Interview with Roger Sanchez ahead of his return to Gatecrasher Birmingham

Grammy Award winning DJ Roger Sanchez returns to Gatecrasher Birmingham on February 25th. We caught up with him for a chat about how architecture is like music, working with Michael Jackson, and changing nappies. 

The house music icon is responsible for some of the biggest dance music tracks of all time, including the mammoth 'Another Chance', and has worked with some of the biggest names in pop, such as Michael Jackson, Janet Jackson, Daft Punk, Alicia Keys, Kylie Minogue, Madonna, Depeche Mode, Sergio Mendes, Robbie Williams, Brandon Flowers and many more.

Frequently playing in superclubs around the world, and scooping a grammy for his remix of No Doubt's 'Hella Good', Roger Sanchez is undoubtedly one of the biggest names on the global circuit today.

Following his roadblock Gatecrasher performance in 2011, Sanchez returns to Gatecrasher on February 25th 2012, joined by DJ duo NERVO, and GB residents Martin Wright and Kris Shaw.

You played a sell-out Gatecrasher show in Birmingham in 2011, and you’re back on February 25 as part of a series of gigs in European superclubs. What can the audience expect?

Birmingham has always had a fantastic audience, and they can definitely look forward to a lot of energy and a lot of brand new tracks that I’ve been working on. I’ll be previewing some of the things I plan to release in 2012. I’ve always loved the vibe there. The sound system is really, really top notch so I’m looking forward to a great night. 

I’ve got big plans for this year. There are always my releases of compilations but I’ve also got some new tracks coming out too. My next single will be out soon, called 'Flashing Light', and I collaborated on that with Sidney Samson. That will probably be dropping in February, so I’ll be playing stuff from that. There are other new collaborations. I’ve been in the studio with people like Sam Obernik, Kid Massive and Robbie Romero and loads of others. I’ll be dropping a lot of those upcoming tracks that I’m about to release when I come to Birmingham.

You’ll be joined by the acclaimed DJs/producers/artists and models NERVO - the feisty twins best known for their song-writing collaboration with David Guetta on his  smash-hit 'When Love Takes Over'. They recently supported Britney Spears and Nicki Minaj on the Femme Fatale arena shows. Do you enjoy working with them?

 Definitely. I’ve been writing with them too so it’s good to catch up with them on the road. We’re working on a song for an artist called Christina Milian. But we’ve also thrown ideas about before, so it’ll be good to work with them. So, yes, I’m looking forward to playing with NERVO.

You’ve also been working with Sarah Harding and Danny Jones, the singer/guitarist from McFly. Can you tell me about that work?

I’ve been working a lot with those people, especially with Danny. He and I have a project called Saturn V. I’m just finishing up the first single for that right now, so hopefully I’ll have that ready to go soon. It’s interesting because the stuff that I’ve been doing with Danny is house but it’s very big. It’s blending his style with mine. My own material ranges from hands in the air to more of an underground vibe, like when I do tracks under the name of S-Man then the Roger Sanchez production is more about jams. 

Amazingly, I understand there is even more work scheduled, with an S-Man release called Animalz. Will that showcase the deeper, darker side of your music?

Yes. I’ve just finished up a new track, which I’ll release, probably during the early part of this year. I’ve also got a project called Architecture and I’m collaborating on that with people like Carl Craig and a few others. It’s based on architecture and architects. The S-Man project is definitely the deeper, darker side of what I do.

Cool. Don’t you have a background in architecture? Is that project a musical synthesis of artistic ideas surrounding architecture – almost a musical equivalent of creating amazing buildings?

Yeah. What I do with that particular project is take inspiration from certain architects whose work I love. There are a number of them. I take some of their designs and let them inspire me to create a track that’s specifically representative of them; it’s my musical interpretation of what they do.

2011  proved to be a hectic and exciting year for you with countless appearances in Europe’s party hotspots, the release of your album ‘Release Yourself ‘11’, the 10th anniversary and landmark 500th broadcast of your Release Yourself Radio show, not to mention numerous parties. Where do you get your stamina from?

(Laughs) Look, it gets to be a little bit exhausting sometimes but I know I’ve got a very understanding family that allows me to do a lot of the stuff that I do. What I figured is that I have a lot more to do and a lot more ideas that I want to put out there. I have got loads more to go.

Being able to balance different aspects of my career is very inspiring. I think the ability to express different vibes allows me to do the S-Man and my Roger Sanchez productions work too. I have a lot of different sides and sounds in my head and I need to express them.

There are others events on the horizon, including the Miami Winter Music Conference 2012. What are your plans for that?

Yeah, we are doing a big live event there. It’ll be a very big event, Stealth Live Miami. I’ve kinda merged my Release Yourself with the Stealth, we’re going to be doing a very big event at the Fountain Blue. We’re planning to announce that very shortly.

Release Yourself has been an incredible triumph. When you released the 1996 class Release Yo Self, did you imagine it would grow into a globally recognised brand that is synonymous with quality house music and damn good parties?

It’s interesting because when you start a project like that it’s more about the moment. My goals were to provide an avenue to really focus on the dance floor and the crowd, so I didn’t really think it would be a world dominance brand, not in the beginning. But I think over time it just really evolved into what it is. That was good because it allowed me to have a longer range vision for it.

I love that house music has re-asserted itself across all spectrums of dance music. From tech to electro, to crossover to mainstream radio play, it's all about house music. It will continue to change as the years go on. I’m looking forward to it.

You’re synonymous with Ibiza and have a villa on the clubbing paradise. What are your Ibiza plans for 2012?

Hey, look, we’ve got a lot of great surprises lined up for that. It’s probably a little bit too early to tell you all about it. You know, I don’t want to let the cat out of the bag, as it were. But there are definitely lots of big things planned for this year, Release Yourself-style. There’ll be lots of fun things planned for this year.

You had a five-episode TV series on summer in Ibiza, with director Terry Church. How did that come about? To what extent did the series show the real you?

I was introduced to Terry and his team through a friend of ours and we really had the idea of trying to give the fans a glimpse of what goes on, what the summertime is like in Ibiza. I think they did a fantastic job. I loved the way Terry filmed it and put it together. It was very realistic, it was like a snapshot of my life and what it is like to be on the road. It was good to give people a bit of a look behind the curtain.

It portrayed you as a Grammy-winning DJ, trying to balance the twin responsibilities of being an icon of house music and a devoted father and husband. How difficult is it to combine the different aspects of your life?

Well, it’s a difficult thing. That’s the most difficult thing to get right, trust me. To do what I do, you have to have a very understanding family. It doesn’t always make it easy but I’m blessed to have a lot of support with it. Changing nappies definitely brings you back down to earth. So having a family allows me to get away from the stage and be a very real person.

You’ve been one of the best house DJs in the world for many years, while others have come and gone. How have you managed to stay fresh and on the cutting edge?

I have a lot of blessings and I thank God for having the ability to do what I do. I’m very passionate about what I do and I’m very focused about it. Not losing sight of what initially got me interested in music is what allows me to continue to be inspired by the crowd. The ability to change has definitely helped, especially with the radio show. I always try to get a lot of new sounds in and I try to let them soak into me and sink in. You have to have the ability to be on the edge of what’s happening. But at the same time I have a specific musical ethos that runs through all that I do, in my productions and my sets. I don’t go with this fad or that fad. I have a style of my own.

Are there elements of what you do that you like most of all?

You know, people always ask me the question what do I like more? Do I like to DJ or mix or record or any of the other things that I do. But that’s kinda like asking which of your children do you like the most? You love them all, they all do different things and they all fulfil you in different ways. I love each and every aspect of what I do equally. One thing I’m not crazy about is having to get on planes to fly all over the place because, you know, flying just eats up a lot of time. But even in that, being able to see different places is still cool. Producing gives me one outlet, playing gives me another and the radio shows allow me to reach more people. I really do appreciate and enjoy each and every aspect of it.

You’ve had an incredible career and there have been amazing achievements. The video for Another Chance, for instance, scored more than 4 million hits on Youtube: it was a brilliant mix of music and visual art, with the girl with the heart. Talk us through it.

It’s kinda crazy when you look at those numbers but coming to terms with the world that we live in now, that’s the nature of things. The good thing is when you are able to touch a pulse and do something that people can relate to. It allows you to broaden your reach and that’s something I’m very thankful for. I really don’t think about it too much. I just try to get stuck in and be as truthful as I can in terms of the music I’m making. I just like to put that stuff out there, then it takes on a life of its own.

So winning your Grammy Award win for your remix of No Doubt's ‘Hella Good’… I’m guessing you enjoyed the work more than winning the award?

Exactly. Absolutely. The Grammy is like an after-effect. For me it was more about doing the track with No Doubt, one of my favourite bands. That was really what the kick was with that.

You have more strings to your bow than most. You speak five languages and love art and fashion. It seems you are constantly immersed in art and contemporary culture.

I love it all. I think because I went to school for art and architecture I got a very deep appreciation of art and different forms of expression. I think all art, music, fashion and design is all an expression of will and an expression of creativity, and I am drawn to that. I gravitate towards anything like that.

You’re well known for your house remixes with some of pop’s biggest stars, from Michael Jackson to Madonna. Who are the people you most enjoyed working with?

What is interesting is that every single experience has been different. You know, recently, working with Danny Jones has been fantastic. He and I have become really good mates, he’s just a brilliant songwriter so I’ve had great times working with him. Doing remixes for Michael Jackson, wow, that was amazing working on his raw vocals and seeing what he could do. Working with people who are so, so talented raises my game even further. I do want to push myself and do phenomenal work. It’s important to be with people who challenge you, so that you can strive to go beyond what you normally do. I also learn a lot when I work with other people. I learn different production techniques, different recording techniques and I get to teach people stuff. I think these projects are mutually beneficial. Every experience I’ve had with artists like that has been the same.

You travel the world, and toured Brazil at the back end of 2011. How was that?

Brazil has become such a big market for me and I definitely feel a lot of love from the Brazilians. It’s funny because what traditional Brazilian music is, that’s not what they are listening to in the clubs. The kids don’t listen to that, though elements of it creep in. It also influences me. I’ve always been very much on that Latin percussive vibe, on that side of things, so places like Brazil influence my sound.

You said earlier on that you were still brimming with ideas. Is there no end to the things that Roger Sanchez has in store?

(Laughs) There’s loads. I mean right now I’m getting involved in producing a TV series, I’m getting involved in film and I’m getting involved in animation. There are loads of different areas that I’m getting involved in and things that I want to do. But I still loving DJing. It’s fun. That’s it. It’s fun. So for as long as I can keep doing it I definitely will.

Catch Roger Sanchez at Gatecrasher Birmingham on February 25th. Tickets are available through Skiddle below.

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