- Lee Burridge presents a mix of ethereal techno for the ladies on this week's RA podcast.
- Known for delivering marathon 12-hour performances when he's given the chance (something hinted at by last year's Balance compilation, which spanned a mighty three CDs), Lee Burridge's sets take in a wide range of modern dancefloor sounds. Burridge made his name in the unlikely hotspot of Hong Kong during the superclub boom of the '90s, and, by the time he decided to move back to his native home of England, his contacts book was overflowing with the biggest names. It was here that he set up his Tyrant residency at Fabric with Craig Richards, and together they mixed some of the most celebrated compilations in the club's DJ mix series. Burridge is currently residing in San Francisco, where he's started up a new party entitled Get Weird and, perhaps in that spirit, Lee has come up with something different for his RA podcast; a mix of melancholic melodies and stripped back beats that is, according to him, strictly for the ladies.
Unfortunately there's no tracklisting with this one as Lee is having a bit of trouble remembering the names of the tracks, but hopefully the RA faithful will be able to piece it together in the forum. In the meantime, we caught up with Burridge by e-mail to ask him about the mix, the Get Weird parties and his forthcoming studio project.
What have you been working on recently?
I've been busy in San Francisco working on my new party, Get Weird. It's a work in progress which next year I want to grow to other cities. I'm not going to tell you much else other than it's been an interesting project to start and has, so far, been fantastic!
Where and how was the mix recorded?
I started the mix earlier in the year at home in London. I had certain mixes and other bits and pieces and ideas on my laptop after messing around with it on turntables. I put it away for a little bit as it was missing a track or two and the flow wasn't quite right. I wasn't really happy with it. I went back to it in August when I got to San Francisco as I found tracks that I thought would fit the vibe. I then used Ableton to piece all the bits and pieces together and add the a cappellas and extra little twists.
The mix is called "All Day I Dream of Her." Care to share?
I originally made it for Peanut. She's Camille's dog. Camille, my girlfriend, is always banging on about how much she misses Peanut when we travel so I made a mix of lovely dreamy, gorgeous, melancholic music that you can sit around and dream of said dog to. Or maybe I made it for Camille? I forget. I've only given it to a few girls so far so if you could keep it that way I'd be appreciative!
How is San Francisco treating you?
I love it. I'm (sadly) in the process of leaving again for a little while. I was planning on returning in January but for various reasons that isn't going to happen now. I'll be back there as soon as possible though. I'm now shooting for early May. Its underground scene is really inspiring and vibrant currently. I don't want to say too much right now as I want to establish what I'm doing a little more next year, but I will repeat this. I feel it has the potential of becoming America's equivalent of Berlin for electronic music. If you are a producer or DJ who feels like they need to move to an environment of likeminded people and don't feel like going to Germany, I really would encourage you to try San Francisco.
What is the weirdest thing you've seen at one of your Get Weird parties?
The six-foot lobster that arrived mid-party during the first Get Weird party and danced in front of the booth before stealing off into the night never to be seen again.
What are you up to next?
Planning out next year's Get Weird events, WMC, a little snowboarding, Sundance, the follow-up to this mix, moving city, what to buy my parents for Christmas, making dinner, landing in San Diego (I'm on the plane) and my upcoming South America tour. Apart from that, nothing.
Have you had much time in the studio this year?
I've been working on some music with Tim Green engineering for me. He's an amazing talent and I think we really haven't seen what he's capable of yet. His music is already of such a high quality and I feel it's only going to get better and better. I have a few tracks that are teetering on the edge of finished and four more that need a little more attention that I hope I can get out in early 2009. I've been working on an updated version of a track that never came out on Touché years ago. I'm not sure how they are going to feel about it though! I guess I'll approach them first to see if they're into it. If you see me in court next year, I guess they weren't.