Hit The Decks

It's a boom time for Irish DJs. We've always had our own underground stars, like Johnny Moy and Billy Scurry, who are as skilful as their international peers, but in recent months I've heard promoters refer to the 'Irish Premier League' for the first time.

The reference is to crowd-pulling Irish jocks who can be guaranteed to fill any venue in the country every time: like 2FM's Mister Spring and John Power (the Irish equivalent of Tong and Jules?), Agnelli & Nelson and Col Hamilton. Add in expatriates like international superstars Fergie and Yomanda, and bear in mind that the likes of DJ Modelle and Tom Cole are not far from promotion, and it's a pretty impressive top division.
Around the country, there are dozens of others building up huge support. So it seems like an appropriate time to profile some of the fast rising new names to watch out for, and along the way to offer a few tips for aspiring youngsters dreaming of one day making it to that Premier League.
Impulsive Music is an umbrella for a record label, management agency, PR and club promotions company, event promoter and DJ agency. Dean Sherry, Barry Dempsey and Darren Nolan (collectively known as tech-house act Phunk'dup) are the masterminds, a trio with plenty of experience behind them and big plans ahead. In the past twelve months they have brought the Impulsive sound to the country, generating a great response.
As Dean told me: "Up until four years ago, there were just a handful of clubs running outside Dublin. Then every city and town seemed to get its own dance club, but initially they played just hard house, and were only interested in big name UK DJs outside of that. But all of that has now changed, with clubs all across the land opening up to every musical style and most giving the Irish DJs as much exposure as the international guests. We've had great reactions to our sound wherever we've played and have been treated with as much respect as the visiting DJs."
The Impulsive record label is determined to break Irish DJs abroad. The first releases (from Phunk'dup and Pusherman) were critically acclaimed and sold well, and on the way is an impressive schedule of releases from a diverse array of acts and DJs, including Mark Lowndes, Spectrum Is Green, Ronan O'Coisoig, Tom Cole, John Braine and Jay Oglesby - to name but a few.
The Impulsive DJ Agency is one of the first to spring up in Ireland, and one of the only ones to concentrate solely on homegrown talent. Their latest acquisition is Tom Cole, signed up just days after the man Abbey Dance manager Billy Murray refers to as "the most talked about DJ in the country" quit his residency at Red Box. Tom is a definite star in the making, and Impulsive believes it has the necessary machinery in place to make it happen for him. As if all the activities outlined above were not enough, the company is just about to launch two club nights of its own in the capital.
Star DJs is another DJ agency, with five years experience under its belt already. It offers Djs and clubs nationwide a vast range of services, including product promotions, late bar and club events and hotel functions. Garvin Rigby is one of the movers behind the company, and he's in no doubt that it's a boom-time for DJs. But clearly it's important that the demand is met by the requisite level of professionalism.
"We run over four and a half thousand events a year and provide regular work for over thirty disc jockeys," he points out. "We employ full-time office staff and have a highly skilled team adept in all aspects of parties, clubs and corporate events. One of the factors that has contributed to our growth in recent years is the constant meetings and training sessions we hold with all of our contractors and staff."
Star DJs have their own website at www.stardjs.net and it's well worth checking out if you are a new name, and you feel that you have something to offer. Star has a dance division for specialist DJs, supplies international and Irish Djs to clubs and festivals, and puts together complete packages for brand promotions for drinks companies and others. Garvin and Star have also just launched a training school in conjunction with The Dublin Media Centre.
It's not just in Dublin that the DJ Agencies are springing up. North West DJs is a burgeoning booking agency based in Sligo, and it has the following turntable technicians on its books:
DJ Christian M (Ex Journeyman, Sligo), DJ Sully (Bar Ella, Sligo), DJ Shane C (Hennigans, Sligo) and DJ Enda Molony (various, Sligo). These DJs' diaries are all held by North West exclusively, and the agency can also book non-exclusive spinners like Tony Watters and Liam Dollard.
North West DJs is the brainchild of the highly ambitious Christian M. Born in Holland and now living in Sligo, where he shot to fame as the resident of Top Floor at The Journeyman, he hasbrought a breath of fresh air to the scene out west. With international experience DJing in Portugal (where he was resident in xx TGV for six months) and Miami, he is planning to launch a new club in south Spain this year, and to release his debut record in September.
Now just an occasional guest at Top Floor, Christian also spins regularly at The Court in Ballina and Cuba in Galway. He believes there is a market for agencies specialising in meeting rural clubs' needs. "Lots of Irish DJs I've seen have great natural ability, and we're here to try and get them exposure in areas which are normally monopolised." Christian himself plays house of the progressive, American and hard varieties, and he's made a strong impact since he arrived from the Netherlands three years ago.
Padraic 'Sir Fla' Flaherty has sprung from nowhere to become the voice of dance music in Galway, thanks to his astutely prepared and professionally executed radio show, The Dance Experience. Going out from Monday to Wednesday (7pm to 10pm) on Galway Bay's The Sound Of The City (on 95.8 FM), Padraic's show supports Irish DJs in a big way. Regular guest mixers on the programme include Tom Cole, Glen Brady and Alan Pullen, and Padraic is keen to get the less established names involved too.
He believes it's important for the Irish media to support the homeboys to enable the dream of breaking Irish DJs abroad to become a reality. "I find it's a must to have local DJs on the show playing alongside the top names," says Padraic. "So if they are wondering when they are going to get their break, tell them it's just around the corner." Padraic's advice for young DJs given the opportunity to show what they can do - whether in a gig situation or on a radio show like his - is simple: "just do what you are good at and don't mess it up by showing off."
It's advice well worth heeding. Many youngsters want to go straight from the bedroom to headline status, but the reality is that you've got to be prepared to wait three or four years at least to get to that stage. In the meantime, practice makes perfect - be determined, but also be patient! Make the most of any opportunities, but treat them all as a stepping stone. And don't forget that it's a wide river.
As Padraic says: "It's a good time for young DJs. There are more openings now for the locals and there's a great interest at home in upcoming Irish talent. In my opinion, my show wouldn't be the success it is if it didn't have the local DJs coming through."