simon baker has risen through the ranks over the last few years. as resident at asylum & technique in his hometown of leeds, and at ddd in the country’s capital, he has warmed up thousands and thousands of clubbers for the big names djs who followed. putting to use his understanding of the dancefloor, he released a track in 2004 called ‘the liptrick’ originally as a white label, only for fellow leeds star ralph lawson to snap it up on his 2020 vision label.
a year later in 2005 baker decided to set up his own imprint to give total control of his output and, although that is now on the backburner, his productions and dj reputation have earned him gigs across the globe from the us to asia, south america to aus.
whilst anyone with more than a passing interest in electronic music would no doubt sell their mother to become a world touring dj, it must have its downsides. imagine always living out of a bag, spending long periods alone travelling or killing time waiting for your slot, spending time away from partners and family, your nice x-box set-up and tv....to that end, i found out from simon about life as a touring dj..
after a gig the night before – where do you normally stay, with who?
after a gig, back to the hotel usually. depending who am with, i might head to an afterparty. ok, i often head to the afterparty!
before a gig i usually hang out in the hotel and sort my music out, chill out. sometimes i will go for dinner with the promoters. all depends how i am feeling.
what time do you get up? what/where/when do you eat?
sleeping as a dj (if you get to bed) is usually hindered by a hotel check out or an early flight. my sleeps often are cut in half for this reason. i eat a loada crap when on the road. any sort of healthy diet goes right down the pan.
is it then off for a plane or train to get to the next gig?
yeh that’s it, planes trains and automobiles, off we go…
what do you do during any journeys... ??
if i haven’t slept, i will often just relax as much as i can and keep my head together in various situations you have to deal with. ie airport queues, security and so on. i actually have a category on my ipod purely called “airport queues” it helps me a lot!!!
i am shit at sleeping on moving things, so rarely catch up on sleep in between (which isn’t ideal in this job. i really envy those fuckers who sleep on planes as soon as they sit in their seat) but when i am feeling ok, i will do music stuff, go through tracks, make some new ideas/loops, or just watch a film on my laptop or read something. it’s all utilising the time when you’re on the road. you have lots of it if touring, so just have to make the most of it.
what do you do when you arrive in the city you’re playing in?
get picked up, go to hotel. sleep, eat. if it's early in the day i will go for a walk around and try and see some of the place i am in. i like to do the tourist thing as much as i can, after all i go to some amazing places in the world, but its not always possible. i usually only get to see the airport, motorway and club.
what do you do in the hours leading up to the gig... just hang around in hotels?!
yeh, chill , watch films, make music, go through tracks for the gig. drink the mini bar dry etc etc.
are you alone a lot of the time?
yup sure am. it’s actually great when you know someone in a city to hang out with. means so much more to share experiences i think. the job is definitely a solitary one, so you need to be happy with yourself and comfortable travelling around on your own most of the time. even though i am cool with it, i will always jump at the chance of a gig with someone i know.
what are the best/worst things about it?
the worst – well, as above. it can be lonely at times. it can also be fucking gruelling doing gig after gig, night after night on a tour, and getting on planes in between. i can hear people maybe saying…ohhhh diddums, what a hardship etc etc, but until you’ve experienced it…..it can be tough going believe you me!
the best - having stupious amounts of fun doing what i love, partying round the world, playing and making music , and getting paid for it. if i am ever pissed off sat in an airport waiting for a delayed flight on a cold sunday night, after 2 nights of no sleep and just wishing i could be home in bed, i just remind myself….i used to work for a corporate load of shite 9 to 5, sat behind a desk pen pushing, getting told what to do by kids younger than myself. it really helps the situation believe me !
Simon tours North America in December and has the following releases out now:
'Magicbag Sampler 2' feat Simon Baker, DOTB, Patrick Graeser & Josh Tweek * Magicbag
Simon Baker 'Moonblock / Dragsnap' * murmur
1 comments:
respect to the Yorkshire lad :)
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