John Course is an Australian DJ veteran. Having been on the scene for a little over 20 years he has been instrumental in helping to built the Australian club scene to the level it’s at today. From his humble beginnings in the Melbourne scene in its infancy, to his latest work with the Ministry of Sound label mixing one of the discs on their hugely successful Annual CD, ITM’s James_Fry_ had the pleasure of catching up with Melbourne’s favourite son.
What got you into DJing?
I first saw a movie called Beat Street back in 1984. It had a DJ in it scratching in the basement, there were block parties in it as well. At the time I was also really into break dancing, so I went out, got a mixer, started mixing about and got a spot at a local club. I didn’t really know what I was doing, but was fortunate enough to have a lot of friends who packed out the place.
How did you get involved with Ministry of Sound?
I’ve known some of the MOS guys for quite some time now. I’ve DJed with Tim (McGee) for a while, and last year he gave me a call and asked me to do the 2004 Annual which was great. From there I went on to do the Sessions CD and most recently the 2005 Annual.
The 2005 MoS Annual has just been released, what can punters expect from this release?
The Annual has always been a snapshot of that year’s club scene. You’re not going to find anything quirky or underground on it. We put on it what we think has been big in club land and what we think are going to go on to become anthems.
What advice would you give to the aspiring DJ, who up until has maybe gotten to play at one or 2 local clubs, but really wants to take it too the next level?
You have to play and do your thing. Try to get yourself exposed as much as possible, especially to those people who are responsible for booking the big gigs and parties. There’s no point sending a bunch of demos out to promoters if the quality of it is crap. Because even if you do get better, they probably wont pay much attention to any further work from you because they will just think it will be like the first demo. A bit like the boy who cried wolf. My best advice would be to firstly get them to come to your venue or you go to their venue, introduce yourself, let them know about you and where you play, and try and see if they have any openings. Secondly and most importantly learning to read the crowd is of upmost importance. If you are a famous DJ like Sasha you have the luxury of people coming to see you for you, regardless of what you play on the night. However if you are relatively unheard of, people generally go to certain clubs to hear certain music. You have to be able to adapt and play for the environment. Above all you simply have to have a hunger for music, develop your skills and network.
What do you think is missing in the Australian club scène?
The only area I can really think of is that maybe certain licensing laws are a bit too tight in terms of hours of operation.
Who is your favourite DJ?
Carl Cox. His technical skills are amazing, he always rocks it. He has no attitude and when he’s finished a set he’s still a happy man.
What do you do when you’re not mixing?
Well most of my time pretty much revolves around music in one way or another. However just recently I got to go snowboarding for the first time in 2 years and that was great. Otherwise if I get the chance, simply just sitting down for a nice meal and a few drinks with friends.
If you couldn’t be involved in the music industry anymore what would you be doing?
I’d like to say that I would be travelling the world as a champion snowboarder!
Which in your mind has the better club scene, Melbourne or Sydney?
Id, have to say Melbourne. Mainly because that’s were I grew up and where I still call home today. The club scene is very different down here, for one thing it’s a lot older, having been around for maybe 30 years. In Sydney the scene is a lot younger. Whilst the Melbourne scene had been going strong for a while, Sydney was just getting off the ground, having been home to mainly dance parties rather then clubs.
Where to from here?
Early next year I hope to get into the studio and work on a project with some friends, its just a case of finding the time. I’ll also be on the look out for good acts for Vicious, the music company I co-own. Am planning on doing more CDs for Ministry of Sound. There’s also the possibility of some international club work, mainly in England which would be a great thing to do.
The Ministry of Sound 2005 Annual is out now, mixed by John Course and Mark Dynamix.
