The maestro gets set for Back To 95 : Legends Of The Old Skool
Interview by Nicky Trax
Dude – welcome back to DMCWORLD! A massive weekend on the wheels of steel coming up, you must be looking forward to appearing at Back To 95: Legends Of The Old Skool?
“I am literally counting down the days to this Back To 95 event as I haven’t played for them since their Club Colosseum party, which was simply AMAZING!! The other exciting part is that I am playing a 2 hour set which I am over the moon about as it will give me more time to play tracks that I do not usually get a chance to spin in front of a crowd that were from that era and know their music!”
What can people expect from your set?
“Again, if you were at the Back To 95 event at Club Colosseum then you know what to expect. But I will be digging a bit deeper this time round so expect some obscure tunes within the set…”
For our younger readers around the world, let’s rewind for a moment and go back to the days when you first started the art of DJing…
“At the tender age of 13 after soaking up the pirate station DJs skill of mixing 2 records together, came the inspiration…and some might say obsession to attempt mixing 2 tracks together. Unlike today’s budding young DJ’s, my bedroom equipment consisted of one portable radio/tape player, an amplifier and a tape deck. After much experimenting I managed to pull off a few mixes from audio tape to audio tape!! After several attempts I became frustrated at only being able to hold a mix for a short time due to lack of pitch control, so, with my electronics know how, I discovered a way of slowing down the pitch on the tape deck by lightly pushing on part of the tape decks inner workings (called the pinch roller) which is located very close to the tape deck heads. After a few tries at this, I became very good at locking 2 songs together. Longer mixes were now achievable!! I bet there aren’t a lot of DJs who can say that they learnt to mix by doing that!”
Brilliant! What’s been your motivation as a DJ?
“The love of music, the continued support from the people that love what I play and the way I play it.”
Of all the accolades/accomplishments you’ve achieved over the years – what would you say has been your proudest moment?
“It has to be making my family proud of me! Not forgetting the many awards that I have won and the ‘Pure Garage’ compilation series which has sold around 1.8 million copies.”
How do you like to spend your time when you’re not behind the decks?
“Well, I am a big Fifa 14 Xbox 360 fan so I like to play that now and then. I like to chill out and watch TV and often read a lot about Tech stories etc. A lot of these things will have their time cut as I plan to get back into the studio this year…”
Name five tunes that you’d like to play for us right now?
RIP Productions – Mellow Works
DJ Disciple – Keep On Moving
Nicole – Running Away (Todd Edwards Mix)
Oscar G – Gotta Keep Moving
Neneh Cherry – Buddy X (MAW 12inch House Mix)
And one that you’d never play in a million years…
“Even though I have played DJ Q’s mix of Psy’s ‘Gangnam Style’ (!) I can never see myself playing the original for ANYONE, ANYWHERE at ANYTIME!”
What’s the best thing about your life at the moment?
“There has been a massive surge in bookings in new locations and new events at the moment. I’ve played most of the major UK festivals summer 2014 and I am playing in various new locations across Europe for the first time which is very interesting. Check out www.djez.com to keep up to date on where I’ll be…
Finish the sentence. A good set starts with….?
“In my case, one of my intros lol…”
And ends with…?
“A cool set-ending vocal track to have the crowd singing to which is always a nice way to end and set up for the next DJ.”
And what track should we be listening to as we head out the door to Back To 95?
“I won’t spoil it by telling you, just come and check it out on Saturday 4th October. SEE YOU THERE!”
All photography by www.butterflyphoto.co.uk
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DJ EZ (Kiss FM) headlines the Back To 95: Legends Of The Old Skool Party on Saturday October 4th alongside Norris ‘Da Boss’ Windross, Mike ‘Ruffcut’ Lloyd, Barbara Tucker Live, Donaeo Live, MC Hosts, DT, Buzzhard and Creed plus Old Skool Jungle Classics with Uncle Duggs, Nicky Blackmarket, Jumping Jack Frost, and much much more @ Great Suffolk Street Warehouse, London, SE1 0NR. For more info go to www.backto95.com and check out EZ at www.djez.com
Every Friday catch DJ EZ between 10pm-12am across the Kiss Network on Kiss 100, Kiss 101 and Kiss 105
