Rob Allenby: When is your next instalment of the Global Underground series coming out? I've heard that Deep Dish are next, followed by Sasha!
John Digweed: Nothing is planned at the moment. I'm still promoting the last one from LA.
Chris Tugwell: John, How can I get hold of the mix of Blue Monday that you played in cream a few months back?
John Digweed: You can't - it's a Cheeky edit!
Bal X: What do you think about the closure of Twilo?
John Digweed: Obviously it's very sad - that club was instrumental in promoting European music in New York, which has generally been US house based. I think it's opened up a lot of doors for European DJs in America, and it's showed the way to go in terms of sound system and lighting. It really was the standard. Touch wood, something else will open up, but Twilo have sold off much of their stuff now.
Yogi Curtis: Where did the name 'Bedrock' come from?
John Digweed: It came from a club in Chicago that I played in 1989.
Juno: Do you ever look back to your early days as a DJ and wonder "How the hell did I get to where I am today?"
John Digweed: You have to pinch yourself sometimes. I spent a lot of time trying to get where I am, and now I'm there, I don't have time to think about where I am. I enjoy myself so much, I'm not thinking about how I got here, I'm just having a good time.
Paul T: What's the story behind Sasha and wigs?
John Digweed: I think he liked to liven the after-party up, so he'd turn up with a boxful of wigs which raised the atmosphere tenfold!
Brian Jonk: Hey John...I'm really keen on seeing you play live, are you coming to Los Angeles any time soon?
John Digweed: autumn or late this summer, I'd say. Playing LA is fantastic. When I played there to promote the Global Underground CD, the crowd was so supportive, a full house, even though it was on a Monday or a Wednesday.
Craig Bibby: Are you doing another 'Northern Exposure' mix CD?
John Digweed: There are no more 'Northern Exposures', but Sasha and myself will be working on other mix albums together.
Erica Moxie: Are there any other American venues that you are looking to resident at?
John Digweed: Yeah, but it would have to be the right thing. After playing something as good as Twilo, I'd want the new venue to be of an equally good standard.
The reason I went there so much was because I had such a fantastic time.
Chris: How do you react to the moody DJ reference?
John Digweed: I'm not moody, I'm just concentrating! I'm having the best time when I'm DJing, but I don't have an inane grin on my face! There's not a lot of body movement, but I'm trying to think three or four records ahead. I want the night to be as good as possible.
Geoff Coombs: What is your opinion of hard house?
John Digweed: I don't know much about it to comment...
Geoff Coombs: Do you think progressive can ever have commercial appeal?
John Digweed: The whole word progressive, the music I play, covers so many styles - deep house through to tribal. It all gets tagged under the same title, but it's a lot of different music. I try not to be pigeonholed. A lot of progressive stuff doesn't cross over as well as the trance sound did last year.
Seb: What's the best rumour you've ever heard about yourself?
John Digweed: Dan Prince from Mixmag used to say I was fat!
Phil: Have you ever emptied a dancefloor?
John Digweed: I don't think so - not recently! Actually, when the fire happened in Twilo on the 4th anniversary, the dancefloor emptied in two minutes!
Cat: Which DJ could keep you on a dancefloor longest?
John Digweed: I'd say Tenaglia and Sasha.
Jonathan Lisle: How come you haven't disappeared up your own backside like most other big time DJs?
John Digweed: I can't bend my body that much! I'd say, the way I was brought up. I think, doing a lot of promoting too, you get to deal with so many people in the industry. I just want to get on with everyone!
Lurch: Where do you see prog music going in the future? Darker, funkier, trancier?
John Digweed: I think it's gonna get a lot tougher. It's got darker and deeper, but I think it'll get harder and maybe a bit more musical as well. I think it's gone as deep and dark as it can, and it's going to go up a few gears now.
GS: What defines a great set for you?
John Digweed: It's the programming and control. If someone can control the crowd. If they've got everyone in the palm of their hand, so they can do one thing and the crowd reacts - they're DJing for the whole club.
Jim: How do you control the crowd?
John Digweed: I'm a megalomaniac! Only joking! It comes through years of playing. You just learn how to read a crowd and push the right buttons. And you get better over years and years of DJing.
Alex Coe: What do you like to do when not djing?
John Digweed: Sit in my house! Or go out with my girlfriend. I'm not here that often, so when I am, I want to be with her.
Bal X: John what is your 'if all else fails' tune?
John Digweed: I don't know - I always carry a few classics, but there isn't that one record that stays there all the time. 'Song of Life' by Leftfield is there at the moment.
Fiona Bond: Is Sasha playing at the Telewest Arena with you this Saturday?
John Digweed: I'm not sure if it's at the same time. I think I'm on after him. When we were doing the whole Northern Exposure tour we were sort of joined at the waist, but apart from the Space opening we've only played once together this year.
JC Abbott: What tune would u like to be played at your funeral?
John Digweed: That's looking too far ahead! I haven't thought about it.
Kurt: Will the latest drug crackdowns (no pun intended) on clubs worldwide spell the death of clubland or will it just push the party scene underground again?
John Digweed: I think it'll definitely affect it, but the clubbers have to be as responsible as the club owners. The clubs do as much as they can.
Chris Tugwell: Who do you think are the most responsive crowd?
John Digweed: Everywhere I go at the moment is fantastic. I couldn't single out one. I'm really fortunate - I've just come back from Japan, and it was fantastic.
Shealan Forshaw: Do you see the Internet as a fantastic gateway to an international audience, or as an evil monster hell-bent on infringing copyright left, right, and center?
John Digweed: People are already downloading my CDs for free. That's the way it's moving - it's heading in that direction, so you've got to work with it. I think for new artists who want to get their music heard, it's a fantastic way of reaching people with your music. People can't get their music heard, but if they put in on the Internet, people have the opportunity to hear it.
Evotron: What is your favourite meal after a good set?
John Digweed: I usually go to sleep!
Simon S: are u aware that a pair of pants signed by u and Sasha are up for sale on the
internet?
John Digweed: Yes - I was aware of that! I've got 20 more if anyone wants to put offers in! Are they worth more if they haven't been washed?
Donica Sharpe: What is your favorite night to play in Ibiza, and when/if are you taking Bedrock (the night) there?
John Digweed: We had Bedrock there last Sunday at Space. I think we're going to be there in August. Space has the best of both worlds because it's got the funky house vibe on the terrace, and you move indoors when it gets dark and heavier.
Neil: now that Concorde's flying again, will you be travelling on it or did the crash put you off?
John Digweed: Yeah, I'll go on Concorde - if someone pays for it!
Steve Mack: Which song best describes you as a person?
John Digweed: No idea! 'Lost in Music' by Sister Sledge, because I've spent my whole life lost in music!
Doug Sticksel: Do you ever get sick of perfoming? What do you do then?
John Digweed: Never. When it's something you enjoy, everytime I play, it's in a different club with different people and a different vibe. So you may hesitate as to how it's going to be. Most of the time I'm doing a different club - I get nervous but it keeps you on your toes.
Yogi Curtis: Regarding the 'signed pants' question... Does it scare you how famous you are, that people are actually paying money for some signed pants? Does it make you feel like Tom Jones?
John Digweed: I think the most worrying thing was that a guy in Pacha had a Bedrock tattoo! - the 'B' logo. That's dedication! Perhaps he's just got a girlfriend called Brenda!
Erica Moxie: What prompted you to star in Groove?
John Digweed: The guy that brought me to the US first in '89 was in charge of the soundtrack, and he told me the film was being put together and they wanted me to do a cameo. So I met up with the directors and that was it really.
Simon Lee: Any new albums in the pipeline?
John Digweed: Possibly, yeah. There's a possible mix album in the pipeline.
Neil: What's the most bizarre place you've ever Djed at/in?
John Digweed: In the Arctic Circle. In Norway - about a four hour flight from Oslo. It was cold!
Helen K, Sydney: You get to play all around the world and get to see the clubbing culture world-wide. WHERE is your favourite destination, and why?
John Digweed: I'd say Australia. I love it down there. I just love the country. The clubbing's great, but there are also such beautiful places like the Great Barrier Reef. It's just a very relaxed country.
Evotron: John is it true that you once DJed alongside Tony De Vit?
John Digweed: Yeah! That was at a Tribal Gathering. One of those events, I think.
king fish247: What is your favorite CD? The album that just completes your collection.
John Digweed: I love the Vangelis Bladerunner soundtrack.
Odin Trisk: What are your plans after this summer, for the coming year?
John Digweed: Summer finished yesterday I think! I'm going on holiday in August. And basically, I'll be working on the Bedrock label with Nick Muir, my DJ partner. He's the other half of Bedrock.
More chat with John Digweed this way!
