Anyone who has seen Typhonic play would be aware that the boy is a freak on the decks! A skilled decknician, his sets feature awesome displays of juggles, scratches and other assorted tricks.
When I first saw Typhonic at the DJ Urban Tampered gig at the Globe in Sydney, I didn’t catch all of his set, but what I saw was pretty damn special. So I was keen to catch another glimpse of this freakishly good turntablist from our capital city when he was billed to play a Tampered Booty party at the Bat & Ball Hotel the Sunday following the Urban gig. I remember watching from the front right of the stage, keen to get close the deck action. His set blew me away – the schooner of beer in my hand was forgotten and my jaw was left hanging on the ground… DJ Urban was beside a friend and I who asked him what he thought somewhere in the middle of the set, to which he responded, “Fuck, I have to go on after this guy!” That pretty much summed that set up for me, one of the better (and crazier) sets I have ever seen or heard. Subsequent Typhonic sets at Tampered parties (especially the Xmas parties) and Soiree parties resulted in repeated crowd frenzy.
I caught up with Typhonic (who is coming back up to Sydney on the 28th of May) and chatted Tampered, music and parties.
What are your recollections of that first Tampered gig and subsequent Tampered parties?
DJ Urban at the Globe was my first ever Tampered set and it was definitely a mind blowing experience. The only thing that bettered the night was knowing that I’d be back in Sydney the following weekend to do it all again at the Bat and Ball. The praise that I received from playing at those parties was a real boost to my confidence. The Tampered boys, especially Marshall, G-Mo and Mark Champion, have really shown me a lot of support over the past couple of years by bringing me up to Sydney and down to Melbourne on many occasions. They also put on some of the best parties that I’ve ever played at!
Your set at the Bat & Ball left me pretty speechless – as a turntablist, your skills are probably the best of any DJ I have seen – apart from Mark N (who has done the same for hardcore/DnB/hip hop with his insane and freakish turntable skills that you have for ghetto-tech and breaks). Your set at Tampered did remind me of Mark a little and I thought you may have actually seen him play sometime and were inspired to play yourself. Have you seen Mark N play? Which DJs have inspired your style? And what styles of music for that matter got you into DJing?
Unfortuantely I have never seen Mark N play but the comparison has been made on more than one occasion. I’ve heard many amazing things about him so I take it as a compliment. One of my biggest inspirations is DJ Godfather who was one of the first DJs I can remember hearing beat juggle something other then hip hop. The speed at which he cut, juggled and mixed was something that blew me away and gave me something to try out. Other DJs who have inspired my style include A-Trak, Craze, Peshay and Aphrodite. Jungle got my attention when I first started going out and it was my first love. The ITF and Technics DMC DJ comps showed me another side of DJing and inspired me to buy decks.
What music do you listen to when you are not playing a gig?
When I’m not playing out I spend a lot of time making tracks on my laptop. When I’m sitting around with friends I enjoy listening to different artists such as Dizzee Rascal, Bukem or even Mark Farina. A lot of the time though I’m driving and without a CD player in my car so I listen to a fair bit of radio.
Humans are suckers for pigeon-holing and classifying – this is probably best demonstrated by the plethora of genres and sub-genres that have emerged in dance and electronic music (due perhaps to its inter-textual nature and tendency to sample, etc). Whilst it is necessary that some kind of definition is needed to identify one style and sound from another, and the emergence of new styles and genres, it can be become very confusing, if not quite amusing at times. What do you think of the constant creation of new genres and styles?
It’s hard to keep up with the new sounds coming out from all over the world. I think that’s what makes dance music exciting though: the prospect of future styles becoming a staple like house or techno are today. Although confusing at times at least it means producers, DJs and punters are passionate enough about electronic music to keep pushing things forward.
One genre in particular where the lines of generic lines of difference are subtle is the whole booty/ghetto-tech/Miami bass/accelerated funk thing. What are the differences of these styles and from where did they emerge? Does one need a trained well-heard ear to differentiate these different sub-styles and sub-genres? What styles do you play?
Most of my sets out will heavily feature breaks but often with a dash of ghettotech and drum and bass. Ghettotech wise I play a lot of tracks off the Databass label so most of my tracks would be considered to have a Detroit flavour. But I’m not the greatest connoisseur so when I say I play Ghettotech there’s a good chance that I’ll be playing many different variations. A lot of the time I like to avoid all the labels placed on different genres and just play what feels right at the time.
Going back to your sets – you put on quite a show, both stylistically and musically. When you play, is it more about the visual aesthetics of a set or the music – do you want your audience to watch or dance?
After my first couple of sets in Sydney I thought a lot of people didn’t get into what I played because they weren’t dancing but just standing there staring. When I asked a friend why people weren’t getting into it they told me, ‘the crowd was too busy watching on in amazement to move their feet!’ Despite the fact that it’s really gratifying to have people being interested and enthralled by what I’m doing behind the decks, nothing beats being able to make them dance.
When you go out for music, what do you look for in a set?
I love seeing DJs do things differently whether it be musically or technically. Some of the best sets I’ve seen haven’t had any scratching, vocals or even beat matching. When they can make me dance then they’re doing something very right. You can just feel when a DJ is good or not.
What are the kids listening and dancing to in Canberra?
No particular styles really ever stand out more than another in Canberra but a lot of locals are pushing their own sounds and parties. It’s really good to see all the talent on show week in week out.
Any plans to move to a bigger city, like Sydney or Melbourne and if so, where would do you think you and your music would better be at home?
At the end of June I’m finally making the move to Sydney after planning to do it for years. I’m hoping people will enjoy seeing me play at a wide range of clubs and parties and listening to the varied styles that I love to play out. I’m really excited!
Standout gigs you have played?
Playing out in Sao Paolo Brazil will always stay strong in my memory. As will closing after Craze had graced the decks in Canberra for the first time ever.
What would be the ultimate gig?
I’ve always dreamt of playing at events such as the Big Day Out and Field Day with my chosen set up and all my friends there to hang out. But winning the Technics DMC World Championships would be the ultimate experience and it’s something I’ve always wanted to achieve.
Whose record collection would you have if you could?
DJ Godfather because not only would he have an amazing collection of ghettotech but he’d also have doubles of a lot of them for beat juggling. I’d never be bored again!
You can catch Typhonic in Sydney at Borderline at the Bohem this Saturday, 28th May, alongside Melbourne’s Ben Cromack.
In 2004 Typhonic ranked number 3 for ACT in the Technics inthemix50. Where will he feature in the 2005 poll? It’s up to you! Don’t forget that voting in the 2005 Technics inthemix50 opens on Wednesday May 25th, head to http://www.inthemix.com.au/50/.
