A graduate of the new school of Detroit house & techno, Ryan Elliott’s reputation has been spreading rapidly over the world in recent years. A long-time friend and musical partner of the amazing Matthew Dear, he’s been part of the wave of new DJs that have breathed energy back into Detroit’s nightlife scene in the past decade, running his busy Tuesday night sessions at Goodnight Gracie from 2002 to 2004 alongside Dear, and being a resident for other key parties in the city’s musical fabric like Untitled and Oslo. Since mixing Spectral Sound’s inaugural double CD back in 2005 (the dancier sub-label to Ghostly International), he’s been a key part of their family, remixing big tracks like Audion’s classic Mouth To Mouth, and preparing a special project called Document for this summer.
The first time I….
…remember hearing music
My uncle’s Kiss albums. The pictures of the band in those crazy outfits, boots, and make-up scared the hell out of me. “I wanna rock and roll all night, and party every day” - something must have stuck. But music has always been the medium of art that spoke to me the most. As a kid I never really watched too much TV. I remember having a FisherPrice tape player, and wearing out tapes all the time. One specific time our family took a road trip from Detroit to the South, and I had just gotten the tape to the movie Breakin' . On that tape was Kraftwerk's Tour de France and I played it until the tape broke.
…fell in love with dance music
Early ‘90s east/west coast rap. Specifically, Dr. Dre and Snoop Dog. To me, that was the "dance music" of my youth. I played high school basketball, and the days of our games we would have to stay after school, until the games started in the evenings. We were supposed to be doing homework during those few hours of down time, but all me and my friends did was listen to The Chronic and Doggy Style or N.W.A. From an East Coast rap perspective, I loved Erik B, Nas, Grand Pubah, and of course A Tribe Called Quest. I always thought the West Coast guys had the beats, and the east had the lyrics.
…set foot in a club
Club X, Detroit. I think I was 18 or so. I never got into rave culture as a teenager. I know I'm supposed to say that living in Detroit, I was always educated in that area, but I wasn't. Only after coming home from university did I start to get into house and techno, and realized what I had been missing for years!
…was blown away by a DJ
Hawtin’s now legendary Control and Jak parties in Detroit. It was when he was in his DE9 phase - hearing Perlon and Playhouse records on massive systems was literally eye opening. The place the parties were thrown was a dodgy old hotel with lots of cracks. To see sunlight coming in those cracks in the morning would almost make you cry with joy.
…got trashed
Still haven’t.
…went to a festival
The first DEMF - 2000. I had been "trying" to DJ for 6 months or so before the first DEMF. I remember going for all of the three days, seeing all kinds of electronic music. Back then, it was a free festival, so you would get all kinds of "interesting" people down there, just to be around. Say what you will about Detroit, but it’s my hometown, and there is no place on earth like it.
…I tried to mix two records together / to play an instrument
I played the piano and trumpet when I was young. First time I tried mixing records was December 24th, 1999. I loved house and techno and clubbing by then, but it was my roommate’s idea to get decks. We had the Nunmark Scratch & Sample package - which was two horrible belt drive tables and an even worse mixer. But, that's all it took; I was completely in love with DJing. Everything from records to needles, to tables, to mixers, to CDJs, to reading a crowd….it grabbed me and still has me completely obsessed.
…played to an audience
Shortly thereafter. A friend had me DJ their going away party. No monitors, etc. I’d LOVE to have a recording of those trainwrecks. But I remember how nervous I was for the show. How much I cared. I had to carry my whole set up, for no fee, and was so, so happy to do it. The old Detroit anthem Sandwiches was the song of the night!!
…played abroad
Fabric. July 9th, 2005. I know that is hard to believe, but true. I remember going to fabric before I ever started DJing, and loving it so much. I played in Room 2 back-to-back with my good friend Matthew Dear. I'll never forget it.
…fucked up during a set
Never mix business and pleasure.
…made a track
Summer 2006. I started out using Reason on headphones. I'll still don't consider myself a "producer", but gradually I've progressed. To me producing is DJing on more of a micro level. Instead of mixing songs, your mixing sounds.
Ryan Elliot plays Mulletover’s Anti-Valentine’s Party. Click the link for full details: http://www.datatransmission.co.uk/events_view.aspx?eventID=3998