Does anyone know the dialling codes for Berlin?! No, neither did I… But, after several attempts we finally managed to get in touch with Jesse Rose, owner of Made to Play records, producer and DJ extraordinaire, and upcoming visitor for Parklife, to chat about where he’s living, what he’s loving, how he’s rolling and why Australians call football soccer.
ITM: Mr Jesse Rose! Thanks for joining us today. Sorry about the lateness, I had a few dramas getting through.
JR: It’s ok, we have the same trouble dialling you so it’s all good!
ITM: My mum always says you can’t start a car without petrol and you can’t start the day without breakfast. So what did you have for breakfast?
JR: Hot Chocolate & a croissant. Very continental. You?
ITM: Well I was at the gym early this morning, I’m trying to get back into soccer so I’m on a health kick and ate fruit…
JR: That WAS me being healthy! I could’ve had friend sausages, beans and eggs! I don’t understand why you say soccer even if you play football, you [still] call it soccer?
ITM: Habit I guess… Because we have AFL, which is our football, so soccer separates the two. Sorry I’ll get onto changing that…
JR: Yeah I’m gonna start a trend of people saying football but meaning soccer. We’ll do it together!
ITM: So, London to Berlin. Why the move?
JR: It’s always good to have a change and be influenced by different things. I’ve got this thing where I like to move every 6 or 7 years, and Berlin is just the perfect place to live. There’s lots going on and a great airport to get out on the weekends. It’s like a hub for music at the moment. I’ve got my night here, I do monthly at a club called the Panorama Bar, so it kinda made sense. You’ve gotta come, it’s the #1 place in Europe at the moment.
ITM: You’re renowned for playing fidget house. What is it? Explain to us how it started?
JR: It was kinda a joke… When we came up with the name, me and Switch, it was a joke because house music was really serious about 4 years ago. We wanted to just have a bit of fun with it. House music would [always] start and finish the same, so we’d chuck in a folk break in the middle of a track or an absolutely massive reggae bassline. It kinda evolved into all sorts of craziness, it’s almost a genre within a genre. I don’t play the craziest but it goes up to almost ravey sounds and goes down to quiet minimal stuff. It’s probably just the odd side of dance music, but it’s great on the dance floor.
ITM: You were saying you’re a resident at Panorama Bar. How do you find going back there on a regular basis, have you got a regular crowd of followers there?
JR: Definitely. For me it’s the gig that I always look forward to the most in the whole month. Wherever I’m playing, even if I’m in the States, I make sure I’m [back] there every month. It’s just amazing, we’ve got a really, really solid crowd and [have] had that for two years. When we first started it was the only club that did that kind of house music in Berlin, with people like Switch and Derrick Carter and chunkier stuff. I was there last weekend and did four hours back to back with Henrick Schwartz; he was playing live and I was DJing. The crowd just lets you do anything, as long as you’re not just playing big tracks, you’re actually mixing and working the crowd, you can do whatever you want, which as a DJ is pretty special because you’re normally locked down.
ITM: So it’s good to have that bit of leeway?
JR: Yeah it’s amazing because generally if I’m going off to play a club which is 4,000 people it’s gotta be bigger records. Records that will rock that many people. So to be able to play in a club where you can switch and change is definitely enjoyable.
ITM: You’ve worked & remixed some of the & biggest tracks around. Who are your favourite producer and DJs to work with?
JR: Henrick Schwartz has been really cool to work with. For me he’s one of the coolest producers. I’ve been working with Hot Chip for my album, they’re obviously super, super talented dudes who can joke and write a record in 10 minutes. Super, catchy and classic stuff. Working with Switch has always been an eye opener. Since we started working together 10 years ago he’s always influenced me every time we’ve been in the studio. He taught me how to make records so he’s gotta be #1 on the list.
ITM: You manage your own labels as well as producing and DJing. That’s gotta be a bit of a handful?
JR: I manage the label but I’ve got three people working with me. It used to be hard, a few years ago I used to do the day to day running of the label, remixing, producing and putting on the nights. Now life’s a bit easier with managers and a big crew of people that support everything I do. It means I’m able to do all these different things, like run the two labels. We’ve also got a management company and a DJ agency as well. I’m pretty fortunate, it looks like it’s just me putting out records and travelling, but without those people there aren’t enough hours in the day.
ITM: You music is not easy to categorise. You mix in all kinds of elements, from jazz through to modern house, techno, electronica. Is that to keep people guessing, or to keep yourself amused…?
JR: I really think I just play house music. For me everything I play is house music, but I listen to every type of music. When I listen to records that I’m putting together for a set I can hear just one sound and I don’t notice the other influences that are in there. I listen to much hip-hop, reggae, soul… I listen to every type of music possible. I’m on iTunes all the time downloading music, and I’m sure those influences come into play. I grew up in West London, which has all sorts of Jamaican and black influences. When I was growing up you’d hear it blasting in the street all the time, so it rubbed off.
ITM: We’re expecting a new solo album from you soon. How’s it coming along?
JR: I’m finished! I’m really, really excited. I’ve done it start to finish three times. I’d finish it, delete it and start again, and now after three years it’s finally done so I’m really happy about that. We’ve got a few collaborations with Hot Chip on there, and something with David E Sugar who’s got a lot of stuff coming through at the moment in the UK. I worked with a Japanese group called Afra & The Incredible Beatbox Band and worked a lot with Switch, [even] went to LA to get the album mixed down. It’s been a big labour of love really. Writing a single, you just go into the studio and bash out a record. It goes out and people play it and it’s quite simple. [An album] is quite an epic affair.
ITM: You’re quite the jetsetter, so where’s your favourite place to play?
JR: I’d have to put Australia up there.
ITM: Yeah, that’s what they all say!
JR: Honestly, Field Day last year playing to 20,000 people, that was pretty special. Japan is always good. They’re just so into their music. Playing there is always great. South America, they’re really enthusiastic too.
You can catch Jesse Rose on the Parklife tour, proudly supported by inthemix. For all the latest on the festival keep your eyes glued to www.inthemix.com.au/parklife:
Sat Sep 27th – Adelaide
Sun Sep 28th – Melbourne
Mon Sep 29th – Perth
Sat Oct 4th – Brisbane
Sun Oct 5th – Sydney
JackT says...
Cool interview. I'd love to see Jesse Rose play a more intimate show on top of Parklife. That Field Day set was...curious, to say the very least!
Ninja88 says...
I think his field day set, was rightly placed.