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DJ STORM
 DOA: Hello and thanks for having a word with us today. I think I can safely speak on behalf of everyone at DOA when I say that it's an honor to have you do a mix for us! How's it going?
Storm: It's going well.
DOA: Starting at the beginning, can you share with us how you first got into DJing and what some of your first gigs were like? Were there any DJ's who directly inspired you to learn to mix?
Storm: Started raving in late ‘89, alongside my best mate Kemi, she introduced me to it. We started getting obsessed with the music we were hearing and as avid vinyl collectors, started buying tunes. At every chance we could we would listen to any DJ we could find playing this kind of music, via Pirate radio stations, our favourite a DJ on Centre Force FM called DJ Randall.
On New Years eve '90 after a year of raving hard we both found ourselves watching what the DJ's were doing , we were completely clueless , but between us we tried to work out how they were beat matching. When we came home that night we wondered how we could make this obsession our lives… we came up with DJing. At that time for us we felt Grooverider taught us the art of selecting, Fabio taught us how to tell a story and Randall showed us the way, when it came to putting it all together; the art of the mix.
Our first couple of gigs were hilarious as we were so nervous and naïve, but we gave it our all from the moment we stepped up to the wheels of steel, and we practiced so hard at home… but we were pretty awful. (laughs)
We never took our eyes of any DJ we could find; you can learn so much from watching other DJ's. I think the most experience we gained in our early ventures in DJing was having a pirate radio show; it was invaluable and so important for that moment in time.
DOA: Please tell us a bit about your early DJing days and how you ended up meeting Goldie and first getting involved with Metalheadz.
Storm: Kemi met Goldie when she was working in a shoe shop in Camden, where he basically asked her for a date, and that’s when they started seeing each other. Goldie had recently returned from the States and he was exhibiting some of his artwork. I met him at his exhibition. Kemi explained to Goldie we were into this music and our plans to become DJ's and so we took him to Rage, for his first adventure.
He got it… he felt what we felt and now came the new dream. He would make try and make this music and we would play it. We would later make a label and have a club. We worked hard and we lived the dream… so Metalheadz was born.
Randall and the Reinforced Kru played a huge role in all our developments within the scene, Goldie had found a label he could release on, but he always wanted his own label. Initially, he wanted this label to be about showcasing the artists that turned him onto this music, and that's what he did. In 1994 he began to release Drumz, Doc Scott, Ghosts, Goldie.
He had also been working on an album, Timeless. By 1995 had no time to run the label, so he asked Kemi and I to take it on, which we were happy to do.
DOA: While most people recognize your affiliation with Metalheadz, they may not know what a seminal role that Kemistry and yourself had with the label. Can you share with us a bit of what your involvement was like during the beginning stages?
Storm: The first release we were given to work on was a double release, Your Sound / Tranquil by J.Majik and the Angels Fell E.P. by Dillinja; what a baptism.
So we sat down and worked out what to do, from mastering the tracks to release. It was a lot of work but it never felt hard. And as we travelling abroad, we were able to take promo's on the road and get advice from DJ's about contacts in each country getting turned on to D+B and that's how we made the Metalheadz mailing list.
We pretty much did everything between us, and a friend of Goldie's called Christian took care of official paper work.
DOA: It seems like Metalheadz had a real family type vibe to it. Who were some of the other artists involved in the early days? Do you think the label would have been such a success had the crew not been so dedicated?
Storm: Yes Metalheadz was The Stussy of the D+B scene, we brought more than a label we brought a kind of lifestyle. Our religion being the music which was reaffirmed in late '95 we were offered the chance to do a trial of five Sundays at a club called The Blue Note in Hoxton, which originally was The Acid Jazz club.
It just took off and then we had a home to play our brand of D+B; it was so exciting. By early '96 we took on a Saturday night at a bigger club called Leisure Lounge, so we ran Saturday and Sunday and both nights were successful as were we.
Our family consisted of every artist that came to the label, and we were taught this vibe from Reinforced. In those early days if we did not know what to do, there was always help on hand either from Goldie himself, the Reinforced Kru, or Doc Scott for advice, given that he was the original silent partner. The artists too were asked their opinion about stuff at artist meetings, so everyone felt involved. It was a good creative experience.
DOA: When you were first starting out DJing, at a time where female D+B DJ's were pretty hard to come by, did you ever encounter any bias? Did you ever have to work extra hard to prove your skills or were other DJ's fairly receptive and encouraging of you?
Storm: People were surprised when not only one girl turned up but two, but once we got on the decks and proved ourselves, we usually got repeat bookings.
We did encounter bias, but not negative just a curiousity kind of vibe. We were watched and listened to carefully, but we did not care, as we felt we could step up to the plate. We truly believed in what we were doing and our joy of mixing spoke for itself.
DOA: Kemistry is greatly missed by all who knew her and by D+B fans world wide. I have always found it so admirable that, despite her unfortunate passing, you continued to pursue DJing with a great passion. Am I wrong to assume that you were inspired to hold the torch, so to speak, and to keep pursuing the collective vision that you both possessed?
Storm: Kemi and I dedicated ourselves through a passion to our DJing and the scene, and we a worked pretty hard at what we did, but like I said before it was never a chore, it was exciting. We believed in our expression as DJ's that we could move a crowd.
Belief in myself without Kemi has taken a long time to find, but in my ability as a DJ, my belief has remained the same. I will never completely get over what happened that night but the strength I get from what I and Kemi went through to achieve our goal always pulls me through, and the feeling I get from the music I play is still the great healer.
She is always with me.
DOA: Your dedication to D+B is undeniable and you are one of the select few DJ's who has been able to roll with the punches and remain successful over the years, despite how much the scene has changed. Does this come naturally for you? Do you still enjoy what you do as much as when you first started out?
Storm: I do still enjoy it as much as ever and my faith in the music has never waned. If what I play gives me the most amazing joy… then I know others will fell the same.
I do think what comes naturally to me is my love of this scene, and every year that it becomes more and more global, my excitement levels raise even more. It is like traveling round the world communicating through a universal language that is music.
If I didn't enjoy it, then I really shouldn't be earning money doing it, as I wouldn't be able to give it my all, and that's not fair to the crowds. I hope I never feel that way.
Even if everything is going wrong (i.e. the flight has been cancelled and you spend all day on the phone working it out with your agent, and it may take all day to get there, you haven't even eaten as there has been no time, etc…) when you get to the decks you release all that tension, that is the remedy.
DOA: How would you compare D+B in its early stages to what it's evolved into? And can you tell us some of your favorite producers who have broken through in the last few years?
Storm: As I previously mentioned, it has definitely expanded globally. And that is so exciting that I can now play a set with tracks from producers from different parts of the world… might be a Makoto track from Japan, or Kiat and Ash from Singapore, Seba from Sweden, Concord Dawn from New Zealand, etc.
Also many new producers from the UK are making amazing tracks, I am so proud of the fact that we all inspire each other and as a UK based music it is a shame it doesn’t always get given the respect it deserves.
There have been many new producers who have broken through in the last few years, Commix to me being one of the most significant. Also, Break, Vapour, Jem One, Icicle, Kiat and Ash, Dan Miracle, Alix Perez, Nu Tone, Logistics, Heist, Lynx and Zero Tolerance are all really coming through right now. Watch out for productions from MC System and Lenzmen as well.
And of course all Metalheadz artists, I think the original producers have
stepped up to another level.
DOA: Can we have a current Top 5 from you?
Storm:
Letting Go – Rufige Kru – A.I Remix – Metalheadz
Talk To Frank – Commix – Break Remix
Overflow Album – Calibre – Signature
Randy – Lynx – Soul R
Sting in the Tail - Vapour
DOA: Where can people catch you in the near future? Do you have any tours or gigs coming up that you can share with us?
Storm: You can catch me all over, check out my agency’s website www.esp-iternational.co.uk
DOA: In closing, it's truly a pleasure for us to get some insight from someone such as yourself. Thanks a million for having a chat with us today!
Storm: Thank you very much.
TRACKLIST:
ALIX PEREZ CROOKLYN (ALLEGIANCE EP) [SOUL R]
THE INVADERZ - 32 BIT-BASS [INVADERZ]
BLAME - STAY FOREVER [CHARGE RECORDINGS]
NU:TONE - TROOPERS [BRAND NU]
CALIBRE - OVEREACTION (OVERFLOW LP) [SIGNATURE]
UTAH JAZZ - RHYTHM TRACK (ITS JAZZY LP) [LIQUID V]
LYNX & ALIX PEREZ - ALLEGIANCE (ALLEGIANCE EP) [SOUL R]
ZERO TOLERANCE - WALKAWAY (CHEAPSHOTS LP) [CIA]
LYNX - RANDY (ALLEGIANCE EP) [SOUL R]
BREAKZ - HEADZ UP [METALHEADZ]
GOLDIE - LOVERS DEITY (MEMOIRS OF AN AFTERLIFE LP) [METALHEADZ]
GOLDIE - LETTING GO (A.I. REMIX) [METALHEADZ]
BREAK - NO GOING BACK [REVOLUTION RECORDINGS]
DKAY & LEE - WAX'D (DKAY REMIX) [METALHEADZ]
LENZMAN - EVER SO SLIGHTLY [DUBPLATE]
JEM1 -THE RED MIST [36TH CHAMBER]
SPIRIT - CONNECTED [INNERACTIVE]
MC SYSTEM - PRESSURE RELEASE [DUBPLATE]
Q PROJECT - WHY [MACHINE FUNK]
SUBWAVE - DREAMCATCHER [METALHEADZ]
>> CLICK HERE TO DOWNLOAD THE EXCLUSIVE MIX <<
Words: Inaya |
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Dogs On Acid > Comments > DJ STORM
06-21-2008 04:52 PM
