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interview with DJ Persuasion & Liftin' Spirits
Interview with DJ Persuasion & Liftin’ Spirits
I wanted to ask my friend Benji—also known as DJ Persuasion—and his collaborator Ant, aka Liftin’ Spirits, a few important questions ahead of the release of their album Transmission 96. I’m quite excited about the record. I’ve known Benji for over a decade now, and he and Mr. Spirits were kind enough to answer my questions.
Me: What’s the collaborative setup like? Are you in the studio together? Are you swapping files? What definitely does and doesn't work for writing music together?
Liftin’ Spirits: Personally, I’ve always preferred working with another person, Andy C, Shimon, Boneshaker etc. Sometimes ideas are flowing so quick, it takes another pair of ears to highlight something that’s working well and to focus on a particular idea. Also to keep things moving along and not getting hung up on something that aint really helping the track. On this latest LP with DJ Persuasion, distance has meant that we continually sent files back and forth as the tracks progressed. I was always impressed with the changes he suggested and fed off his excitement which in turn inspired me to keep pushing the envelope.
DJ Persuasion: It’s an under-discussed aspect of making music in today’s world that digital communications support some radical new ways of working. There’s a saying that goes “collaboration, there's no such thing.” Meaning, I guess, that most collaborations tend to be a little bit more one person's work than the other. In this case though, it was a genuine collaboration. We got into a rhythm, almost by accident, and then a year later there was an LP.
Me: What’s the lunch order when you’re working together? Who orders?
Liftin’ Spirits: For me, lunch is usually yellow of egg on toast. Not a fan of egg white, only the yolk; spread on toast with way too much butter. Sometimes when you’re in a zone on a track, the hours pass proper quick and lunch gets skipped altogether.
DJ Persuasion: I like a good soup at lunchtime. Home made Carrot and Coriander is my preference. I don’t like anything too heavy. I’ll have a cup of tea or coffee with it and then some kefir. It's important not to eat anything that will send you to sleep if you’re working on a track, so I avoid pasta and bread and so on during the day. If I’m feeling flush I might order a Lion’s Mane Latte from the local Black Sheep Coffee spot, gets the juices flowing. I enjoy their CBD Matcha Lemonade as well.
Me: If you’re not at the club, do you prefer listening to a mix in the car, on a walk, or at home?
Liftin’ Spirits: I like listening to a demo or mix in the car. I’ll always come back with changes I think are needed. As I go out less and less these days, I have to be happy how it sounds in the car as that’s where I often play the tunes.
DJ Persuasion: For me, it’s all about leaving the tracks for a little while you work on something else, and then coming back to check them when you’ve had some time away. Especially when it comes to arrangement, a bit of distance from what you’re working on can help to reveal parts of the tune where you might be moving a bit too slowly, or where there’s a bit too much happening at once. I have my own version of the ‘car test’ which is to listen on the mobile. I always like playing tracks in the background if I’ve got someone visiting, especially if they’re not a connoisseur of the genre. If their ears prick up, it usually means you’re onto something.
Me: Best place to get a dubplate cut? Worst??
Liftin’ Spirits: Lately we’re using a place called Dub Studio. In fact, we’ve recently decided to release a couple of tunes from the LP on 10” lathe cuts. Just a limited special run as they sound so good.
DJ Persuasion: I only ever cut a few things at Music House back in the day, but it was a real experience going down there when it was in Islington. Since then, I’ve tended to cut with Henry at Dubstudio. When Henry was getting started twenty odd years ago I almost went into business with him from my studio in Whitechapel, cutting the vinyl dubplates he specialises in. I didn’t in the end, but it’s been great to see him go from strength to strength. LUPO, who used to cut all the records on my techno labels, has offered in the past to cut me acetates. I’d love to hear what his sound like one day.
Really grateful for their time! The album is out next week! You can listen to Persuasion’s old mixtape for Mr. Bankhead here. Here he is on Soundcloud. There is a recent mix by Mr. Spirits of material he’s worked on over at Juno.
If you haven’t yet seen Christian Marclay’s The Clock at MoMA during this run, consider going this week. Its final day is Sunday, the 11th.
Jesus… that record Brother Ben has been playing is finally out now.
And Brother Andrew wrote two articles this week, one I agreed with, one with which I take some umbrage…
Mr. Four Tet published a zine — you can also find it at Printed Matter.
It’s always good to see Todd L. Burns back writing.
Several dance music related screenings coming up: at Spectacle — the first five issues of Dance International, a “VHS ‘video music magazine’.” At Nitemoves, a screening of Mezzanottemezzogiorno, “a documentary tracing the roots and rise of the Italian Progressive movement in Tuscany between 1990 and 1996.”
Very funny interview with the CEO of Brooklyn Mirage, Josh Wyatt. Kind of wild that he used to be the CEO of NeueHouse and Fotografiska? Now he’s in charge of a PLUR Family Megachurch? Does that make him Joel Osteen? Hillsong b2b Anyma…
There’s a review of the new exhibit up at the Grolier Club on 4columns — it is worth stopping by! “Incredible catalog” according to one GC member friend.
Pictures are up from last night’s Met Gala. It’s interesting thinking about how this event has begun to shape the layout of the museum itself—the previous location of the gift store has been cleared out for the fashion wing, etc. Interesting, and probably wouldn’t happen like this without the Gala! Lots of great looks—do you have any you like in particular? Any that you really dislike?
Christie’s report
On Saturday morning, several of us went to Christie’s to see the exhibition of works on view for the May auction. As usual, there was quite a lot to see. After viewing everything in person, we each left with a list of works we felt warranted a second look. Among them were an Oiticica, a Carlos Cruz-Diez, a Richter Abstraktes Bild, a Charles Ray, a Genzken sculpture, and all of the Mike Kelleys on display (particularly one piece). Above all, we agreed that the Balthus painting perhaps warranted the most time. The attached lot essay on the Balthus is especially informative. There is also a Canaletto on view that is not scheduled for auction until July; the Christie’s team is taking it on a world tour beforehand to generate excitement.
