The Mix
Where and how was the mix recorded?
"After 2 aborted attempts on state of the art equipment offered by Pioneer and Rane I ended up mixing it in good old Lo Cura Bar with Serato, vinyls, a knackered Pioneer DLM 600 and some very old and sticky 1210's. Where else?"
What are the musical influences that have allowed you to arrive at this podcast?
"I grew up seeing 70s Bristol (I was very young ok!), the British seaside early 80s, Marbella 80's, and onward. At 11 I was a ska kid, then in Spain I heard the best of European early electronica, New wave and the worst of Euro shite in clubs. My mates ran a bar where we all took turns playing 70s rock, west coast and psychedelia next to a rockabilly bar. Back in Bristol I went to Tropic where I think I may have heard The Wild Bunch and people like that. After that it was Rare Groove until everybody went off to shite Devon raves on pills and Vicks vapor rub. I left the Uk and ended up in Ibiza working and digging house music. When I play all these influences contribute. Probably why I'm not purely a house DJ."
"It starts with some chuggers. Rocky analogue grooves, 70s rock influences, 50 a day Marianne Faithfull talking some weirdness about sex with strangers, someone telling you to take all your clothes off…Just grungy rocky disco recalling a time when people still had loads of body hair and unprotected sex. Then we step it up with some reverbed indie stuff from Greg Wilson, Richard Sen, Dr Dunks..all very original producers with a rich musical history in their sound. Touching on the 70's/80s sound of reggae, disco and New Wave synths coming together at Island Records' Compass Point Studios in the Bahamas, with Sly & Robbie and Chaz Jankel and a tear-ass track from Derrick Harriott. An amazing era which I can't get enough of. After that we're heading towards a housey tempo where the groove dictates more the connection than the roots of the track…'Ich und Elaine,' the best of German pop remixed, next to guitar punk funk from Cosmo Vitelli, next to New York disco…. to some big room edits of Italo tracks by Serge Santiago and New York dudes like Yacht on Dfa…. finishing off with a massive bass anthem by Soul Clap and a cheeky edit of Rockers Revenge, riding over a beautiful track Justus Köhncke put out on Kompakt a few years back, when we all saw each other out in the clubs, all the time."
"I don't take credit for some of these, some are from the great DJs I have around me who you can hear playing with us this year, but hopefully the overall sound says something about me."
The Plug
What is keeping you busy at the moment?
"We're into our fifth summer at Boutique Hostal Salinas, plus Lo Cura bar is alive and kicking down in Ibiza and open 6 nights a week. I have to keep on top of these things, plus getting tunes together for our fortnightly Sundays running our room at We Love. Oh, and I have a girlfriend."
You have a long history with Ibiza, what have been the highlights so far?
"Wow, lots of these. If you have a good first season here it can be life-changing. My first was 1992 as a barman at Space. Life changed. The next was getting into Dj-ing, playing in places like the Manumission Motel and the Rock. A big highlight was going back see my old bosses at Space….but as a DJ for We Love and playing in the main room for years. Then lately some of the parties we've had in the hotel, mostly though my 40th where we threw a monster bash, my parents were over and I realized how many fantastic mates I have and how bloody lucky I am."
"You continue to play many of the more ‘off the beaten track’ type parties, catering for the cooler, less mainstream crowd, are these parties something you prefer to play? Part of me feels it’s a shame that the vast majority of visitors to the island miss out on this sort of thing, but the other selfish half wants to save them for myself anyway."
"It's not something I aim to do, but the music I play doesn't lend itself to the sounds that Ibiza promoters want in big rooms. An exception to this was We Love, who actually wanted to have something different from what you heard in those days which was House House House, and I got the chance to play some stuff that was new, and actually massive elsewhere and it was amazing to see and hear this go off in Space Discoteca. But tastes moved on and I got involved with other things…"
We can find you between Lo Cura Bar and Boutique Hostal Salinas but where else might we catch you this season?
"After a couple of trial dates last august We Love asked us to host El Salon for them this year, fortnightly in Space. The idea is to get the locals back in the clubs because we feel that with nights getting more brash and boombastic over the last few years, locals who want to go out, party and socialize with people they know have been left with not much option. The aim with Lo Cura Lounge is to fix this and also create something which Ibiza definitely lacks, an intimate back room vibe with a wide range of music that actually ROCKS. No one will be exclusive, we're all equal here, and it is not a 'chill out.'"
To someone who wants to make Ibiza their new home, do you have any tips for settling into island life away from the big clubs?
"Big changes are happening now over the next few years here and hopefully it will create more scope for things to concern yourself with here in winter. Unlike the rest of Spain Ibiza is fairing better but only if you listen to club people. Life remains very real for people holding down more conventional lifestyles so plan for this before you make the move! What-to-do wise, the island itself is an incredible place, so I would say get outdoors, biking, walking, canoeing…..whatever, bring some energy to the party and get to know where you are. Makes you feel better about all the clubbing you just did to your body. Oh and, learn Spanish is up there on the list."
Finally, you have a weekend off. What do you do? Where do you go?
"Weekend off? No! Ok, I'd head somewhere north, maybe Pou d'es Lleó or Can Caus. Some spa time maybe, plenty of rest, plenty of amazing food. A couple of days off the island is good for the soul too, maybe Barcelona or rural Spain. It's not all about Ibiza all of the time."
Tracklist
1. Almunia - Travel
2. Marianne Faithfull - Sex with strangers
3. The Players Union - Tina's glow
4. Subvader - Each time we touch (Greg Wilson mix)
5. Future Loop Foundation - The sea & the sky (Padded Cell remix)
6. WOOLFY - Junior's throwin' craze (Dr Dunks mix)
7. Richard from Milwaukee - Free love
8. Derrick Harriott - Black skin blue eyed boy
9. Chaz Jankel feat Laura Weymouth - Whisper
10. 2raumwohnung - Ich und Elaine (Club mix)
11. The Draughtsman - Geschmacklos (Cosmo Vitelli)
12. Punkin' Machine - I need you tonight
13. Psychemagik - Boogie Drome
14. CCC - Acid snow (Mugwump remix)
15. Chamboche - Feverish (Revenge remix)
16. Serge Santiago - Bad Passion
17. Yacht - Utopia (The Miracles mix)
18. Serge Santiago - Blackjack
19. Soul Clap - Fried Chicken
20. Justus Kohncke / Rockers revenge - Timecode/Sunshine
Biography
We Love's longest serving resident. Dave's sets provide the perfect platform for the Discoteca. Filling the room to tipping point and then releasing the party. The master of the warm-up and the consummate host.
Born in Bristol, from 12 years old David spent his adolescent years in southern Spain. This place, famous for its nightlife had David already running a bar with friends by the age of 18. After a brief spell working back in the UK and travelling he set down in Ibiza. It was 1992.
After a few years as a travelling barman and running his own place in Barcelona he took to the decks. He soon had residencies in Ibiza at Salinas Beach, Pacha, Manumission’s infamous Motel and The Rock Bar. In 1999 he became resident of Home in London and Homelands festivals. At the time of the club’s premature demise he had begun to play regularly around Europe and in 2002 moved to Zurich.
Coming from a musical background of Rock, Hip Hop, electro, funk, dub reggae and breaks In 2002 David played a season inside at Dc10’s Circo Loco parties. This gave him a chance to play a harder, darker version of the eclectic approach inspired by living in Ibiza and latterly Brighton. 80s disco, electro and breaks next to tough techno and deep house.
The Home crew took him back on board as resident at Space on Sundays for their We Love parties and the change of sound inside gave them a platform to book more adventurous sounds there. Throughout the last 7 summers David has played Space week in week out, putting together sets of some of the more forward-thinking sounds now emerging from an Ibiza scene dominated by commercial, tribal, and more recently, minimal house. An eclectic approach to the current wave of electro, italo, rock, punk-funk and spaced-out disco has gained him a reputation as a dj who plays a modern, darker and more twisted take on the Balearic tradition.
2003 – 2006 he was based in Zurich, playing regularly at Club Q, Spider, Stoffwechsel and many more. Also for We Love in China, South America and all over the UK. After a 2 year stint in London, Dave is now based in Ibiza full time. Now partner in Lo Cura bar and Hostal Salinas and after another season in Space 2009, remains a roving resident for the We Love crew.
