British house star Danny Howells chatted to IhouseU this week about his new imprint Dig Deeper Records and was defensive when quizzed whether his choice of label name revealed an unhealthy appetite for rummaging through rubbish bins.
“I have looked through rubbish skips before, sure, hasn’t everybody?” the usually mild mannered, though today somewhat combative, regular IhouseU contributor confessed.
“When I was working at the psychiatric hospital in Hastings in the 90s all my wages went on records. So I would regularly rummage through rubbish skips for bits of furniture etc. that I could clean up and put in my flat. I haven't been through many rubbish bins recently, though. What are you trying to get at, for Cliff's sake?” (Dig Deeper: http://soundcloud.com/digdeeperrecs )
Expanding his digging theme further, he’s also called his label’s soon to be released debut double compilation ‘Danny Howells Dig Deeper | Phase One’, though was equally unapologetic about its press release heralding him as ‘one of the electronic dance scenes most formidable crate diggers’ in its first line.
“Why did I start the press release with an ‘odd’ statement like that? What kind of question is that?,” the people’s champion enduringly popular DJ spluttered.
“Hit old ‘easy-target’ Howells with brute force and save the bum-lick (questions) for your ‘cooler’ interviewees eh? I'd normally ignore something like that, but seeing as how I rarely get hit with questions like this. I'll let you off - for now,” he warned.
“And IF it is odd, then I couldn't give a crap. This was coined by the guy who's doing the PR for my new compilation and approved by me. Are there ANY DJ biogs that don't big the DJ up a bit?” he asked.
Calming down with a camomile tea, he returned to the topic moments later, cooing ‘you know I love you too, and your interviews are among the few I actually enjoy doing’.
“I'm not really the best when it comes to self-promotion and if I was releasing a solo artist album then I'd probably be hiding under a rock right now,” he confessed.
“But I'm not - it's a compilation on my own label and there are many other artists on there, so I'm willing to go the extra mile with this one as I'm very proud of the music and remixes that have been very graciously given to the label. Next question, dear!”
Chatting further about his unrelenting trash aesthetic, Danny revealed he’s gathered over 25,000 much loved records over two decades of second hand shop/ skip scavenging trips , including collectors’ items from the likes of Pink Floyd, the Rolling Stones, Bowie and the afore-mentioned Cliff (Richard).
‘I have spent my life "digging” and had bad digs and amazing digs, for example at Music and Video Exchange in Notting Hill and Revival in Soho. Sister Ray is good too, plus some of the stores in Camden - especially for bootlegs,” he revealed.
“I also find it very hard to pass a Cancer Research or Oxfam without popping in for a rummage. I had such a good dig in Amoeba in LA once that I had to ship a load of vinyl and CDs back home, and it took four washes to get my hands clean,” he recalled.
“For my DJ sets I never feel I've dug enough. I've very frequently prepared 50-80 new tunes in addition to the ones I already have, even though I might only have a couple of two hour sets that weekend. No matter how much I have, I never feel I have enough. I'm an addict,” he confessed.
“I hope I can be corrected, but I'm sure there's certain people out there who are doing very well, thank you, who's idea of "digging" involves checking the Beatport top ten on a weekly basis,” Danny concluded, “I go a lot further than that and would feel a bit of a cheap-skate if that was the sum total of my tune-hunting.”
‘Danny Howells Dig Deeper | Phase One’ includes 43 individual dub, disco and even drum & bass tracks from the likes of Nick Warren, Art Bleek, Thieve and Surrealism and Danny’s own productions plus a mix CD he’s put together of clubbier remixes. Release date is April 4 on Dig Deeper Records.
(Click here for music: http://soundcloud.com/digdeeperrecs )
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