click to hear archived shows

Lots of positive things are happening with Germany Calling (more details very shortly); here’s the new banner image. Click HERE for archive streamed shows.

Brazil’s number one EDM radio network Dance Paradise FM is adding Germany Calling to their schedule and will be broadcasting the Berlin produced show every Thursday afternoon from June 7 (17.00 local time, 22.00 Berlin time).

The Curitiba based station reaches millions of listeners via a network of 55 terrestrial FM radio stations.

Sérgio Maslowsky from Dance Paradise FM chatted to Skrufff this week about the story behind the fast growing Brazilian radio network and recalled how they started 8 years ago ‘just as a web radio station broadcast from a small room here in Curitiba.’

“Initially we began broadcasting a few trance and house radio shows from some international artists and during that period times were really hard but after a few months we got in touch with some huge artists who supported and believed in the idea and the concept of the radio station- people like Markus Schulz, Matt Darey and Menno de Jong,” he recalled.

“Back then the radio was 90% trance and some other EDM songs, then over time we connected up with lots more new artists and we became so full of DJs and musical styles that we launched another channel, dividing up the genres. So we had just one for trance, and the other for house and techno. Nowadays we have 4 different channels and each is broadcast across 55 FM Stations around Brazil.”

Germany Calling specialises in delivering exclusive upfront underground house and techno tracks from labels such as Kling Klong, Soma, Crosstown Rebels, Turbo, Culprit, Punch Music and Great Stuff and is produced and presented by Jonty Skrufff and Fidelity Kastrow. Each week’s one hour show also includes one or two classic cuts and rarities and is also broadcast on BLN.FM (Germany), Underground FG (France) and Ukraine’s leading dance music radio station Kiss FM.

For Sergio, who handles Dance Paradise’s international and artist relations, Germany Calling’s inclusion on the Concept Channel fits a programming schedule that already includes shows from Carl Cox, Yoshitoshi and Get Physical. (This is Dance Paradise; on Youtube: http://bit.ly/KQQ3tI )

“Dance music has always been a global phenomenon and we reflect that on Dance Paradise FM,” he says.

“How many of the shows are in English? Well almost 99% of our output is either in English or foreign languages,” says Sergio. “We have a handful in Portuguese but that’s all.”

Fidelity Kastrow & Jonty Skrufff - Click for archive shows

Skrufff (Seb Mortimer): How do you decide what styles of music and DJs to support?

Dance Paradise (Sergio): “We’ve always maintained good relationships with the DJs who provide us with radio shows, and we’re always looking for good stuff, whatever the genre. The key issue for us is to have good quality programmes and be open minded to new trends and styles. Sometimes these can seem aggressive and weird at first, but when you look into it and see a lot of different material and so many people following that genre then we’ll experiment and put it right in the middle of the schedule and see what feedback we receive.

The artists decide the music they play on their shows of course, and we already have huge numbers of listeners who are addicted to trance, house, techno, deep house and even chill-out so we’re not relying just on numbers, we feel it.”

Skrufff: What’s your assessment of club culture and EDM in Brazil; how much is the country now embracing EDM in the mainstream?

Dance Paradise (Sergio): “Brazil’s EDM scene is growing constantly these days, thanks to both the internet and global communication in general. We need it here too. If I can use myself as an example, I personally hate samba and I hate with all my heart performers such as Michel Telo and that country style music, so I really miss that Europe atmosphere and culture about e-music.

In the past, and I’m talking about not longer than ten years ago, if I told someone I liked Paul Oakenfold or Cris Liebing they would turn to me and say ‘what the fuck? Who are those guys, I’ve never heard of them.’ Or ‘so you use drugs or have a mental problems?’ But nowadays most people in Brazil are familiar with these names and many more and though people aren’t 100% into dance music, it’s changing. We think we’re helping this happen because dance music is our passion- we love what we hear and what we do.”

Live @ D-edge (Sao Paulo)

Skrufff: How about places like Florianopolis; how much do you cover that scene: how much does it have the potential to become an Ibiza style destination (over December to March)

Dance Paradise (Sergio): “We have strong partnerships with clubs such as Pacha and Stage Music Park, they’re excellent clubs and partners, and that city is such a beautiful place. We’re always doing special events there, whether it’s live broadcasting or events or even doing our own special events.

But Ibiza is Ibiza, nowhere in the world beats it. Armin van Buuren once said ”every year we have a new Ibiza, and it burns for that season, and sometimes in the next season it’s gone, but you cant compare the magic of that island, its unique”; Florianópolis has a long way to go still but I think Floripa already has its space at the sun.”

Skrufff: You broadcast to 57 affiliate radio stations: what kind of audiences do you attract: for the mainstream shows and the underground ones?

Dance Paradise (Sergio): “We try to attract both Greeks and Trojans because we have both types of artists on the crew, but let me answer you with another question: What is underground these days? Even in the underground we have mainstream artists and with information now available everywhere you don’t really have underground scenes anymore; certainly not in the way it used to be.”

Dance Paradise; click for more

Skrufff: How do you see Dance Paradise developing- in the next 6 months- in the next 3 years?

Dance Paradise (Sergio): “It’s hard to say even what we’ll be doing tomorrow, but I think it’s definitely our moment, our time to shine even more. Expanding to 57 station was a big jump, and we’re starting to get these fruits now, so I think Dance Paradise will be bigger than it is now, and I can expect huge events and festival partners and more conference tie-ups in the future.”

Skrufff: Anything to add?

Dance Paradise (Sergio): “Thanks to everyone, even our enemies – if we have any . . .”

Listen to Germany Calling every Thursday afternoon from June 7 (17.00 local time, 22.00 Berlin time).

http://www.danceparadise.com.br

http://www.mixcloud.com/jontyskrufff/ (Listen to archived Germany Calling shows on demand, here)

Seb Mortimer: http://listn.to/JontySkrufff

The Bulldog Amsterdam; click for more

Amsterdam based British DJ Dave Clarke welcomed the imminent introduction of a cannabis café pass system designed to prevent tourists from buying pot in Holland this week, telling Skrufff ‘I think it is a good thing.’

“Holland and Amsterdam is much more that the stereotypical view of smoking and poking. Most Amsterdam-ers are quite OK with the ban, to be honest,” Dave suggested.

“What impact do I think it will have on the club scene? Absoluely none,” he predicted, “Though Easyjet sales might be down for a while.”

Moving from Brighton to Amsterdam some years ago, the infamously single-minded techno star settled in the heart of Amsterdam’s touristic centre and painted a sorry picture of the smokers he encounters around town.

“I’m sorry to say it, but most of them seem to be English and German idiots who cannot control themselves, they think they can fly and then throw up at best or fall out of windows at worst,” Dave complained.

“I very, very rarely smoke, maybe a few times a year at the very most,” he added. “The last time I went to a cafe was a long time ago in the winter maybe two years ago, but I went because they did a killer hot chocolate to go with a steaming hot olliebal.”

“Come to Holland for the culture and the architecture, Amsterdam is, for me, the most beautiful city in the world,” said Dave.

His approval of the foreigner weed ban, which was implemented in Dutch border towns including Maastricht last week, came as police reported that buyers are simply driving further into Holland, with some popping up 90km from Maastricht in Nijmengen.

“In recent days, we are spotting cars with Belgian plates in the city center, who are clearly there for the coffee shops,” Nijmegen police spokeswoman Florian Vingerhoeds told reporters. “Before, we never saw Belgian plates.”

The futility of using laws to crack down on drugs was also emphasised by former Polish President Aleksander Kwasniewski who writing in the New York Times this week admitted his attempt at total zero tolerance with heavy prison sentences for users was a total failure.

Leading Poland between 1995 and 2005, the ex president admitted they expected the prospect of fierce prison sentences for people caught with even ‘minuscule amounts of drugs’ would deter users and catch dealers but said neither goal happened. Instead tens of thousands of otherwise law abiding young people were criminalised. he said.

“The vast majority of those individuals were not drug dealers,” he added. “Some of them, however, were adolescents whose prospects for careers as lawyers, public officials or teachers were suddenly blighted.” (New York Times: http://nyti.ms/LokREY )

http://www.thebulldog.com

Jonty Skrufff: http://listn.to/JontySkrufff

Max Cooper; click to watch his new video

Max is playing in Berlin next Thursday at Sisyphos: will be a killer party for sure.

Skrufff Tune of the Week: Click to listen

Deviation, London Friday April 27

“House and techno is the cornerstone of London club-land and is such a broad church that I cannot see that ever really changing. In fact, many of the fleeting new-genre led media obsessions you refer to  (dubstep, post-dubstep, drum & bass) broadly fall under that banner anyway.”

London club promoter Ajay Jayaram chatted to Skrufff this week about his wildly eclectic (and immediately successful) new party Broken & Uneven and said that despite kicking off with a semi-Berlin themed Ostgut party, he remains convinced that London is the world’s number one club capital.

“Berlin receives a lot of coverage and praise for its house and techno scene which is understandable and whether it’s better or worse than our own is of course subjective,” he concedes.

“But if your interest in music takes in other genres too – dubstep, drum & bass, grime or even hip hop, then London is the epicentre; I always find myself comforted by our city’s true eclecticism in that way.”

Proving his point via Broken & Uneven’s booking policy, he’s signed up Omar-S, Kode 9 and Benji B as headliners for their next party (Deviation x Hyperdub Warehouse Session, Friday 27 April), followed by a Panet Mu night 2 weeks later and an outdoor tech flavoured party in June. So what’s the overall vision?

Planet Mu party: click for details

“I guess it’s basically a natural extension of my personal listening habits as well as my own background in programming – at the End and also at Cable we covered a very diverse range of music and for this new project I was keen to continue with that ethos,” he explains.

“It also offers an opportunity to be a little bit more creative with the choice of spaces we use (unlike when we were based at a single venue) and indeed in the nature of the events themselves – no one has ever brought together Ostgut and Sub:stance or Deviation and Hyperdub, for example. So we’ll endeavour to keep things interesting wherever possible, which I hope will help us differentiate and distinguish ourselves from other parties,’ says Ajay.

Skrufff (Jonty Skrufff): Why did you leave We Fear Silence?

Broken & Uneven (Ajay): “It was simply time to move on. It had been three years since I set it up and whilst it had grown and developed (with a degree of success I feel), there was a kind of inevitability about it becoming more of a job and less of a passion because of the framework within which we found ourselves – i.e. a club residency. Cable came at the right time for us and was instrumental helping to take We Fear Silence to the next level, but for me personally programming a nightclub on a weekly basis was something that I had already done (at The End) and whilst still very challenging, was perhaps not as rewarding for me as a result.”

Skrufff: What’s your assessment of London nightlife right now: how much is the austerity/ everyone being broke situation affecting things?

Broken & Uneven (Ajay): “I think that the music being made in London right now is as exciting as it has ever been and there are some very talented DJs, artists and bands out there contributing to a very fertile scene which, though arguably lacking cohesion, is a great reflection of clubbing in the capital.

There are probably also more events on than ever too which suggests little impact from the recession, but I suspect that it has more to do with the Internet enabling everyone to become a promoter. Not everywhere is busy and not all of these events are necessarily of any significant scale, but whatever way you look at it, we are not short of options, which is a good thing I feel.”

Skrufff: Anything else to add?

Broken & Uneven (Ajay): “Apparently the average person falls asleep in seven minutes, which has got me wondering how long it’ll take to read this interview . . .”

https://www.facebook.com/BrokenUneven (‘Parties for a nightclub that doesn’t exist . . .’)

http://www.residentadvisor.net/review-view.aspx?id=10800 (Resident Advisor review of their opening night)

Jonty Skrufff: http://listn.to/JontySkrufff

Highway Records; Imerica (click for more)

1. Pleasurekraft  - Anubis / Great Stuff
2. Agraba – iMerica / Highway Records
3. Charles Ramirez – Insane / Hall of Fame Records
4. Adam Beyer & Joseph Capriati – Rubicon / Drumcode
5. Tim Xavier – Modus Operandi / Kling Klong

“I really can’t see ‘hordes’ of Americans coming to Ibiza myself. I do hope a good few thousand come, but come on, the ‘hordes’ you’re suggesting don’t even have passports, mate.”

Chatting to Skrufff this week about the upcoming season of Sunday night parties at Space, We Love main-man Mark Broadbent is on typically feisty form, chuckling when quizzed about how he’ll be attracting American EDM fans flocking to the island for the first time.

“I don’t have any problem with Americans and in fact I even like a few of the ones I’ve met,” he jokes.

“There you go, Jonty, that’s how I’m going to target them. Let them know they are welcome at our party,” he laughs.

With We Love’s 2012 lineups involving the return of regulars such as Paul Woolford, Carl Craig, Derrick May and James Zabiela, alongside relatively new faces including Scuba, Oxia, and Appleblim, more than a few fresh faced American clubbers are likely to flock to the club, though any expecting EDM will be in for a let down.

Firstly, because Mark points out ‘it’s not what we really do’ and secondly though he claims ‘not to have too much of an opinion on it to be honest’, his next sentence suggests otherwise.

“I don’t like ‘pop dance’,” he explains, “and I fucking hate the term EDM.”

“I also think people who jump on bandwagons for cash and do things they don’t really believe in by booking ill placed and badly programmed acts should take a long look at themselves and ask why they are doing this,” he suggests.

“Dumbing down audiences and pandering to the masses has no place on Ibiza in my opinion,” he continues.

 “It has taken the people who care on this island a long time to change perspectives about what the island is really like and booking “pop” acts puts us back years and potentially shortens our shelf life as a serious music brand.”

Click on the picture for opening party details

Launching We Love at Space 14 years ago, he’s helped build the Sunday night weekly into the Ibiza’s most credible brand, attracting thousands of clubbers each week to dance to DJs spinning- broadly speaking- underground house and techno.

Highlighting We Love’s strength on the island, the party will be celebrating Space’s official 23^rd birthday celebrations on Sunday August 12, headlined by Chemical Brothers, Simian Mobile Disco and Joris Voorn.

Though he’s deadly serious in his warning of commercial house threatening the island’s longer term night life future he’s hilariously indiscreet when asked whether he agrees with Pete Tong’s recent assessment that ‘big business’ is threatening ‘the scene’. (Music Week: http://bit.ly/HNHaTW )

“Well he would know, right?” Mark laughs again.

“| didn’t hear what Pete Tong said specifically and in what context but Pete IS ‘big business’, in my opinion,” he asserts.

“He is a director of big businesses within our scene, plays a part in the biggest agency – WME (William Morris Entertainent) – in the world right now and DJs on our oldest national radio station – the BBC – so what is/was he saying? Did he sound threatening?”

Skrufff (Jonty Skrufff): Another year; another new season; what are the key changes We Love have planned for this year?

Mark Broadbent (We Love): “There are never any key changes at We Love… I think that one of the secrets to our success is that things have evolved rather than changed drastically over the last fourteen years. With ears and eyes closely focused on the street we take direction from what feels right to us, what we think will translate well on Ibiza and with this in mind we have introduced some really great new blood to the family this summer, acts we are excited about ourselves.”

Skrufff: I read on Ibiza-voice recently :’refurbishments could take place at space too, with the club’s worst kept secret, the vehemently underground red box, possibly making way for – you guessed it – another vip area.’ (http://bit.ly/wpirVx ): has that happened?

Mark Broadbent (We Love): “Space always make full use of the winter months to fully refurbish the venue so that returning customers are always welcomed with new ideas and themes. The sound and lighting systems are replaced with the latest innovations and a huge amount of time is spent on the general decor to ensure the customer feels like he/she has entered somewhere very special.

This year Space have decided to return the area where the Redbox was back to how it was five or six or seven? years ago. People who have been coming to Space for some time will remember the open terrace above the main-room (discoteca) with it’s decidedly dark corners and even darker seating.

I am told by the management that this will not be VIP but will be open to anybody who wants to enter on most nights with the possibility of table service for a fortunate few.”

Skrufff: Also on Ibiza-voice, I read your recent comment on their latest Berlin feature; ‘it’s  all about grozny now anyway so who cares?”  what prompted that? What’s your view of Berlin’s club scene- I guess pretty negative?

Mark Broadbent (We Love): “I absolutely loved clubbing in Berlin but am so bored of reading about it. Come on, move on, find a new city to fuck up.”

Skrufff: DJ Sneak has been criticizing Swedish House Mafia widely on twitter in recent weeks- blasting them for being fake (‘for the record, they do not play house music’): how much do you consider their music to be ‘house’? under what circumstances would you book SHM? and/ or Tiesto?

Mark Broadbent (We Love): “I can honestly say with my hand on my heart that I have never knowingly listened to “the Swedes” but years ago I was offered them for our sunset terrace. The agent suggested to me that we could have all three of them for a very, very low price as they really wanted to play for us and the agent thought it was the perfect fit for their first Ibiza residency. I didn’t like the name or the implications that they were some kind of house music gangsters, I mean, what can you expect if you invite that kind of person into your life?

Anyway, we didn’t book them and three years later they are the biggest act on Ibiza, making Pacha a fortune. Ah well, never mind, right!  I still wouldn’t book them for Space, but not due for the same reasons Sneak is talking about. After all, we have booked acts in the past who have since turned out to be pretty “fake” but for us it’s important to be able to get along with the people we work with and I just don’t think we would get along very well with those guys.

Acts like this are best booked when you can keep them at arm’s length, for a festival, for example. When you need to sell a shit load of tickets and it’s a broad demographic of people being targeted then you need acts like the Swedes and Tiesto for the most part and we have booked this type of act in the past to do just that at our festivals. We call this “the big swinging dick effect”: get a few bookings like this and the rest of the lineup comes together easily.”

Having said that, I don’t know, there seems to be enough room for everybody to do what they want right now.

Why is DJ Sneak even bothered by what they do? What does he want them to do? Lose the word “house” I suppose? But then the Italians might have problems with them right? The poor guys can’t win. ‘The Swedes’ just doesn’t sound right, does it? It makes you think of greengrocers not nightclubs and disc jockeys. I don’t suppose they give a shit about what he has to say anyway.”

http://bit.ly/GW7Td4 (We Love @Space opening party details: June 10)

http://www.welove-music.com/

Jonty Skrufff: http://listn.to/JontySkrufff

Dutch tech duo Mason are releasing a compilation featuring ‘non-dance music’ interpretations of tracks released on their label Animal Language, combining the ‘refurb’ versions delivered by producers including In Flagranti, Hatiras and Sam Sparro.

Unveiling the release this week, the pair were typically blunt about the logic behind the release.

“So what the fuck is a ‘Refurb’ anyway?” they said on the album’s accompanying press release, answering themselves by explaining it’s a ‘specifically non-dance re-interpretation of the original.’

“No original parts are used at all, but in terms of rules, that’s just about it,” they continued, “It’s not a remix though, far from it.”

Chatting to Skrufff earlier this year, Mason’s Iason Chronis chatted candidly about being unconcerned about credibility, admitting ‘We don’t care that much, to be honest.’

“But we have a pretty clear idea of what music we wanna’ make, which is somewhere between that border of underground and over-ground, let’s say,” he added.

“It’s too weird for huge commercial clubs, and mostly too accessible for the deepest of dark underground clubs – which is totally fine. We hope that the chin-stroking critics will see it’s musically well made though, and in no way cheap or disposable.”

Mason presents Animal Language Refurbished is out shortly.

http://www.soundcloud.com/animal_language

http://www.musicofmason.com