thanks for taking the time to answer some questions. Well, it seems to have been a pretty fantastic year for you – can you tell everyone a little bit about what you’ve been up to in the past year?

This year has been really busy, lots of great gigs and lots of finishing my album and remixing for the likes of
Tiesto & Armin.

Gigwise, warming up for Tiesto at Brixton Academy must have been right up there – that’s pretty big time! How did this booking come about and what was it like?

Basically I had done a remix for Tiesto of a track off his album ‘Kaleidoscope’, called ‘It’s Not The Things You Say’ with
Kele Okereke from Bloc Party. They asked me to play as part of his album tour, so I of course jumped at the chance! :o)

You’ve also just returned from Sunrise festival in Poland, where you tore it up in front of 7/8000 trance fans. Good experience? How was the atmosphere?



The atmosphere was amazing, I’ve wanted to play for them for years so was great to be booked. You can check some videos here…


youtube.com


In terms of production, you’ve had another storming year – I believe you’ve done some remix work for Tiesto and Armin amongst other things?


Yes that’s right I remixed Armin’s first single from his new album ‘Full Focus’ and as I said the before the Tiesto track.

Your tune Pandora has been one of the biggest tunes this year, receiving massive props from Armin and Judge Jules amongst others. How did you feel about the way this track’s been perceived by such big DJs, and can you tell us anything about the inspiration behind it?


Thanks a lot! It was inspired by Avatar the film, I was amazed by it and had such a strong vision of what I wanted to do musically that I took a whole day of listening to vocals to get the right ones.



You also have collaborated on Kaos Theory with the legendary Marco V – what was it like to share a studio with Marco? Can we expect any further joint efforts from you?

Marco is one of my inspirations so to work with him was amazing, he’s a legend! His studio is also absolute quality, really good pumping speakers, so it’s almost like being in a club! Hopefully we will work on more stuff in future.


Your artist album is also nearly ready to drop, and I understand it’s now due for release in September. I for one can’t wait, I know there’s some monster tracks on there! This will
be your second artist album after Watchmaker. What can you tell us about the new album? What’s it called, any general ideas/inspiration/concepts behind it and any tracks you think will be especially big?

The album is called ‘Phenomenon’ and there will be about 16 tracks on it, including some of my old ones like ‘Shakedown’ and ‘Pandora’ but it will mostly be new tracks. It’s a range of styles starting from the housier edge and progressing to the more banging stuff. There’ll also be a
Shakedown 2010 on there! ;o)

You’ve got a very distinctive style, which really stands out from the crowd – you can normally tell an Ali Wilson track straight off from the percussion and rythmns etc. How do you go about making a record and how do you get that swing going?

I just use sounds/percussion I like and try to mould it into my sound. I really try and keep things tight and clean so the rest of the mix has a chance to breathe.



One for the tech heads – what’s your current studio set up?

Just Logic with a shedload of pluggins!

You’ve played for us before so those who’ve been coming for a while may well have caught one of your sets for us (or elsewhere maybe) – but for anyone who hasn’t seen you play what can they expect?

Tough, uplifting, techy trance music!



Cheers mate – looking forward to seeing you tear the dancefloor a new one on the 28th!


Looking forward to ‘aving it with you guys too!
:o)

To round things out in traditional fashion, can we ask you a few quick fire questions?


Best ever gig?

Tiesto @ Brixton Academy & Sunrise!

Dream gig?

Would love to do Glastonbury mainstage!!! That’s just immense!

Funniest thing you’ve ever seen with your own eyes?

Probably when my son laughs so much he nearly explodes! Haha!

And the worst?

Probably someone getting bottled – fighting’s for fools!

Childhood fear?

Spiders.

Favourite food?

At the moment loving tapas.

All time classic?

Café Del Mar

Top three tunes of the moment?

Ali Wilson - Shangri La
Marco V - Godd (Marco V remix)
Chasing Status – Let you go

MAZIEG Puzzle Project Interview – August 2010


Interview by Andi Leppard

This month at PUZZLE PROJECT we have UK Psychedelic Trance DJ that will be travelling down to London from the wilds of Manchester.... Originally from Germany but now based in the North West it is with great pleasure that we introduce the IILLUMINAUGHTY resident for his PUZZ|LE PROJECT debut performance - MAZIEG

New Puzzle Project Resident ANDI LEPPARD caught up with good friend MAZIEG before this coming months Puzzle Project @ the 414 club in Brixton on Saturday 28th August 2010, to discuss all things Psychedelic Trance and err Goblins................


MAZIEG, thanks for taking the time to be interviewed!! How’s is all going?

Thank you! It’s all going very well, just enjoying a rare sunny day in Manchester!


Could you tell us a brief bit about the music you play & how you got involved with the Psychedelic Trance scene?

Well I would say the music I play ranges from deep and groovy progressive through to intelligent rolling full on, really just depending on the time and the place. As to how it all started I got involved in the trance scene whilst living in Germany in the early nineties, at that there was already quite a relatively big trance scene over in Germany, some friends of mine where very well connected within the scene and knew all the original Goa DJs so I use to get lots of music from them and was always really into the sound.
After a while I decided I have to go hear the music at one of these parties I had heard so much about it, I was not disappointed it was absolutely amazing experience!


Prior to being associated with Psychedelic Trance culture, what music were you interested in and how has this influenced what you do now??

Before trance I guess I was into a little bit of everything like grunge, hip hop, metal, classical music, I had always liked weird sci-fi film scores and music from stuff like this, and I have to this day I don’t mind saying have always been a massive fans of 80s music even all the cheesy stuff!
But I don’t really feel this influences what I do now, though I guess if you combine 80s beats with weird film scores and classical music you kinda have trance music! ..Who knows??


Unless you've been crying under Michael Jackson’s bed, it’s common knowledge these days that the northern Psychedelic Trance outfit ILLUMINAUGHTY are going from strength to strength! Throwing amazing parties with production standards that shake a stick at many other UK promotions. Could you tell us a bit about ILLUMINUGHTY, your involvement as a resident DJ and some of the highlights working with the promotion to date??

IllumiNaughty is an absolutely amazing event, it’s basically the hard work of a small team of very dedicated and passionate people and I think this really shows in the production and attention to detail of every event. IllumiNaughty’s current home is at the Ritz in Manchester which is an awesome 1000 + venue that's like a huge old theatre with a big stage and balcony that really complements the illumiNaughty vibe.

I think its combination of different elements that make the nights so special and unique, musically you have incredibly well structured line ups featuring the best of international artists combined with underground talent playing over a monster crystal clear sound system on a spring loaded dance floor! Added to this is incredible decor and visuals with mind bending light and laser shows, also throughout the night the crowd are treated to performances from stilt walking aliens, stage dancers, goblins, pyrotechnic shows and even girls fire spinning on stage whilst on roller skates! Just to name a few!! It really has a great carnival atmosphere!

IllumiNaughty events are massively popular and over the years have built up a huge following of up for it party people from all backgrounds and of all ages and this adds to create the most amazing electric vibe! I had known a couple of the main organisers for a good few years and after playing at a few events for them I was asked to become resident DJ and was of course delighted! It’s been one big highlight and it is an absolute pleasure to be friends with and work with such a lovely bunch of people! The next event is set to be on the 8th of October 2010 and is gonna be awesome!!!


Indeed it is going to be awesome – and guess who’s scored another set?? See you there!!

Alongside your residency at ILLUMINAUGHTY, you have secured sets at events such as STRANGE DAZE and the GLADE FESTIVAL. Please tell us about your other DJing experiences outside of your ILLUMINAUGHTY residency!

Well I started to DJ in 1994 and have been very fortunate to play at lots different parties, club nights, and festivals I would say most recently the places that have inspired me are the smaller festivals in Eastern Europe they have a very fresh original vibe to them!


I understand that you have promoted your own electronica events in the past! Please tell us a bit about your ventures as a promoter!

I’ve have dabbled a bit in promotion probably sometimes not so successfully! I think it’s a very hard thing to get right! All good fun and lessons learned though, my fondest memories of promoting are doing free parties years ago, I would say mindless enthusiasm summed it up!


On my travels up to Manchester & Leeds for ILLUMINAUGHTY I have seen performances from many a top Psychedelic Trance act including TALAMASCA, DEJAVOO, EPHEDRIX! Please share with us what acts you are currently enjoying and what seems to be going down well with the kids??

At the moment the acts I am really into are Logica, Progenerater, Ital, Zen Mechanics, Journey, Freakuliser and of course still have old firm favourites like Tristian, Dickster, Laughing Buddha. I always seem to play tunes from these guys in my sets for me there music is spot on!
I think my favourite acts that have rocked IllumiNaughty recently have been Rinkadink, which was really good had a tough groovy sound! I also really enjoyed Dino Psaras new stuff and the Vibe Tribe set was wicked very bouncy and energetic!


Trance culture in many ways is not as abundant as it was 10 – 15 years ago in the UK. You must have seen many changes within the scene and how healthy do you feel the UK scene at the moment?

I think the trance scene explosion we saw 10–15 years ago was very much a cultural thing of the time and also it was a new thing to a lot of people at the same time so it got big really quickly! Obviously there have been many changes over the years in order for it to survive and maybe you don’t have the kind of groundbreaking new music there was then but I think as long as there is quality music still being made which there definitely is! It will continue to grow, you only have to look at scale and number of festivals that happen worldwide as a testament to its continuing popularity.

Within the UK I think as long as we support the artists and the labels and support legitimate party organisations who are in it for the right reasons we can keep on having a healthy and positive scene.



I understand that you have begun the journey into the production side of things. How’s it all going and what can we expect from you in the future??

This has been quite a slow but ultimately rewarding journey for me, I have experimented making music over the years but now this time I have gone back and started from scratch and have really been focusing on the quality of production whilst trying to make it original yet still dance floor friendly, not so easy! I’ve been getting some very good feedback so far though and hope to have an album finished in the next few months.


Alongside your involvement in production, what future plans does MAZIEG have at the moment??

The production is obviously very time consuming, other than this I hope to do some travelling soon, but generally I just try and make the most of every day and enjoy myself, I think life can be as easy or as complicated as you want to make it!


This is your debut performance in London for PUZZLE PROJECT at the 414 Club in Brixton. Have you had the chance to perform in London before and are you looking forward to rinsing it out a PUZZLE?

This will actually be my first time playing in London and I’m very much looking forward to it! I have heard great things about PUZZLE, I used to go to nights like Escape from Samsara and remember Brixton being a really buzzing place with parties every week at the Fridge and 414 with everyone chilling outside the Mass in the morning it will be a welcome trip down memory lane!



*** Now it’s time for the quick fire round where you get to respond to the questions that we ALL need to know the answers to! Here we go***

If you could DJ anywhere, what location would you chose?

Ooh..Would have to be on a sandy beach somewhere hot, blue sea ..blue sky.. beautiful women!! cold beer!!


You have two options for a ‘meaningful evening’. [b]Kate Moss is on fire and beyond repair or Cheryl Cole who has just come back from the Far East and is now Mr Cheryl Cole? The choice is yours?[/b]

Aaagh! You've got me against the ropes on this one Andi! I must have mentioned that Chezza and Kate are two of my favourites!....err!..what to say!......Well I did once know an old builder from Slough who went and settled in Thailand with his urm..'girlfriend' and lived happy ever after! But no...err...god I dont know!!? Are you sure you dont mean 'on fire and beyond repair' as in having a really good night out?...Like'' YEAH MAN! IAM ON FIRE AND BEYOND REPAIR! WHOAH!! WHERES THE AFTER PARTY!!! ..It would be Kate???, sorry Cheryl if your reading this!


You regain consciousness and you find yourself DJing at ILLUMINAUGHTY @ The Ritz in Manchester!! The only issue is you are butt naked, apart from a Goblin mask and the only two tunes you have left in your bag are Bronski Beat ‘Small Town Boy’ and The Pet Shop Boys ‘You are always on my mind’!! What do you do ???

Come on! This must be a trick question!? You know I always finish my sets naked with a goblin mask on! Though I would like to point out that it is the GMS mix of 'Small town Boy' not the Skazi one that I’d play!


Worst DJing moment?

Nothing ever really bad happened, though there was one party I played at abroad where it was all very stereotypical Shanti, travellers poi spinning, string decor etc, though the DJs before were playing like commercial club house which I thought was a bit odd for a trance party, I thought the crowd would be well up for some Psychedelic Trance but after I got on within two tracks I cleared the dance floor! the organiser said to stop and play later as it was 'too early for that music 'so the house music continued and I played again a few hours later, this time one track in the police turned up and closed the place down, Guess was just not meant to be!


If you could see two artists from the Psychedelic Trance fight to the death who would they be and why?

Oh what is this controversy!! I don’t know.. I guess a lot of people would want me to say the two guys from infected mushroom, but then maybe everyone would be more happy if they could just start making good music again?


London or Manchester?

Prague???


Top 3 current tunes?

Chromatone 'Chroma Corona'

Fearsome Engine 'The Path'

Sirion 'Reboot'


And finally ILLUMINAUGHTY Goblins or David Bowies’ Labyrinth Goblins?

IllumiNaughty Goblins all the way!!!



MAZIEG thanks for taking the time to answer these all important questions! We look forward to you raising the roof at the PUZZLE PROTJECT at the 414 this Saturday 28th August 2010! We hope you bring some Goblin mischief down from Manchester with you!



Puzzle Project - every 4th Saturday
Club 414
With Residents Phil Lankester, Matt Church, Phil Reynolds, April, Andi Leppard, L.K & Ali Cantor + special guests!

Phil Lankester AKA Libra 9 Interview by Andi Leppard


Phil Lankester (AKA Libra 9),as most of you know, is a London (UK) based DJ / Producer / Promoter that anyone who has had a sniff into the London clubbing scene will certainly have heard play and to many of the regular faces is famous for banging out high quality technical Psychedelic Trance sets full of effects and trickery! Many DJ’s in the scene feel that Mr Lankester’s talents tower over the rest of our abilities, so with that in mind new Puzzle Project Resident Andi Leppard caught up with Phil before this coming weekends Puzzle Project @ the 414 club in Brixton to discuss all this Puzzle, Psy Trance and err hedgehogs……

So Mr Lankester, hows tricks?

Things are really good at the moment, 2010 has been a little bit of a roller coaster in my musical career and my personal life. Things are currently on track for the 2nd half of 2010 to start! Some amazing things coming up, Symmetry festival, some great Halcyon stuff.... The list goes on, but I cant tell any secrets!!!

Could you tell us a brief bit about the music you play?

I like to think of the style I play as full on energetic driving Psychedelic beats... otherwise known as full on Psy Trance, Im always on the look out for new material, I like to keep my sets mainly newer stuff fused with a few older ones in there!


Unless you've been locked in a Turkish prison, its common knowledge these days that Libra9 / Phil Lankester DJs and performs at just about every party in the London and UK psychedelic trance scene!! How is it all going and please share with us some of the highlights?

Biggest highlights must be Halcyon @ Matter, and at the Fridge, it was great to see that venue back to its former glory. More parties like that please! I recently visited Illuminaughty up in Manchester and was amazed at the event, Its always nice going out on a night where you don’t have to play and you're seeing it from the other side of the fence... so to say!

Alongside the extensive list of bookings, you are a fundamental cog in the machine that is the successful long running London based night Puzzle Project. Tell us about your involvement and your time spent at the club 414?

Some would argue that I spend too much time there. I seem to find myself involved an a few projects at 414, Tony & Louise are great friends and great venue owners to get on with, so its hard to not be involved in some way. Puzzle Project is fastly approaching its 5th Birthday, so Im looking forward to seeing whats in store for our 6th year as Puzzle Project @ 414


As well as winning HarderFaster DJ of the year 2 years running, in recent times you have secured a residency at London's biggest psychedelic trance event, the uber successful Halcyon, as Libra9! Please enlighten us as to how you started working with Halcyon, performing at Matter and some of the highlights to date?

Well firstly, my highlight for Halcyon was playing back to back with yourself, thoroughly enjoyable set!!! Paul Jack approached me just before the first event and asked me to play as a guest, then before you know it, I was offered a residency.... Cant thank him enough for that! :o) I’m very proud to be part of the biggest Psy Trance event in London, really chuffed!


You've performed at Halcyon, Party Proactive, Antiworld, Psy-N-Tific, Puzzle Project, Peace to name but a few! However, what bookings have you got coming up soon and are there any other events / promotions you are looking to work with in the future?

Coming soon is Symmetry festival in Norfolk. I’m playing the Psy Trance stage and on the face of it looks like an amazing event, There's some great events coming up for Halcyon too, but I cant let anyone know details yet, but very exciting times ahead!!!

Bit of a classic question now! What artists are you enjoying at the moment? And what tunes are going down well with the kids?

I don’t necessarily follow particular artists or labels, it really depends on the individual tracks. If it fits in to the set, it'll get played.

*** Now its time for the quick fire round where you get to answers to the questions that we ALL need to know the answers to! Here we go***

Name 3 things you can do with a hedgehog?

I’m not a cruel person but...
In the winter, wake him up.
Paint him blue and call him sonic
Get him to cross the road to meet his flat mate?

Marmite! Love it or hate it?

Hate it....

Favourite poison?

Just beer will suffice

You are doing a gig and have time for one final song and you have two tunes left and they are Dire Straits 'Money for Nothing' and Kate Bush 'Wuthering Heights', which tune you would you play?

Good question..... I'd say mash them both together! Big grin


All time favourite tune?

Still love Agnelli & Nelson, El Nino

Why do gorillas have large nostrils?

Coz they have large fingers?

Sexy question now! Would you rather receive an 'erotic massage' from John McCririck (Horse racing guy) OR go to bed with Cheryl Cole BUT you have to let her stick a small cactus up your ass......??

I'd choose the Cheryl Cole option here....

Top 3 tunes?

Cant possibly name 3, it changes all the time, although have always loved Prodigy!


And finally Birds Eye Peas or the Poddington Peas?

Poddington... all day long. :o)

Mr Phil Lankester / Libra9 may thanks for your time and keep up the good work. See you in a nightclub soon..........................

Interview with Swap ahead of Puzzle Project on Sat 26th June!

Ahead of Trance's Midlands Maestro SWAP's debut set at Puzzle Project, Puzzle resident Ali Cantor caught up with the man himself to talk podcasts, Passion and Mahatma Gandhi!

Interview by Ali Cantor

Hi SWAP – how’s tricks?

Hi Ali. Yeah very well, thanks mate, keeping myself busy with my day job!

To kick things off, can you tell us a little bit about yourself, where you’re from and how you got into clubbing and DJing?

I’m originally from India, I grew up in Saudi Arabia for 9 years and then came here when I was 10. I got into the dance music scene when I was about 14 - the magical era of trance in around 1997. I got introduced to the old Judge Jules radio shows by a good friend of mine and got hooked onto the music. I was also really into my hip hop then but after a year or so I ended up at Passion (at the Emporium, Coalville) and was just amazed with the emotion of trance and what clubbing was all about. Back then it was all about cyber outfits and basically having it all night long! Passion was weekly back then, and I went to the night a lot! After learning more about the scene I made a trip to Gatecrasher @ The Republic in Sheffield. I will never forget that night as it was probably one of the best nights I’ve ever had, trance heaven! Years went by and my love for trance just grew more and more. I went to university in Nottingham and after I graduated I got my set of 1210s turntables and just started practicing. I picked it up very quickly, and started to get a few gigs around Nottingham. I then managed to save some cash for some CDJs and after that everything took off for me.

You hail from the Midlands, and whilst it’s rare to see you playing down south, you’re often gigging and out and about up north. What’s the trance scene like up there? Healthy?

Midlands and North is probably the place to be for Trance at the mo. You’ve got the super clubs like Godskitchen, Passion and the occasional big trance lineups at Crasher, but there have been some wicked new nights that have grown quite a lot and having a massive following, like Digital Society in Leeds, Amplified in Derby and Off the Rails in Sheffield. There’s quite a few cropping up in the North and the scene here is growing really well. For a good trance night I would definitely recommend coming to the North.



You caught your first big break playing for Passion I understand – no mean feat given it’s one of the top club nights in the country. Can you tell us a little about how this came about and your association with Passion since then?

Passion is my favourite club in the UK, as it holds so many memories for me, so to get my opportunity to play here was a very big deal for me and I was so grateful when I did. I used to do a lot on the clubbing website called dontstayin.com and had my own group on there which is where I created my following. I used to do a quite a lot of demos, a friend of mine passed them onto Genix and JFK. Then Genix rang me one day to ask me if I wanted to play at passion in the Redroom (back room) - the main room had Armin headlining! I couldn’t believe it, it was an unreal feeling. The night was big success, and the back room was very busy when I played so I was very, very happy man. After this the Passion crew were impressed and from there I managed to get my other gigs at Passion and became part of NuPassion.


You’ve also played for a lot of the other big nights up north including Off The Rails and Digital Society, and shared line ups with some pretty big names such as Armin and Ferry Corsten. What’s the best gig you’ve ever played?

Well this is a tough one, as each gig has been a bit different and I’ve enjoyed all of them. A lot of my gigs have been back to back sets. My first set at Passion was a very special one and I think the one that tops it all off is probably my gig at Passion again but in the main room at a peak time for the first Nupassion night. The club was busy and the view from that DJ box was incredible, hard to put into words! I was speechless - this is the same booth legends like Tiesto, Armin, Ferry etc all have played. Such a very special gig! Ohh, also I got to warm up for one of my fave DJs, Matt Hardwick at Amplified, that was a gig I will never forget as well.

Dream gig?

Playing at Trance Energy in Holland.

And your favourite DJ? Anyone ever blown you away with a truly special set?

It’s hard to narrow down my fave as I love so many genres. I’m a fan of the big four - Paul Van Dyk, Tiesto, Armin and Ferry Corsten. Also Eddie Halliwell during his ‘BOSH’ days - now that was a set that blew me away!

Right now I would say John Askew is probably another one of my favourites.

You also have a series of popular radio shows and produce regular ‘SWAPcasts’ – what’s the idea and thinking behind this?

I have a monthly show called Spinning With A Passion; that goes out every third Friday afternoon on afterhours.fm which I’m proud of as a lot of big DJs are on this radio station.

My podcast called SWAPcast has grown tremendously, I have a Facebook group which is close to 1500 listeners which I’m very happy about. It also goes through I-tunes which has a fair few listeners. This started of as group for me to get out info about myself and now coming close to my second year of doing the podcast it has grown a lot.

The idea of this podcast is the first hour is a warm up going through the progressive sounds and the second hour delving into the uplifting and harder sounds of trance. I try to mix it around as much as possible so I can provide listeners with varied musical journeys. I have regular guest DJs on the podcast from upcoming DJs to big name DJs and I’m grateful to those who have guested. We’ve had some pretty big names such as Jon O’Bir, Aly and Fila, Manuel Le Saux, Ben Gold, Jordan Suckley. Future episodes I have the likes of Sean Tyas, Simon Patterson and many more.

Production wise which producers/labels are really doing the business for you at the moment?

Discover is probably the main one as they have had a lot of amazing releases. At the mo, I couldn’t pinpoint one label as I like such a broad spectrum of music, so labels such as Anjunabeats, Vandit, Spinnin, Unearthed, Enhanced, Garuda, Doorn, Tone Diary, Armada (which has a lot of sub labels like Subculture, FSOE, AVA and many more). Am also really liking the stuff that’s coming out of Matt Church’s label Red Sky. Ohh also really liking the techno label – Subcult.

Producer wise,- loving Simon Patterson, Bryan Kearney, John Askew, Sean Tyas, Sunny Lax, Nitrous Oxide, Super 8 & Tab, Activa, Aly & Fila, Indecent Noise, Gary Proud, Mark Sherry, Marcus Schossow, Sander Van Doorn, Ben Gold, Jordan Suckley and there are loads more…. too many to mention! I could go on all night haha.


The Puzzle crowd are used to a fairly good range of music, with our parties showcasing a diverse range of underground dance music from house and tech through to psy and banging tech trance. You’re known for having pretty eclectic musical tastes so should fit right in! Can you tell everyone a little about your musical style and what sort of tracks you go for?

My music style is very varied, depending on what time I play. I love my progressive sounds and also love techy stuff too. Uplifting trance and tech trance is my fave. I like to mix my sets up with new releases and a lot of classic tunes especially ones that people don’t play as much nowadays. The Puzzle crowd can expect a very energetic set from me with a few classics chucked in for good measure.

What do you do to unwind/relax when not DJing?

I love listening to all genres of music, most of my time goes away at work, so I just download all the latest live sets from djs and have that on while playing on the playstation. Apart from that just the general stuff like going out with friends, watching football and getting a tad drunk now and then haha. Ive just started to learn how to produce tunes, so hopefully ill get some tunes out later this year.

Looking forward to seeing you in action! To close things out we have a few quick fire questions:

Favourite food?

Being Indian it has to be the curry lol.

The chicken or the egg?

Chicken

Got any good party tricks?

I used to dance a lot when I was younger like breakdancing, as getting a bit older now prob cant do all the moves now haha.

Wer’re not letting you leave the 414 till you’ve spun on your head at least once now! Superhero power of choice?

Being able to fly, would be so much easier getting to my gigs and not getting stuck in traffic or on the train which has happened loads to me.

All time hero?

Mahatma Gandhi

All time villain?

Freddy Kruger

All time classic track?

Café Del Mar

Top three weapons in your CD wallet right now?

Simon Patterson – Taxi
Oliver P pres. Stonevalley - Winter
John Askew – Fade to Black


Bar 414 (Interview with Base Mosquito)

Bar 414 unveils a new dimension with Base Mosquito

Reported by Latex Zebra

Bar 414 is a new concept for the every changing Club 414. Hosted as a free event on Sundays from 6pm till 10pm this party will not be relentless four to floor hard dance. Instead it will offer more chilled grooves and something not seen at the 414 for a long time, if ever, bands.

Starting things off is the cracking act Base Mosquito who have already had dance floors moving with their infectious blend of everything from Trip Hop to Progressive at a whole host of events, with even more in the pipeline. In preparation for this event I took some time to have a quick chat with the band to give you the low down on what hopes to be a regular event at the 414 for this exciting new act.

OK, first up tell us a little bit about the band, who is in it, what they do and how you met and how long you've been going for?

There are two core members of Base Mosquito; Ret Alex, that's me! I am the producer, composer, keyboard player and DJ/Remixer. Jules is my long term partner in crime, she is PR manager and churns out delicious vocals, she is the front woman' and conjures up live EFX and samples during our performances as well as being my saving grace for the past 14 years! Our third member, JAY-ON-DRUMS delivers insane percussion, and is a valued member of our team, not to mention a good friend.

My personal journey started around 15years ago, watching a pop chart in 1995 and finding myself so frustrated from what I was hearing, from then on a burning desire to create something unique was born. Next step was to find the right people to do it with . . . then along came Jules, who was a pro singer, brilliant dancer and someone who had been involved in the 90's rave scene with various bands. We clicked and the rest is history . . . We spent 10years travelling around the world playing music, and landed in London, with a purpose, in 2007.



Base Mosquito emerged from our serious passion and creativity, also our struggle to survive in this crazy city. Our band is a work in progress; we constantly feature additional artistes and are always striving to push the boundaries.

OK, for those that haven't heard of you or checked you out yet and you give us some info on the style of music you play?

Now there is a question! Base Mosquito has an interesting cross over. It glides through many genres for example: Electronica, House, Big Beat, Dance, Experimental, Fusion, Funk, Alternative, Twisted Pop, Trip Hop and Hip Hop!! But don't worry. If that sounds like freaky stuff is not! Just big phatt tunes with lots of hooks to keep you on the dance floor. I guess coming from a classical and jazz background helps us be a bit more unconventional.

What influenced you into that particular style?

You'll probably laugh, but my influences are from Earth Wind and Fire, I know . . . I was 7 years old when I first listened to one of their tunes "Shining star". So for me, Funk is definitely the style that did it for me! I then moved into disco and later jazz. Jules came from a Jazz background her father was an amazing jazz pianist. She spent the 80's immersed in classic rock; Led Zeppelin, Pink Floyd, to name but a few.

On top of that if anyone wanted to hear you right now, where would be the best place to do so?

You can check us out on www.myspace.com/basemosquito

Are you signed to a label and if so how did that come about?

Yes we are signed to Cablestone Recordings. They found us and approached us, loving our style. They see a lot in us and adore our passion. I am currently remixing stuff for them as well, which is a great way to get our name out and on a lot more releases!

Since getting signed have you been getting any DJ support?

Yes, a few DJ's are playing our tunes in a various clubs in London. Should have asked who! – Ed.



What tracks have you released so far and what future releases are planned?

"Monsta chick" is out first track out; it was released 2 weeks ago on iTunes and Beatport through Cablestone recordings - London. It’s already gained good popularity with the remixes of it, so far so good. Our next single, '"The End" (plus some wicked remixes) is due for release in July. I also have "Ray's Mania" (a Fusion track) scheduled for release in July on another label, Intelligent Audio.

Give all the recent talk from many producers and labels about the affects of piracy on sales, do you ever keep any tunes specifically for the live shows rather than look at a release?

Yes we do! One of our tunes "Poison Ivy" is absolutely only for live performance, to reward the crowd. It is 9 minutes of madness! I think it is important to keep something special for the show!

What are the challenges of getting gigs in a World where Dance Music seems to be played mainly by DJs?

We are a DJ based band at the moment, so we can be small or large on stage; this is one of our greatest assets. We have to! It is so tough at the moment as you know so we've got to be flexible. Think of Groove Armada, Underworld or Chemical Brothers this is our premise, good choice of set-ups. The main thing is WE ARE MUSICIANS so we CAN DO IT ALL LIVE whenever necessary or we can go out as DJ's with live vocals only.

What is the aim of the band, are you after commercial success or just looking to get your brand of music out there?

Thinking to do it all. Naturally we would love to have great success and we expect it! After all, music is a business (hence the name 'music business') but If you like our music you will have it all. Hence the styles and crossovers. We may commercialise some things but it will always be in a Base Mosquito way! I currently produce other vocalists so I am always on the look out for fresh new talent.



Do you think bands should ever compromise their styles for success?

Life is full of compromises, you have to do it, everyone has to do it and sometimes we will have to do it too. BUT as I said before, we will do it in our way . . . The Base Mosquito way.

Right now it's all about building our fan base and getting our music played world wide and mainly doing as many live performances as possible because this is what we love to do best. If the crowd are happy we are happy too!

Collaborations seem all the rage these DJs, have you worked with anyone else on any tracks or do you have plans to in the future?

YES YES YES! We are all about collaborations, up to now we have featured various artistes, no one famous as yet but some wicked up and coming raw talent. Watch this space! Two of our big tracks "Screamer" and "Monsta Chick" feature a girl vocalist called "Odissi", "Jump it Pump It" features Guess Forever, a Jamaican female rapper.

If you could work with anyone, who would it be any why?

Jay Z, (come on do I need to explain why!) Missy Elliot, Carl Hyde (Underworld front man) and many more, you’d have to leave me a few pages to name them all. Incorporating cool hip hop and Alternative Twisted Vocals is a big thing for us right now.


What have you got lined up for your set at the 414?

Unadulterated passionate music!! We want people to enjoy themselves fully and get right off on the music. Jay will be on form with his array of percussion, it will almost be surround sound as we are planning to set up on both sides of the dance area. Just come down and meet us, lets have it large and you never know, you might like it!

Where else can people hear you over the coming months?

Having just emerged from a 6 month stint in our South London studio, we are currently securing gigs, starting our residency at Club 414 in Brixton which is really exciting, but also at Scream Lounge in Croydon. Check our Myspace for gig listings to come. We are also playing a festival in July (tbc)

Photos courtesy of Base Mosquito. Not to be reproduced without permission.

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