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60 Seconds With...Simon Patterson

We chat to the trailblazing producer

With a refreshing approach to production that uses trance as the template and solders elements of electro and techno to its rolling rhythm carriage, Simon Patterson is making a massive impact on 2008. Slapping us on the chops with new single - the aptly named 'Smack' which has been one of the first ever tunes to simultaneously top all the download charts – he's left his days in mammoth trance duo Dogzilla behind him. Gearing up for his first house release, and a big U.S. tour, DJmag.com reckoned it an appropriate time to corner the trancer and get him to spill the beans...

How is 2008 shaping up for you so far?

"Pretty good, I've been pretty busy. I just got back from a tour of Australia. I've been in the Czech Republic, I haven't been in the UK that much at all. So yeah pretty busy DJing-wise. The production stuff has been going really well so it's off to a good start."

Your tune 'Smack' has been getting a lot of love across the board from the big hitters. Did you realize that you had a hit on your hands?

"Yeah I did because I spent so long on it, I just kept on going back and changing it. I had the riff done really early, and I had so many different ideas. I'd been playing out early versions and getting a really good reaction, but I just felt the break wasn't quite right, and finally did something quite simple, I put in this sine wave bass, and it seemed to work, I'm really happy with it. It was so hard following up 'Bulldozer' though."

How are you going to top 'Smack' though?

"Don't even get me started on that, I've got no idea, but it's gotta be something a bit different, not just bringing a big bassline or a big kick, or it's gonna get too repetitive. I've got no idea of what the next track is gonna be but it's time to change it up!"

How did you come to hook up with Sean Tyas?

"I've just known Sean for years, we've been meaning to record something for ages, but we just never got around to doing it. We did a few gigs together in the States, and we decided that we should get something started. And I'd already done a groove, which I sent to him. We had a semi-idea of what we were gonna do and then we went to his house for a few days and got our melody line and basic vibe of the track, and finished it over the internet. It's got that electro bass thing, it combines almost every genre of dance music, a bit of techno, a bit of everything really. When it kicks out of the breakdown, it's game over, I've been playing it out the last two weekends, it's gonna be a another killer."

Do you think that the way forward for trance is to incorporate elements from other genres?

"I think so. I love playing trance but I can't hear the same sounds for an hour and half, it's too much. To be honest with you, unless you go to a big event, with a hardcore following of trance fans, people don't want to have lots of emotional breakdowns, they want to something that makes a dancefloor move, and that is those big electro tracks, with those big snares, kicking into minimal, people who just have a few drinks, they react to that sort of stuff. If you're playing a whole set of trance people get bored and leave. Mixing up styles is definitely the future."

Have you got more productions in the pipeline?

"I'm doing a house track at the moment, which I'm working on right now. I wanted to do something different cos I have no idea how to follow 'Smack'. I've got a trance track which I've done, which is the b-side to the collaboration with Tyas, called 'Us', which is a run of the mill trance track, and I've got a Sander van Doorn-esque techy thing that I want to get finished, and I want to get a vocal tune done. I've got the tune written, as in the music, but I haven't got a vocal yet. I've had a few people do it, but it hasn't been right, so I'm gonna wait for the right track to come along."

What gigs have you got coming up that you're excited about?

"I've got a gigs for Protector in Poland on 17th May, it's supposed to be one of the best clubs in the world, so really looking forward to that. I'm also playing Gatecrasher Summer Sound System on 25th May, I did that last year and really enjoyed it. I've got a tour of America coming up in July which is gonna be good, and then loads of bits and pieces in the UK, The Gallery at Ministry of Sound on 30th May, where I've never played before, and Inside Out at the Arches in Glasgow on 31st May, which is one of my favourite gigs. There's loads of things, so a good couple of months coming up."

What's next for Simon Patterson?

"To keep on plugging away, it's really important for me to branch away from Dogzilla. I don't DJ as Dogzilla, but I still get pigeonholed. It was a great act for me to be involved in, but I want to move on and concentrate on my own thing and push it forward a bit more."