So you’ve had my favourite Albums & Singles of 2011, here’s my Top Ten films of the year. I’ve done it post Oscars as things like True Grit, The Fighter & Blue Valentine have all had their fair share of exposure by now. So, here goes…
1. Point Blank
2. Drive
3. Hanna
4. We Need To Talk About Kevin
5. Rango
6. Tree Of Life
7. Ides Of March
8. Senna
9. Tinker Tailor Soldier Spy
10. Inside Job
I’m still compiling my favourite Club/Dance tunes & films of the year (it’s proving more difficult than usual – Has it really been that bad a year?) but in the meantime here’s my best of the best singles of 2011 complete with videos.
10. Florence & the Machine ‘Shake It Out’
9. Nicola Roberts ‘Beat Of My Drum’
8. James Blake ‘The Wilhelm Scream’
7. The Horrors ‘Still Life’
6. M83 ‘Midnight City’
5. Foster The People ‘Pumped Up Kicks’
4. Adele ‘Rolling In The Deep’
3. Everything Everything ‘Final Form’
2. Bombay Bicycle Club ‘Shuffle’
1. Lana Del Rey ‘Video Games/Blue Jeans’
It’s that time of the year already. Time to reflect on all that was great about 2011. To start us off here are my favourite albums of the last 12 months…
1. Birdy ‘Birdy’
2. Anna Calvi ‘Anna Calvi’
3. Nicloas Jaar ‘Space Is Only Noise’
4. Feist ‘Metals’
5. Metronomy ‘The English Riviera’
6. Lykke Li ‘Wounded Rhymes’
7. Elbow ‘Build A Rocket Boys’
8. Black Keys ‘El Camino’
9. Bon Iver ‘Bon Iver’
10. Oliver Huntemann ‘Paranoia’
I’ve said it before and I’ll say it again, I love Japan. Just can’t get enough of the place. It’s been this way for the last 20 years and the feeling never diminishes. The buzz I get once another trip is on the cards is akin to when you catch your first glimpse of the Manhattan skyline coming into New York. A untainted kind of childlike excitement. They say you never forget your first time and it couldn’t be truer of Japan. It was like visiting another planet, like walking onto the set of Bladerunner, a culture shock for sure. But on closer inspection, it soon became clear that we English have quite a lot in common with our Japanese friends. Both islands off the main continent protective of our national identities with a history of empire building and cultural trailblazing yet now living in the shadow of former glories anyone? Hell, even our flags are made from the same DNA.
Anyway, my trip this time started, as it always does, with a pilgrimage around the temples of Tokyo, otherwise known as the Bathing Ape shops. Those of you that know me will already know of my love of all things Bape. I’ve been collecting their stuff for over a decade to the point of obsession verging on addiction, so hot footing it from store to store (they have 5 in Tokyo), I’m a bit like a crazed junkie getting his fix. But just walking around the city is in itself such an inspiration. It’s so vibrant and alive with creativity, I can think of few other places around the world that are so stimulating.
My gig this time though was in Osaka, 2.5 hours west of Tokyo on the Bullet train, which like everything else here, runs perfectly on time right down to the second. Japan’s 3rd largest city with a population of 2.5 million, Osaka’s best club for the last few years has been Onzieme. This is my 3rd time here and it never disappoints. The crowd are musically well educated but always so enthusiastic and receptive to lots of different styles. A combination which these days isn’t found as frequently as it should be. This is largely due to an eclectic bookings policy that has seen everyone from Sven Vath & Digitalism to Defected & Dubfire touch down and do their thing. In fact, Onzieme is such a pleasure, it makes me want to paraphrase a popular English football chant, “Can I play you every week?!” And the thing is, I’m only half joking! 
Next week, Latvia & Romania.
You’ve had a long-term association with Renaissance – why do you think it has endured for so long as a respected club brand?
“Renaissance has always stood for quality and they haven’t been fickle followers of fashion by jumping on every new trend that comes along. They do what they do and they’re the best at it. More people should concentrate on their own thing and just play to their strengths rather than worrying about what everybody else is doing.”
Why do you think you have endured so long as an international DJ?
“See above! Ha ha ha. I’ve followed a similar ideology. Of course you progress and evolve as the scene changes around you but I like to think I keep the same principles and not forget where I came from and as I’m still here 25 years later, I must be doing something right!”
How did you approach this latest Renaissance Masters mix?
“I don’t worry so much about every track being a brand new and exclusive these days. It’s all about the quality. Within a few months it will all be old anyway! I find some people’s unquenchable desire for new stuff all the time quite sad really. The minute something becomes available, they discard it. However brilliant it may be. But there are some exclusives on there, yes, and pretty much all the stuff that is out already has been edited or enhanced in some way to make it unique to the album.”
In Dom Phillips’ book Superstar DJs, you talked a bit about some of your demons. Where’s your head at now?
“Yeah, I had some pretty dark periods around the turn of the Millennium, largely down to living a life of excess and not having much of an anchor. But I got married in 2005 and now have two young boys, so my perspective has changed dramatically. I remember reading somewhere that adults might make babies but really it’s babies that make adults, and I can really relate to that.
“Now I take the last plane out on a Friday and the first flight back on a Sunday morning, even if it’s Asia or South America I’m playing, just so I can get back to spend time with the family. I even went to Australia for the weekend at the beginning of the year, although that was stretching it a bit.”
Have you ever wanted to do something as obviously commercial as your early ‘90s Brothers In Rhythm stuff?
“I would love to do some more pop stuff again but it’s all a question of time. As I just said, I want to spend as much time with my family as possible and just keeping up with the demands of being a DJ these days is so time-consuming with the amount of music being released and the advent of social media. It doesn’t leave much time for the studio, but it is on my ‘to do’ list and I will get round to it sooner or later.”
http://www.djmag.com/news/detail/3079
I know I’m a bit late with this blog but better late than never as they say. To be honest, in the aftermath of Renaissance’s first party in London for over two years, I’d completely forgotten my own name, let alone that I’d ever agreed to do a Tour blog and was far too preoccupied with nursing my sore head through a fireworks night with the kids! Anyway, last weekend saw the London leg of my Masters album tour, the official launch party no less and what a cracking night it turned out to be. Since the closing of the Cross in 2008, which had been Renaissance’s London home for 10 years, London’s clubbing landscape has changed considerably. Gone too are Turnmills & The End and Matter unfortunately never managed to plug the gap. It’s actually been the redevelopment of East London that has provided some of the hottest new nightlife in town with one venue in particular, Village Underground in Shoreditch becoming a home for everything from live shows by the likes of The Horrors, Jarvis Cocker & The Klaxons to club nights with Erol Alkan, Laurent Garnier & Layo & Bushwacka. It was here that Renaissance decided to return to London- In a warehouse style venue that goes back to basics and in many ways reflects where the UK scene is at in 2011. Now I love DJing all over the world every weekend but there really is no place like home. Having so many friends and family at a gig makes it that bit extra special and last Saturday the guest list was bursting at the seams. Also on the line up was Matt Tanner from the Amplify Destroy crew and Spanish superproducer, Henry Saiz who both turned in superb sets worthy of the occasion exemplifying the new breed of Renaissance DJs. The future is bright and it certainly was good to be back on home turf. Hangover and all. Now, on to Japan
Click here for photos.. http://www.residentadvisor.net/photo-gallery.aspx?set=19792
What have been up to lately and what can we expect from you over the next couple of months?I’ve just finished my latest mix compilation for Renaissance. It’s my 28th mix comp so I like to think I’ve got the hang of it now. So I’m going to be touring here there and everywhere to promote that right through to early 2012. In between that, we’ve just moved house. The third time in 2 years! But this time it’s for good I swear. It could fall down around me and I’ll be going nowhere!
What do you think about dj mag’s top100 poll? I think it turned into a load of old commercial lowest common denominator codswallop. This opinion coincidentally started to form around the very same time that I no longer found myself in it! hahaha
What’s the first record you bought? I bought Queen’s ‘We Are The Champions’ with ‘We Will Rock You’ on the other side for 79p from Woolworths.
Are you afraid of piracy? Only if they made me walk the plank 
Define yourself in 3 words- Taurus, Virgo rising
Are you obsessed about anything? I’m a little bit excessive when it comes to the Japanese clothing & lifestyle brand A Bathing Ape. I’ve been collecting their stuff for over 10 years now and have everything from the bathmat to the underwear. It they’d made a kitchen sink, I’d have it in every colour!
What’s the most ridiculous promotional thing you’ve done? Top Of The Pops is up there. I did it with Heaven 17 when our Brothers In Rhythm mix of ‘Temptation’ went Top Ten. Standing there in the background miming along badly to a bassline for 3 minutes was pretty ridiculous in hindsight although at the time, it seemed like the pinnacle of chart success.
What are the current top five most listened to tracks/songs on your iPod? Lana Del Rey ‘Video Games’, Bombay Bicycle Club ‘Shuffle’, Massive Attack Vs. Burial ‘ Four Walls’ , Chilly Gonzales ‘Crying’, Everything Everything ‘Final Form’
What is your favourite TV show? Breaking Bad
What would your super hero super power be? Oh to fly definitely. I’d save a fortune getting to gigs!
If you ever walk around the house in pants and slippers and what do you listen to? Usually BBC6 Music. It was a revelation when I finally got round to buying a DAB radio and I discovered 6 Music. I love Shawn Keaveney in a morning and Mark Radcliffe & Stuart Maconie’s show is the best on the airwaves. I couldn’t produce a finer radio station if I did it myself!
If you could live anywhere in the world where would it be? Australia without doubt. They’ve just got everything right as far he pace and quality of life but yet it’s still a hotbed of creativity and for an Englishman, full of home comforts. It’s just so far away for me to travel around the world DJing every weekend otherwise I’d be there in a shot.
What was your last thought? God , these questions are random. I like random
http://www.djdownload.com/earworm/2011/11/02/a-little-randomness-with-dave-seaman/
Q. 20 years ago you were working as a journalist for Mixmag, at a time when the only way to receive that kind of information really was through radio, V and print. Since then the internet has come along; just from information stance how has how much we know about music changed?
A. I don’t think we’ve truly grasped yet just how much the internet has changed everything. Not just music. And I think we’re still only at the early stages of the digital revolution. Back when I was in charge of Mixmag, we didn’t even put the magazine together on a computer. I used to cut and paste with a scalpel and glue to make up the template from which the printer then made the magazine. Imagine that! Nowadays, there’s no air of mystique to music anymore. Everybody has access to the same information literally at their fingertips. It’s made for an instant gratification culture. And I don’t think that’s necessarily a good thing.
Q. And whilst we’re on the matter, the music itself? There’s definitely more of it available, and the barriers of entry are lower. But is this a good thing?
A. No. The combination of diminishing expectations and lack of any quality control has turned into real burden for the scene. Everything is so disposable now. We drowning in a sea of so much stuff lacking in either imagination or technical ability or even worse, both! There is still good music out there of course but you have to be an excavation expert with immeasurable patience to find it!
Q. Where do you see the format of mix compilation going? As someone who has been at the forefront of the glory years of its previous days, both with Renaissance and Global underground, where does the modern compilation sit now?
A. For me it doesn’t change, a compilation should still be much more than just a bunch of tracks segued together. It should be an audio collage. A piece of art that will last for years. I spend weeks crafting my albums and although nothing like the glory years of the nineties, still do good numbers. How long the physical format of the CD will last remains to be seen but I’d still approach it the same way if it were to go digital only.
Q. Tell us about your new Masters compilation. How pleased are you to be working with renaissance again and can you describe what you’ve tried to achieve with the release?
A. It’s so good to have them back. For a while there was a big Renaissance sized hole in clubland. And it’s fitting that they’re back up and running in time to celebrate their 20th anniversary next year. As for the album, like I just said, there was a lot of care and attention to detail went into making it. It had to be something that which captured where I’m at in 2011 but will stand the test of time and which is befitting of the Renaissance brand. I hope all that has been realised.
Q. And you’re playing a launch party in Shoreditch for the album at the Village Underground. What can we expect from the gig and your set?
A. I shall be attempting to seamlessly segue from one track to the next without the aid of a safety net whilst simultaneously creating a atmosphere of enlightened rapture on the dance floor
Q. Henry Saiz is playing alongside you. Are you a fan of his music?
A. A big fan yes. I thought his Balance compilation was fantastic and we played together with great success earlier this year in Buenos Aires. He’s one of the most exciting new DJ/Producers out there.
Q. Speaking of fans, we’ve also heard you’re a follower of Leeds United, a shared curse! How has their topsy-turvy trajectory dovetailed with your DJing career?
A. I’d never really thought about it but I suppose you could draw some parallels between what was going on in clubland at the turn of the millennium and Leeds United’s own trajectory. A period of success that turned into excess that culminated in a spectacular fall from grace. Just like Leeds though, we’re rebuilding for the future and things are looking up!
Q. And finally, dream situation time. You can go back to any period in clubland history, and play at any club. Who would you have playing alongside you and what record would you drop that would define the evening? Or have you been lucky enough to have had this moment properly?
A. It would have to be at the Hacienda in 1988 but with Fabric’s current sound system playing alongside Graeme Park & Sasha and I’d drop ‘I Feel Love’ by Donna Summer for the very first time ever in a club having had a Back To The Future moment and gone back and stolen it from 1977!! Orgasmic
http://www.datatransmission.co.uk/Features/974/3/
My very first visit to Moscow was also a Renaissance night back in 1996. I recollect it being quite an intimidating experience. I was stopped by officials twice whilst walking down the street demanding to see my ID & visa paperwork or face the consequences (a common occurence back then apparently) and played my entire set with two armed military men stood, arms folded, staring at me from the middle of the dancefloor. Talk about getting put off your stroke! Since then of course, I’ve been back many times and had some fantastic nights. The legendary Club 13 & also Slava hold particularly good memories. And so to 2011 and the Renaissance juggernaut rolled into town once more hoping to recapture some of that Moscow magic. The gig also played host to the finals of the Movida Corona DJ Final where several of the best new DJs in Russia battled it out for a trip to Madrid and the promise of fame & fortune. Unfortunately for all present, the MC never shut up over their entire sets. An occupational hazard that I’m sure they’ll learn to eliminate with more experience. I also got roped into doing a press conference, a custom which never gets any less weird no matter how many times you do them. Questions included the usual- What is your stance on illegal downloading? And how does our country compare with the rest of the world? That’s a question journalists are obsessed with but the truth is that these days there’s little difference between club scenes from one country to the next. You can blame the Internet for that! Undoubtedly my favourite question of the night though was “What would you be if you weren’t a DJ?” to which my stock in trade answer is always, a virgin!
Anyway, highlight of the night was getting to play Cirez D’s ’Mockba’ (the Russian spelling for Moscow) in the city it was named after. It’s been a huge track for me recently and tracks named after places always hold a special resonance when played on home turf. So spiceba Mockba. I’ll be back!
The Masters Tour Blog Part One- Kosovo
by Dave on October 16, 2011
So after last weekend’s warm up down under in Australia the Renaissance Masters Tour got officially underway this weekend with my first vista to Kososvo. I always love going to new places. Virgin territory. The great unknown. And although Kosovo is steeped in a rich 12,000+ year history, it’s still a brand new country in so many ways. So much so that when I tried to post this gig on Artistdata.com, Kosovo didn’t even show up as a country on the drop down menu! (Apparently, they need 100 other countries to recognize them as an independent nation and so far, they are up to 86). But despite all the connotations that relate it to the horrible war of the 90s, I found the people of Kosovo to be as warm, friendly & humble as anywhere you’d care to mention. They are proud and passionate and love their electronic dance music just as much as anywhere else. And from a DJs point of view, they have one very important thing going for them… You can still smoke on the dancefloor. Which means more of a captive audience. You’re not battling against a transient dancefloor that’s nipping out for a ciggie every 10 minutes! The local beer does the trick too. Oh yes, the Peja has a lot to answer for. But that’s another story. Thank you Kosovo. You are well and truly on the Renaissance map!