One of the main players in the new Bristol massive getting set for Love Saves The Day
Interview by Dan Prince
Amos, welcome back to DMCWORLD. Where on the planet are you today?
Hey, Dan…in sunny ol Bristol.
What was the first piece of music you heard this morning after rolling out of bed?
Jimi Hendrix – ‘Foxy Lady’ on the wireless.
Gotta ask before I check into your music…have you found a cleaner for your house yet?
Ha ha…yeah! She’s amazing.
A massive week for you, loads of new music…and a very special gig at Love Saves The Day in Bristol. Let’s kick off with the tunes and a new original track ‘Runnin Dat’ on Madtech Records. Please talk us through the sound and history of the track…
I’ve worked with Madtech a few times now and they asked me for a track for the new Ibiza compilation. I am really into groove tracks at the moment, rather than huge build ups and drops, and so this is where I started with this one…keep the groove rolling through out the track…
Sitting alongside Second City and Christian Nelson comes your remix of Mendo’s track ‘Melody’ on Material…some mighty artists on the rework tip here dude, how did you approach the job?
Remixes are always a funny one…I usually put all the parts I like into Ableton and then play around with different versions until I can find a hook to work with. Then start building the rest of the track around it. I hadn’t heard any of the other remixes so it was really cool when the remix EP came out to hear what other people had done!
And as you say, new music comes in threes! Heads down for some rave music, give us a brief on your track with Mark Jenkyns ‘All Night Club’…
Mark came to stay at mine for a couple of days to do some tracks together. We made a track ‘Pang’ which is coming out later in the year and Mark suggested we make a second one to go with it. He had been working on some riffs and hooks for a track and sent them over. Then I tidied them up, added some bits and did the arrangement. It was the first time I had worked remotely with someone, but it worked really well. It was really fun to have a really strong idea from someone and then be able to run with it and produce something we were both happy with. I think it’s one of my favourite tracks for a while.
Best club night you’ve rocked this year?
Without doubt Renate in Berlin with the Futureboogie guys. We finished at 2pm and I had played for about 10 hours alongside Dannielle from Crazy P, PBR Streetgang and the Futureboogie guys…it was really an amazing night.
I interviewed our old pal Dan Pearce last week, we have a new Ibiza food magazine www.lovefoodibiza.com – he was raving about your cooking skills young Amos. In his own words, Eats Everything said “he is a wonderful cook”. What are your signature dishes young man?
Ha ha – that was really nice of him! Yeah I like to cook a lot actually, my wife is often home late from work so I usually cook most nights. As for signature dishes there’s a few, but the main one is porchetta – which is pork tenderloin, wrapped in pork belly and stuffed with rosemary, sage and garlic. It’s great because you get the really nice meat of the loin with the crackling of the belly…but it’s not for the faint hearted as it’s loaded with calories!
So you throw a dinner party. 5 music legends dead or alive that you can invite. Who is on the guest list?
Hendrix, Johnny Cash, Nile Rogers, Sinatra, Mozart…can I have Peter O’Toole and Jack Nicholson too please?
Course you can. Festival season kicks in this weekend with the incredible Love Saves The Day where you will be playing the Paradiso stage with Patrick Topping and George Fitzgerald and then onto the Official After Party with B.Traits and Artwork. What makes this event so damned good – the organisers have so much love for their baby…
You’ve hit the nail on the head – the organisers really care about what they do. Dave and Tom are long time festival go-ers, know what they are doing but also really care musically and on many other levels. For them it’s not just about doing the biggest lineup but something that really works across many stages. And also the amazing Bristol atmosphere. It’s really one of the best in the UK.
Highlight from last year’s event?
Closing the Shambarber stage. It was a really small stage last year in a clearing with a natural amphitheatre, so was great to play. They also had loads of stage performers – dancers, trannies and some other general loons making it a super fun stage to play. Lots of disco and club classics! I’m doing it again this year as well as the Paradiso!
What are the 5 big records in your record box this weekend at Loves Saves The Day?
– Waifs & Strays vs Mark Jenkyns – PANG.
Another collab with Mark. It’s a real summer tune, lots of tribal percussion and funk stabs with a big rolling bass that’s perfect for festivals in the sun
– Luke Solomon – Stop the Riot (Shit Robot Mix)
Love this remix of Luke’s tune. Massive tune made for the open air!
– Stefano Riteri – You’re My Lover
Been hammering this for months now. The big disco drop always works so well.
– Waifs & Strays – You Decide
Big new tune from me coming on Skreams Of Unsound Mind imprint. Been a huge tune for him since he picked it up earlier this year, can’t wait for it to come out!
– Denney – The Music
This is his new track coming later on VIVA this year – feel the acid!
This year has seen some of the biggest DJs in the world really come out and speak their minds on social media. Some really interesting issues have been raised by your counterparts, just wondered what your thoughts were on some of the topics they have brought to the public domain…
Seth Troxler at IMS Engage…“I’m seeing people float further and further away from the idea and the culture that we tried to create, and it really pisses me off.”
Agreed. There’s so many people in this game for the wrong reasons. DJs/Producers who just want the fame and cut corners to try to achieve it, taking away from the people who do this for the right reasons.
David Guetta at Coachella…”My computer crashed… so I just had to put all my music in a random order on USB sticks… so old school”
Moron. Such a shame because he used to be a great DJ. Now is just a sell out…
Steve Angello and Carl Cox in Billbaord… “The attitude is like, ‘we’re making great money, let’s milk it,’” a sentiment heralded by many including Carl Cox who believes that dance music now moves at such a pace that no producer has any chance of creating a future classic.”
As I said above, it just seems that so many people want to make a quick return rather than creating something special, whether it is an event or a tune whatever.
An album in your record collection you always hide when the cool kids knock on your door…
I’m not ashamed of my record collection. It’s all contributed at some point to where I am today…mind you some of the psy-trance doesnt see the light of day that often!
A summer event you cannot wait for…
Too many. Love Saves, Glasto, Garden, Secret Garden, Ibiza…argghh getting excited now! It’s going to be a good one!
Best ever Ibiza moment…
Seeing Jocelyn Brown perform in the middle of the pool at Manumission in ’97. Was my first time in Ibiza and wont ever forget it.
Not many people know this, but Amos from Waifs & Strays is really good at…
Building Ikea furniture. I’m a total ninja at it.
Oh fuck me you shouldn’t have told me that. There’s a new bed arriving next week, I’ll call you. And finally, after these beauts, what is coming out next from you studio wise…?
Loads actually. There the EP on Skream’s Of Unsound Mind coming in June. A track on the Gruuv compilation. ‘Pang’ with Mark Jenkyns, another futureboogie EP towards the end of the year, an EP with Wildkats on Glasgow Underground and loads more…I’ve been really busy in the studio over the past 6 months and it’s all coming soon!
http://www.soundcloud.com/waifs_strays
