Proactive Gets Dejavoo!
Reported by Joanna McEwen
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Submitted 25-03-09 17:07
From 34,000 screaming fans dancing in a tropical rain storm in Brazil, a rave in a castle in Switzerland, causing a sensation at Life Festival in Ireland, The After Boom in Portugal and a firm favourite with parties in Germany, Dejavoo, the psy trance production duo are currently taking the scene by its balukers and giving things a right good shake down.
Their debut album, Futureshock, released on Transient, was received with much excitement by clubbers and critics alike receiving five stars on Trackitdown – highlighting why their skills have been called into remix action by artists including Astrix, Eskimo, Krunch, X Noise all while writing a track with Nick Sentience as well as playing alongside the massive Infected Mushroom.
It’s not all about the productions though – both Kristian and Francesco were DJing before the Dejavoo project was created – being part of the massive Chichime parties - and their ear for what works on the dancefloor plainly evident in their ripping, high energy psy trance. There’s not much music that’ll have me dancing round my living room late on a Tuesday night after work, but the blend of intense psy baselines, hard house and trance riffs and techno sounds and rhythms gets me musically excited like I haven’t been for a while – their sound perfect for music fest that is Party Proactive!
Hi guys, it’s an absolute pleasure to write this interview prior to the Party Proactive on the 2 May. We haven’t stopped playing your tracks since we received them at PP HQ! You’re big on samples but used in a subtle way which makes your music familiar yet unexpected and full of energy!
Tell us, how would you describe your sound?
Francesco: Powerful dance music.
Kristian: Hard / dark / deep / powerful / uplifting / funky / cheeky and in your face, hehe.
How does making a Dejavoo track differ from remixing for someone else, bearing in mind you often (always?) use samples?
Francesco: It’s two different beasts. Writing from scratch is more intense and a much longer process. On the other end remixing is pure fun, just use what you like and twist it or leave it or make it fat, or sleeker, but keeping the original picture, and changing the paint. The samples we use are a sort of trade mark for us and they follow and define the track's tale.
Kristian: When remixing, it’s a faster job as in most case the hooks are there. Making a track is a longer process as hooks need to be thought about properly. We will just not put any sound in the sequencer just to fill in gaps, the hook has to be musical and big as far as we are concerned.
Do you ever have copyright issues?
Francesco: Not yet!
Kristian: Not at the moment, fingers crossed.
Who are/have been your influences both in the dance scene and beyond?
Kristian: Uf.... here we go again with the long list, hehe...
Dance: Astrix / Eskimo / Wrecked Machines / Tim Healy / Domestic / Xi / Gms / Sub6 / Dino Psaras (DJing mainly) / Deedrah / Cosma (Rip) / Krunch / Eject / some X Noise and Black and White, D Nox and Beckers (old stuff only like Switch etc) / Ticon / Peter Gun / Solead / Eric Prydz / John Gurd and Dave Robertson / Meat Katie / Marco Bellini / Juno Reactor / The Prodigy.
Other styles: Depeche Mode / Ultravox / Simple Minds / Talk Talk / Gary Numan / The Human League / Tears For Fears (some stuff) / The Joy Division / New Order / Bowie / U2 (until Zooropa - the stuff after that bin it, sorry Bono) / Peter Gabriel / Rush / Pink Floyd / Genesis / Yes / Led Zep / Black Sabbath / Marillion (with Fish) / Mike Oldfield / Jean Micheal Jarre / The Sisters Of Mercy / The Mission / The Cult / Heroes Del Silencio / The New Model Army / Pearl Jam / Faith No More / Rage Against The Machine / Senser (1st album) / The Stone Roses / Ennio Morricone / Giorgio Moroder / Jan Hammer / John Carpenter...,etc etc ..oh ..and Man Utd he he.
Francesco: Prodigy / Giorgio Moroder / Ennio Morricone / Pink Floyd / Joy Division / Bomb Disneyland / Exploited / Marco Bellini / Krunch / Eskimo / Domestic / XI / Astrix / Sepultura (only with Cavalera Bross) / Slipknot / Metallica / Led Zeppelin / Clash / Iron Maiden / Pantera / Smashing Pumpkins / Red Hot Chilli Peppers / Fear Factory / Primer 55 / Rage Against The Machine / Tears For Fears and mainly all the good stuff that catches my attention!
You’ve both been into the psy scene since the 90s. Psy trance has moved on from the goa trance intitally played in the UK – especially yours which takes in elements from all sorts of genres. Is this the future of psy trance (or even harder dance music in general?) or would you consider this a new genre in itself?
Kristian: We believe that music is a shifting art and its beauty is in the ability to change its shape and feel extremely fast and unpredictably, while keeping its communicative force. If we have to change or lose a tag - psy trance or hard dance or house or whatever - it'll be a natural process. In nature things continually evolve and adapt, or became history!
What’s your opinion on a party like Party Proactive bringing together all forms of music as opposed to being pure psy trance?
Francesco: It's nice to expose different styles of music to the same crowd, pushing only one style to the same crowd for too long can get tedious - people can get bored fast.
Kristian: I love the fusion, it’s like the early days of dance music. Apart from giving a great variety which can make it more interesting, it is also a political statement of neglecting the purist pigeonhole attitude which was partly created by the UK press boxing in different styles of music and segregating crowds.
How long have you two been making tracks together and do both of you engineer?
Kristian: We have been working for four years or so and Francesco is the main engineer in this project. We write together and agree on what is going to be laid on the sequencer. Then Fran engineers it and makes it solid. But both of us have to agree 110% on everything, it's like a continuous open discussion where the writer ,the DJ, the listener becomes a unit. With this approach we tend to maximize our productivity using our individual skills to push our ideas forward.
Do you ever disagree on how a track should go and what happens when you do?!
Francesco: Of course we are always battling on something, but we always go in one direction or the other at the end, and that makes the final product a better one.
Kristian: Haha, yes we do, especially over the past year, but in the end we come to a mutual agreement (after smashing up keyboards and monitors)!
What equipment do you use and is there anything you’re wishing you could add to your collection?
Francesco: Our studio is equipped with : "THE BLACK TOWER" running Windows and OSX ; a Pair of Gorgeous Dynaudio BM 6A, a Novation Remote 25sl Controller, and 2 sets of very fine ears. Yes for sure one piece of kit that would be nice to have would be an electronic Drumkit and also a four fat string bass and something Analog as long it is Moog - a Fairchild maybe!
If Dejavoo could stand on a soap box and declare their mission to the world, what would it be?!
Francesco: TAKE COVER!
Kristian: Fuck all the politics there is in the dance scene especially in the UK psy Scene! It’s ironic that it happens in a scene that is supposed to be against all this - you know PLUR, fairness, an all that, Let the music and the DJing do the talking! Listen don’t watch - by this I mean there are a lot of people whether they are DJs, promoters or crews and hangers on in the psy scene who don’t use their ears they see who is playing, just look at their name or at their crew and lay judgement on that.
It’s very poor if you ask me and totally against all principles and ethics of the scene. Some one needs to stand up and expose all this lack of morality, without fear. Many people in the psy Scene say capitalism / governments and the way they manipulate is wrong which we all know is true, but they are behaving in the same way just on a smaller scale with their judgement of artists and parties, it’s the same ruthless methods! The good thing is the majority of party people don’t care – it’s just a thing between organisers, DJs, crews and hangers on. Oh dear oh dear.
Do you ever get to play in Gibraltar and Sardinia where you’re both respectively from?
Kristian: In Gibraltar there is a very small dance scene, there’s only 27,000 people in the entire population, but I know there are a few young guys DJing and producing house so there could be a future.
Francesco: I played only once in a small party, there isn't a scene for psy over there, people are heavily into minimal though.
Do either of you do anything else apart from make stonking tunes and get people dancing?
Francesco: Apart from Dejavoo I produce solo as Plastic Vibe, which is more of an experimental and crossover project. I also produce in two other projects, completely different scenarios. In my spare time (which isn't much) I tend to get involved in graphics and a bit of image and motion editing.
Kristian: That’s all I do, Music, music, music! (We do have a surprise in store for the future, fingers crossed, but it’s also musically orientated, hehe.)
Where would you like to see yourselves both personally and professionally in five years? Time to practice some manifestation!
Francesco: I'd love to direct a film or being involved in a production of animation and digital art. Also painting would be nice.
Kristian: Well we would love to rise higher in the dance scene and break into the DJ Top 100. I’d like to play countries that haven’t been exposed to psy, there are so many that have quality dance music but haven’t embraced the sound as yet. Also this new surprise mentioned above could be part of a new dream - who knows we’ve got to give it a shot!
Cheers boys, I am toe tapping my way through your mix as I’m writing this and am getting butterflies at the thought of your set at PP – man, I am going to DANCE!!!! Yeeeehaaaaaa!!! J
Photos courtesy of Dejavoo, Party Proactive and the HarderFaster archive. Not to be reproduced without permission.
PARTY PROACTIVE: THE 5TH BIRTHDAY
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On:
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Saturday 2nd May 2009
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At:
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Area [map]
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From:
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21:00 TO 05:00
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Cost:
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£8 Early Bird - SOLD OUT / £12 Advance / £14 Standard / £18 - £20 OTD
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Ticket Info:
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Ticket Outlets
£8 EARLY BIRDS / £12 ADVANCE / £15 STANDARD - £20 OTD
Ticketweb: www.ticketweb.co.uk / 08700600100
Viewtickets: www.viewtickets.co.uk
Moreonthedoor: www.moreonthedoor.com
Access All Areas: www.accessallareas.org
Clubtickets: www.clubtickets.com
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Buy Online:
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Click here to buy tickets
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More:
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PARTY PROACTIVE PRESENTS THE 5TH BIRTHDAY
SATURDAY 2ND MAY, AREA, VAUXHALL, LONDON
9PM THE END!
The above may make you sit up and wonder, what the bluebell has been going on at PP HQ all this time?! What’s happened to PP since their last sell-out event at the SeOne - the spectacular 4th Birthday Party?!?
For those who’ve been following our adventures you’ll know we were within a hare’s breath of launching something suitably stupendous on you last year, but at the last squeak our Vision was whipped away from us (carried off by a band of salacious imps and, from all accounts, had a thoroughly nice time).
Last year was one of those crazy, exciting, ride-that-pony kind of a year with loads of projects on the go. But, you know us – it’s all about the Party – and we’re never satisfied until we’re happy we can do things As They Should Be Done.
So…….
We are ready, fully charged and ready to unleash one of those rare and unmissable Party Proactive sessions. And being our 5th birthday (our baby is growing so fast!) we wanted to do something truly special, which is why we’ve chosen to do a party on one of the biggest dates in the clubbing calendar – Saturday of the May Day Bank Holiday Weekend. Forget about partying like it’s 1999 – this is 2 May 2009, Baby! And man, we’ve missed you x
After much debating, looking at venues and imaging what the party would be like with us all dancing our pants off in there, we’ve decided upon a club we know is going to deliver a top quality intimate atmosphere, superb sound and lighting, 3 proper rooms, chill out space, relaxed outdoor area, courteous and discreet security and enough space to fit 1500 crazy clubbers!!
This will be the first Party Proactive event since March 2008 so we expect our advance tickets to sell-out in record time.
Early Birds SOLD OUT
Ticket Outlets
Ticketweb: www.ticketweb.co.uk / 08700600100
Viewtickets: www.viewtickets.co.uk
Moreonthedoor: www.moreonthedoor.com
Access All Areas: www.accessallareas.org
Clubtickets: www.clubtickets.com
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Flyer:
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Region:
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London
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Music:
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Trance. Acid Trance. Hard Trance. Tech Trance. Psy Trance. Nu NRG. Hi NRG. House. Deep House. Funky House. Hard House. Prog House. Electro House. Acid House. Tech House. Acid Techno. Deep Techno. Funky Techno. Minimal Techno. Techno. Breaks. Electro.
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DJ's:
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Main Room: TRIBAL / TECHNO / PSY / HARD
(9PM TO 6AM)
AXEL KARAKASIS (GREECE)
D.A.V.E THE DRUMMER
DEJAVOO - LIVE SHOW
Andy Farley
Paul Glazby
Pete Wardman
DAVE MURTAGH B2B Dave Irvine
DJ D4RK B2B Rhyd B
Andy Force
Room 2: HOUSE / TRIBAL / ELECTRO
(9PM TO 5AM)
Jonty Skrufff (PACHA IBIZA / BERLIN)
2 PhUnKeD uP
JACOB MOSS
Steelo
MUZZ KHAN
YIANNIS BALKIZAS
STEVE NOCERINO
BEN 70
Room 3: HOUSE / TECH HOUSE – IN ASSOCIATION WITH COMEUP AND AUDIOFUNKT
(9PM TO 5AM)
ZOE HART (THE *THE *Ting**)
TIM GALE
PAUL LINDLEY
Cush
ANDY COLLINGS
JAYDA FUNK
Ash PAINE
NICKY BASHMENT
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Other Features By Joanna McEwen:
Ticon the matter seriously
Riding the frequencies with Hertz
The Many Faces of Paul Maddox
Axel Karakasis Gets Proactive
Proteus: The Master Of Darkness!
The views and opinions expressed in this review are strictly those of the author only for which HarderFaster will not be held responsible or liable.
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