Fallowfield’s P-funk power-house JETZT! is going in on this weeks mix with an hour and a half of Hip-hop, soul, funk & disco. Expertly mixed, it walks the line between rare grooves and dance floor staples. JETZT!’s also tackles the Fallowfield curfew and club closures in South Manchester.
All My Friend’s owner Liam caught up with JETZT!, aka Adam Randell, the other week at Fallowfield institution The Font Bar to talk influences, party planning & P-funk.
We’ll start with an icebreaker. What was the first record you bought? Where did you buy it and what made you start collecting vinyl?
I think the first record I ever bought was Johnny Cash’s live at San Quentin. That’s a bit of a curve ball but I used to be way more into all that sort of music. I used to play guitar and busk and all that sort of thing. And then, over time, obviously having all the gear and all the records it sort of morphed into going out digging more and ultimately starting to DJ.
I’d say I’m a digger first and foremost, I mean I love playing out but I’m not really into the technical side of things. It’s more about having this massive record collection and wanting to play it to people. I really love, going out and spending an afternoon looking for records, making friends and having them show me some more thing and building my wax up ha.
Your sound is very refreshing and I’d say your record collection supersedes your age. Did your sound develop naturally or was constructing it a conscious effort for you?
It’s a bit of both, it sort of came naturally but for a while, I was doing some DJ’ing on controllers and sort of minimal house stuff. And I just noticed that when I played at parties it never really took. So at a certain point, I just threw it all out of the window and just said I’m gonna play music that people actually want to hear. Throw in some Mary J Blige or some Chic or whatever.
It’s good to dig for obscure records, but I think there’s this cult of obscurity. Where people dive for the rarest stuff and sometimes all you want is a great party tune. So I think combining these two approaches is where my sound came from.
Looking towards other nights in Manchester, who else do you think is pushing the boundaries of their events. Who do you look to and think ‘They’re doing something really cool’?
For me its got to be Offbeat, I’ve known the guys since the first year of uni and I just think their sound is great. They cover all the bases, it goes from heavy dance music and dub-step but when they played down at the beer studio they did a fantastic set. Loads of Prince, Hugh Masekela all that sort of funky stuff. They’re very versatile which is something I think good. I think a lot of night can be one track minded about their approach.
You’ve been running a few events at the beer studio too. Is there any big plans behind this or is it more about you dipping your big toe into events and having some fun.
Yeah, it’s just testing the waters really, making a few connections, seeing how stuff works really. The events have been really good for that. I’ve got a view for hopefully running my own night after summer, but I wanted to just get a feel of the organisational side of things.
Because I work there it was good to do an event without the pressure of overheads, selling tickets etc. I could just have a bit more fun with it. If I spend £20-30 quid on flyers whatever it’s not breaking the bank. I think a lot of the time as well, some of the best events start out of bar sessions. Rather than trying to jump in with this big goal I can test what’s actually going to work.
Do you think the closure of Antwerp and the curfew on Fallowfield bars at the moment it’s affecting the areas night-life?
I think it most certainly is, I haven’t quite gotten to the bottom of what’s causing it but there’s definitely an agenda from the council to try and move night-life to the city center where they think it’s a little more regulated or monied I’m not too sure.
They’re treating the symptoms rather than the causes of anti-social behaviour and violent crime in the area. There is a bit of trouble in bars and yeah being open a bit later probably does contribute to it. But it’s stupid to think that if the policing isn’t there then closing these spaces earlier is going to have a real impact on drunken behaviour or crime.
Especially with Antwerp, that really got my goat, the idea that if we shut this place down people won’t be able to find anywhere to go and they’ll just go home and go to bed early. I do think we’re seeing fewer students on the street too. Fallowfield and Withington have changed a lot in the time since I got here. The closure of Redrum [Editors note: Viva la Redrum] and Indigo’s uncertain future means there’s a lot less place for people to start putting on nights.
As for a solution to this problem I’m not sure I have one. You can’t deny the increased violence and crime rates but I think there’s a lot of scapegoating attached to nightlife and music culture. I think we need a better dialogue with the council, more help to set up spaces that are run responsibly and a better way to treat the causes of anti-social behaviour.
It is easy to overstate the issue though, I mean there is always venues closing down and new ones popping up. The nature of the beast is definitely changing, we seem to be moving towards independent bar events, daytime events, pirate radio, and live streaming. There does seem to be a decline in the filthy basement raves.
It’ll never die though it’ll just change shape and will always survive in some capacity.
Let’s talk about your mix now. It’s an hour and a half of funk, soul, disco and everything in between. How did you approach the mix?
I took a very scattergun approach really. I tend not to theme or plan my mixes too much really, I try and get the balance right between more obscure tracks and have some more mainstream influences and sounds thrown in their too. I feel like a lot of the fun in DJ’ing is trying to expose people to this music they haven’t necessarily heard before, but if you’re sat there for two hours and you don’t hear anything remotely familiar to you don’t have anything to latch on to.
That’s one of the hardest tasks as a DJ is to balance those two forces and try and walk a line down the middle which I guess is what I’ve done with this mix. I’ve got the Biggie and the Mary J and then the Herb Alpert and some lesser known artists.
It’s always great when them big tracks come through. You could have this mix on in the background and it’ll be pumping and you’ll really be enjoying it without really listening. Then a big tune will come on and that can snap you back into the room and make you take note of what you’re listening to and make you write it down.
Absolutely and it makes you hear music in a new light and new context. Not necessarily in this mix but one of the recent tracks I picked up was Scissor Sister ‘Laura’, which I think is a fantastic tune but if you were to hear it on the radio you’d think it was really cheesy. But you put that track into a club mix and people start to hear it in a different light.
You’ve given me a full tracklist for the mix that’s jammed full of gems but is there one track that really stands out for you in the mix?
Yeah, I always make a point of sharing my tracklists, a big part of DJ’ing for me is sharing music. I’m not a white label kind of guy.
One tune I’ve really been loving at the moment is the Herb Alpert ‘Rise’. It’s the bass sample for Hypnotise by Biggie. It’s a really nice, expressive piece of live instrument playing which is a bit more than your standard disco ‘Whaa Whaa’ guitar. He really is a real talented solo musician stepping onto what is, essentially a pop disco track, and he made something halfway in between.
Full tracklist below.
Check out Dolly’s mix for more p-funk, soul & Jazz.
Tracklist :
Mtume – Juicy Fruit
Rashaan Cole – Get Here
MJB ft. Biggie Smalls – Real Love (Hip Hop Club Mix)
Adina Howard – Freak Like Me (Mecca Soul Mix)
Mark Morrison – Return of the Mack
Monyaka – Go De Yaka (To the Top)
Waffles 001 – 49 Gang
Talking Drums – Get Serious
Bongo ENTP – El Rey de Pollo
Herb Alpert – Rise
Rose Royce – Magic Touch
Sister Sledge – Thinking of You
L-Farrio – Not Easy
Evelyn King – I’m in Love
Surface – Falling In Love (Danny Krivit edit)
Beardyman – Mountainside Dub
Champaign – Off and On Love (Dance Remix)
Loose Ends – Magic Touch Instrumental
Incorporated Thang Band w/ George Clinton – Androgynous View
Bobby Nunn – Private Party (Disco 45 Mix)
Shiro Schwarz – All My L.O.V.E
Tom Browne – Rockin’ Radio
Rockers Revenge – The Harder They Come
K.I.D. – Don’t Stop
Loose Joints – Is It All Over My Face (MAW edit)
T-Connection – Do What You Wanna Do