Danny Howells interview!

[Nolimit]

courtesy of Amy from Naughtybooth:

From psychiatric nurse to globetrotting superstar (and one of New York's favorite DJs), Danny Howells' rise to the top has been nothing short of fantastic. Lucky for us, he took some time out of his busy schedule to sit down with NaughtyBooth, and let us pick his brain for a while.

NB: How has playing extended sets at Vinyl influenced the way you play? How do you prepare for your long sets here?

DH: It’s actually influenced the way I play quite a lot. Obviously, I’m playing for much longer there, much more than the two, three or four hours I might do elsewhere – it’s really changed the whole approach to what I do. It’s also allowed me to play different styles of records than what I might put in my box for a run of the mill two hours set, there’s a lot more to it. I’m very aware of what kind of peak I get into, putting together a set that will make sense at the end of the night. There’s a lot of preparation that goes into it. For starters, I have to bring more records with me, than I would need to for an average gig. I also try to bring a lot of special things – for New Year’s Eve for example, I made a couple of special tracks. In a way, it’s almost a let down when I go back to my regular gigs – playing ten hours or twelve hours, like I did on New Year’s, when I go to do a two hour set somewhere I almost feel like I haven’t even started by the time it’s over. I get spoiled.

What clubs and djs have most influenced your style and approach to djing?

The early ones I heard probably had the most influence ...Terry Farley, John Digweed, obviously, I’ve worked a lot with him, and more recently, Jeff Mills, he’s got such a unique approach ... stopping a record halfway through, starting up another one, like 30 bpm slower, that sort of approach. DJ Remy in Holland, he’s got a more techno-y kind of vibe, and Danny Tenaglia, of course. But it could just be someone who’s warming up somewhere, anyone really. I hear so many talented people.

Where’s your favorite place to play?

New York! I love a lot of places. I still love Holland, I’d been there quite a lot before I started coming over to America. I also love England – it’s my home, and lately I’ve been to Japan and it was really wonderful. I just love playing, and I’ve been to so many great clubs all over the world. New York is really special because I get a longer set and the crowd is so into it. I have relationships with so many people here, people I consider friends, and I love it – even simply walking around and the feeling I get from being here.

What’s on the production horizon for you this year?

I’ve got a few things pending, one possibly for a drum and bass label. I’m working on a really dark, tripped out dub version of Dusk Til Dawn, but it’s not finished yet. It’s quite difficult to coordinate my schedule with Dick ((Danny’s production partner in Science Dept)), as he’s quite busy, traveling all over doing psychadelic parties. I like the idea of putting things out on different labels – Dusk Til Dawn is more disco-y, so I’d like to put it out in a more housey type label, so we shall see what happens.

Any plans for a mix compilation in the near future?

Maybe ((said with big grin))... I’m not going to do as many compilations this year...last year I did two, and I wasn’t able to put in as much time as I wanted to. I’m a bit slow with them, but this year I’m supposed to do one album and hopefully, it should be more techy sounding, or maybe something more downtempo. At any rate, it will be something different than the ones I’ve done in the past. The last ones I did were quite housey, and I’ve wanted to do a more techy one, but I chickened out at the last minute. Possibly, I’ll find a way to involve the Vinyl residency somehow, and I’m looking to make this one more representative of what I sound like live. But whatever happens, I’m into it – I’ll make it my best one yet, I hope.

Do you think your NYC residency has raised your profile overall in the US?

Definitely! Anything that happens in England, the whole country knows about it immediately. The US is so much bigger, it’s difficult to make a name for yourself here, but the Vinyl residency has really helped so much. The Internet has also helped a lot, because if a great set goes off, everyone all over the world can hear about it.

What are you all time favorite tracks or albums?

1. Marvin Gaye "What’s Goin’ On"

2. Prince "Sign of the Times"

3. Gimme Shelter "Rolling Stones"

4. Carly Simon "Why?"

5. Primal Scream "Screamadelica"

Honorable Mention: Iron Butterfly "In-A-Gadda-Da-Vida"

Tell us a naughty story from behind the decks...

Once, I was playing at a club, and the atmosphere just died, I mean, completely died, and I looked up, and there was this naked guy on the stage across from the booth with an erection, and there was the girl with a huge dildo who was shagging him up the bum! It went on for so long, I actually finished my set, and the next DJ went on, and they were still going at it. Interesting, to say the least ....

Anything else you would like to tell NaughtyBooth?

No. Just kidding, I would like to thank all of you for supporting me, and I’m going to continue to give it my all, and keep coming out!

Related Links:

Danny vs. Danny @ ARC

DannyHowells.com

** Howells Is A MONSTER **

[joeygk]

DANNY HOWELLS RULES ALL THINGS COOL!

[mrmatas2277]

Originally posted by Nolimit

courtesy of Amy from Naughtybooth:

Tell us a naughty story from behind the decks...

Once, I was playing at a club, and the atmosphere just died, I mean, completely died, and I looked up, and there was this naked guy on the stage across from the booth with an erection, and there was the girl with a huge dildo who was shagging him up the bum! It went on for so long, I actually finished my set, and the next DJ went on, and they were still going at it. Interesting, to say the least ....

HEY NOW!!!

[georgeacasta2]

This was really interesting diego.