Uprising - my return; official statement Whats the story with the return to Uprising? Pretty simple really, I was asked if I might be interested a while ago – I said no. I was asked again, I sat back and thought about it and decided that as I have been vocal about things then I ought to put my money where my mouth is (so to speak). To sit and criticise, yet not offer positive input would make me a complete dickhead - and justify any criticism that called me a bitter old has-been…….. Didn’t you say you wouldn’t play there again? I did indeed. The way things were (music policy, etc.) I had no intention of playing again. The difference is that if I’m now actively involved and helping guide the music policy, then of course I’m going to play again. I didn’t start Uprising - or pass it across - to see it fail. It was always much more than just putting an event on. How did the conversation with Bri go? Pretty easy really. Despite all of the criticism levelled at him (including from me), Bri genuinely wants Uprising to be the way it was. What people don’t realise is that he doesn’t have to run Uprising to make a living. The events aren’t exactly huge money spinners, the recordings don’t really sell like they used to (file sharing and music piracy has bitten everyone), so he could have quite easily sacked it all off. Because of all this, people can be certain that neither of us are doing this for financial reasons – we’ve both got other interests that pay the bills! So it’s an excuse to have another spot in the limelight then? Ha ha ha! I guess a load of wannabes and “move over old timers” types will think this. The other thing Bri and I both agreed is that we want to put our energy into Uprising and building a fresh movement. So to answer that comment, I can say that I don’t care about getting bookings elsewhere. If they get offered (on my terms) and I want to do it, I will. The fact is, this joining of minds is to build a vibrant scene that we can stand back and look at in a few years time and be proud of. We’re both past the aspirations of fame or “celebrity” – we just genuinely want to put Uprising at the centre of a movement that is about fresh, edgy, underground music. How can 2 older DJs bring something fresh and underground? Dead dead simple this one. I’ve constantly looked for fresh music – for example, I was innovating in 97 with the harder sounds, I brought Nu Energy & Freeform in 99/2000, after a break I came back in 2004 playing hardstyle, then I slid into the nu hardcore sound in 2006-08. After the last break, I returned in 2009 playing psy trance, then gabber, then I slid into Frenchcore in 2009-12, I’m now playing Hardtek and Raggatek. The trouble with the local scene is that everyone still wants to hear Tommyknockers, etc. from me – or JYD Nature for Bri. Even funnier, the people saying, “move over old timers” are often themselves playing remixes of the types of tunes we were playing back in the day. So if we stand firm, play these new sounds, and try to push other artists, we’re setting the scene for new artists to aspire to (hopefully!) So no more old skool sets then? Once or twice a year – but that’s it. I’ll just do them once in a while to make it a special thing. And I’ll be pushing back on gigs that want an old skool set in 2015. If we’re going to make a change, then I can’t be playing “classic adelphi sets” every time I’m booked. What about UK Hardcore - and the artists you’ve been so outspoken about? First off, I’m no big fan of UK hardcore – everyone knows this. Does my return mean there will be no more UK Hardcore at Uprising? Of course not! I can hardly criticise the lack of diversity and now that I’m back in the team insist on a “no UK Hardcore policy” – I’d be a hypocrite!! Besides, as critical as I have been, I’ve equally praised the likes of Gammer – who is arguably the best producer and DJ in that genre right now. I’ve used the analogy of Italian food many times, so the simple way to explain it is that if hard dance music is like Italian food and UK hardcore is pizza, then just because we want Uprising to be considered best Italian restaurant doesn’t mean that we can’t have a bit of pizza on the menu. As for other artists, well if people really want them I can’t ignore it, can I? For those who’ve been around long enough, you’ll remember me never really being a fan of certain happy hardcore DJs back in the day. I guess I’ll join the fans of the harder stuff out in the chill out when they’re on……. How about swapping bookings and DJ Coachfiller? Again ,as with Old Skool sets I will only play for another event if I want to - I don’t rely on this for a living. I always stood by a principal of “Book me if you think I will bring something to your event - not because you hope for one in return”. The reality is, I really don’t care if I don’t get booked elsewhere - and I may well just keep my playing to Uprising, where I have the freedom to do what I want and know that the production, sound system, monitors, etc. are within my control. AS for the “DJ Coachfiller” thing, my take on this hasn’t changed - I would only be interested in someone that can offer something musically to the event. I almost don’t care if they can bring a load of mates. People have always trusted me to put on a good party and that won’t change - i don’t need some mediocre aspiring artist to try and excite me by promising a coachful of their followers. My reputation (and Uprisings!) is much more important - after all, surely its the promoters job to fill their event? I guess I’m just old-fashioned like that. So if neither of you need the money and you’re not interested in getting bookings, why bother? We both genuinely love hard (160-180bpm) dance music. Period. I’m 45 years old and I love hearing fresh, mad sounds; I love buying music, and I love playing music and most of all watching the reaction when I drop a new tune that I think people will like – especially when the killer riff/melody/hook kicks in! This is one of many things we agreed on – we want to leave the scene (if only locally) in a much better state than it is now. We both feel that Uprising is the perfect way to do that. So what happens when the scene picks back up and there are new DJs and artists pushing for their time? Personally speaking, if good DJs come along with an ear for music, an eye for the crowd, the technical skills to put it all together, and above all they’re doing it for the right reasons, then I will happily step aside and wish them (and the scene the very best). Our work will be done.
Posted on: Tue, 09 Dec 2014 10:06:45 +0000
Trending Topics
Recently Viewed Topics
© 2015