DJ Spooky is one of the 21st century's most innovative jazz remixer. His latest album is Dubtometry is a remix of Optometry. A teacher, intellectual, musician and helicopter joyrider. How many of those do you know of?
Check out DJ Spooky's website.
Daniel Robert Epstein: Obviously your new record label, Synchronic is really important to you. How did you find the artist Saul Williams?
DJ Spooky: I've worked with him for years.
DRE: Could he not get signed?
DS: No it was just a fun project among friends. I did the score to a film called Slam in 1996 that won the Sundance Film Festival award, Cannes Film Festival and Saul was the star of that movie.
DRE: Your latest album Dubtometry is a remix of Optometry. Optometry is one of the best DJ albums out there. What made you decide to remix it?
DS: I like doing projects and working with a large variety of people. So I just thought it was a cool idea to rope in Lee "Scratch" Perry and Mad Professor, who are two of my favorite dub heads. Lee "Scratch" Perry produced all of Bob Marley's first albums so it was kind of a reaching out to see what he's up to. To have him check out some jazz and see what he comes up with.
DRE: But it's not like you were unhappy with Optometry.
DS: No I love the album. Do you remember that Massive Attack album Lee "Scratch" Perry did a few years ago?
DRE: Sure.
DS: I was kind of fascinated with that album and the way he flipped the vocals and added all those weird spaced out effects. I wanted to see what he would do with jazz.
DRE: I put it into my computer to listen to it and this movie came up. Did you help make that?
DS: No that's a woman who does these really interesting found footage movies. Again since the album is made of cut up jazz so we wanted to do a collage film. For me the album is made up of jazz musicians I sampled so the film is the same kind of work process.
DRE: I did read that you mixed up the film "Birth of a Nation".
DS: That's a different kind of thing and it's coming out in a while.
DRE: What made you decide to tackle that?
DS: America, Bush, something. I just wanted to point out that history has ways of repeating. If you think about it the election of 2000, the way Bush cheated on the whole thing and the reconstruction of Iraq. These things are very old school going back hundreds of years with notions of world peace. It's the old school American way.
DRE: So you agree with [filmmaker] Michael Moore?
DS: Sure. I think he needed to say [what he said in his speech at the Academy Awards]. Have they found any weapons of mass destruction? No. Operation Iraqi freedom is just ridiculous. Also this tax cut Bush is doing. Who's going to pay for the war? How is this going to affect America? That's why I'm calling it a Re-Birth of a Nation. I want to take it back to that old school and say fuck everything.
DRE: The works that you do aren't subjects that DJs usually tackle. Do you ever feel isolated?
DS: Nah. Each to their own. I like dealing with a lot of different people and scenes. I'm always moving around.
DRE: I read somewhere that you feel like a penguin in Jamaica when seeing DJs such as Automator or DJ Shadow.
DS: [laughs] Yeah but everybody is going to do their own thing. A lot of DJs in a lot of scenes kind of put together a certain group of people. My style is to do this as an artist and I have to come up with new ways to do things. That implies that it's not just me hanging out with my homies and having a beer or something. I love what Q-bert and DJ Krush are up to.
DRE: Are you still a professor of music mediated art [at the European Graduate School in New York and Hamburg]?
DS: Yeah that's every summer.
DRE: How did that come about?
DS: I get a lot of calls to do lectures and stuff. Right now I'm in the middle of finishing my book so I'm kind of doing even more lectures. The school found out and asked me to teach.
DRE: What kind of students do you get?
DS: People who just want to learn and figure out new things.
DRE: What's your book about?
DS: There are two books. One is called Rhythm Science and the other is called Sound Unbound. They're both collections of essays. It's the usual mix-up of things.
DRE: Since Fatboy Slim hit it so big people are calling DJs the new rock stars.
DS: Maybe. I guess the whole rock star thing is kind of old.
DRE: I thought DJs were supposed to be invisible.
DS: It could be a combination but for me it's just a hobby and a fun time.
DRE: A hobby? Then I guess you don't rake in the cash with the albums.
DS: No I'm doing ok. That's not the only reason that I'm doing it.
DRE: How do your degrees in French literature and philosophy expand your music?
DS: It's just a sense of context and trying to think of music not just as having a party but as a core part of this life and world.
DRE: It seems that Great Britain always gets all the credit for electronic music.
DS: Yeah so much of this stuff is an American response to technology. The underground in the US has got so many amazing things going on but I find that we don't support it. The things have to get to England, get the hype and then come back here.
DRE: Do you feel that there is any new kind of DJ sound that's going to pop?
DS: Naw. It's all going to be micro niche. Everyone is just going to having their own style and then things will slowly just evolve.
DRE: How did growing up in the punk scene in Washington DC turn you into a DJ?
DS: It doesn't [laughs]. Basically it's just a hobby. I started out as a writer and artist. I just like music and I collect records and my dad left me his record collection. So I just get a kick out of it.
DRE: How many instruments can you play?
DS: I can play upright bass and guitar a little bit.
DRE: We have mostly punk, emo and Goth girls on our site. What is your favorite?
DS: I guess being from DC and being into the old school punk scene. That was the way I grew up. I used to have bright green dreadlocks so I guess post-rock, art rock ladies. Some of that could be Bikini Kill type ladies or maybe Stereolab type girls.
DRE: What's your favorite kind of pornography?
DS: The healthy kind. It's a little bit of open ended statement but as long as people do things that keep them in good health and have a good time in life I support.
DRE: What's your favorite thing to do in New York City?
DS: Take a helicopter ride. You bring friends; the helicopter goes all over and even turns upside down at one point. It's pretty intense. You realize you can be this bubble over the city.
by Daniel Robert Epstein
Check out DJ Spooky's website.
Daniel Robert Epstein: Obviously your new record label, Synchronic is really important to you. How did you find the artist Saul Williams?
DJ Spooky: I've worked with him for years.
DRE: Could he not get signed?
DS: No it was just a fun project among friends. I did the score to a film called Slam in 1996 that won the Sundance Film Festival award, Cannes Film Festival and Saul was the star of that movie.
DRE: Your latest album Dubtometry is a remix of Optometry. Optometry is one of the best DJ albums out there. What made you decide to remix it?
DS: I like doing projects and working with a large variety of people. So I just thought it was a cool idea to rope in Lee "Scratch" Perry and Mad Professor, who are two of my favorite dub heads. Lee "Scratch" Perry produced all of Bob Marley's first albums so it was kind of a reaching out to see what he's up to. To have him check out some jazz and see what he comes up with.
DRE: But it's not like you were unhappy with Optometry.
DS: No I love the album. Do you remember that Massive Attack album Lee "Scratch" Perry did a few years ago?
DRE: Sure.
DS: I was kind of fascinated with that album and the way he flipped the vocals and added all those weird spaced out effects. I wanted to see what he would do with jazz.
DRE: I put it into my computer to listen to it and this movie came up. Did you help make that?
DS: No that's a woman who does these really interesting found footage movies. Again since the album is made of cut up jazz so we wanted to do a collage film. For me the album is made up of jazz musicians I sampled so the film is the same kind of work process.
DRE: I did read that you mixed up the film "Birth of a Nation".
DS: That's a different kind of thing and it's coming out in a while.
DRE: What made you decide to tackle that?
DS: America, Bush, something. I just wanted to point out that history has ways of repeating. If you think about it the election of 2000, the way Bush cheated on the whole thing and the reconstruction of Iraq. These things are very old school going back hundreds of years with notions of world peace. It's the old school American way.
DRE: So you agree with [filmmaker] Michael Moore?
DS: Sure. I think he needed to say [what he said in his speech at the Academy Awards]. Have they found any weapons of mass destruction? No. Operation Iraqi freedom is just ridiculous. Also this tax cut Bush is doing. Who's going to pay for the war? How is this going to affect America? That's why I'm calling it a Re-Birth of a Nation. I want to take it back to that old school and say fuck everything.
DRE: The works that you do aren't subjects that DJs usually tackle. Do you ever feel isolated?
DS: Nah. Each to their own. I like dealing with a lot of different people and scenes. I'm always moving around.
DRE: I read somewhere that you feel like a penguin in Jamaica when seeing DJs such as Automator or DJ Shadow.
DS: [laughs] Yeah but everybody is going to do their own thing. A lot of DJs in a lot of scenes kind of put together a certain group of people. My style is to do this as an artist and I have to come up with new ways to do things. That implies that it's not just me hanging out with my homies and having a beer or something. I love what Q-bert and DJ Krush are up to.
DRE: Are you still a professor of music mediated art [at the European Graduate School in New York and Hamburg]?
DS: Yeah that's every summer.
DRE: How did that come about?
DS: I get a lot of calls to do lectures and stuff. Right now I'm in the middle of finishing my book so I'm kind of doing even more lectures. The school found out and asked me to teach.
DRE: What kind of students do you get?
DS: People who just want to learn and figure out new things.
DRE: What's your book about?
DS: There are two books. One is called Rhythm Science and the other is called Sound Unbound. They're both collections of essays. It's the usual mix-up of things.
DRE: Since Fatboy Slim hit it so big people are calling DJs the new rock stars.
DS: Maybe. I guess the whole rock star thing is kind of old.
DRE: I thought DJs were supposed to be invisible.
DS: It could be a combination but for me it's just a hobby and a fun time.
DRE: A hobby? Then I guess you don't rake in the cash with the albums.
DS: No I'm doing ok. That's not the only reason that I'm doing it.
DRE: How do your degrees in French literature and philosophy expand your music?
DS: It's just a sense of context and trying to think of music not just as having a party but as a core part of this life and world.
DRE: It seems that Great Britain always gets all the credit for electronic music.
DS: Yeah so much of this stuff is an American response to technology. The underground in the US has got so many amazing things going on but I find that we don't support it. The things have to get to England, get the hype and then come back here.
DRE: Do you feel that there is any new kind of DJ sound that's going to pop?
DS: Naw. It's all going to be micro niche. Everyone is just going to having their own style and then things will slowly just evolve.
DRE: How did growing up in the punk scene in Washington DC turn you into a DJ?
DS: It doesn't [laughs]. Basically it's just a hobby. I started out as a writer and artist. I just like music and I collect records and my dad left me his record collection. So I just get a kick out of it.
DRE: How many instruments can you play?
DS: I can play upright bass and guitar a little bit.
DRE: We have mostly punk, emo and Goth girls on our site. What is your favorite?
DS: I guess being from DC and being into the old school punk scene. That was the way I grew up. I used to have bright green dreadlocks so I guess post-rock, art rock ladies. Some of that could be Bikini Kill type ladies or maybe Stereolab type girls.
DRE: What's your favorite kind of pornography?
DS: The healthy kind. It's a little bit of open ended statement but as long as people do things that keep them in good health and have a good time in life I support.
DRE: What's your favorite thing to do in New York City?
DS: Take a helicopter ride. You bring friends; the helicopter goes all over and even turns upside down at one point. It's pretty intense. You realize you can be this bubble over the city.
by Daniel Robert Epstein
VIEW 15 of 15 COMMENTS
myghtymikem30:
I have one record with crazy electric game sounds a flutre minimal beat and no vocals that haunts the room.
mutantbaby1:
I've been a fan of DJ Spooky since the late 90s. I his stuff.