Sidney Charles: Those experiences are what make you a real DJ

Photo: Sidney Charles

As one of the mainstays of Sankeys Ibiza's Tribal Sessions night, the deck wizardry of house and techno expert Sidney Charles has helped cement the lauded club night's dedication to under the radar dance music.

With a highly prolific run of releases under his belt too for labels as respected as Avotre, OFF, Sci+Tec and most recently Moda Black, the dedicated German has time and again shown he knows a thing or two about what it takes to work a dancefloor. Witness that in his latest live mix from Tribal Sessions below.

We caught up with the Hamburg native ahead of his next appearance for Tribal Sessions to find out more about this Ibiza season, his history as a hip hop DJ, and what makes a quality DJ. 

Hi Sidney, thank you for speaking to us! You've had a particularly busy Ibiza season - How has that been for you? Is Ibiza somewhere that is special for you?

It was my first season on the island and I've really fallen in love with it. Most of my gigs took place at Sankeys on the Wednesday, which represents the real underground on the island form my perspective. I'm really happy to be part of that. 

I can also understand people calling it the 'magic island'. It's something I was smiling at before, but after spending a couple of months there I know what it means. And you can only know it if you felt the vibe for a certain amount of time and if you let yourself go in this special flow that Ibiza has. It's just a unique place of the world which combines the best DJs and clubs at one small spot.

How has the whole Tribal Sessions experience been? What do you think makes Tribal Sessions so highly regarded in house and techno circles?

What makes Tribal Sessions a unique concept is that it's all about the music, and no other bullshit. Just a proper sound system, a basement venue like back in the days and authentic house and techno acts. When I saw the line ups for this season for the first time I was so happy to be a part of that as most of the artists are amongst my favourites.

The sound that Tribal Sessions represents is strictly underground, raw and fully loaded with character. Every night I've experienced was absolutely breathtaking. I've never been into a club where the vibe is so constantly good. As a DJ the energy that the crowd gives you back makes you almost feel high. I've really enjoyed every gig so far.

You've been very prolific with your releases since 2011, how do you manage to find the time between DJing and touring to produce?

I have so much fun making music from scratch that I couldn't live with out it in my daily life anymore. For me the next level of DJing was to also spin my own productions and see the direct reaction from the crowd. While I do this I have a little cinema in my head, where I am imagining all the steps from making that tune until it is being played out on a sound system and it makes people move and they feel happiness. It's an amazing feeling.

So to cut a long story short, I always find time to make music. I've got my laptop with me wherever I go so I can constantly work on ideas that come into my mind. When I want to make it ready for club use I have to go to my studio though to do a proper mix down and master.

We’ve read that you started out DJing with breaks, funk, soul etc.. Do you ever find yourself having a mix with old skool hip hop and funk for a bit of a fun? And what was it that seduced you to the world of house and techno?

This time in my life made me to the DJ and producer that I am right now. Back then I only played records on vinyls. if you get in touch with DJing first like this you learn much better how mixing is supposed to be done, because you tend to mix more with feeling and listening than with visualization.

This process influenced me a lot and I still love to do some scratches and cuts from time to time. In my hometown it was really hard to get gigs as a hip hop DJ as I always was struggling to find a crowd that accepted my music. I mostly played at private parties and I had to bring all my own equipment - two 1210s, a Vestax mixer and I had to borrow a sound system.

Most of the time I came home with zero money, but it was worth to spin for the whole night even when the gig was shit. In the end all those experiences are what make you to real DJ! In the end I found that the hip hop scene was heading into a really, really commercial direction, so I found myself more distanced from the scene.

When a friend of my mum gave me a bunch of his old vinyl (I never said no!) he also gave me a bunch of house records - Jovonn, Kerri Chandler, Adonis, Terry Lee Brown Junior to name a few - and I loved the sound of these tunes partly because it very often had influences from hip hop and breaks. This is what sparked the flame inside me.

Where do you stand on the whole vinyl / digital debate? We know you use both formats in your sets, is vinyl something you're keen to keep championing?

I don't stay on any side. Everyone is allowed to do what he thinks fits best with his ways of mixing and his style of music. I love playing vinyl because I get this feeling and excitement during my set which gives me lots of energy and this makes me happy.

But I also don't close my eyes of any technical development. The new CDJs on the market are amazing and they allow you to create incredible mixes. I am also still learning and don’t see myself in the position of a teacher - I mainly mix how I learnt to do it back then. 

What is the rest of your year looking like? Any gigs you are especially looking forward to?

I am very much looking forward to my Australia and Asia tour at end of October. I will play in Sydney, Brisbane, Melbourne, Seoul and Shanghai.

ADE is also on the list of my favourites. We will also have a big showcase with AVOTRE with a massive line-up. I am also looking forward to playing for Found/Ceremony Festival in September, which will close the festival season in London.

Can we look forward to any more new Sidney Charles releases this year? (Listen to his latest for Moda Black below) 

Definitely!

Mysterious! We like it.

So finally, hypothetical situation - you are asked to curate your ultimate party - where would you have it, who would you have on the bill, and what record would you play to define the night?

I love industrial venues like old warehouses. But in this case I would like to have something with open walls, so some kind of open air-hall. But not for too many people. Maximum capacity would be 800 to create a good atmosphere, but still a personal and intimate vibe.

I'd love to have my friends on the bill - Darius Syrossian, Santé, DJ Sneak, Hector Couto but also some DJs I look up to like Jovonn, Laurent Garnier, Kerri Chandler and Mr. G

Catch Sidney at Sankeys Ibiza every other Wednesday night for Tribal Sessions.

Wednesday September 3rd

Wednesday September 17th

Wednesday October 1st (and below)

Or if you're stuck in the UK, he will be playing as part of Tribal Sessions 14th Birthday at Sankeys Manchester on October 3rd.

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