1.Growing Up
Music wasn’t a big thing in my house as a kid; my brother was a big fan of indie music and would always have a cassette on when he was home in the holidays. Guitar music was my first love and I used to spend all my pocket money on tapes and CDs as well as Spectrum ZX games. I played the piano, the guitar and the flute, all badly, and I sang in a choir. I only really enjoyed playing the guitar, although I never had any formal training. I was in bands throughout school, singing and playing guitar. I got into electronic music in my late teens and from that I got into production and DJing.
2.Inspirations
It’s hard to nail down my biggest inspirations – great producers inspire me as much as great DJs and great bands. I also get inspiration from what is around me. The Levon Vincent album, Beautiful Swimmers mixes, Gerd Janson sets and walks with my dog currently inspire me.
3.Your Crew
When I was a student I had a great bunch of friends who were always playing records and going out to nights; they showed me lots of really interesting and different music. I am lucky to have lots of good friends who are music producers and DJs – their ability pushes me to better myself. It was music and my friends that got me through the harder times before I was able to make music my profession. Now I work alone at home, so my crew there would be a tabby cat and an Italian greyhound.
4.The Music You Make And Play
House, techno, garage and sometimes some weird stuff. Expect to hear Doc Daneeka – From Mine To Mistress, Max D – ‘Cassette Arabic’, Mia Dora – ‘Un.sub’, Christian Piers – ‘Beat Wiser’ and Alden Tyrell – Acid 7.
5.Music, Right Here, Right Now
The music scene is in good health right now; lots of young producers have amazing tools at their fingertips and are able to get their sounds out and heard very easily. There is a lot of really interesting music around. The scene in Berlin is great – there are always gigs to go to, fantastic festivals and some of the best clubs in the world are here. There are many producers, DJs and musicians; it makes for a really interesting and diverse scene. My highlights recently have been seeing Virginia at Panorama Bar on New Year’s Day and Empty Set at Hebbel am Ufer as part of CTM Festival.
XXXY plays Chinese Laundry withYolanda Be Cool, Mike Metro and Brodanse onSaturday May 2.
