ZOO PROJECT DJS: SPIRIT ANIMALS

We all have a spirit animal, DJs especially. Seth Troxler claims his is a bear. And those who saw his latest viral pursuit online wouldn't disagree. As for the likes of Catz 'N Dogz, Wolf + Lamb and Totally Enormous Extinct Dinosaurs, their innermost bestial personas are what define their entire musical process.


Then there's us; the clubbers. The harmonious — at times shamanic — experience of a metronomic dancefloor offers just the place for our untamed, hidden selves to roam free. 
Thanks, then, is due to Zoo Project.

Setting up on the White Isle at Gala Nights in 2007, last year it upscaled and brought its first ever festival to a safari park in the UK, allowing a few thousand leopard-skin lycra-adorned ravers (boys included) to run wild, mimicking the menagerie of mammals on the other side of the giant fence, while the likes of DJ Sneak, Sasha and Julio Bashmore dropped enough meaty chunks to keep us sustained until the early hours.

And earlier this month, after moving the event (again) from the Hidden Forest in Kettering, the festival shifted 56 miles up the road in some woods in Donington Park. Featuring stages hosted by 10 top-notch dance brands — including Jaunt, Wolf Music, James Zabiela's Born Electric — plus 70 artists, not forgetting a UK festival exclusive b2b2b set from Sneak, Derrick Carter and Mark Farina, over three days, Zoo Project Festival was absolutely mental — again!

We asked the Zoo Project Festival DJs to name their spirit animal...

GEORGE FITZGERALD
“A 'what animal am I?' online test told me that I'm an 'enterprising crocodile' and I 'seize opportunities'. I'd like to think this is due to me being an alpha predator of some sort. More likely it is due to my anti-social tendencies and lack of personal hygiene.”

LEE PENNINGTON
“If I was to describe what animal I am, it would be a cross between a sloth and a goldfish. The sloth because I just can’t be bothered with anything else other than music, and the goldfish because I have a rubbish memory... What was the question again?”

JAMES ZABIELA
“I'd be a lion, because it has a daft haircut like me and likes to laze around all day. Not sure about in the zoo, but in the wild they actually rest for about 20 hours a day. There's a real lion fact for you. Ideally though, I'd be a zion. It's a cross between a lion and zebra. It's pretty much my favourite animal.”