Rave Curious Podcast

Unreleased interview from Dec. 1, 2017 in Los Angeles

A previously unreleased conversation with Chris Liebing recorded in 2018.

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From the melodic glitches of the debut Telefon Tel Aviv album Fahrenheit Fair Enough to the fury of Nine Inch Nails live, Josh Eustis is a consummate electronic music artist—one who struggles over every byte playing off his trusty laptop, the musical tool that has been the center of his world since the mid-90s. Through two-plus decades of musical triumph and personal tragedy, Josh tells Rave Curious how he's stayed focused on making his art, even during the toughest times. And reveals the current challenges he's facing as a solo artist.

Some might call his music punk techno, but Perc insists that everything he does on his Perc Trax label is all in good fun. Maybe that's why the UK DJ and producer has become a favorite at hardcore-yet-cheeky events like Bangface Weekender and Even Furthur. Perc talks about the secret to surviving in the tough world of techno—from loosing records in distributor liquidations (three times in 13 years) to playing packed clubs one weekend and half empty rooms the next.

Leading up to the 15th-anniversary celebration of Droid Behavior, Los Angeles duo Raíz recap a decade and a half of delivering uncompromising techno to a city better known for house, trance and dreaded EDM. Brothers Vidal and Vangelis Vargas offer insights on the city's unique Latino electronic heritage, trying to throw techno events during the dark ages of the early '00s and why relocating to a more flight-friendly locale (ahem, Berlin, ahem) is just not an option when an entire community has come to count on you.

Dutch DJ Steve Rachmad is one of Holland's original techno producers. He's also one of the truest in term of his undiluted commitment to the music in its original Detroit-manufactured form. No wonder he carries with him a "Detroit pass" like fellow European greats Laurent Garnier, Maurizio and Luke Slater. Whether making and playing music as Sterac (his harder techno alias), Tons of Tones (his most Detroit-sounding records) or as his own groovy self, the Amsterdam fixture continues to move crowds after more than 25 behind the decks. He talks about his early discovery of pre-techno electronic music, his close call with Dutch hardcore and his ambition to play live...someday, all on this episode of Rave Curious.

DJ Garth is one-quarter of Wicked Soundsystem, the legendary San Francisco crew of British expats that brought UK acid house to the Bay Area at the dawn of the 90s. Along with Jeno, Marky and Thomas, Garth pioneered the full moon party scene in Northern Cali before hitting the road in a vintage Greyhound bus and a massive purple Turbosound system to carry the gospel, first to Burning Man, then across the West Coast. Today, Garth lives in Los Angeles. He discusses the move south, how things came together in the early days of Wicked, how the faithful are still following the crew 25 years later, and why the Bay Area rave scene gave birth to a little thing we call the Internet.

Mike Huckaby is best known as the former manager of Record Time's legendary Dance Room, a store that helped define the musical taste of an entire generation of Detroit DJs. Since the store closed in 2011, Huckaby has come out from behind the counter and has made his own way as an international DJ, surprising many by mixing Tresor's 20th Anniversary Compilation and assuming the role as the semi-official remixer of all things Sun Ra. Add to this his work teaching students young and old about creating electronic music via his relationships with Ableton and Native Instruments, and you'll start to see an artist who has truly created a distinct niche in the often cookie-cutter world of record selectors.

The annual Dirtybird Campout has become a major event on the West Coast festival circuit, by presenting every shade of the label’s beloved sound—from house and techno to bass and hip-hop—and combining it adult updates on good old-fashioned summer camp activities (sexy musical chairs, anyone?). DB boss Claude VonStroke sat down with the Rave Curious Podcast to reveal a couple of surprises he has in store for this year’s gathering. He also offers up advice on how to make it as a musical entrepreneur and explains the back and forth it took him to arrive at his destination as one of America’s most successful DJ-producers.

Josh gives some good news in this 4-minute update on the state of Rave Curious following the closure of our partner, THUMP.

Heidi Lawden Is Much More Than DJ Harvey's Manager. The dance music "den mother" is more than DJ Harvey's manager. // Running off to London as a teenager meant that Heidi Lawden was hanging at the coolest clubs at an age when most ravers are still dreaming of big nights out from inside their parent's suburban homes. And Heidi hit the capital at just the right time, when the fashion-forward city was about to be overtaken by the acid house phenomenon. "I thought the streets were paved with gold in London. And they were!" the self-proclaimed "den mother" told the Rave Curious Podcast about the club culture that would embrace her as a DJ and promoter during its 90s heyday of Ministry of Sound. That scene also led to her befriending heroes like Larry Levan and Masters at Work, as well as managing DJ Harvey, who she's worked with for over two decades. Heidi dishes about those early days of clubbing as well as the now legendary story of her move with Harvey to LA and the career rebirth that has taken place for both of them over the past 15 years. She also addresses the very real battle of being a DJ versus working behind the scene for one of the world's most in-demand talents, and even spill some secret news about her charge's next project. Check it out.

Jesse Rose Wishes More DJs Would Retire. // By pretty much any standard, the life of a successful DJ is a good one. Sure, social media is perpetually flooded with DJs complaining, but the cons of long flights, lost luggage and logistical meltdowns pale in comparison to the pros of global travel, VIP accommodations and endless afterparties. Oh yeah, and getting to share music with adoring fans around the world ain't a bad deal either. It's little wonder why once most DJs reach the upper echelon, they'll be damned if they'll let go. Which is why it was so surprising the DJ/producer/labelhead Jesse Rose announced his intention to end his enviable career following his final album, Alright Mate, and a 2017 full of gigs at the best clubs and festivals in the world. But as he reveals on the Rave Curious podcast, Rose isn't the only successful DJ who considers calling it quits after multiple decades behind the decks. "Half the DJs who have been playing for so long would love to retire but they don't because they're earning a great living and traveling around the world," Rose reveals before explaining the fundamental problem with this evergreen DJ mentality. "It's actually a bad thing. New kids coming up with passion and excitement is what got us into dance music to begin with."

Joel Mull Is Saving Swedish Dance Music From It’s EDM-Sullied Reputation // As some of the pioneers of the Swedish techno sound, Joel Mull and friends Adam Beyer and Cari Lekebusch dominated much of the late-90s scene with unforgiving bangers that defined the looping minimalism of the era. Today, Mull—the Stockholm-based DJ and producer—has broadened his palette considerably, creating various shades of techno for everyone from Berlin leaders Dystopian to Sasha's Last Night On Earth imprint, along with his own Parabel label. Though admittedly not as high-profile as some of his Drumcode peers, Mull is an unsung hero of many a party across the globe, delivering sets of full-bodied techno that combine melody and drama with relentless rhythms and daring experimentation. In other words, everything that will keep you on the dancefloor hours after it was time to go home. He joined the Rave Curious podcast this week to chat about his history in techno, and his home country's musical reputation.

Baikal Proves How Hard It Is to Quit Techno. // It seems like every producer eventually moves to Berlin, but Baikal might be the only one to do so while taking time off from his musical career. Having achieved some success under the name Mark August with releases for Innervisions, the Dutch producer needed a break—and decided that decamping to Germany was the way to do it. He couldn't stay out of the game for too long though, and he's recently begun releasing music on the Maeve label that he co-runs with fellow Innversions colleagues Mano Le Tough and The Drifter. He joins Rave Curious this week to chat about that period of indecision and how his current output has earned him gigs around the city's network of world class clubs, including Panorama Bar, Renate and ://about blank. It has also seen him take his heady-yet-emotional style of techno to all the inhabitable continents. Not bad for an artist who considered calling it quits altogether not long ago.

The Former Fabric Resident Freed Himself From Tech House Purgatory. // On the new episode of Rave Curious, the former Fabric resident explains building new brand especially for American audiences. It'd be easy to blame Lee Burridge for some of the stuff you hate. He's one of the founding fathers of tech-house, a loose genre that still holds its cold grip around much of the international dance music scene. He might be equally at fault for the playa tech sound that gets so many Burning Man faithful into a lather, having been one of the earliest DJs to bring jittery hand drums and sunny synthesizers to the previously bass-saturated Black Rock City. But like all innovators, the British DJ-producer has managed to get out of these scenes before they get stale—making his mark and moves on before the imitators cluster around a sound. Burridge hopped on this week's episode of the Rave Curious Podcast to explain his latest invention, All Day I Dream. It's an international party series that stands out for it's sensual sound and style meant to draw in party people who gravitate to something more earthy and amorous than the clinical tech-house that dominates so many sunlit soirees. He explains how he went from playing pop music to airline workers in Hong Kong to leading multiple waves of dance music deviation and decadence.

The underground vet brings Chicago's industrial music to Berlin techno. // Growing up in the house music capital of Chicago, one might not expect Karl Meier to make the sort of abrasive industrial techno found on his debut album as one half of Talker (with Johnathan Krohn). But as he tells Rave Curious, the city's industrial scene—famous for the Wax Trax! label, home to Front 242, My Life With The Thrill Kill Kult and local legends Ministry/Revolting Cocks/Pigface—had just as much influence as the house heroes like Derrick Carter, DJ Sneak and DJ Heather. The result so far has been a single album for esteemed UK techno imprint Downwards in 2014—not bad for Meier's first release after years working record counters at places like the mythical vinyl emporium Gramaphone. That album lead to key gigs at Berghain and Berlin Atonal Festival, compelling Meier to take the next obvious step and relocate to the German Capital the next year. The Rave Curious podcast caught Meier on his first official U.S. tour to find out how a dance music veteran can go from nearly unknown to underground headliner status after decades of DJing. We also try to make nice with Chicago after dissing the Windy City hard on the recent Boom Bip episode.

Oakie Learned About Ibiza From A Famous Transexual // When the books are written about the history of acid house—and there have been several already—one key fact seems to elude authors as they regurgitate the old story of how Paul Oakenfold and friends visited Ibiza, took some ecstasy, and came back to kick off the Summer of Love. "I was working for a record company and they want [John Waters conspirator] Divine," he tells the Rave Curious podcast. "That's how I really discovered Ibiza." The rest, as they say, is history, with Oakenfold returning to London to bring that white island magic to the UK. From there he rocketed to the top of the DJ hierarchy, first working with Madchester stars the Happy Mondays, and eventually opening for U2 and Madonna on stadium tours. You even have Oakie to thank for the Las Vegas DJ craze, which he may have started in 2008 with a weekly gig at The Palms. Throughout it all, he's seen a lot and shares plenty on the Rave Curious Podcast, including his new Generations concept, celebrating 30 years of UK club culture and his new residency in an American city you'd probably never guess. Find out by pressing play.

The Dirtybird JD Explains Why Guest DJs Can be a Waste // Christian Martin will play well over 150 gigs this year around the world. Some will be solo, but many will be as part of the Dirtybird crew, which Martin founded with his brother Justin and friends Claude Vonstroke and Worthy. Today, they might all be international headlining DJ, but when Dirtybird began as an intimate daytime BBQ party in Golden Gate Park, and then a residency at San Francisco venue Shine, the four core DJs kept the decks to themselves. "We wanted to sink or swim on our own merits," Martin reflects, adding. "I wanted us to have our own unique sound." That attitude continued, even as the crew began to grow. Dirtybird parties started to pop-off around the world, and while the members started to play out on their own, they still managed to perform together often, creating one of the strongest house music brands in all of the American dance scene. That DIY attitude is more relevant than ever. As dance music continues to grow, pushing DJ fees higher and higher as it goes, there's starting to be a sense that the bubble could burst. That's why the lessons in independence that Martin tells are so essential. You can hear them all on this episode of the Rave Curious Podcast.

The Smart Bar resident isn't afraid to name and shame. // As product of the Midwest rave scene, Chrissy has seen his share of sketchiness—from gunplay in Kansas City to troubles on the road in England with DJ Rashad. He admits that the underground environment through much of dance music's history can be a beacon for bad players eager to take advantage of the PLUR. "They were homophobic, and they were misogynistic and they didn't really like the music. They were show up to score ecstasy, or meth, realistically," he says of the crowd the came to many a Midwest party in the 90s. He goes on to rally against the outlaw elements that encourages bad business deals and dangerous venues. The latter of which, sadly took lives in Oakland, including producer Nackt, whose posthumous release just dropped on Chrissy's Nite Owl Diner label. Chrissy recalls his friend and shines a light on raving's corrupt underbelly on this episode of the Rave Curious Podcast.