GTA: Do you think it’s innovation like that that separates the big dogs of the DJ community from your average run-of-the-mill DJ? That kind of hands-on approach to DJ-ing?
SL: You know, I don’t know. I’m a bit of an old skool way of thinking which is, I just literally get in there, do what I love, and if anyone else wants to make their opinions on that, then they can. I don’t know what differs a great DJ from not a great DJ. I think the one thing is dedication. Tenaglia is up there with the best in my eyes because of his sheer, you know, dedication to what he does.
GTA: Did you like it when people compared you to Danny Tenaglia? Calling you “The U.K.’s Danny Tenaglia”?
SL: Well you know, Danny Tenaglia—for me, I was buying his records when I was 19, you know? So to be compared to Danny Tenaglia was—it was quite a nice compliment. But at the same time, it was slightly ridiculous because we’re both very different DJs. We have similarities in some of the tracks that we play, we have similarities in [that] we like to play long sets, et cetera, et cetera, you know? It’s just kind of the way press works sometimes—they want to try to associate something with something.
GTA: Have you tried to distance yourself from that kind of hype in your career? Is it dangerous to fall into that trap?
SL: Yeah I don’t like to fall into any genre—I’m often called a “progressive house DJ.” I just close my eyes to that. I don’t classify myself as a progressive house DJ. I don’t classify myself as any category that can be put out there. I just do what I do.
GTA: By and large, do you think today’s producers lack that attention to detail? Has this market become saturated with producers and remixers and DJs?
SL: Unfortunately, yeah. It has. But the true will stand tall, I think. The ones that are true to what they do for the right reasons are the ones that will survive.
GTA: And when you’re creating music—I mean, you alluded to this a moment before—but when you’re in the studio creating music, do you think, “How is this going to play in my sets?” Or, “How is this going to play in other DJ sets? Will other DJs play this record?” Especially when you’re making commercial records, you know?
SL: Me, personally, when I make a record, I just think how it’s going to sound in my set. I don’t really—which is a probably a bad thing, actually, I mean, yeah, it probably is a bad thing, thinking of it—I’ve never really thought of it like that before, but—I just close my eyes in the studio and imagine my vision of a dance floor, which is something that I see when I play. So I’m kind of imagining it being played at a certain part in my set, I guess, as opposed to anyone else’s.
GTA: How much longer are you on tour here in the United States?
SL: Well, we’re at the end. We’ve got one more day tomorrow in Miami, and, yeah, it’s done! Three weeks—quite a heavy tour—and it’s been fantastic. I mean, the States really is on form right now. I’ve had a great time here. The gigs have been sellouts. We’ve had a couple of small parties which have been just as much fun, but by and large it’s been a very successful tour.
GTA: How often do you come back to the Unites States every year? When are you going to be back?
SL: I’m going to be back around the [Winter Music] Conference time, of course—like everyone else. But, yeah, I kind of—I like to just concentrate on different territories at different times, so I guess I’ll probably be coming to America three or four times a year, not more than that.
