Back to back with Pagano & Jacob Moss
Reported by Joanna McEwen
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Submitted 25-04-07 12:22
There are times when DJs are given a back to back set and you’re left wondering why. We’ve all been on the dance floor when those providing the music seem to be having aural tussle at the clubbers expense – all inconsistent styles and battling egos. Then there are times when DJs are given a back to back set and you think, hmmm, now that’s going to be interesting – complimentary music but different enough to give it a purpose, a point behind asking two DJs to come together and mix it up. The pairing of DJ Pagano and Jacob Moss could just be one such match.
Why is this I can hear you ponder (yes, I’m that good). Well, you might say it’s because they both play across the board of progressive, tribal, electro, minimal and house (which is true), and you could say it’s because their mixing is spot on all the way (which is true) but more to the point, which you knew I’d come to, is that they love, love, love to dance and it so comes across in their choice of music.
However, let’s have a quick look at their credentials. Pagano, Saturday night resident at Heaven, regular at Crash and at the Essential parties hosted by Trade, owner of Deviate Records, prolific producer and remixer with releases on labels including Universal, BXR, Nukleuz, Stereo Productions and U.M.M. A DJ that’s just come back from playing at Space for the Miami Winter Party Festival and with gigs from San Francisco to Egypt, Ibiza to Israel. Then there’s Jacob Moss, established London DJ who’s played alongside such names as Philippe B, DJ Paulette, Queen Maxine and Fafa Monteco, with a forth-coming release, Tektonik, on the afore mentioned Deviate Records and artwork designer, co-promoter, and resident for one of the UK’s most musically innovative and talked about parties, Party Proactive. Impressive indeed!
So we come to the 16th of June, Party Proactive Present A Midsummer Night’s Dream, where DJ Pagano and Jacob Moss will be showcasing their back to back set. On an enchanted evening their set promises to be an entrancing one. Come with me and slip behind the veil to discover more on these two musical spellbinders.
I think the first thing that needs to be done is for both of you to set the scene musically. If you had to pick one track that said something about you what would it be and what would it be saying?
JM: If you are asking me to pick a track that says something about me as a person, then I would plump for the instrumental of Gat Décor’s ‘Passion’. Passion being something I still have in spades where dance music and DJing is concerned and also because the track has so much emotional content whilst still retaining an underground, timeless edge. It’s kind of sad to say, but it reminds of a much more carefree time.
P: It is actually difficult to pick only one track to define my taste and experiences in music. If you check my website, I have a section where I made a list of the 20 tracks that have influenced me through the years. Funny enough the track Passion is one of the first of the list. However if I have to really pick a track to define my taste, it would be something by Depeche Mode such as Enjoy The Silence or Everything Counts. Growing up in the eighties, I have always liked electronic music, rather than soulful stuff. I like my music with a more intense, dramatic, mysterious and sexy edge to it.
You’ve both been playing for a long time, about 12 years each. Can you remember the first ever track you bought?
JM: That’s a difficult one. I think mine might just have been Jam & Spoon’s Odyssey To Anyoona, back in 1995.
P: In the Christmas of 1984 I remember asking my Dad to get me the 7” of the original version of Self Control by the Italian singer Raf. Not many people know that Laura Branigam’s rock-ish version is actually a cover version. The original version by Raf was a great piece of electronic Italo-disco.
Which tracks are firmly ensconced in your record box / CD case at the moment?
JM: So much fabulous music coming out right now, how anybody can say dance music is in a state of decline amazes me! My current gems are:
God's Blue Chest 'Guide Me Through The Night'
Timo Garcia 'Control The Universe'
Marc Mendez 'His Music' (Elevator People remix)
InOut 'InOut' (Vocal mix)
Goldie-Lox 'I'm Convinced He Plays Dice'
P: I agree with Jacob, there is so much interesting dance music coming out at the moment: it is a bit like during the early nineties all over again! At the moment I particularly like:
Claude Von Strooke – The Whistler (Jesse Rose Remix)
Sander Van Dorn – By Any Demand
Danny Tenaglia – Dibiza (Chus & Ceballos 2007 Remix)
Jacob Moss – Tektonik
Oxia & Eric Borgo – Another Man
Both of you play on both the straight and gay clubbing scenes. Do you find your choice of music changes depending on where you’re playing?
JM: Pagano is probably better placed to answer this question as I don’t tend to play on the gay scene these days. I used to hold a residency at LA3 (an infamous Sunday gay party down at the 333 in Old St) where I could play exactly what I wanted. I think these days, there seems to be a habit of playing safe regarding music policies on the gay scene. There’s certainly not the overall innovation that was rife back in Trade’s heyday during the mid to late 90’s. I think it takes a clever DJ to push the boundaries in any kind of scene, but from what I’m hearing when I go to gay parties, there seem less room for experimentation.
P: Yes, definitely! My sets at Heaven, where the crowd are polysexual and in their twenties, are closer to the sets I play in the straight scene. When I play in the Vauxhall gay clubs I generally play less challenging stuff, as the crowd there is quite commercial, but generally I always try to be cutting edge and innovative.
Choosing records for a set is very similar to choosing DJs for an event, it’s all about the musical journey. The same goes for compilation CDs – I know, Pagano, you’ve compiled and mixed various compilations, including a best seller for Megahit Records in the USA. What do you both think of Party Proactive’s ethos of mixing musical styles and DJs from different scenes (I’m thinking Jacob might be slightly biased on this one)?
JM: Well as one of the co promoter’s of Party Proactive, I am fully behind the concept of bringing together DJs from across the dance music spectrum, which in turn unites clubbers who you might not necessarily find partying together under one roof. It’s not just a case of throwing random stuff together; in fact to bring diversity to a line-up but still retain some kind of cohesion requires quite a lot of thought and planning! I love the fact that Party Proactive tears up the rulebook. Where else are you going to see Trade legends Pete Wardman and Ian M playing in the same room as the Filterheadz, DJ Misjah and Ourselves? Something for everybody I say.
P: I totally understand and share the idea behind Party Proactive! At the beginning of my career, I was playing for 5/6 hours most of the time being the only DJ of the night. This is how things used to be in the Italian underground clubs in the nineties! I have always tried to create a journey with my DJ sets because of this, mixing different styles of dance music. In this way the vibe evolves through the night and you would not hear the same track twice.
Pagano – you’re originally from Italy and have a lot of links in Spain, including having your latest track, Marvellous, released on Chus and Ceballos’ label, Stereo Productions. Could you give us an insight into what’s happening on the European scene at the moment?
P: During the last couple of years the European scene has been the driving force behind dance music all over the world. Nothing new seems to come out of the US, and all the most interesting productions are from European producers. Electronic music, in all its forms, is the trend in continental Europe at the moment. Each country has its own style. So for example, we have a more Techno and minimal sound coming out of Germany and Italy, a more House and Progressive sound coming from Spain, Electro from France, and each country is continuously influencing each other keeping the scene fresh and interesting.
The global dance scene as whole seems to be shrinking helped by online radio stations and terrestrial radio stations streaming their shows over the web – Pagano you’ve had your productions played on Radio 1, Galaxy, WKTU (USA) and Energy Radio (France) and been a guest on Ministry of Sound Radio. Do either of you have a favourite station in your little black books to pass on?
JM: Well for me, there’s one radio station that stands head and shoulders above the rest and that is RadioFGUnderground (www.radiofg.com). It’s a Paris based station that hosts non-stop 1 hr mix shows from the likes of Paulette, Philippe B, Fafa Monteco, DaFresh, Carl Cox, and Fabrice K (many of these DJs have been Party Proactive guests, coincidentally)! It’s just 100% about the music, no adverts and no egos! Check it out people.
P: it has been a while since I switched on the radio! Sometimes I find myself checking Pete Tong’s playlist on the BBC Radio 1’s website, but that’s about it. I listen to so much music every day between my work in the studio, hunting for new music on the digital distributors, that I do not have the time to listen to any type of radio.
Jacob, you’re the designer behind the beautiful artwork for the Party Proactive flyers and have a background in fashion. For both of you though it’s music which has been your main focus, a whole lot more creative than the Professor DJ Pagano of Engineering Mathematics and Jacob Moss, Senior Administrator for the US Environmental Protection Agency that I came across in my research! If you weren’t both immersed in the world of dance music how would you creatively spend your time?
JM: Hah!! I bet I’d be earning ‘loadsamoney’ doing the above! Seriously though, if music is in your blood, there’s nothing you can do about it. It’s something that needs to be pursued to the end! If I wasn’t involved in Party Proactive and DJing I would most probably still be working within a creative industry, no doubt utilizing my degree in fashion, sewing posh frocks in some sweat shop down in Hackney!!
P: I would probably want to travel on a warp capable space ship and boldly go where no man has gone before! Or perhaps I would work for a magazine as I actually have a degree in Media and Cultural Studies.
Pagano, you’ve remixed tracks from artists including Billie Ray Martin, Mario Piu, Mauro Picotto, Andy Farley and BK and now Jacob has a new track, Tektonik, soon to be released on your label, Deviate. There must be a mutual respect for each other’s sound or I presume the forthcoming back to back would never have arisen. What do you think makes for a successful back to back?
JM: Without wanting to feather his ego too much, I’ve always admired Pagano’s style and approach to DJing. Ever since I first heard his productions back in the late 90’s, I was impressed. I think over the years, my tastes have mellowed just a touch and we both appreciate a similar type of house music; tough, tribal, progressive, sexy, brooding, acidic. Basically, neither us go for the kind of fluff you might hear down at Fire on a Saturday morning. I hardly ever play back to back sets (maybe 3 or 4 during the past 12 years) so it has to be right or there’s no point. I’m confident that we understand each other well enough to work in harmony and create a sublime musical journey for the Party Proactive people!
P: I really appreciate when a DJ does it for the love of music and not for the love of being on stage. Jacob is very talented and humble, and does it for the love of music. Luckily for the love of the same music I like! So we are definitely in the right frame of mind to perform a great set together.
Well guys, I for one am very much looking forward to your set on the 16 June, I hope you are too. Mix, mix, mix, mix it up, baby!
JM: Get the Champagne on ice, baby!!
P: Non vedo l’ora! (Which is Italian for I can’t wait!)
All photos courtesy of Party Proactive, not to be reproduced in any way without prior permission
Party Proactive Midsummer Night's Dream
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On:
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Saturday 16th June 2007
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At:
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Turnmills [map]
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From:
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10pm to 6am
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Cost:
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£14 in Advance / £16 Paying Guest List / £18 Door
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Website:
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www.proactive-records.co.uk
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Ticket Info:
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Tickets and Paying Guest List
Advance Tickets £14 / Paying Guest List £16 / Door £18
Ticketweb (24hr Credit Card Bookings): 08700600100 / www.ticketweb.co.uk
Clubtickets (by 5 get 1 free): 08702462050 / www.clubtickets.com
Proactive HQ: 07814179946 / brainless66@hotmail.com
Vince (Midlands): 07878619504
Cyberdog (Camden Market): 0207 4822842
Maria: maria@toomuchbutneverenough.com / 07813684399
Antiworld: www.antidote909.com
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Buy Online:
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Click here to buy tickets
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More:
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Weaving their musical spell this enchanted evening are the globe rocking duo Filterheadz (Belgium), purveyors of tough, progressive house; DJ Misjah (Holland), creator of the massive clubland anthem Access, who showcases his pounding, funk driven techno; hard and dark house comes courtesy of Proactive resident, Andy Farley, who teams up with Trade legend, Ian M, for a heart stopping b2b and DJ Pagano, fresh from touring the USA, lays down the tribal rhythms alongside Proactive resident, Jacob Moss.
In T2, we welcome from Blink Records Fabrice K (France), a master of deep sexy tech whilst minimal filth and break infused beats feature from rising UK stars Shane Watcha (Zombies Ate My Brain) and Janette Slack (Kidology).
Come Colourful, Courageous and Ready to Party!
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Flyer:
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Region:
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London
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Music:
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House. Deep House. Hard House. Prog House. Tribal House. Vocal House. Deep Techno. Funky Techno. Techno.
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DJ's:
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T1: TRIBAL / PROGRESSIVE / TECHNO / HARD DANCE
Filterheadz - Belgium
DJ Misjah – Holland
Andy Farley b2b Ian M
Pete Wardman
DJ Pagano b2b Jacob moss
K.A.R.L.
T2: ELECTRO / TECH / BREAKS / HOUSE
Fabrice K
Shane Watcha
Janette Slack
Hugh Stevenson
Joanna McEwen
Sunny Side
THE Juno ROOM: HOSTED BY SUMMIT DIRTY
DJ Roo / Jack Michaels / Super Mario Brothers / Yiannis Balkizas / Ben Townsend b2b Chris Canning / Justin Cookee / Jordan Brown / Biggs
V.I.P. HOSTED BY FUNK DELUXE
Egoiste / Funked Up DJs / Simon Williams / James Molowoski / Audio Dice / Rory McCart vs Rob Stanley / Model Bex
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Other Features By Joanna McEwen:
Ticon the matter seriously
Riding the frequencies with Hertz
The Many Faces of Paul Maddox
Axel Karakasis Gets Proactive
Proactive Gets Dejavoo!
The views and opinions expressed in this review are strictly those of the author only for which HarderFaster will not be held responsible or liable.
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Im deffo in the DJ booth with these two sexy men 
