Thursday 7th June 2007

beatFREAK Interviews Neil Quigley

How long have you been Djing?

About 10 years, the first five of which were purely as a hobby amongst friends. Then in October 2002 I played my first club gig at The Cross, which was an epiphany for me. However I had organised to go backpacking a couple of weeks later, and while I had an amazing time, I was itching to get back to DJ’ing upon my return.

How & why did your big break come about?

I gave a CD to Jondi (from Jondi & Spesh) at the Miami WMC in 2005, which he passed on to Nick Bates at Bedrock. A couple of months later, John Digweed called me and asked if I would like to warm up for him at an intimate Bedrock party at Herbal, London.

Are you now spending more time in airports than anywhere else?

No, not at all. But the latter part of the year looks to be quite busy overseas, so I’ll work on my Air Miles collection then.

You support big names these days. How does that focus what you are playing?

I’m a deep house DJ at heart, so it’s usually a natural progression from my set to the headliners, although I do make sure I know a little about the main DJ’s style in advance. If I’ve got three/four hours to work with, I like to begin with downtempo tracks, sometimes even ambient. It’s all about creating an atmosphere of anticipation while the club fills.

When you headline how does it differ from support sets?

My style of music doesn’t drastically change, but I play a little faster and don’t let tracks breathe so much between mixes, to keep momentum up.

Is the life of a globetrotting DJ what you expected it to be?

Ask me again in a year ?

Apart from DJing what else tickles your fancy?

Cinema, although I have less time for it these days.

What have you got planned for the next 12 months?

Lots more production work alongside Nick Muir, and also a new project with Pete Gooding. I have a few exciting things in the pipeline with Renaissance, and I’ll continue spreading Urbantorque’s name around the world. Expect to see Urbantorque parties springing up here, there and everywhere!

How could production help your progression?

It’s pretty essential for any DJ, as it’s the best way to your name out there these days – promoters don’t seem to listen to good old fashion mix tapes much anymore!

What do you plan on doing to get seriously into production?

I’ve been involved in it for over a year now, however circumstance has meant that they are all being released only now. My ‘Feedback From The City’ EP with Nick Muir (Bedrock) is coming out in August on Urbantorque, with a host of other tracks and remixes all due before the end of the year. Like London buses ?

What makes a great gig for you?

Happy, passionate people who want to have a good time. Can’t have a gig without people!

What is the best gig you've played & why?

Not sure I could name just one, but my debuts at Fabric and for Renaissance were pretty special, along with playing from start to finish at a great little club in Florianopolis, Brazil, a year or so ago. Ultimately I would like to play all night more often, like Danny Howells does at his ‘Dig Deeper’ nights.

What is the best club you've played & why?

Fabric. The system is a dream to play on, and the Fabric crew are the very epitome of professionalism.

Are you looking forward to headlining at beatFREAK?

Absolutely, thank you for inviting me ?

Do you play in London often?

Yes, I’m a regular at Renaissance (The Cross), Bedrock (Heaven) and Curfew Time (Turnmills).

Thanks so much to Neil for taking the time to answer some questions for us. We are really excited to welcome him to beatFREAK @ Raduno on Friday 22nd June 2007. Discounted Guestlist is available for £6 by emailing beatfreaknews@hotmail.co.uk

Hope to see you there
beatFREAK