Interview: Shitdisco
Related Artist:
Shitdisco
Having just got back from a tour in Germany with MSTRKRFT and Punks Jump Up, Shitdisco are back in the UK for a DJ tour. We have a chat about spoon feeding fans, partying hard and getting famous.
Why the departure from band to DJing?
Well, the whole Shitdisco thing began as a party primarily, rather than a band, we were always playing records (though not necessarily with any skill) at the parties. The playing of instruments grew out of basically jamming on rhythms and basslines that made people dance then as we started to get offered gigs we wrote songs around them.
When I was studying art I used to supplement my student loan by selling pot and DJing garage and surf music in Stereo in Glasgow... I blame the government.
Also, Jan, our Synth and Bass player left the group at the end of last year to do his Masters in Design, so to replace him we brought in Tom, who has been DJing for ten years, he came with us on our first couple of tours as our tour DJ but now is in the band proper, playing the Synths, so he's taught me how to mix and beatmatch and that properly.
The Nu-Rave scene is quite a restrictive genre to be put in; how did you find having your music described in that term?
Yeah, I agree it's become a restrictive label. To my mind that's because it became so rapidly commodified by the 'mainstream' (read corporate) culture.
"New Rave"; term coined by Klaxons; denoting hybrid of new wave pop melodic sensibility with rhythms and basslines from early electronic dance music, first used in print in 'the stool pigeon' 2005.
At the inception of what we now know as "New Rave" (i'e' early Klaxons shows and warehouse and squat parties in London we played at or saw first hand) the prevailing trend was for homemade T shirts and hoodies, spray paint, gaffer tape and a D.I.Y ethic. Members of bands would turn up during other bands'sets, the crowd would help with vocals and percussion and keeping the police out.
It was simultaneously incredible and inevitable witnessing the speed with which the fashion and music industries respectively were able to rebrand the whole thing as a dumbed-down and easily consumable lifestyle package.
This however, is understandable given the precarious situation faced by major record labels in the age of the free digital download, coinciding as it has historically with a near complete dearth of music or culture that is not entirely a rehash of something from the past.
On the positive side though, I've met huge amounts of really young folk who now have something more exciting than The Feeling to get into. So, fuck it, most people need their culture spoonfed to them anyway. If "New Rave" is the filter through which we get our music and lyrics heard by more people then that's OK with me.
What is the best party/clubnight you've DJ'ed at?
Hmm, always difficult as different nights are good for different reasons, but for sheer fun value the parties we threw on West Princes Street till 2006 take some beating. If only because nowhere else have I observed a 15 year old boy being fellated by a middle aged woman on the dancefloor with such a look of joyous abandon in his eyes. You can play a great set in the best club in the world, but you generally won't see that happening in a club environment regulated by bouncers and mobs of savages drinking Carling.
Although, club-wise, we did the Custard Factory in Birmingham a couple of months ago and that was immense, totally insane crowd of girls who looked like they had just auditioned for Hollyoaks and meaty townie men on huge amounts of drugs. Amazing to see a gang of Alpha males completely losing their dignity in front on the DJ booth to "Set U Free" by N-Trance.
Oh shit, DJing at "Dude Sweet" in Bangkok was amazing too. Played loads of gender-bending Disco and Electro-Sleaze and the dancefloor was packed with Ladyboys getting their bump n grind on. Class.
Which city parties hardest? Why?
Glasgow dances the hardest.
Moscow drinks the hardest.
New York has the hardest drugs.
Bangkok bumps and grinds the hardest.
London pretends the hardest.
L.A. pouts the hardest.
Fallujah is probably the hardest city to party in just now...
What type of music do you play when Djing?
No restrictions in terms of genre, which is becoming meaningless these days. Sound-wise though, it's always beat and bassline heavy, at the minute I'm into playing lots of bassline house and dirty arpeggio disco bangers. We like dropping old school euphoric rave and acid sometimes if the time is right.
Any tips on how to get started for any aspiring DJs?
Get famous some other way (a band is a good one) and you will get payed loads more. Yes, our culture is excremental and disappearing up its own ring-hole chasing its obsession with celebrity. You must work within these parameters even if you have no interest in the whole grim charade of 'sleb worship yourself.
How did Shitdisco come about?
Partially explained in 1. As you might infer from our choice of moniker we never set out as a rock n roll band trying to get popular. Our parties in Glasgow were the antithesis of an exclusive or elitist scene. From the outset really, we realised it's a lot more fun to throw the doors open to everybody who wants to come, that way you get more interesting social situations.
The first incarnation of Shitdisco was as part of the "Cabin Exchange" public art project in 2002 (think they have a website, try google). We threw parties in shipping containers placed around Glasgow, "the Shitdisco tour of Glasgow". We'd get random pissed up jerks off the street joining in and we'd end up playing Oasis songs with disco basslines. Must have sounded like a fucking racket but it was massive fun. At this point there wasn't really a fixed line-up, and we generally had female vocalists, playing at art parties, in galleries and that kind of shit. The offers of proper gigs in venues started coming in and we resisted at first, as it was a piece of art, not a band. But the offers started getting better so we decided to write some proper songs and played a few gigs in 2003. It gathered its own momentum from there I guess, and by the time we'd all finished studying in 2005 there were tours and all that, went to London, inspired New Rave, bish bash bosh. band. Unfortunately the name stuck.
Do you still perform as a band at all?
Yeah, we've just done a European tour playing live with MSTRKRFT, which was amazing, we were all big fans of them anyway, so it was class to play with them. Did Japan at the end of last year, and some live gigs in Italy and the U.S. are on the way too. We're not playing in the U.K. really though, it's just more fun playing in countries where they can play our records on the radio! To get that kind of exposure in this country we'd have to change our name and get Tony 'n' Guy haircuts.
Have you remixed any other bands? Which band would you most like to remix?
I got my first ever computer for Christmas this year so I've been learning how to do all that stuff. I did a remix for the Futureheads in January, but I didn't think it was good enough to play to them so it's not seeing the light of day.
Since then though I've started to get a handle on it. I just produced a track we wrote for a Japanese girl band called 80pan, which is coming out as a single over there, and I'm working on another track for their album and a Michael Jackson remix. Soon these horrible creations will see the light of day.
Which gig/clubnight would you most like to DJ at?
I'm fascinated by the legend of the "Reactorparties" held in the decaying hulks of disused nuclear reactors after the fall of the Soviet Union. Proper Hardcore.
Oh, or Bono's birthday party on the moon.
What can the rest of the year expect from Shitdisco?
We'll be flying out to Area 51 in Nevada to meet up with Robbie Williams and look for U.F.O.s. Then we will return with a different name and Tony 'n' Guy haircuts to conquer the U.K.
Jade French
Shitdisco Official Site
Shitdisco Myspace
Buy Shitdisco CDs | Buy Shitdisco mp3s | Buy Shitdisco Tickets | Buy Shitdisco Merch
Having just got back from a tour in Germany with MSTRKRFT and Punks Jump Up, Shitdisco are back in the UK for a DJ tour. We have a chat about spoon feeding fans, partying hard and getting famous.
Why the departure from band to DJing?
Well, the whole Shitdisco thing began as a party primarily, rather than a band, we were always playing records (though not necessarily with any skill) at the parties. The playing of instruments grew out of basically jamming on rhythms and basslines that made people dance then as we started to get offered gigs we wrote songs around them.
When I was studying art I used to supplement my student loan by selling pot and DJing garage and surf music in Stereo in Glasgow... I blame the government.
Also, Jan, our Synth and Bass player left the group at the end of last year to do his Masters in Design, so to replace him we brought in Tom, who has been DJing for ten years, he came with us on our first couple of tours as our tour DJ but now is in the band proper, playing the Synths, so he's taught me how to mix and beatmatch and that properly.
The Nu-Rave scene is quite a restrictive genre to be put in; how did you find having your music described in that term?
Yeah, I agree it's become a restrictive label. To my mind that's because it became so rapidly commodified by the 'mainstream' (read corporate) culture.
"New Rave"; term coined by Klaxons; denoting hybrid of new wave pop melodic sensibility with rhythms and basslines from early electronic dance music, first used in print in 'the stool pigeon' 2005.
At the inception of what we now know as "New Rave" (i'e' early Klaxons shows and warehouse and squat parties in London we played at or saw first hand) the prevailing trend was for homemade T shirts and hoodies, spray paint, gaffer tape and a D.I.Y ethic. Members of bands would turn up during other bands'sets, the crowd would help with vocals and percussion and keeping the police out.
It was simultaneously incredible and inevitable witnessing the speed with which the fashion and music industries respectively were able to rebrand the whole thing as a dumbed-down and easily consumable lifestyle package.
This however, is understandable given the precarious situation faced by major record labels in the age of the free digital download, coinciding as it has historically with a near complete dearth of music or culture that is not entirely a rehash of something from the past.
On the positive side though, I've met huge amounts of really young folk who now have something more exciting than The Feeling to get into. So, fuck it, most people need their culture spoonfed to them anyway. If "New Rave" is the filter through which we get our music and lyrics heard by more people then that's OK with me.
What is the best party/clubnight you've DJ'ed at?
Hmm, always difficult as different nights are good for different reasons, but for sheer fun value the parties we threw on West Princes Street till 2006 take some beating. If only because nowhere else have I observed a 15 year old boy being fellated by a middle aged woman on the dancefloor with such a look of joyous abandon in his eyes. You can play a great set in the best club in the world, but you generally won't see that happening in a club environment regulated by bouncers and mobs of savages drinking Carling.
Although, club-wise, we did the Custard Factory in Birmingham a couple of months ago and that was immense, totally insane crowd of girls who looked like they had just auditioned for Hollyoaks and meaty townie men on huge amounts of drugs. Amazing to see a gang of Alpha males completely losing their dignity in front on the DJ booth to "Set U Free" by N-Trance.
Oh shit, DJing at "Dude Sweet" in Bangkok was amazing too. Played loads of gender-bending Disco and Electro-Sleaze and the dancefloor was packed with Ladyboys getting their bump n grind on. Class.
Which city parties hardest? Why?
Glasgow dances the hardest.
Moscow drinks the hardest.
New York has the hardest drugs.
Bangkok bumps and grinds the hardest.
London pretends the hardest.
L.A. pouts the hardest.
Fallujah is probably the hardest city to party in just now...
What type of music do you play when Djing?
No restrictions in terms of genre, which is becoming meaningless these days. Sound-wise though, it's always beat and bassline heavy, at the minute I'm into playing lots of bassline house and dirty arpeggio disco bangers. We like dropping old school euphoric rave and acid sometimes if the time is right.
Any tips on how to get started for any aspiring DJs?
Get famous some other way (a band is a good one) and you will get payed loads more. Yes, our culture is excremental and disappearing up its own ring-hole chasing its obsession with celebrity. You must work within these parameters even if you have no interest in the whole grim charade of 'sleb worship yourself.
How did Shitdisco come about?
Partially explained in 1. As you might infer from our choice of moniker we never set out as a rock n roll band trying to get popular. Our parties in Glasgow were the antithesis of an exclusive or elitist scene. From the outset really, we realised it's a lot more fun to throw the doors open to everybody who wants to come, that way you get more interesting social situations.
The first incarnation of Shitdisco was as part of the "Cabin Exchange" public art project in 2002 (think they have a website, try google). We threw parties in shipping containers placed around Glasgow, "the Shitdisco tour of Glasgow". We'd get random pissed up jerks off the street joining in and we'd end up playing Oasis songs with disco basslines. Must have sounded like a fucking racket but it was massive fun. At this point there wasn't really a fixed line-up, and we generally had female vocalists, playing at art parties, in galleries and that kind of shit. The offers of proper gigs in venues started coming in and we resisted at first, as it was a piece of art, not a band. But the offers started getting better so we decided to write some proper songs and played a few gigs in 2003. It gathered its own momentum from there I guess, and by the time we'd all finished studying in 2005 there were tours and all that, went to London, inspired New Rave, bish bash bosh. band. Unfortunately the name stuck.
Do you still perform as a band at all?
Yeah, we've just done a European tour playing live with MSTRKRFT, which was amazing, we were all big fans of them anyway, so it was class to play with them. Did Japan at the end of last year, and some live gigs in Italy and the U.S. are on the way too. We're not playing in the U.K. really though, it's just more fun playing in countries where they can play our records on the radio! To get that kind of exposure in this country we'd have to change our name and get Tony 'n' Guy haircuts.
Have you remixed any other bands? Which band would you most like to remix?
I got my first ever computer for Christmas this year so I've been learning how to do all that stuff. I did a remix for the Futureheads in January, but I didn't think it was good enough to play to them so it's not seeing the light of day.
Since then though I've started to get a handle on it. I just produced a track we wrote for a Japanese girl band called 80pan, which is coming out as a single over there, and I'm working on another track for their album and a Michael Jackson remix. Soon these horrible creations will see the light of day.
Which gig/clubnight would you most like to DJ at?
I'm fascinated by the legend of the "Reactorparties" held in the decaying hulks of disused nuclear reactors after the fall of the Soviet Union. Proper Hardcore.
Oh, or Bono's birthday party on the moon.
What can the rest of the year expect from Shitdisco?
We'll be flying out to Area 51 in Nevada to meet up with Robbie Williams and look for U.F.O.s. Then we will return with a different name and Tony 'n' Guy haircuts to conquer the U.K.
Jade French
Shitdisco Official Site
Shitdisco Myspace
Buy Shitdisco CDs | Buy Shitdisco mp3s | Buy Shitdisco Tickets | Buy Shitdisco Merch
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