Living The Dream with Gary Beck

Image: Gary Beck

In the blink of an eye techno juggernaut Richie Hawtin launched Gary Beck, who then had just a single release to his name, to the forefront's of everyone's attention by signing a track to his sacred Minus label in 2008. 

That track was 'Consumed' (above), and Beck, who hails from Scotland's electronic heartland of Glasgow, has more than repaid the faith shown by Hawtin, becoming not only one of the most in demand techno selectors north of the border, but on the entire planet.

His boundary pushing production  explores the winding cavities of pulverising techno, is as raw and true to its roots as it is distinct, and it's that chemistry that has saw Gary's production pervading prized dancefloor citadels and blipping the radar of game changing imprints like Drumcode, Cocoon and Soma. 

In light of the recent techno resurgence, his label, Bek Audio, is also beginning to fit the aforementioned game changing mould, with a bastion of unparalleled releases including his very own 'Bring A Friend' album that includes the unforgiving club grenade 'Video Siren' (below).

With an arsenal of tectonic achievements under his belt, and we're sure there are many more to come, we made it our mission to hook in Gary for a quick chat. We discussed getting onto the subject of besieging Berghain, Glasgow's burgeoning techno scene and a whole lot more.

You're playing in Liverpool on Boxing Day, what do you make of playing there and are you looking forward to it? 

I love playing in Liverpool! I've played three times so far and I've really had such a good time. The crowd is always up for a party and I've met some great people there, so I'm looking forward to it a lot.

The techno scene in Glasgow's looking as rock solid as ever. What is it about the city that makes it such an enduring haven for electronic music, and are there any parallels between it and Liverpool? 

It's really hard to say why the scene is so strong. I think people up here just love to party, and I definitely think there are similarities with Liverpool.

The people don't seem to take themselves too seriously, it's all about just having a good time! We are also very lucky to have two of the best clubs in the world Sub Club and the Arches. On top of that we have also seen the rise of some amazing producers and DJ's which has helped generate even more buzz about the place.

It's a world away from where you've been playing recently, particularly in November going between anywhere from Italy to the US , do you often get taken back by the difference in location, or does the music always translate? 

Every gig is different and unique in its own way. I've had some of my best gigs in a 200 capacity sweat box in the middle of nowhere!  

Sometimes the gigs that might appear to be spectacular never really measure up. I'm always excited and curious at every location I play. You just never know what's going to happen and I like that.

You're obviously a man in demand at the moment, how do you deal with all the travelling and finding time to get in the studio and work on your label?  

I tend to play on average two to three times a week. So this leaves plenty of time midweek to work on my productions and the label. I like to keep everything balanced. I never put too much pressure on myself.

Some days I'll decide to spend my time solely taking my dog to the park and playing football. I feel doing things like this is very important as you can easily get too caught up in it all and lose a sense of who you are and what you're doing.  

You've got some pretty hefty achievements under your belt as far as a techno DJ is concerned, taking your label to Berghain, releasing on Drumcode and last years album just too name a few, but which achievement in your career do you hold in the highest regard? 

Thanks, I'm very pleased with some of the things I've managed to accomplish over the last few years. I reckon taking my label night to Berghain was definitely up there. Berghain is such an unbelievable venue which is held in high regard, so to have my own night there was something particularly special (watch Gary live in the Boiler Room below).

Richie Hawtin giving you a platform on Minus in 2008 was obviously massive for your career, would you say that you intend to use your label BEK in the same way? 

I hope so, it would be nice to discover someone and help them make a name for themselves. The Minus thing at the time was pretty huge. I had released only one record by that point! I saw it as a massive platform to push on from and I thank Richie for that.

Any big plans for the label incoming, and have you got anything in store for us personally? 

I have a few EP's lined up by myself along with a V/A EP which is due out mid December. I also hope to line up a few label nights at some pretty wicked venues.

Last up, what are your plans for New Year, and what's going to be your New Years resolution? 

I'll be in Belgium for NYE playing the Kozzmozz event. In terms of New Year's resolutions, I gave up on that as it usually only lasted a day or so!

Gary plays mUmU in Liverpool on Boxing day alongside Martin Buttrich and Robert Dietz.  

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