CYFI Media
New Member
- Joined
- Jun 3, 2008
DJ Phantasy has been around since the Rave Anthems began. With so many productions tucked under musical belt Moondance have secured a few tracks off him for their new album released this week. We here at CYFI Media (Can You Feel It) have picked this DJ's brains and have given him an interview that has made him laugh-out-loud but also gives you the raver a good insight as to what this guy is all about.
1.) I'm going to start this interview with a fun question. You're called DJ Phantasy, but which hot young lady out there right now would you say is your ideal fantasy?
Haha, my wife.. boring for you lot but its true.. wouldn’t have married her if she weren’t. But if I am pushed to say someone then, ha-ha, Keely. She is just naturally beautiful.
2.) I write on alot of Dance Music sites and one theme that's seems to be repeated is that there are too many "moody heads" in the DnB rooms. I've had some of the best nights of my life at raves like Devotion in Brighton and never seen any trouble. What would you say to people who claim that the DnB scene is dark and dangerous?
Its rubbish! The World is dark & dangerous, not DnB. Ive been going to nights all over the World for years and everything seems to be ok when I’m there. Look, I aint burying my head in the sand here. I know there can be fights and things like that at clubs but its not as bad as some people think or say and it certainly is not just linked with DnB. These things can happen anywhere. This is one of the main reasons I hate these forums. Cause now you think these things about our music without having experienced it. So, how will a new clubber feel when thinking about coming out to a DnB show? They will think twice reading a forum post from someone who wants to make themselves feel important with some information they just cant help but pass on. To me this is killing our scene. But let me ask you, there are so many moody people on the London underground; does it stop you using the train?
3.) If you had unlimited license to remix any track, or tracks together to make your ultimate dance record, which tracks would you mix and remix, and what would you call the finished product?
Gwen McCrea – Giving All My Lovin. Absolutely bad tune. I just love the track. There are so many great records from many years ago, I just wonder if any music being made now will have the same value as these classics in 20 years time.
4.) I've noticed from my research on you that you seem to have quite an interest in Ska music, citing your first record as Baggy Trousers by 80's Chelsea Ska outift madness. Many of our readers won't know too much about Ska music and wouldn't even realise that some people reckon MCing originated on the Ska dancefloor scene as "toasting". What Ska tunes would you recommend to someone who's never heard the style?
I wouldn’t say I was heavily into it to be honest. My mate bought me that record when I was 6 as a birthday present. My true music love from back in those days was Electro. When that first come around I was instantly hooked. The ska thing was just what was around when I was a kid. There were punks, and casuals. I was a casual cause I couldn’t really see myself wearing make up. Not from the streets I roamed around in. For those who don’t know the music then the best thing to do is search for some of the albums that were around in that era. You won’t get the best tracks from that time but you will get the more known ones.
5.) The Moondance album is going to be called Rave Anthems. I know that you dislike certain overground tracks like M-Beat's "Incredible" - how do you go about putting together a track listing for a classic album like this and do you put aside all your personal preferences regarding the commercial nature of some tracks ?
Wow, you have done your research aint ya! Well, look that tune for me I felt at the time was taking the piss out of the scene. Even though I was probably the only one who thought it, I did and I said my piece there and then. But it didn’t matter anyway as the tune went on to sell loads. I get on really well with Levy now funnily enough but I never knew him at the time and the whole scene was playing it. I was not, then all of a sudden, Levy came out with this claim he started DnB, then all the DJ’s & MC’s were trying to call meetings to stop people playing the tune. My reply to all of them at that time was and I quote “I am not playing the tune, you are, you sort it out. I don’t need a meeting to tell me what to play and what not to play. Let me know the outcome” I also think when compiling an Album like this you have to think of the bigger picture. You have to pick tracks that the public will like or the Album won’t sell. If I picked an album of tracks that I personally liked it would be a really different diverse selection of music. Hummm, maybe I should do something like that and do it through you lot, what you saying, we got a deal then? Haha
6.) Alot of people will say that dance music has changed their lives. Asides from being one of the biggest names in the DnB scene and a recognised pioneer of Jungle music, how has dance music changed your outlook on life and your hopes and dreams for the future?
Of course it has changed my life. I could have been doing a number of things I wont go into now. But I thank God everyday for giving me the gift to be doing what I am doing. One thing I think after 19 years doing this is that I appreciate and love playing music to people. Above all else, that is the one thing that inspires me. Sitting in a studio can get tedious when its not clicking and the problem these days is you cant just do a track and release it, as the public are so clued up to the music. If you listen to some of the music that’s come out 15 years ago and more, I’m sure that certain producers would be embarrassed by what they were doing at that time. But today, you can’t get away with nothing. You could make 3 great tracks in a row, have the ravers loving you and bigging you up, then have 1 bad record and your back to square one. But one thing I do say is this, for those people who write on forums, saying that this track is rubbish and that track is crap, please, please go into the studio, make a track how you think it should be made and then send it over to me. If it’s good I will release it. If its not, I will tell you why I think its not and try help you get it sorted out. Some of us Artists are here to help the scene progress and grow. That can only happen when we have new Artists coming through. Some people are in this game for themselves but they are mostly the ones who come & go. There are a few of us who are there to help nurture the future talent of this scene. The software is not hard to find. So go get started.
