Dom has a
unique knack behind the decks, energy is definitely one of his most obvious
components as anyone who's seen him perform will testify to. There's no
chance that he'll stand there and casually fade between tracks. What he
does so wonderfully is select music from a palette that's wide ranging
and challenging, yet put it together in an upbeat and crowd pleasing way
that has dancefloors from Budapest to Aberdeen going nuts. His music choice
is the other most prominent component. Going from super up front nu jazz
to grinding jazzy hip hop, from old soul to gritty funk, from folk to
big band jazz and pretty much any genre you'd care to mention, Dom has
it all covered in his vinyl arsenal (no pun intended, he doesn't support
Chelsea if you know what I mean). OK, there are many DJs that play in
an eclectic style, but Dom does stand out and it's hard to dissect it
all for the exact reason. It has to be 'feel'. Either you have it or you
don't. A DJ can be technically excellent and have all the best records,
but he or she won't sound great if they can't put those records together
in an order that creates excitement on a dancefloor. Having the nerve
to go between Public Enemy and Lulu is something Dom will do, and make
it work (ok, that's a guessed at mix, but you get my drift). It's this
ability to just know what and when to play it, coupled with his insane
energy behind the decks that makes him the force that he is.
In the last
couple of years, Dom's career has blossomed. He left his day job as a
studio engineer to fully concentrate on DJing and music. The Wah Wah 45s
label has gone from an occasional release to something more driven, championing
new acts and giving them the exposure they deserve. People like Talc,
Max Cole, Bellaruche and so on.  Writing for Straight No Chaser as LP/singles
reviewer also compliments that desire to spread 'good' music to a wider
audience, as does his DJ schedule. Dom is a firm fixture on the European
DJ circuit, regulary playing and hugging his way round France, Germany,
Norway etc.
One could
say that he's the new Gilles Peterson. Why not? Like Gilles' early career,
Dom has his finger in all the right pies, commits to all of it with a
burning passion and loves to spin as much as he possibly can. If he has
his way, I'm sure Wah Wah 45s will get the presence of Talkin Loud for
example, and that he might even end up on Radio 1 presenting a show where
he'll not only play amazing music, but have all his comedy heros in to
have a laugh. It might read 'Dom and Bruce's jazz throwdown', you just
never know.
So
step up Mr. Servini, and tell us all about it...
1.
When and where did you get into DJing?
I
started playing records for the kids, in public like, in the early 90's.
My first outings were in Brighton, where I was at Uni, which had a pretty
strong scene at the time. i remember not being able to mix for toffee,
generally cacking myself, and freaking out about spinning along side Snowboy!!
He's a scary bugger when you meet him for the first time (think Gripper
Stebson from Grange Hill meets Tito Puente) but is actually a sweetheart
on the whole.
2.
What was your first club night?
My
first two residencies were both in Brighton. A latin/Brasilian night (with
Snowboy,and the smallest DJ in the world, Little Simon) called Bombassa;
and a Friday night funk and (acid)jazz session at The Escape Club imaginatively
called Thank Funk It's Friday (cringe...i didn't name it!). That was a
strange session where the after 11pm crowd stayed in the club and hid
behind a curtain whilst all the other early drinkers were thrown out,
then the original crowd re-appeared from behind the curtain (a bit like
the shop keeper in Mr. Ben) and we would start the late night club session...
very odd, but fun!
3.
You are well respected for playing energetic and eclectic sets. Do you
have a particular ethos as a DJ?
It's
corny, but it's 'Edutainment'. There's no point in playing rare and obscure
oddities all night that are going to alienate people, but equally spinning
the 'hits' all night involves little talent and doesn't push anything
on musically.I
know alot of people just want to hear songs they know. I guess I understand
why, but if I was a punter then I can't imagine anything more exciting
than 'losing it' on the dance floor to an amazing record that I've never
heard before!! For me it's all about balance; a little of bit of quality
music you might know, and a heavy dose of fresh shit (be it from the 1960's
or coming out in 2008) that you don't! I really enjoy mixing up as many
styles as possible when I play...if i get bored spinning two hours of
funk, or two hours of hip hop, then I'd expect the crowd to too. I like
my sets to be full of peaks and troughs, in terms of energy, cos everyone
deserves a little rest!!
 4.
Who are your influences?
DJ-wise it's
Chris and Simon Goss (the former technically one of the finest DJs in
the world, the latter a major influence in my interest in funk and jazz
music); plus, the usual names like Peterson, Phillips and Forge as they
hosted the quality radio shows that I grew up with. Musically for me it's
Steely Dan, Marvin & Stevie, Joni Mitchell, Linda Lewis, Airto, Flora
and too many others to mention. I would also say that British humour,
especially Python and Fawlty Towers, has influenced my outlook and ability
not to take things too seriously either. Oh, and I also have to include
the funniest man who ever lived, Bill Hicks
.5.
With the music business in a massive state of change in the UK, changes
in licensing laws, download culture and myspace etc. How do you see the
role of a DJ in these times?
We're in
a state of flux. No doubt. And we have to get through it. All I will say
is that if you've got the basic principles right - quality music, a realistic
outlook, good artists, and hard work - then you'll make it through. Myspace
etc is just another outlet to promote our music and find new people who
are interested in it... it's also a great way of finding new artists!
Downloads are a constant but minimal income for us.. I guess this can
only grow in the long-term. People need to realise though, when they're
downloading music for free (illegally) they are conspiring in a possible
destruction of the music industry... forget global warming, this IS serious!!
You're taking money straight out of the hands of artists who work bloody
hard to make ends meet. People need to think about this more.The
role of the DJ, for me, hasn't, or at least shouldn't, really change. As
much as I embrace new technology, i do think that dj-wise it can make people
lazy. Serrato, for me, is a load of old nonesense. It's a cold, emotionless
medium that encourages djs to use low-quality mp3s and look like they're
checking their e-mails instead of rocking a club! I don't see how having
1000's of tunes to hand via your lap-top can make you a better dj, but i
do see how it can make you a worse one!! For me, being a good dj means making
the party work with the 50 or 60 records you have in your bag. It's an art.
You are not a juke-box, and I'm afraid that alot of djs will get lazy and
always reach for the hits on their laptop, instead of using their brains
and digging deep into their box for that tune that'll turn the party around.
DJs often use the excuse of being fed up of dragging their records around
after them all the time - I'm sorry, but this is a lame excuse. Go to the
gym! Stop puffing weed 24/7!! You're a well paid dj jetting all over the
globe, getting paid decent money to play your favourite music!! Pull your
trolley behind you - you lazy twat. I hate Serrato. Is that clear??
6.
What changes have you seen during the time you've been DJing?
In
terms of the DJ him/herself I guess i'll refer you to the last question.
In terms of the clubs and crowds, things have changed. Somethings for
the better, others worse. But everything is cyclical, and change is inevitable.
The problem these days is that 'scenes', in the traditional sense, don't
really exist - especially in 'dance' music. With technological advances,
kids can listen to whatever they want, whenever they want. It's not really
about going to a sweaty basement on a tuesday night to catch a certain
band or dj, and meeting up with like-minded mates....they can 'speak'
to their mates all day on-line and share music in the same way. Although
I do think a backlash is coming (as I said, everything goes round in circles)
and i think live music is coming back. I've noticed it in big London already,
and it's  a good, good thing. I think people are more interested in live
music now (the full-on dirty, noisy experience) than ever, and it does
seem to be a growing way for artists to sell their music - old skool,
after a gig - cash in hand!
7.
What are your current club projects?
At the moment
I'm personally over-seeing a live jazz revolution in London. I run two
jazz nights: a little club session called Jazzin' and a weekly jazz/jam
called Favourite Things which has seen the likes of Fertile Ground and
Nostalgia 77 popping in to join in! I'm also running my bi-monthly Wah
Wah Live session @ Cargo with Simon Goss which is rich mixture of live
bands (mostly from our label) and djs. It's a really ace night, full of
energy and a celebration of live music. It's always packed. We also hold
the odd one off at places like the Jazz Cafe, and a few other cool little
places around town.
8.
You seem to travel for many European gigs, how do you find that and what
are the scenes like in various European countries?
I
absolutely love going abroad to dj, although i do feel a bit guilty about
my enormous 'carbon imprint' right now! Generally, Eastern Europe is doing
it for me - the people there are open-minded and embrace music they don't
know with both arms and wiggling hips and feet! I also enjoy playing in
Germany (especially in the south) and France alot. I played on a boat
in Lyon recently for 100s of Lyonaise who danced their asses off for 5
hours to jazz, disco, broken beats, house, funk, soul, latin and rock!
That... is a party.
9.
What other DJ/promoter duties do you have, radio, press, concerts etc?
I promote
all the Wah Wah nights we do, as well as my jazz nights, and act as a
kind of manager for two bands on the Wah Wah 45s label, Talc (Steely Dan
meets Python) and Scrimshire (up and coming outfit that encompass soul,
jazz, folk and house!). I take care of all of Wah Wah 45s press and also
write press releases for a few other labels, including Altered Vibes,
Foundation and Counterpoint. My writing skills (if you can call them that)
got me a job as singles review editor for Straight No Chaser magazine,
a zine that I still write for, and now contribute major articles to.
10. Why
did you start Wah Wah 45's and who is involved?
I didn't
actually start it!! The label was started by Chris and Simon Goss (with
a little help from Adrian Gibson) on the back of their sessions at The
Jazz Cafe of the same name.
11. What
is the musical idea of the label?
The original
idea was to represent the music played in the club. So the first few 7-inch
releases featured an old funk or soul  track on one side and a new cut
on the other. However,
the licensing of old music legally in small amounts proved tooexpensive,
and after I joined the label in 2001 I guess I've helped steer it into a
more forward thinking label. We've received plaudits from the likes of Gilles
Peterson et al, and i think the label is now taken pretty seriously (although
not too much I hope ;-)
12.
What are your future plans?
Our second
compilation 'Underground Hits and Exclusive Bits : Two' will be out in
mid-May, with a big launch at Cargo to go with it, and then there'll be
a new Talc single to pre-empt their festival gigs this summer; a release
from Landslide feat. Ernesto; then a 7-inch from Norwegian combo Luna
& Bazis; another single from Scrimshire; one or two from Jamie Finlay;
then at the end of the year it's all about the Scrimshire album and the
new Talc long-player. I think I'll also be going to Japan with Talc, which
should be completely insane. (We've just signed their album over there).
Going to the local pub with them is usually pretty insane, so Japan should
be a blast.
14.
What advice would you give to young DJs and promoters, or anyone wanting
to get into the music biz?
Don't
do it!! Only kidding. Just be realistic, work hard and hug lots of people
and tell them you love them.
It worked for me.
15.
What's your dream concert?
Dom Servini Live and Naked in Norway (Ladies Only).
16.
And anything else you want to say?
Kids. Get off your arses and go out and listen to some live music. Don't
download illegally, and don't watch ITV. It's rubbish.
Links
Dom on myspace
Wah Wah 45s
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