The legends of the north rework a classic through Favouritizm
Interview : Dan Prince
Chris, Phil welcome to DMCWORLD! Where in the glorious north of England can we find you today…and what was the first tune you heard this morning whilst slipping on your slippers and flicking the kettle on?
“Today Dan we are in sunny yet sub zero Preston! Last night was a late one in the studio – we were working on a remix for Grammy winner Robert Clivilles Feat. The Music Factory for the new single “Set Me Free” and the Macbook was to hand in the kitchen while making breakfast and a coffee so was shuffling around to that…”
A brilliant start to the new year with the release of the new Jaegerossa tune ‘Move Your Body’ featuring the sublime Bobbi on vocals. Well, we know Tongy loves it! But before we get into all that, let’s roll back the years for a moment and talk to two of our favourite house music aficionados. Chris, you caught the bug early sunshine, it was watching a certain Greg Wilson on The Tube and seeing DMCWORLD Champion (also a northern lad) Chad Jackson appearing on Blue Peter displaying his scratching skills that helped convince you that the wheels of steel were certainly the way forward for you. So what happened next before you started gracing the pages of Mixmag via Cheeky Monkey?
“Crikey…when we were about 10 we used to make tapes in my mate Chris Oakley’s attic pretending we were radio DJs playing NOW albums on an old stereo and recording our voices into a tape recorder. Moving on a few years later at high school age the whole Blackburn Rave Scene and Acid House was literally on our doorsteps. My old DJ partner Jamie Lloyd and I (well before we came up with the name Da Mentalistz) would cobble together our own equipment. We would buy second hand turntables, tape decks speakers and amps and make our own system…chuck a volume pot from an old clock radio onto a turntable motor and you get a vari speed deck. Wire two amps to one set of speakers and you can cue up one deck by plugging headphones in so it wouldn’t come out of the speakers while the other deck on the other amp was playing. Bring the volume up and mix between records while fading the other out. Very basic but its how we learned our skills. We had been going out to clubs sneakily for a few years before we should have but when we were 18 we moved to Preston. Did loads of house parties and ended up with a residency at UCLAN SU’s “Free 2 Dance” (a Tuesday night shindig run by the Feel boys), then we started doing Cheeky Monkey, which ran for two years. After that Green, then moved to take over from the LuvDups at Feel a few years later.”
Phil, you hail from a musical family. What are your earliest memories of music in your family home and what was your family’s reaction years later when it was house music that engulfed you and not something more sensible?
“My house was literally Balearic before I knew the word existed. From a baby, having two considerably older brothers one being a classically trained pianist and the other a virtuoso bass player, my musical pallet was one of Scott Joplin, Bach, Beethoven, weather report and Stanley Clarke. Then having a dad who was an amazing singer and just sang in the house 24/7 to things like early Dionne Warwick or Motown greats just added to my bizarre, but interesting music heritage. There was always a piano in the front room, which I always played on from around 5 or 6, I think my family where not surprised for my love for House, I finally got something which was only for me within the Rose household!”
Early DJ influences?
“Greg Wilson, Larry Levan, David Mancuso, Chris’s friend Matt Bell, Phil’s friends’ Rick Bonetti and Buckley and early Hip Hop DJs – Flash, Cash Money and Chad Jackson!”
Your top 5 tunes from the 1990 Hacienda era…
RSW – The Phantom
Korda – Move Your Body
Young MC – Know How
Orbital – Chime
Inner City – Pennies from Heaven
Phil tell us the story of Edit. A little local bar one minute the next…wooosh…
“At this point in my DJ life I had played all over, ran nights, etc. but nothing had ever properly taken off. So I took it really back to where I started with the same landlord in a different small local pub in Chorley. I put a night on every Saturday for free playing House, Funk, Soul and Disco all night on my own building it up. I knew a half decent venue had opened in Charnock Richard (a small village that had a little place in our local dance music history), which was home in the early 90s to Neuro at Park Hall! On a Thursday in 1990 you could see Sasha and Laurent Garnier (I did btw). Taking Edit to the same little village as this once massive night was a good omen. At Edit we pull in guest DJs including Joey Negro, Greg Wilson and Danny Rampling, who calls Edit the best night in the North West! Not bad for an ageing dad houser! Ha ha…”
And Chris, what can you tell us about one Kenny Jaeger?
“Ha ha – I was DJing House for many years as Chris Da Mentalist and people knew what to expect of me, but I was playing more and more roots of House and downtempo stuff for a DJ collective called Philosophie, which I felt needed to be under another guise (in fact we ALL came up with daft names). Kenneth is my middle name and Jaeger is German for Hunter so Kenny Jaeger was born. I performed at a number of events and a few mixtapes went out and it was all good. Then clubland changed and I had to cater for more bar orientated gigs, where you couldn’t just play one style all night, so Kenny Jaegers styles crept in. I retired Chris Da Mentalist, met back up with Phil Rose and played at Edit a few times together and got on like a house on fire, then Jaeger – Rossa was born.”
So onto Jaegerossa. Past production high fives thanks to your Vibe track on Playmore and your remix of Banks feat. Lisa Millet ‘Stay’, tell us how the studio relationship works. Who presses what…?
“DJing wise we have both earned our stripes over the years, so we know what works and what doesn’t and are both at home behind the decks. We are both creative and have ideas about what we should try out in the studio and sometimes things just happen. Having studied Music Technology, making beats and edits for years and being a little bit of a tech head, Chris tends to press buttons and spent hours on the same loop over and over…he has creative spurts at the most bizarre of times, so we often get the basis of something down while he remembers, then we both spend time shaping it ready for playing out.”
The new tune swings our way on the excellent Favouitizm label. It’s a gorgeous cover of Korda’s 1991 classic ‘Move Your Body’ and features Bobbi on vocal duties. Please tell us a little history of the track…
“Korda had always been a favourite since hearing it on Stu Allen’s Key 103 show back in the day, but it had never been an obvious Italo House track. The intro was always a bit of a tricky one to mix from the start as it was pads with no beats. We did a cheeky re-edit and asked Alex Neri who was half of Korda what he thought and he liked it but said he couldn’t do anything official with it as he lost the parts etc. So everything was replayed from scratch and we asked Bobbi from K Klass if she would warble and she obliged…”
How did the hook up with Favouritizm happen?
“The power of social media! I sort of new of Sarah through a good friend of mine Andy Daniels (Changing Planes). To be honest I pestered her a bit and just sent her the original demo. To my shock, she loved it! Having someone like Sarah in your camp is a really blessing, she is a great label boss and really tells us if something is bad or good. She is really honest and we like that!”
Where did you first road test the track…
“I think it was on the radio show actually in its bootleg form…out live was with just before Full Intention came on at Edit’s 2nd Birthday party in November.”
Ah your weekly Edit Radio Show…tell us about it…
“So from doing Edit Presents we played House, Disco and Funk, etc. then we started a weekly show on Reelhouse for about a year, then decided to take a little break. We have both been fans of Grant Nelsons Housecall Show over the years and Chris did a few monster mashes that Grant played so we had a little banter. When Grant played at our Edit night, we all got on like a house on fire. Soon after he mentioned he was setting up a new station called D3EP Radio Network (www.d3ep.com) and invited us to feature our Edit Radio Show. It has a great community featuring some ace House DJ talent and we’re proud to be a part of it. Props to Grant, he is such a talented diamond geeza and for the record gives the best man hugs in the world!”
Right oh! Some other producers in 2015 you tip your hats to…
“Simba / Verlenen
David Zowie
Kenny Summit
Groove Motion
Dave Redsoul , opolopo,”
A new DJ or producer to watch out for this year…
“Jordan (Murphy) who DJs with us sometime at Edit…new blood!”
The big 5 tunes in your box this weekend…
1. Jaegerossa – Move Your Body (Favouritizm)
“Both mixes of this have been really working for us when playing out over the past month or two. The Piano of the Classic mix gets the hands in the air of both the nu school and oldies alike, and the dub has been making people get d3ep down and dirty.”
2. Trimtone – Forget The Girl (Groove Motion mix) Playmore
“A nod back to the Tony Terry house classic of the same name from about 1989. Dave Redsoul’s output is always on point!”
3. Little by Little – Bang the Box (Defected)
“A simple but very infectious bassline banger that simply makes you get your groove on.”
4. Chaka Kenn – Body to Body (Good For You)
“Kenny Summit had been knocking out some absolute blinders lately, this track encompasses a few things of what our Edit nights and show are about: House funk and a feeling! It’s a musical melting pot of Eddie Amadors “House Music” and Bob James jazzfunk classic Westchester Lady. Not everyone understands…”
5. Kenny Dope and Dionne Farris – On and On (DJ E-Clypse Blacklight Club Edit) (Dopewax)
“We just love this its got such a groove. Proper heads down feet moving house music. Kenny is Dope. End of. In fact we’d love to do a remix / Official Edit of something if the opportunity ever arose. Always been Big Fans of MAW. We have been playing out an edit we did of Black Magic Freedom for about 6 months and it always gets a cheer!”
Right let’s find out something personal about you guys;
Not many people know this but Jaegerossa are really good at…
“Fixing things like Macs and stuff.”
I’ll remember that. 3 bucket list adventures you wanna do before you cop it?
“DJ In Fiji, Bend a Fork In New York, DJ or play Cello at Cielo.”
The figure from history you would most like to have a pint with?
“Phil doesn’t drink but we’d both love to have chatted with Larry Levan…”
The film you could watch over and over?
“Cling (the film) and Maestro (history of Disco doc)…”
The biggest influences in your life?
“Our Dads, for sure!”
A celebrity you wouldn’t want to get stuck in a lift with?
“Mr Methane and Charles Manson.”
Great answer. Beats Bieber. A piece of vinyl you would never sell?
“That bit on the kitchen floor, it would look a right mess.”
Heh heh.What is each other’s most annoying habit?
“We love each other dearly so couldn’t possibly say!”
The proudest moment in your life to date…
“Robert Clivilles asking us to remix ‘Set Me Free’!”
And finally what is coming out next from you guys studio wise…
“The Jaegerossa Remix of Robert Clivilles Feat. The Music Factory – Set Me Free.
Jaegerossa remix for Richard Earnshaw KMGSG003 – Miami House Party – Closer To Me ft Geneva Lane
A Jaegerossa tune that may or may not be featuring the vocals of a legendary female house vocalist…watch this space.
Plus other bits and bats that are half finished we have been playing out that we will get polished and set upon the world…”
Cheers lads. Rave on.
“Thanks for having us Dan, remember when consuming our Jaeger Bombs drink responsibly and rave safe. And it’s pronounced Yay-ger-Rossa!”
Jaegerossa ft Bobbi
‘Move Your Body’
Favouritizm / FAV30
www.facebook.com/jaegerossa
