Dave Angel is nothing less than legendary in the history of Acid House and later Techno. Since his 1989 'ardcore debut (a remix of Eurythmics' 'Sweet Dreams' which charted) and tracks like 'Brother From Jazz', '3rd Symphony' and 'Airborne' he's wrought elegantly patterned and tightly programmed abstract techno: deep, jazzy motor city homages which align him more with John Beltran, Dan Curtin and Eddie Flashin' Fowlkes than any of his British contemporaries. Behind the decks, he's become one of a legion of British DJs - Colin Favor, Luke Slater and Colin Dale - to play hard, fast and vicious sets every weekend in Europe's most 'lost it' clubs, yet get fewer dates and less recognition on home territory.
We caught up with him before his big London date at Mass, Brixton on 8th December
What have you been up to recently DJ wise?
A; same old thing djing across the globe
What have you got coming up?
A: I am currently working on my new label Niah, getting together as much catalogue to hit the streets in 2008.
What can we expect at Smile in Brixton on 8th December?
A; A whole lot of energy, and just Dave Angel doing his thing
Favourite club to play in and why?
A; My favourite club to play in is the end as they have a great sound system
What do you think of the UK scene right now?
A; Well Its getting a little better, but still a lot of confusion, too many pockets of music genres
Best gig ever?
A; best gig ever? Has to be, Technodrome in Scotland, as it was my first ever festival, playing to 30,000 people and I closed the night,
What`s the strangest or most unusual place you`ve ever played a gig in?
A; In Tresor in Berlin, as it was the Nazis bank vault before it was a club, you could almost visulise the sas men on the dancefloor
Favourite country to play in? Have you found that Dance music is really universal, or are the some countries it hasn’t gone down well in?
A; Absolutely, everybody parties the same wherever you go the only difference there maybe if fashion.
What do you use in your sets nowadays?
A; mainly tech house and anything funky
How do you think DJing will evolve technically over the next few years?
A; It already has, massively. Before we used vinyl now there are so many different formats to play on, final scratch, cd, ableton the list goes on.
Do you tailor your sets to particular venues or play it by ear?
A; Always play by ear and always come prepared for whatever.
What are your top 5 tunes right now?
1: Attention – Ryoh mitomi – Rotation
2: dream theatre – DJ Rebekah – (label unknown
3: face the music – Tim deluxe – Skint
4: Taurus – Dave Angel – Niah rec
5: Medusa – dave Angel – yet to be released
What have you been up to recently in the studio recently?
A; getting together a batch of great tunes to hit the street in 2008
What do you prefer – DJing or Producing?
A: Both
What makes a good or bad producer?
A; If they have real talent or not!!
What’s you favourite bit of kit?
A; My imac
What time of day or night are you most creative?
A; Definitely when night falls
Who would you most like to collaborate with in the studio?
A; My dad
Do you feel DJs have to produce nowadays to really make their mark?
A; Yes, it has been like that for a long time now
What`s the dodgiest situation you`ve been in playing out?
A; Last Saturday doing the fantasyland festival, I was booked to do a ‘old skool’ set, so I did. But I was not informed by the agent that the festival was a happy hardcore one?? Ive never played happy hard core.
DJs are renowned as having a glamorous life, if I was you for a day, what would be the most disappointing thing I’d discover about the reality of a DJs life?
A; That we are normal people, doing school runs etc….
First record you bought?
A; KC and the sunshine band – That’s the way I like it
Was music a part of your childhood?
A: A massive part, That was my childhood. I never played outside with the other kids, I played the drums, and had to practise with my dad’s band, and if I missed a beat I would get the sticks slapped on my legs until I got it right. But now I look back and thank my dad so much (God rest his soul)
What’s the strangest thing you’ve seen in a club? What do you like to do away from the dance scene?
A; The strangest thing I saw in a club was when I was djing and the dj that was coming on after me had a strap on dick, and he dj’d with it on. It was about 30in long (no I am not going to name him) but it scared the life out of me.
What`s your most prized possession and why?
A; My Family
Which four words best describe you?
A; Dad, DJ, Producer, Humanitarian (all round nice guy)
Last thing you regretted? DJing and producing comes naturally to you – what are you not good at?
A; Cooking, I tried to cook a nice meal for my wife and I have never tried again.
What does the future hold for you?
A; Who knows? Hopefully I will grow old with my family and still produce funky arse tracks and watch technology go crazy!!
