Greetings 313-lings. Here's some 313 content for ya's. It is a transcript of an interview that Alan O. has recently done.
Enjoy, G l y p h >Detroit Techno slayer and three-deck rocker DJ T-1000, otherwise known >as Alan Oldham, has been purveying his own brand of hard techno funkiness >both on the tables and in the studio worldwide for over a decade. Here >he holds forth on his work, his music, and the state of the American dance >music community. > >-What are you working on right now? > >I have my own label called Pure Sonik and we’ve been on hiatus for a year. > A year goes by quick when you’re spinning every weekend. I'm in the middle >of a new EP for the label right now. I’ve also been working on a comic >book since ‘96, off and on. It’s called "The Sexy Adventures of Orietta >St. Cloud." It’s about this female operative of a global defense agency. >She goes out and fights aliens, but sometimes, she gets a little zealous >and ends up accidentally blowing up whole cities. It’s going to be a full >color comic with a various artist CD soundtrack. Some of the other artists >contributing will be Jeff Mills, Richie Hawtin, The Advent, Space DJz, >Brian Zentz, Titonton, and my own tracks as well. Each artist is scoring >a part of the comic book, as if it were a movie. It's tentatively scheduled >for early 2001. > >-Does music ever become tedious and do you ever want to give it up for >something simpler? > >It happens every so often. But as soon as I get into that mindset, something >happens to get you inspired all over again. After finishing my album "Progress", >I was really tired from spinning and producing and I was ready to give >it up. But then I got booked for Love Parade this year. You go over and >you’re playing for 2.5 million people, and that shows you, well, maybe >I am doing the right thing. > > >-What was spinning at the Love Parade like? > >It was a lot of fun. It’s like, okay, it’s on the resume, I’ve got proof, >I’ve got video and pictures, and I was there. I DJ’ed on the back of a >moving truck, a float in the parade. That was like 6 hours on this float. >Then I DJ’ed that night at the Tresor club in Berlin and brought the sunrise >in. Of course, I do this with no artificial stimulation, so needless to >say, I was pretty tired. > >-What is it about Techno music that keeps you hooked? Do you ever want >to venture into something else? > >I’d be making rock or experimental type stuff if I wasn’t playing techno. >Techno music to me is the baddest music you can make. It’s the backbone >of all electronic music. You have a lot of new young kids, they just came >into it with Sasha and Digweed. They think it’s the be all end all, but >it is not. I’ve never seen a crowd go off as with techno music. I just >love the music because it’s very driving. It gives you so much space to >create with two or three records. If you play on three decks, you can make >a whole new record. You can’t do that with trance. You can’t do that with >drum N’ bass. Serious people who love electronic music and who love >to see an actual DJ perform, love techno music. The jungle artists and >the trance artists steal whole ideas from techno and just make it trance >and jungle. It’s even down to the point where they steal project names >from techno. That’s part of techno’s longevity right there because it’s >the well from which artists in other genres dip. > > >-Many DJ’s, as opposed to seeing themselves as musicians, see themselves >as spiritual gurus and take their audiences to higher levels. How do you >see yourself? > >That’s the great thing about techno music, it can be anything >you need it to be. There are no lyrics, so there’s no agenda pushing at >you. That’s the great amorphous aspect of techno music, which makes it >like a great healing music, or background music to your life. But I am >not any kind of shaman, and quite frankly, any DJ that says that is an >a**hole. At the end of the day, you’re only spinning records. I liken >a DJ as being a designated driver for the evening. You’re leading the crowd >and you have to present an example. I stay straight while everybody else >has fun. > >-What words of advice do you have to those who want to contribute to the >electronic community? > >First of all, stay away from the drugs. This is not a party, 24-7. This >is business. Don’t get caught up in the gloss. Be original. Play something >that somebody else isn’t playing all the time. I think one of the reasons >I’ve gotten so big is because I play techno music and not a lot of people >play it. Don’t be a sheep and play whatever’s easy. And for God’s sake, >buy some gear and make some good records. I'm sick of all these mixtape >kids. Real DJs make records. That’s my six point plan for economic prosperity >in the dance music industry. If we all keep our heads, techno is going >to be around for a long time. > >(For DJ T-1000 record release info and DJ schedule go to www. puresonikrecords.net)
