An Interview with Anil Chawla

This article is about Get Diverted feat. Anil Chawla @ PLAN B in London (UK), Sat 11 Apr

In 2008, Anil Chawla cemented his reputation as one of the UK’s most hotly-tipped electronic DJ / producers of recent years and with the February 2009 release of Anil's highly anticipated debut artist album 'Roadhouse' (with Dale Anderson) on the world renowned Global Underground... the next 12 months look set to catapult this superlative talent further up the clubbing ladder.

Indeed it’s been quite some year for Anil with globetrotting dates around the planet, taking in Russia, Ukraine, Ibiza, Egypt, India, Lithuania and Sweden. As a worldwide resident for Global Underground, Anil headlined his very own 2 week sell-out tour of South America, whilst continuing his London GU residency at Ministry of Sound with slots alongside Sasha and Felix da Housecat.....

....The biog goes on but we have an interview to get on with so to find out more about the this very talented man read on and make sure you are at Get Diverted on April 11th to witness his style behind the decks.

Were you always into house music and how did your first DJing gig come about?

I've been into house music since my early teens. I can thank my brother for that, as he used to listen to rave tapes when he drove me into school every morning. Moby's seminal 'Go' was the first track that had me hooked.

With regards to DJing, I never had any major plans to play out... I'd bought some decks one summer at uni, and gained quite a filthy vinyl habit. I used to do some mix tapes for friends just to show off my new tunes, and one of those friends was running a small party at our student union, and invited me to along to play. That lead to a weekly residency, and I'd definitely gotten the bug from there.

What was the big break that made you realise your full time career was in dance music?

It wasn't really a break in music as such. I'd been wanting to go full time for quite a while, but was waiting for the right time. That right time came along when I was made redundant from my job, and gave me a good kick up the arse to pursue music full time.

You studied accountancy at University...do you ever wish you could swap the mundane lifestyle of DJ'ing across the globe for the excitement of balance sheets and profit and loss?

Hmmmm... No comment.

You won "Best breakthrough DJ" in DJ Mag's Best of British awards and "Best Deep House Track of The Year" for "Leftorium" in Beatports awards. What do these awards mean to you?

Well, I didn't actually win any of those, but I was nominated for them... I was up against some real big guns for those awards, so it was always going to be tough competition. I just felt honoured to be part of the shortlists.

You were resident for the Together parties at the now close Turnmills What are your thoughts on London losing so many prominent clubs in short space of time?

I'm gutted. Turnmills was my second home, and I can't see it being replaced with anything right now. Also, the closing of 'The End' is a huge loss to London's clubland. Saying that, musically, we're still spoilt for choice, and I can't think of a time where there were no decent nights on in London, but it's a shame to see those clubs go.

Your worldwide residency for Global Underground has enabled you to DJ worldwide, where has been your favourite location to DJ?

South America has been my favourite so far. I did a 2 week tour there last summer, and the clubs/people are simply amazing. Pacha in Buenos Aires was a particular highlight - you have to see it with your own eyes to believe how nuts it is!

Any funny stories from your travels?

I was staying in Ibiza last summer, in a villa that was in the middle of nowhere. I tried for about an hour to phone a cab into town for the gig but none of the people could quite understand where my location was (to be fair, I didn't have a clue either)... Through desperation, I started walking, and managed to hitch a lift in from a very friendly pest controller, who'd just finished a job down some random dirt track. What a life saver!

You have just got back from Miami, what was the vibe like this year?

It was actually my first year out there, so I don't really have anything to compare it to, but I loved the place... I guess it's not so much know for it's networking potential anymore, but I had a bloody amazing time at the parties. Clubbing outside has always attracted me, and if you can do it by the pool, or on the beach, then I'm all for it.

Any stand out tunes that will be big this summer?

Ramon Tapia's 'Time Clock' has been doing the business for me lately... Also, the Analog People In A Digital World re-rub of 'Rose Rouge' has got a good summery feel to it.

You are playing at this years SW4 festival, are you excited about being the other side of the turntables this time around?

It's my second year there, so I'm chuffed to be invited back again. It's a really fun day out for me, and always great to catch up with a load of mates, so yep, it's great to be on the line-up too.

Many of your DJ sets are with fellow Global Underground resident Dale Anderson, do you have a good chemistry behind the decks?

We've actually not been DJing together that long now, but as a result of the album being released we're definitely seeing our joint bookings on an increase. With every gig we play together, I think we have more of an understanding about our DJ styles, so it's a bit of a learning curve for us, but it's working out well.

How would you describe your current sound?

House music would certainly be the easiest way to explain it - but all sorts really, from the deeper/disco influenced sounds right through to 5am gurners!

Your highly anticipated debut album Roadhouse has been receiving rave reviews; do you adopt a different approach when doing a whole LP as opposed to single releases?

Most definitely. When we've been working on singles, it's almost always been geared towards the dancefloor. When we were given the opportunity of doing an album, we both thought it would be nice to work on some more eclectic 'non club' sounds. It's actually been really interesting to work on those sounds, and a great experience for both of us.

Which other DJ's/producers are doing it for you at the moment?

Butch, Kink, Hugo, Glimpse, Jim Rivers, Nick Curly, Tim Davison, Lindstrom, Dale Anderson, Paul Woolford, Nic Fanciulli, Simon and Shaker, Todd Terje.

And finally Anil, do you like movies about gladiators?

Awesome question!!! But I actually prefer spoof aeroplane disaster movies.