Twenty years is a long time in DJ world, especially if you've been a resident at the same club for that period and especially when dance music changes every other day.
But DJ Harri (James Harrigan) is as famous in Glasgow as the club at which he has been resident for those past two decades - the Sub Club.
He's been around House music from the beginning and started his first night in Aberdeen in the mid-80s. His return to Glasgow came with the revered UFO night and his parties at Sub Club are now legendary. One of his nights, Atlantis, was famous for hosting members of The Stone Roses after their last gig in Glasgow (which I'm sure he's sick of reading) and his current Subculture night is highly regarded around the world with DJs like Derrick Carter, Moodymann, Andy Weatherall, Henrik Schwarz & Ame having graced the decks.
He's been producing since the 90s under aliases H-Foundation,The Papa Washington Trio, Daddy's Favourite and under his regular DJ name as well. From his first release on the classic UK House label Limbo in '92, to quality UK labels Glasgow Underground, Deep Freeze, Paper Recordings, Tronicsoul and Bomba Records, his passion for championing the pure sound of House has always been evident.
He's appeared in DJ Magazine's Top 100 DJs and has regularly played all the best clubs in the world. He's also now hooked up with one of the best House producers around in The Revenge and is excited to be heading down-under on his first trip to Australia, which sounds inconceivable that he hasn't played here before. He'll be headlining Co-Op's first birthday party with a four-hour marathon set on Saturday, June 5, at a secret warehouse venue.
So I thought it was time for a chat.
I remember being in London in ’86 and first hearing the sound of House and I will always remember it. Tell us about when you first heard it and your thoughts on it?
The first time I heard a record that could almost be classified as 'proto' House would have been 1982 when I heard 'Rock At Your Own Risk' by Planet Patrol. My friend brought a cassette tape back from a Spanish club. I was blown away. The 'Early House Sound Of Chicago' compilations in 86/87 would have been the first time I heard a name attached to House and began to investigate further.
It seems that the underground Disco/House scene now (especially here) is making stars out of DJs that have been playing since the 80s ie Greg Wilson/Fulton ect. What are your thoughts on this?
Personally it reminds me of when Rare Groove took off in the UK in the early to mid-eighties. People started to discover music that had been right under there noses for a while, but flew under the radar. I think it’s a good thing that people like Greg and Maurice are getting the recognition they have long deserved.
You’ve been DJing since house began. Why did you want to get behind the decks?
I have always loved and collected music but had no ambitions to ever DJ. A friend started a Reggae club and I occasionally helped out. I was encouraged by him to start my own thing as he knew my tastes extended beyond Reggae. I had enough decent records and was living away from my home town and the existing venues were not playing what I wanted to hear, so I thought I would try and do my own thing.
Tell us about Glasgow during this period? Was it catching on quickly to what was happening in London with the House scene?
I started my first night in Aberdeen in the mid-eighties before returning to Glasgow. When I returned to Glasgow (my home town) and started to play in clubs, the transition to House seemed fairly seamless throughout the UK and was paralleled in all the major cities. I think Manchester was probably ahead of London at this time.
Was there one House track that made you just think ‘ you hadn’t heard anything like this before’?
'Nude Photo' (Mayday) and Nitro Deluxe ('Let's Get Brutal').
Is there a story behind buying your first set of 1200s? Have you still got them?
Yes I still have them. Before that I had belt drive turntables which had no vari-speed, so you can imagine actually being able to mix was amazing.
When people mention Sub Club, your name automatically comes up. Tell us about Beatbox and your first Sub Club experience. How did you become involved here?
I returned to Glasgow from Aberdeen. My brother's friend was resident at the Sub Club. He knew I had DJed and asked me to stand in for him at the Sub Club when he was on holiday. Through this opportunity I met my then DJ partner Gerry. We decided to start a night and it became successful. We played Electro, Hip Hop, Northern Soul, Dub, Rare Groove and early House all in the one night.
The UFO night was pretty legendary? Why do you think that was? What were you spinning at this night?
UFO night was when ecstasy was kicking off big time in the UK. Former soulboys, hippies, punks, hells angels and football casuals all started dancing to the same beat. I was resident along with Jon Da Silva (Hacienda) and Lars Sandberg (Funk D'Void, Soma etc.) and a guy called Adrian. We all played House and Techno, with some slo-mo for warm ups.
Onto Atlantis and how did you and the Slam boys connect?
Orde Stuart and Dave from Soma were all regulars at Beatbox. They had started their own Thursday night at another club. We were all approached by the Sub Club and offered a Saturday night residency there.
Was it a mutual parting of the ways. They seemed to be going more Techno. Was that the reason?
We had a good 4 years at least of busy Saturdays at the Sub. During this period we ran three different weekly nights together and both had our separate projects. They had started a harder Techno night at the Arches which was perceived by the Sub Club owners to be stealing custom from our Saturday. They sacked Orde and Stuart and offered me the Saturday night for myself, as I wanted to pursue a deeper sound. I recruited my friends Oscar & Domenic.
It seems your love of House has never wavered. What do you love about it? How has it changed over the past 30 years?
I love the way House endlessly adapts itself to every other genre that I love - Jazz, Latin, Soul, Dub etc. They can all be incorporated and every few weeks, records or styles come along that sound fresh for a wee while and gradually morph into something else.
How funny that it’s back in a big way. I always give dance music a 20-year cycle and Electro has had a good 10-year run and now we’re beginning to re-discover the 90s. Do you agree?
At the Sub we have always incorporated records from all eras into our sets. It certainly seems that there has been a shift since the demise of Minimal to a deeper funkier 90s style.
Tell us about Subculture and why you think it has been so successful?
We have an amazing soundsystem and the doormen, bar staff and owners are all music lovers. Glasgow people are pretty up-for-it. The soundtrack is never the same two weeks in a row.
Do you still love DJing there? It’s great when you feel comfortable at a club - you always seem to play better. Is it like a home away from home?
What's not to love. I like to travel and guest away now and again and consider myself really lucky to have such an amazing place to return to.
I saw you played alongside Carl Craig at the weekend. That says it all really. Who has been your fave guest there?
No you didn’t…he never appeared. His daughter was ill ;-) So many amazing guests, most recently amazing have been Derrick Carter, Delano Smith and Moodymann.
How long will it go on for?
As long as the punters still feel it is credible and worthwhile. I can't imagine ever getting sick of it. I had no idea it would last this long.
Let’s talk about your music. Can you still remember your very first release and how you wrote it and what equipment you used to write it?
It was a remix for a band called Friendzy and the track was called 'Can't Stop'. A local entrepreneur paid for me to go into a studio with an engineer and a musician. I took a pile of records and a bag of weed. I asked them to play stuff using my records as examples. We sampled drums and whatever and the results were not bad. I don't know what gear they were using.
What’s your favourite track you’ve ever written and does it still get a play these days?
Possibly the 'Truth & Temptation' track that myself and Graeme (The Revenge) have just had out under our Burnt Island Casuals moniker. It was one of the first tracks we ever made together (about nine years ago) and it took a while for anyone else to like it but we thought it was great.
Glasgow Underground and Paper were pretty special labels? You released on both. How influential do you think these labels were in the scheme of things?
I wouldn’t say they were seminal in my world. I have probably been more influenced by US house than UK or Euro.
Tell us a little about your own label Tax Discs. When did you set it up and why? How many releases did you have?
Jeez, I can't really remember. I think I started it mid to late nineties, just because every DJ at that time in Glasgow seemed to have their own label. I think I put out six maybe seven records, including early collaborations with myself Milton Jackson and Alex Smoke.
You’ve teamed up with The Revenge who is arguably the best new producer to come out of UK in the last few years. How did you meet?
A mutual friend introduced us about ten years ago at a festival. I had just made the Papa Washington Trio album for Paper and Graeme had just moved from Glasgow to Edinburgh. We immediately clicked both musically and socially.
What’s the vibe behind the project with The Revenge? And the future?
Graeme and myself have been working together fairly regularly since we met. Some nights we just chat for ages, do an hour's work and abandon it for a while. We often listen back to old stuff we have made and neither of us have any recollection if making it. We both pretty much live in the moment.
Tell us what you like playing in your DJ sets. The longer the better, yeah?
Usually in the UK and Europe you are expected to play 2-hour DJ sets. If I am playing with Domenic, we often do an hour each. I am used to playing pretty much across the board of bpms from 90+ to around 126. I like to play a large percent of new stuff that people may not have heard with a few old things that still seem relevant. I have no idea until I hear what the DJ before me is playing...I pretty much take that as a launch pad. Sometimes Deep, others Techy or Discoey, whatever feels appropriate for the room at that moment.
Have you been to Sydney before? What are your thoughts about the scene here or what people have told you about it?
I have never been to Australia before. The Optimo guys that do a Sunday at the Sub have raved about Australia and said I will love it.
Do you miss the old days or do you hate when people say that?
I am not big on nostalgia. It has its time and place. I prefer to live in the present. People will always yearn for the days when everything seemed to click for them. I luckily happen to still love new music and my job, and it still all feels relevant to my ears.
Murphy.
