29.11.2007 One+One – Equals One +++ Skrufff.com AUG 07 +++ |
 With their young and fresh attitude they are bound to become the next generation's heralds - a well-balanced symbiosis of good looks and talent which makes them the perfect product. But they are more than just two clever career craving crooners. Becoming one with a brand and a concept might also be the trade mark and the sales secret of successful and long-running mix series such as Global Underground, Renaissance and Ministry of Sound, but the two are more than just that. They are friends, friends who work together. Not an easy task, but something that makes life worthwhile. "Maybe people don't realise but being a DJ really is a life of solitude - it's weird. You travel around the world all the time, alone, and then you play in front of up to 8,000 people going crazy, and then suddenly you're alone again in a hotel room." Chatting to Skrufff.com about the reasons why he decided to team up with Nic Fancuilli, James Zabiela also gives away that it wasn't easy to become "one" with his DJing partner. "To be honest it was a task to persuade our managers and booking agents to go ahead with the projects. Within dance music, not every one gets on behind the scenes so it was hard work to convince everyone to let us do it, but now we are all working together for a common goal so its really nice." It´s indeed hard to believe that these two needed to convince their respective managements it was a good idea to team up as One+One easily could be the next Sasha & Digweed. Stepping into the footprints of the very originators who actually inspired Nic and James to become DJs, they keep up the ancient progressive house tradition of fusing all respective house, tech house and trance styles to a bombastic main stage mélange that makes up a "sum that is bigger than the initial parts of the equation". James explains his reason: "It's about compromising. Like any partnership really, and that's what makes it unique." An interesting aspect that should not be underestimated as there are quite a few DJs whose ego would not allow such a compromise: "The sound varies from what you envision because not all the records will work with each other and some surprise you and work well, that's the beauty that comes from working with another DJ whose music you're not familiar with." Now 27-year old James, world-famous for introducing breaks to a deep prog house audience on a larger scale and therefore bringing a fresh vibe to the super club main floor arenas, once won Muzik Mag’s famous bedroom-DJ mix competition, thus kick-starting his meteoric career with a lot of talent and determination which saw him getting signed to Sasha’s agency when only 22 years old, and Nic Fanciulli, whose career climaxed in a similar fashion making deep house his trademark, mix together two CDs which encompass most modern and classic forms of house. It’s obvious that there are just as many old favourites as there are attempts to surprise the listener with tweaks and turns no-one would not have expected, with James "having become more twisted over the years". Nic laughs: "But we have already had a few people say 'I bet James put that on there', on a track that I picked. There’s a lot of good music on there, there’s deep house, techno and a couple of classics on there too." James adds: "It’s like playing Nintendo really. It just all has to fit." Skrufff.com: How did you first meet each other? Nic: Well, the first time we met was in Miami some years ago when we was doing a show for MTV, we didn’t really become friends then though – then a while later we went on tour is Asia and Australia and had such a laugh. We went out for a Karaoke night and things got a bit out of hand! It involved a lot of alcohol and lots of bad singing with the microphone! I have always admired James musically and for his DJing style. I think he is really talented. James: The first time I met Nic was about four years ago in Miami. I had do to an interview for MTV called 'Young Guns' and it was about up and coming DJs. It was my second time at the Miami WMC and Nic’s first. We had to do a feature on a yacht and it was really cheesy, Reservoir Dogs style, all of us walking down a broadwalk. Nic and I had a good laugh. He gave me some of this tracks and it thought they were well cheesy back then. But we all do cheesy stuff when we first start out when I started I played terrible music but then as you go your tastes mature. Anyway, after then I didn't see him again for a long time. In the couple of years that followed Nic really blew up, he wrote some awesome tracks, set up a cool label, was presenting on Radio 1 and generally doing really well. I asked him to play at the boat party that I do in my hometown of Southampton, he came down and played. We had loads of fun. It was fancy dress and we dressed Nic up as a Mexican! On that evening we played back2back. He played really well and has been back to play lots. Skrufff.com: Whose idea was it to team up? Nic: It was both of ours, after the fun we had in Australia on some gigs that we shared. We became friends and thought it would be fun. It took a little convincing of our managers to let us do it though! James: First and foremost we became good friends - in any partnership like this you need to be friends, when you look at all bands that split up it's usually over personal differences. It was always fun, and when we tried playing b2b, the response was really great too. There is weird grey area in the middle where our music meets and things work - it works on the dance floor as well as in real life. Off the back of those experiences last year we decided to form One+One. To be honest it was a task to persuade our managers and booking agents to go ahead with the projects. Within dance music, not every one gets on behind the scenes so it was hard work to convince everyone to let us do it, but now we are all working together for a common goal so it’s really nice. Making the album and singles came together in the same way our sets came together in the sense that it felt very natural. Travelling is also easier, maybe people don't realise but being a DJ really is a life of solitude - it's weird. You travel around the world all the time, alone, and then you play in front of up to 8,000 people going crazy, and then suddenly you're alone again in a hotel room. I am not for one second complaining. I mean, it's amazing to see all of these places and stay in nice hotels but it can be weird, so having someone to share these experiences with is nice. Last year we were on the same tour together in Australia and even though we were not playing back2back it was cool to have someone to travel with. I always get nervous before gigs. It's nice to have some reassuring words from Nic. He isn't afraid of anything! Haha! I'm not really an after party kind of guy but every now and again it's nice to do if you have good friends like Nic around you! Nic: Yeah it sure can be lonely – it's weird traveling around on your own so much. It’s nice to have someone to do that with – makes the long wait in airport lounges a bit less boring. Skrufff.com: What is it you really appreciate about the other? Nic: James is a really nice guy with a lot of talent, he's a good friend. If one of us is feeling down or disheartened about something, in the studio say, we will lift each other's mood. James: I think I feel a lot more confident in the studio now. I have learnt lots from Nic. Skrufff.com: What are your virtues and what are your vices? Nic: I’d like to say I am kind and loyal to my friends and my vice – eeerm, any gadgets! I am a sucker for anything to do with Mac! It will make me bankrupt by the end of the year I am sure. Skrufff.com: What is the most absurd, likeable, noteworthy and useless thing about the other? Nic: Well, James would say I eat too many mini baby bells! And I I would say it's James ability to recite films on the spot, not all films but just certain films we watch. He's really good at that. Skrufff.com: What is the concept behind the mix? It seems like all those tracks reflect a different part of you two that work for the dancefloor as well as the listener’s mind... Nic: The sound on the CD is a mixture of mine and James' music fused together. We took half the tracks from me and half the tracks from James and blended them together. A lot of people will be surprised and pick out tracks and say 'this one James must have picked' or 'Nic definitely picked that track', and get it wrong. We have already had a few people say 'I bet James put that on there', on a track that I picked. There’s a lot of good music on there, there’s deep house, techno and a couple of classics on there to. We have been picking records for the last six months on and off, sending them to each other so we could hear what the other wants to put on the album, it never changed when we got to actually do it, we stuck to our guns, and we put what we wanted to put on there and we are really happy with the finished mixes. James: The mixes have been edited and deconstructed extensively as we wanted something unique, even if people have heard these records before, they only exist in this way on our CD. There's some turntablism in there as well with scratching and feedback looping. It was a concoction of both live and Ableton. Skrufff.com: The first mix clearly felt like a bit of a clash - more classic house versus more experimental electro... How you fuse your styles when you DJ? Nic: We both just do our own thing and our ideas and styles meet nicely in the middle. I think we both musically come from similar sorts of background, from the dance music side we have both been influenced by the same things, and we have both sort of taken our own route to the music we are playing now, so when we come together its nice to have both sides of our music on show. James: It's dramatically different in places. In a good way. I love Nic's taste in music even though we prefer different styles when DJing. There's an area between our sounds that meets up and it somehow just works. The sound varies from what you envision because not all the records will work with each other and some surprise you and work well, that's the beauty that comes from working with another DJ whose music you're not familiar with. Skrufff.com: Does the other have a veto to say no if he does not like a tune, or is there simply nothing you would not support about the other? Nic: Luckily that situation hasn’t arisen yet! Maybe it will one day, who knows. Generally we agree on the music even though we do have different tastes, we have a lot of crossover too. James said about his taste in records that he clearly "got more twisted over the years"! What kind of effect had "ageing" on you, Nic? Nic: Haha, well, I like the more mellow stuff! I like a nice groove and I have even been listening to a Best of Motown album and the new air album of late. But in terms of what I play I would say I have become more experimental over the years. Skrufff.com: Why did you decide to make a triple mix CD with one extra downloadable mix? Nic: There was a lot of music both James and I love that we can’t really play in clubs because it is too mellow so we thought it would be a nice idea to do it as a bonus mix. Skrufff.com: Who does what when you produce together, do you have a concept when you make tracks? Nic: We both just sit there and bounce around ideas. Most of the time you go in there with an idea and you come out with something completely different so having a concept doesn’t always really work. James: We always learn from each other, and in a creative field that's a very healthy thing. I may have showed Nic a few things with FX units and Ableton and he's helped me perhaps in building my sets and crowd tension. He also taught me it's not necessary to have a symbol crash in every record we make. Haha. Skrufff.com: Which kind of music really moves and touches you? Nic: Just anything that’s good! Listening to one style all of the time is no good to anyone. I have such a wide range of music taste, anything from old disco funk all the way through to techno, I have a very open mind when it comes to music. James: Electronic music is a bit like fashion in the sense that it goes through trends, one year its electro then its minimal and so on. I don't know what's next but people definitely follow trends in the way they do with clothes. It's a victim of its own success in that aspect. I just play what I like. And if that means it can sound dated or what isn't 'cool' then so be it. I like all sorts. Breaks, techno, house: it's all good! I suppose like anyone else it's mostly the music you hear growing up that influences your tastes. I heard a lot of 90's rave music through my Dad who ran a record shop so I have a rave and acid house element to my music tastes. Skruff.com: How is it to work with such big labels and clubs, do they expect a certain style of sound of you to make sure your sets and mixes meet certain expectations, or is it a natural mutual attraction? Nic: Obviously you have to adapt - without actually compromising yourself musically! That's all part of being a good DJ. Of course it's always nice for a DJ to be able surprise the audience (smiles). Skrufff.com: Do you view yourselves as stars, or do you feel you are nothing more than two normal guys who make the crowd dance? James: Well I can't speak for Nic but I am the nerd in this partnership for sure. If there was a rock star in this project it wouldn't be me! I'll be the one who is in the internet Café on my computer and in the game shops! I'll be playing my Xbox where possible, so sadly I'm not a star, more a skater type of guy who never grows up! Kos, our warm up DJ for the tour is the rockstar of the group - he's there to make us credible! Haha. Nic: I don't know - I try not to think about in that way, otherwise it gets a bit weird. I am just grateful to be doing what I am doing. Skrufff.com: Can you tell us what you are most looking forward with One+One? James: Other than great gigs of course, I'm looking forward to traveling and touring with a good friend. Driving across the USA in a van and getting to see places. I'm very excited about this. I've been constantly traveling on my own for a few years now so this will be a real experience to be shared. Skrufff.com: What are your plans for the future? Do you have plans for making a real artist album? Nic: I am still working on the Buick Project stuff (there is an album in the pipeline) and Nic Fanciulli stuff, like remixes and other bits and pieces, but for the last few months I have really been concentrating on One+One. James: I have made a track called 'Human', there is an unfinished version of it on the One+One album. It will be out on Renaissance soon, and I am just making the B side for that now. However, the One+One project is my priority at the moment. "Ministry of Sound Recordings presents... One+One" is out on Ministry of Sound. Interview: kat at planetkat dot com. KLinks: www.nicfanciulli.com www.jameszabiela.co.uk www.myspace.com/oneplusone |
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