BILL PATRICK
On Saurday October 24th 2009 Bill Patrick gives us a pre-Halloween treat in the VIP room for a special edition of BLACK Saturdays. The Particle People had some time last week to get a few great questions in from Bill. We span the gambit here with stories from secret bromance and spirit horses, to his hatred of Serato (I do not support his hatred of Traktor and a threat was made to edit his comments but I promise his comments were not edited in any way.) *wink* wink*… Be sure to check in next week for a followup to Bills interview with a brand new mix recorded live from the show.
This is your second time in Minneapolis, what excites you most about visiting our city for the second time and what are your impressions of the Mpls scene?
The first time I came to Minneapolis I wasn’t sure what to expect. But I was really blown away by the response and enthusiasm of everyone that showed up. My experience with playing in the states is that the cities you least expect to have a blowout are usually the ones that turn out the best. St Louis is also a good example of that. So I’m expecting this second visit to go even better. Or maybe I should keep my expectations low. What do you suggest?
What are you listening to at the moment (non dance music)
Oh wow. I could go on for days naming bands and artists I am listening to right now. Actually, I hardly listen to any dance music aside from when I am searching for tracks. I just got some new Thom Yorke songs that are obviously amazing. I’ve really been into the band Studio thanks to my friend Sussi. The new Kings of Convenience album has been on repeat as well as Erlend Oye’s other band Whitest Boy Alive. Beirut is also one of my favorite bands at the moment. Blonde Redhead, Bon Iver, Leonard Cohen, Burial, Japan, Hercules and Love Affair, Junior Boys, Brain Eno, Philip Glass to name a few more. Marc Houle recently turned me on to this band Iko one afterhours in Berlin. Super cool 80’s synth pop from Quebec. They put out one album in 1983 under this alias and no one every heard from them again.
Are there any artists you are really fond of at the moment?
Masomenos from Paris are my favorite right now. Their album The Third Eye is easily the best thing I have heard in some time. I passed it along to a bunch of friends and everyone was equally amazed. In fact, the most trainspotted tracks in my set are always theirs. We played together in Romania recently and I was blown away by their DJing as well. They are on fire at the moment and should be booked immediately. Let’s see, who else am I fond of? Well of course all the Wolf + Lamb artists like Deniz Kurtel and No Regular Play. Deniz has lots of goodies coming out on Crosstown Rebels as well. A full length album to be exact. Breaking onto the scene with an album is pretty impressive so be sure to check that out. No Regular Play just did an EP on W+L that I’ve been playing a lot. I would mention Seth Troxler but I don’t think he needs any more press or boosts to his ego. But I love him dearly. He is my spirit horse.
WE ARE ROBOTS
We Are Robots’ and ‘Robots Radio’ seem to be on hiatus at the moment, do you foresee it making a return?
We decided to end things at a good time. I was always a fan of clubs, parties, artists, ending while on top and I can honestly say I think we did that. I made my move to Berlin, Nick moved to London, and it just made sense to wrap it up. I am not sure about any reunion parties at the moment. Perhaps something down the road. RobotRadio however is something I would love to start back up. I am not sure how to go about that though. I get more people asking about that show than anything else. Dennis and I had so much fun doing it and it allowed us to play tons of music we wouldn’t necessarily get to play in a club. If I could start something up in Berlin I would. Something to look out for…
When I was a young raver in NYC I was inspired by a handful of parties that made me want to be a contributing part of the culture…. What was it that influenced you to make the move from fan to DJ/Promoter?
Well, I would have to say the first raves I attended in Brooklyn and Queens and then eventually the parties at Twilo. Those parties completely turned my world inside out. I would show up to Twilo at 11pm on the dot in order to hear the first track played and stay till the last track was dropped. I always had this appreciation for the opening DJ. Guys like Jimmy Van M, Luis Diaz, Sean Cusick, and Danny Howells. So I would say musically speaking, I was mostly inspired by the deep, moody, sexier music they were playing in the beginning of the night. I’ve never been influenced to be a promoter. I wouldn’t call myself a promoter at all. In fact, I hate promoting. It’s the worst job in the world. Sorry. *wink*
There is too much stress to deal with when throwing your own party. Starting with the bullshit you have to go through with the DJ’s and agencies. Add the constant nagging for guestlist that continues well into the night of the party (getting a phone call at 1am asking for guestlist is always fun) and then having to worry about the numbers and whether the bar is making enough money, blah, promoting sucks! haha.
What was your favorite party of the summer?
Probably the Sunwaves Festival in Romania. Seth Troxler, Lee Burridge, and I played one stage. Also Luciano, Richie Hawtin, Marco Carola, and Steve Lawler were on other stages. Oh yeah, and of course, Masomenos! We all partied well into Monday morning and missed our flights back to Berlin. This is common practice in Romania however. It was our fault for even booking our flight to return Monday. The Black Sea Coast is my favorite place in the world to DJ. The Sunwaves Festivals happen every May and August and I would recommend checking it out if you have a chance. It’s clubbing at it’s finest.
Is it true that Berlin is the new “Greenwich Village” (new Williamsburg )?
Style wise? I guess there are a lot of hipsters in Berlin. Artistic wise? Yeah sure. Lots of galleries opening up. Musically speaking, I would say it compares to Greenwich Village 20 years ago. There are record shops everywhere, flyers and posters for all sorts of shows, mainly rock and punk but of course also house/techno. It has a similar vibe to the Village. I remember walking around Greenwich Village in the early 90’s and feeling like I was a part of something. You could feel that there was a movement happening. The same feeling is going on right now in Berlin. You know people are flocking to the city because there is an opportunity for artists to make something of themselves. There’s a similar creative outlet in Berlin that was in the Village back in the day. So yes, I could see the comparison.
How has the adjustment been going from NYC to Berlin?
Oh it’s been amazing. We have a nice solid group of friends in Berlin. The pace and rhythm is much easier than NY. Plus the cost of living is much much cheaper. So that eliminates a ton of stress. I could do a better job of learning the language though. That would definitely help make things a little bit easier.
What record never leaves your bag or keeps making its way back in time after time?
Notorious B.I.G. “Ready to Die” album, Cevin Fisher “Love You Some More”, and Ricardo Villalobos “808 Bassqueen”
What does your current DJ set up consist of?
2 technic turntables, 2 CDJ 1000’s, 1 Allen and Heath Xone 92 mixer. I really have a profound hatred for Serato and Traktor. I am almost at the point where I refuse to Dj with anyone using it. I can not tell you how many issues I’ve had with it. We were in Zurich last week and I was playing with Ryan Crosson and all of a sudden the stupid shit decided it wanted to play the record in reverse. As I was trying to mix. This type of stuff happens all the time. Not to mention the pain in the ass it is when you are DJing and the guy after you has to set up his Traktor and is all over you trying to plug everything in. I don’t care that you can play your stupid 80’s disco records at the end of your sets because it allows you to carry more music, it’s a pain in the ass and I would love to see it disappear.
You do a fair amount of traveling and get to see quite a few up and coming artists…in your opinion, who are a couple of people to watch out for in the next year?
I think we answered this question already. But I’ll name some more. Well, lets recap. Masomenos, Deniz Kurtel, No Regular Play…oh, the guys in Romania! Praslea, Ali Nasser, Kozo, Prik (yes thats pronounced Prick). These guys are insane Dj’s. Everytime I go there we end up doing some massive afterhours and play for days. Last time I was there Raresh, Praslea, Kozo and I played for around 11 hours at this seedy bar up in the mountains somewhere. It was amazing. These guys would put most of the “big dj’s” to shame.
Your buds with Lee Curtiss…tell us a story about that crazy SOB.
Lee is my JO bud. Did he tell you that? That was suppose to be a secret.
CPR - A Piece of History (Crosson, Patrick, Reeves)
I recently read that you plan to take some time off from your busy DJ schedule to pursue your own productions…can you tell us about your project with Shaun Reeves and Ryan Crosson? Any plans on solo work?
I don’t know about taking time off from Djing. Unless I am playing 8 times a month, I don’t see myself taking a break. I have started a few things with Ryan and Shaun. One that recently came out on Wolf + Lamb. It’s available on their site www.wolflambmusic.com
I don’t know about solo work. I am really bad at finishing stuff. Plus I love having the extra set of ears in the studio. I find myself getting stuck on one sound for too long and it’s good to have someone there who can be like hey, lets move on this sucks, or lets try adding this. This is why I enjoy working with people like Ryan, Shaun, and Seth. We’re all very comfortable with each other. So if something isn’t working we’re not afraid to speak up.
If your a baseball fan…. *Twin/Yankees series is about to begin…We’d like to take the time to apologize in advance for the ass whooping. : )
I hate the Yankees. I hope the Twins beat them. I don’t see that happening though. I am a Mets fan. Don’t laugh.
For a taste of the past we were given permission to share an extra special mix from Bill. This set was recorded the last time he was her for Eccentric Beats a few years back but hurry, the mix is only available till Friday before the show. A big thanks to Phil Good for the mix. LINK HERE
Thanks go out to Jesse Jakob for help with a few funny-ass questions! Be sure to visit Bill Patrick’s Myspace for new mixes and be sure to come back here for a recap of bills visit with a recording of the nights shenanigans.
FACEBOOK LINK HERE
interview by Aaron Bliss
