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Tim Red Interview
House | Thursday 8th November 2012 | Osh
Tim Red's tech-house groovy sounds are a classic when it comes to London's nightlife. Performing for years in the mythic venue The End, he now hosts RED-ZONE radio show on HouseFM and keeps ruling the decks of only the most exclusive parties.
You started DJing in the early 90’s, what was the music scene like back then?
When I first got in to DJing properly techno and trance were very big and there was an almost harder than thou element to the DJs, pushing out more and more intense music with each set. The warehouse parties and squat raves were pretty incredible. House music was evolving and revolving in to the type of sounds that we hear today. I went through a bit of a renaissance at some point and started to need to hear more soul and groove in my music – music in my music! Around the same time the tech-house sound was developing which is very much part of my sound today.
In 1997 you started promoting and running exclusive warehouse parties in East London, called Armadillo. How did you manage to put it all together and obtain a faithful audience?
A lot of work went in to doing those parties. We did all the promotion, set up the parties, did the cloakroom and the bar and played the music. There’s nothing like doing it all your way though as you can control everything and make it just right for your crowd. We must have been doing something right as everyone digged it and we built up quite a following – so much so that The End asked us to do something at their place.
How would you describe your sound?
Hard on the outside, but soft on the inside – like an armadillo. My sound is pretty deep, occasionally tough, but always groovy.
Are there any rituals that you follow before a performance?
Hmmm, apart from going over all my tracks to see if they make the grade, not especially. I like to bring along a range of grooves and then react to the dancefloor. My sets are never prepared – always spontaneous. I do still get butterflies sometimes though!
You were DJing with Luke vB in The End for 8 years. How do you feel the closure of this renowned club impacted your career?
Well for me that was the end of doing a regular party. We did have offers to take Blonde elsewhere but I never felt the vibe was right. I have done occasional warehouse parties as the Invisible College, which have been immense, but I’m an old dog now and they tire me out too much! I do still DJ for Superfreq occasionally and for parties where it feels right but I now concentrate most on my RED-ZONE radio show on HouseFM.
You were running Blonde nights in the AKA part of the club, which received great reviews form the big media outlets like the Guardian, and Time Out. What do you think made Blonde nights so special?
Well it was a perfect combination of a great crowd, great music and a great venue. Man, we had such times at that place. Luke and I use to warm up before the guest came on and then finish off at the end and we had such a connection to the people there, it was pretty much perfect!
You had lots of guests during those nights, which DJ’s do you enjoy working with the most?
My favourite DJ to work with will always be my old partner in crime Luke VB. We’ve DJ’d with each other for such a long time we can almost read each other’s minds where it comes to music. The best nights we played together back to back and were in competition with each other to drop the best (or sickest) track. I very much enjoy the back to back process and he’s the best to do it with.
That being said, I have always enjoyed Mr C’s sets, he flipping rocks.
What is your favourite venue to perform at?
Definitely Fabric – I feel like a kid in a sweetshop whenever I play there. The system is sooooo immense. After that The End and AKA -rest in peace!- then the early Secretsundaze parties at the Poet. Oh and Space Terrace was pretty damn cool too.
You host RED-ZONE, a weekly radio show on the world renowned HouseFM, tell us what the show is about?
The show is about playing the freshest, hottest new dance tackle each week to get the new sounds out there. The music ranges from house to techno and is selected from all the new promos and releases from the week that have made the grade! You can pick up the archive here http://red-zone .podomatic.com or search Tim Red on Google! The show goes out on Thursday’s 8-10pm to get you ready for the weekend.
Have you discovered a lot of new talent thanks to the show?
Yes absolutely, it’s great to be able to get guests down and listen to them do their stuff. There are some great unsung heroes out there. We have a very open policy towards the guests – they play what they want. Along with some of the bigger names we have had down, some of the new talent is very good. The Pushamann who runs NoN Music immediately springs to mind as someone who’s got it going on.
What are your current projects?
Well just the radio show really and the odd bit of DJing out. I am working on a track with a couple of people that’s almost finished – we’ll see what occurs with that…
Can you give us an exclusive?
Well, when the track’s out you can have first dibs!
If you were invisible for the day what trouble would you get up to?
Ha ha, well apart from the obvious female worrying I’d like to get in to those secret government meetings and find out what’s really going on. Like, do they turn in to lizards when nobody is watching?
We know you performed recently at Tangerine party at the Bussey Building. To finish the interview, can you give us a quick review of the night from the DJ’s point of view.
I love to DJ for the Tangerine guys. I consider them friends and they have a really good attitude to doing parties. They have been doing the party in Camden which has been a hoot, but this time they ventured south. The Bussey building is very cool, got that bohemian south London chic thing going on. The music was great – I came on after Justin and stepped things up a gear and the crowd really got in to it. I was a bit tired from overdoing it the night before but the crowd really woke me up. All in all a top night and would definitely do it again.
By Laura Vila
@LaursTime
This is one of Tim's favourite tracks at the moment. "Herlihy being immense", he said.
