John DigweeD
THIRTEEN years since its seminal ‘Heaven Scent’ release, the ever- vibrant Bedrock Records shows no signs of rust. Capping off a prolific year of dynamic releases, label boss John Digweed celebrated Bedrock’s anniversary with a hometown gig at London’s Fire & Lightbox in early October resulting in the devilish, twisting five-hour ‘Live in London’ collection. Digweed tells DJ Mag USA what really made the night special was the connection with the crowd who “seemed to really get behind everything that night, from the deeper stuff at the start of my set to the more banging tracks at the end.”
Over the years, you’ve broadcast live recordings of your gigs on your Transitions radio show. What set your anniversary gig at Fire & Lightbox apart for you to make it worthy of a four CD release? “It would have been very easy to have just broadcasted this set on the radio, but Bedrock is very special to me. There are also loads of very loyal fans from all over the world that have supported me and the club night for many years. Having an official CD with nice packaging makes it a great collector’s piece for the people that were there and an insight for those who couldn’t make it. I know everybody expects music for free these days and we have kept the price to below £10 [around $16] which - for nearly five hours of music- is pretty good!”
‘Live in London’ is your second live album of the year following April’s ‘Live in Cordoba’ release. Looking ahead to 2013, do you have plans to continue with this live series or are the gigs perhaps inspiring you to get back in the studio and create new music in the New Year? “Let’s see how this album does first. ‘Cordoba’ did really well and I am hoping that with the extra two CDs of music, ‘Live in London’ will do even better. With regards to new music for 2013, I have a project with Nick Muir that we should hopefully have ready for the start of the New Year that we are both very excited about. More details will follow as soon as it’s finished.”
Your Cordoba mix helped cement the Argentinean city’s place as a global clubbing destination. As you begin to schedule your gigs for 2013, are there any areas of the world that you have yet to play that you’d like visit?
008
www.djmag.com
“I am very lucky in the fact that I have travelled the world for many years, taking in pretty much all the best party destinations. However, I have never played in Hawaii so maybe that is one for a future booking.”
Looking back over your catalogue, which do you feel is a better representation of your craft - your studio mixes (for Renaissance, Global Underground, etc) or your live recordings? “I have always given 100% when I release an album, so I can safely say I am happy with all of my releases. They also serve as a kind of time capsule to certain periods in clubland and also changes in my sound over the years, so I would say the album represented my craft the best at the time of release.”
You’ve mentioned that you love DJing more than ever these days. What motivates you at this point in your career? “Well, firstly the club and festival
setups are so much better now than at the start, so it’s always great when they get the DJ booth how it should be. Being on the road, I can keep my sets updated daily with new tracks that I buy or get sent from producers over the internet, whereas before you could only update new tracks if you went to a record store when you arrived in a city, which was not always easy. Also, the music that is being made now is outstanding, with new and exciting producers emerging all the time. Lastly, being a DJ was something I wanted to do from
the age of 11, so to have been able to realize my dream and turn it into a career for many years is not only because of my hard work and passion but also a drive to try and be better at what I do year in year out. I never get tired of being in front of a clued-up crowd who wants to hear great new music.” JOSHUA STEPHENS
Pic: CARLOS ARMANDO
Page 1 |
Page 2 |
Page 3 |
Page 4 |
Page 5 |
Page 6 |
Page 7 |
Page 8 |
Page 9 |
Page 10 |
Page 11 |
Page 12 |
Page 13 |
Page 14 |
Page 15 |
Page 16 |
Page 17 |
Page 18 |
Page 19 |
Page 20 |
Page 21 |
Page 22 |
Page 23 |
Page 24 |
Page 25 |
Page 26 |
Page 27 |
Page 28 |
Page 29 |
Page 30 |
Page 31 |
Page 32 |
Page 33 |
Page 34 |
Page 35 |
Page 36 |
Page 37 |
Page 38 |
Page 39 |
Page 40 |
Page 41 |
Page 42 |
Page 43 |
Page 44 |
Page 45 |
Page 46 |
Page 47 |
Page 48 |
Page 49 |
Page 50 |
Page 51 |
Page 52 |
Page 53 |
Page 54 |
Page 55 |
Page 56 |
Page 57 |
Page 58 |
Page 59 |
Page 60 |
Page 61 |
Page 62 |
Page 63 |
Page 64 |
Page 65 |
Page 66 |
Page 67 |
Page 68 |
Page 69 |
Page 70 |
Page 71 |
Page 72 |
Page 73 |
Page 74 |
Page 75 |
Page 76 |
Page 77 |
Page 78