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HOUSE & TECHNO RALPH LAWSON No Strings Attached at the Annexe, Edinburgh, Fri 1 Mar
‘It’s had its ups and downs,’ says Ralph Lawson of his more than two decades at the heart of dance music in the UK, most notably as the long-running resident of Leeds’ fabled Back to Basics, label boss of 2020Vision and driver of live production outfit 2020Soundsystem.
‘The main change is that the scene’s more
fragmented now,’ he continues, ‘you used to go to a dance event and hear all the types of electronic music that were around at the time. Then drum & bass splintered off, then big beat, then dubstep. That’s not a bad thing, but it’s created a mature and established industry now. We never used to be an industry, we just did it all for fun. So what you have to do is always keep people on their toes by introducing new concepts.’ His stock remains high as a go-to DJ for an
eclectic set which won’t turn off mainstream clubbers, with his own label and production exclusives figuring strongly in his shows. Here they’ll include this year’s col laboration between himself and
original 2020Vision production partner Carl Finlow entitled Dusty Dubs and Gold Dust, an EP series collecting material from old DAT tapes he found in his garage. ‘They still sound quite current though, even after all these years,’ he says. Just like his own career? ‘It’s been hard in the music industry,’ he reflects, ‘but we’ve swerved our way around the pitfalls and stay true to our name and ideals.’ (David Pollock)
DISCO FRANÇOIS KEVORKIAN Melting Pot 12th Birthday at The Admiral, Glasgow, Sat 2 Mar
‘I actually played my first gig without having ever practised on a real mixer,’ admits François Kevorkian. It’s almost hard to believe that the five-decade spanning career of one of dance music’s founding fathers could have begun in such a fashion. Unable to find work as a drummer, the French- born, native New Yorker took up DJing in the mid-70s, going on to play such respected nightspots as The Loft, Studio 54 and Paradise Garage. He later gained fame for his tape edits, which would earn him remix work for the likes of D-Train, Sharon Redd and Yazoo. ‘I wanted something that would give me a competitive edge as a DJ,’ he says. ‘I’d watched Walter
Gibbons perform amazing feats cutting up the breaks on records live and tried to reproduce it, before moving on to doing medleys; this helped me to plot a song structure when I started doing proper remixes.’ However, the production facilities he worked in lacked suitable equipment, which motivated him to establish his own Axis Studios, as François explains: ‘We made MIDI technology central to the set-up, rather than a peripheral add-on; it meant that electronic producers didn’t have to set-up huge amounts of rental gear.’
His numerous production commitments led him to retire from the decks in the 80s, but the next
decade saw him return and establish Body & Soul, alongside Danny Krivit and Joe Claussell. ‘It’s a party where every style of music is welcome,’ he reveals. ‘We DJ together as a team which has a very special and fun chemistry; the focus isn’t about our individual efforts but what we can accomplish together.’ He also promotes and plays at his own weekly night, ‘Deep Space’ at New York’s Cielo. ‘It’s been my
anchor,’ says Kevorkian. ‘Every Monday I can truly play anything I want which is a real blessing; it’s how I keep my musical sanity.’ (Colin Chapman)
Previews | CLUBS INTRODUCING . . . The best new nights in town
TRUTH
Residents Gareth Sommerville and Colin Cook. Guests This is more of an intimate shindig than a big name guest-led party. Music policy Top quality, old fashioned, underground house music. What they say Let us set the scene. It’s 1993 and Sommerville and Cook have just started DJing together: ‘The partnership was to carve two of the most influential nights of the era. Ultragroove landed in 1999 and, of course, still runs today. However, it was Truth, a weekly Friday night in a dingy base- ment of a former gay club, with its eye water- ingly good soundsystem, that satisfied the ears of a fiercely loyal crowd and introduced a strict policy of nothing but real house in the capital. ‘The current trend for early 90s underground house is proof positive of the timelessness and quality of the music pioneered by Truth. All organ stabs, swinging 909 grooves and kick drums, it was an intoxicating blend of wild pitch, raw disco samples, soulful attitude and diva vocal highs. This was a weekly resi- dents affair with no compromise. One minute a song the next minute a dark excursion, it was true DJing, from the heart, on expensive US-only imported black vinyl.
‘Now, 20 years hence, in a similarly low ceilinged basement, Truth returns for a one-off party, with the same ethos as back in the day – to celebrate the great music played at the time in an all-vinyl party. It promises to be as relevant now as it was in 1993. A club like no other, it offers a unique chance to tap into a lost era of Edinburgh’s clubland – a period that spawned countless nights. However, for those in the New York house “know”, there was really only one place for would be banji boys, disco divas and proper househeads to get down – ain’t that the truth.’ What we say If that sales pitch hasn't already won you over remember Sommerville and Cook’s credentials at Ultragroove and DJing across the capital mean they know the Edinburgh house scene like no other and this recreation of their seminal Truth night harks back to the original 90s house explosion. So far this is a one-off but let’s hope it returns. (Henry Northmore) ■ Truth at 511, The Newsroom, Edinburgh, Sat 2 Mar.
21 Feb–21 Mar 2013 THE LIST 47