Ahead of our next in-house party, this Friday, the 26th of May, when we’ll welcome Derek Carr to The Imaginarium for a DJ set, we had a chat with him about his work, inspiration, and previous experiences playing in Leeds…
Imaginarium: Growing up in Ireland, what first drew you to techno, and the Detroit sound?
Derek: I was always in electronic music, Depeche Mode, Kraftwerk etc growing up, and when I heard the first House Records, I was drawn to the electronic sound, and I loved the dance aspect of these tracks too, Pacific by 808 State for instance.. I was hooked from the get go. From there I discovered Detroit, May, Atkins, Saunderson..
Imaginarium: When did you start producing music?
Derek: I bought a little sampler in 1987, a casio thing, with a view to playing electro pop, like the Pet Shop Boys or Yazoo or whoever, but within a year I was creating techno loops etc. I really on started producing properly when I got my first proper studio together in 1994/1995.. Even then it was 1999/2000 before I was happy with what I was producing..
Imaginarium: You’re extremely prolific as a producer. Do you work on music as part of a routine every day, or do you prefer to work when you feel inspired?
Derek: You have to be inspired, there are days when I want to make music, but it just doesn’t come to me; and there’s no point forcing it, because that is too much like work. So I have to wait, days, weeks, months occasionally. But the studio is at my fingertips, so when inspiration comes and I can bang out several tracks in a few days.
Imaginarium: As a DJ, how do you find new music?
Derek: Damo B’s show ‘Outta Limits’ is my first port of call every week. He manages to consistently put out great radio shows with fantastic new music, I would probably hear very little new music if it wasn’t for him. Wading through hundreds of new releases every week on Beatport or Juno or wherever can be time consuming and fruitless.
Imaginarium: Leeds loves electronic music, how have your experiences been playing in this city in the past?
Derek: I played in Leeds in the Distrikt Bar for ‘Magnetic Leeds/Zaffiro’ Crews – it was a fantastic night, the crowd were rocking, right up to the end, one of the best gigs I have ever played, everyone into the music, everyone in the moment. Brilliant.
Imaginarium: Anything you’ve been working on recently, or future plans, that you’d like to tell us about?
Derek: I am taking a wee break from music for a while, I have released so much music in the past few years, I need to re-charge the creative batteries. So when The Allez e.p. comes out on Trident Recordings in a few weeks that will be it, I think, until 2024. There may be one more 12″ out during summer.. but I can’t say too much about that just yet.
Interview: R Brehl & Phil Warner
Tickets and more info on the event – Resident Advisor