Sven Vath is a name synonymous with good times. His music is a fusion of the purest techno and the most modern elements of the experimental electronic scene in Germany. He’s mad as a hatter to boot, ready to dress up on the front cover of his CDs. He’s even kissed boys – in the name of art of course (or rather his latest film clip).
Sven Vath recently caught up with OUTinPerth, calling from Phuket where he was spending an afternoon lazing by the pool with his very beautiful wife.
How’s Phuket? Very relaxing. I’m enjoying my big vacation with my wife, here. We’re having really great weather here, it’s sunny, and enjoying every day in the sun on the beach. In my home country, in Germany, it’s snowing since six weeks and we’re quite glad that we’re here at the moment.
Is this a short break before you hit the road to do all the festivals? Well, it’s a long break, it’s actually a month’s holiday, and I’m going to start my world tour this coming Friday in Singapore and then I’m touring ’til the end of May, including my festival tour in Australia, in Future Festival. It’s going to be my second one and I’m really looking forward to that one.
How did you find the last time you were in Australia? Well to be honest enough, it was the bomb for me because I hadn’t played in Australia I think for five years, and then coming back to Australia on such a big festival, and I was headlining with Chemical Brothers and John Digweed and I think we all had a lot of fun together. For me, it was nice to see that the people really were up for my music, for the techno and house music I play, the modern, I would say more new techno interpretation of German sound, which is quite popular for many years. The feedback was unbelievable and I think I have some really great shows there. In the beginning I was a little bit irritated that the festivals are all happening on the daytime, and that they’re closing so early in the evening, but I think it has to do with the law in Australia, and we had some events, like in Adelaide, where we had I think about 40 degrees in the daytime and there was not much shadow on the festival. It was kind of hard work for the dancers, for the people who came to see us.
What can you tell us about the new album? My latest mix CD, which is related to my event I’m doing since ten years in Ibiza. I’m running this Cocoon night, at Amnesia, for ten years, and we became the most successful night and I would say musically, I think one of the most interesting nights on the island. I’ve dedicated to my club night, in Ibiza, every year at the end of the season, a mix CD, and last year was the tenth season and it’s called Sven Vath and the Mixed Sound Of The 10th Season, which is a double CD plus a DVD. The DVD is a filming, a documentation, about the whole project; how it all starts, how the thing came together and so on, and there was some live filming when I’m mixing, 45 minutes, we had Underworld performing live and we were allowed to film them. Also on the DVD… a lot of interviews by Richard Hawtin and local guys, Riccardo Villalobos. So I think it’s a quite interesting package, there’s a lot of information and of course good music.
How would you describe the sound that’s coming out of your club night at the moment? Well, I think it’s a modern interpretation of techno and house music of today. Contemporary house music and techno music, which in the past seven years, was a lot of German influence, in the music scene, especially in this genre. Speaking of Riccardo Villalobos or people like Reboot and so many others who started their own clubs in Germany, labels and so on, I think it’s quite popular. Ibiza, I think it’s still one of the places where people go to clubbing and having fun. Also, people from Australia come to our club nights in Ibiza and it’s still one of those places where you’ll find the hottest DJs playing in the summer. There’s no other place I think in the world where you can find, in a three month schedule, all the best DJs in the world playing. Every night, someone else. It makes the place very special.
When people come to see you at Future Music, what are three things you think every punter should bring? Definitely sunscreen, enough money to get drinks, and of course sunglasses.
Obviously you’ve played quite a few festivals around the world. Do you have an all-time festival story that you can share with out readers, that’s either happened to you or someone you know? I had a great moment two years ago on the Future Festival, when I played after this rock band. This was the show in Sydney, and I played in Sydney on my stage but I was playing after a rock band from Norway and so they left their drum kit onstage and everything and they were putting my DJ booth in front of their live set-up, and then when I was to start playing, I was in such a good mood and I had a lot of nice screaming people in front of me. It was very full-on and when I was playing I started slowly to play with the drum kits behind me more and more. I had the drum sticks in my hand and I was playing and there was then a moment when I was hitting the cymbal. And then there was security watching me doing this, and then suddenly I was running in front of stage and I was jumping on security’s shoulder, the guy who was standing down with the crowd before the stage, I was jumping on his shoulder, and the other security came and he was passing over the cymbal and I was playing in front of the crowd and the security was running with me up and down the stage. It was so much fun. And then on the end the rock n roll band, they were looking at me because I was more and more taking all of their equipment, at the end they said to me “Now we know that there must come a DJ and show us what rock ‘n’ roll is all aboutâ€.
Sven Vath will be appearing at Future Music at Ascot Racecourse on Sunday February 28. For further info about the festival’s lineup and to purchase tickets visit www.futuremusicfestival.com.au.
Scott-Patrick Mitchell
