Touted by the legendary Pete Tong as 'the next big thing', Doorly knows better than anyone how the guidance of a more experienced DJ can springboard a career, so it's no surprise he signed up to be a mentor for the recently launched DJ Awards' Bedroom DJ competition. And, as a DJ with countless achievements to his name - two Essential Mixes, releases on Hot Creations, Cajual and Dirtybird, multiple Beatport number ones, to name a few - he's well placed to dole out the advice for those of you looking to get a leg up in the music industry. In his rise to the top, he credits a couple of famous characters who inspired him along the way: "Fatboy Slim is the ultimate showman as a DJ - someone who's really crossed over with class. Also as a person - for him to still be the grounded nice guy that he is, at his level, is also inspiring - I've know DJs who lose control of their ego after one decent gig or release and never come back. As a producer, it's Cajmere aka Green Velvet. Nobody has inspired me more musically, and I'm lucky enough to have him as my mentor and a friend." Although ultimately, he says, the success you achieve is down to your own attitude: "Work hard, learn to make music right now and get good at it, do something different than everyone else, and most of all be nice to everyone you meet."
This year, the DJ Awards take place at Pacha on Monday 3 October. This is the date we'll find out if Doorly is named the victor in the Best House DJ category, as well as being an event the lucky winner of the Bedroom DJ competition will get to attend as a VIP. The closing date to apply is Wednesday 14 September, so now's the time to act if you're an aspiring DJ. Doorly's advice? "As long as you are making and playing the music that you're 100 percent a fan of yourself, then you're going to enjoy your career a hell of a lot more and hopefully make something beautiful from it that will last forever."
Here are the artists and tracks that inspired Doorly on his path to DJ greatness. Listen and learn.
I could have picked any of hundreds of tracks from the Cajual or Relief back catalogue, but this one sums up perfectly what inspired me from the labels: that nice warm, punchy, stabby Chicago bassline and the simple hooky loopy vocals that Cajmere and Gene Farris do so well. This definitely shaped me as a producer.
Switch / Solid Groove has always been so ahead of the curve as a producer for me - he always seems to be two years ahead of everyone else and always manages to totally reinvent the game. Again, I could have picked any number of his tracks, but this one perfectly demonstrates the way he can make a club record without losing that wonky musicality that he does so well.
This has been my favourite track of the summer - I've been playing it since April and I'm still not bored of it. It's crazy and like four tracks mashed together, so it's so much fun to play out. And the name says it all: it literally does exactly what it says on the tin!
Kölsch has hugely inspired me over the last few years - he's broken away from the norm in a really brave way. His music is so captivating, and as a performer there's nobody anything like him. I love all of his stuff, but this track was a real eye-opener for me. Also, check out his tracks 'Der Alte', 'Opa' and 'Goldfisch' if you're not familiar with his work. Thank me later.
This guy! He's an enigma - so many beautiful albums of work to choose from. This is the track that really made me connect with him and want to delve deeper and I'm so glad that I did.
Soulwax are producers that have been present throughout my entire career - constantly evolving and leading the way. This remix they did for Tame Impala is just stunning… my God I wish I had made this record!
I came from a hip-hop background originally - as a DJ my first moves were in turntablism and I was obsessed by the DMC championships. Then around 10 years ago, I completely fell out of love with hip-hop because it just got really shit. This Kendrick Lamar album was the first thing that finally got my attention and made me start listening to hip-hop properly again.
De La Soul and A Tribe Called Quest massively shaped my youth, thanks to the work of J Dilla. He really showed off the art of sampling and how to recreate in a beautiful way.
Obviously I was hugely inspired by everything that Daft Punk did, just like everyone else was, but this Bangalter record was one that really stood out for me from all the early Roule Records stuff.
WORDS | Abby Lowe
