10.04.2006 PK ARCHIVE MAR 00 +++ Dmitry - Groove Is In The Heart |
 Dmitry, rushing in from Brighton, is here to give the opening night of "Urban" something cosmopolitan. Welcomed by Leicester's party crème de la crème like the world class act he undoubtedly is, the tired looking Dmitry soon becomes more lively. The son of Russian immigrants turns out to be the nicest superstar one could imagine. Almost shy when talking about himself, Dmitry knows what is expected from him and seems very willing to share his bottle of champagne as well as his background with 69 Magazine. Soon, we are to learn that Dmitry went through every Djs worst nightmare before heading to Leicester. Losing all his records in transit, Dmitry is forced to play a set, which consists of tunes he "had to go and get in Brighton, which isn't the best place to buy records". He continues: "My records are so important to me, I am so limited now. It's so frustrating. I have so much good music in my crate. The crowd would have been ready for it- they are right on. Yeah, I would be able to do a lot more." It is probably impossible to pigeonhole Dmitry who does "not have any favourites" and likes a lot of different styles. "I like some house, techno, a lot of experimental stuff like Autechre and Aphex Twin. I also like a lot of ethnic music... but in the club it doesn't really get a lot of people dancing... it's a bit hard mixing it in." In Leicester, he delivers a hard thumping set of housey tunes, pieced together of the purchased and borrowed records, but also incorporates some DAT recordings of the tunes he "can't go without- the techy stuff". Altogether, he is dishing up a rather British set, which also convinces the crowd. One girl even loses all her inhibitions as well as her pants on the podium, a performance, which is not only noticed by the dancers: "I loved it, I loved it... I love it somehow when someone is a bit of an exhibitionist," smiles Dmitry, "but nothing could distract me from djing". Dmitry, who is 35 and who does not mind telling me at all, picked up djing a long time before Dee-Lite started. "Towa Tei came to a club where I djed every Friday night. Got to know each other, we kinda djed together. I also met Lady Kier in New York." They founded Dee-Lite and were soon to revolutionise the dancefloor with their "psychedelic-funkalicious groovy dance music". The trio, consisting of Towa Tei, Lady Miss Kier and Dmitry, world- famous for their party anthem "Groove is in the Heart", split up after the completion of their final album "Sampladelic Relics & Dancefloor Oddities - Deee-Remixes" in mutual agreement to pursue their single projects. In the best tradition of Dee-Lite, who collaborated with a lot of different artists and acts, for example Todd Terry and Ian Pooley, Dmitry has been pretty busy advancing as a DJ, playing with some of America's finest. Dmitry recently finished off his new record, which is diverse, sometimes "techy techno", sometimes "more housey, but all of it really groovy". "Supa DJ Dmitry" comes out on the independent record label Wax Trax; the official release date is 15 April in the US, but "you never know with record labels." Currently, Dmitry is working on another album, which is "kind of more experimental, with a singer" in conjunction with a group called 'The Blow'. Here, his love for Indian music comes into play: "I love the music, a lot of Indian music. Sitars, tablas, and I love the women singers." Apart from Indian music, he also admires Indian food: "Give me spices any day. Any time," a reason he why looks forward to every England- visit. He admits: "Even the English food is getting better", but actually he is "a Tiramisú person- the dessert of the Gods. But I gotta cut down." He laughs. He seems a happy person. Asked who else he would like to collaborate with, Dmitry comes out with the weirdest combination, such as the "vocalists like David Bowie- up until the eighties. Chaka Khan I love, not so much the black diva thing, which is not necessarily my thing, but I love her sing. Then Shiva Shakra on Real World Records. I would love to remix Autechre and Aphex Twin or Squarepusher... I am bored where Drum `n' Bass is right now, but I like the more experimental sound." On this New Year's Eve, Dmitry was spinning in Hongkong. "The millennium, the new millennium, f*** it, I am so sick of it. The party itself was great, very nice guys, but it was weird to have New Year's where everyone in the room was Chinese!" His career also includes highlights such as playing at the Burning Man Festival: "It was really great, three years ago in August. It's in Nevada, the Black Rock Desert. It's 50 degrees during the days, 0 at night. A lot of nudists and eccentrics! " I get the impression that he really likes his fair share of odd and bizarre stuff, not only musically. But then, Dmitry is quick in pointing out that he is "no hippie, not in spirit", despite letting his hair grow again which explains his Mickey Mouse hairdo. A hippie he ain't, but nevertheless, he loves Buddha, without being religious: "Buddha seems the best of gods to me, the most humane". He is one of these people who surprise and surpass with having an opinion on topics other Superdjs do not seem to be concerned with, as it would not suit their macho- images: "The men rule, don't they? Scary. I'm more for a joint rule. Actually, women should be given the chance to rule more right now, because men have been ruling for long enough, and they've got us in enough trouble. I think it's really time for women to take charge, you know. I tend to regret that I am a man... that there are so many things in which men have perpetrated against humanity. Basically, it's tough." "Whatever rocks your boat. I can't say that this is wrong and this is right. I mean, any way to express your sexuality is good, I guess. How can you not be concerned with issues like women's rights when you are watching things? So many countries do not even allow women to vote, for example Malaysia. It's disgusting. It blew my mind. Thinking about it, I would not want to play there." But hey, fortunately Supa DJ Dmitry is obviously enjoying it to dj in England, because the "really exiting people that do really exiting things move down to London. In America they head to San Francisco on the West and New York on the East Coast". So, where would Dimity take us in New York? "To a place called the `Blue Angel', it’s not quite a sex club, but very eccentric, more performance orientated cabaret." "Can you join in?" asks a girl, and Dimitry laughs. "Well, no, and you gotta bring your own drinks." Sounds groovy, just what we expected to hear from this fella! Katrin Richter |
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