Soul Time In London takes place September 6, 2014, at Brilliant Corners with Patrick Forge, Laura Coxeter, and Cedric Bardawil. 6:00pm - 1:30am.
Expect vinyl-only sets all night, ranging from Jazz Fusion to Hawaiian Soul, with floor steppers mixed in to keep the night going.
Patrick Forge at the turntables. Photo via patrickforge.podomatic.com"We live in a turbulent world, the horrors of which never fail to affect me, more or less to the extent of turning away and shutting out the news, which I know is a coward's response. It's been said that the only sane reaction to an insane world is insanity, as a corollary to that I might add sometimes the only sane reaction is to keep your head down, do what you can for the greater good, and keep the fear-mongering, warmongering ways of the industrial-military complex at arm's length!
"So I retreat, and find my refuge, my sanctuary in the music. It's where this coward hides, keeping faith in the soulful sounds, and praying for better days ahead. Sometimes it feels like I live my entire life through the music, it seems I'm powerless to express myself without recourse to song titles!! Music is my sanctuary, better days ahead… maybe it's not so strange to find solace in the music of that era (often the seventies). The time when I was growing up, and when despite the bubble of sixties idealism having burst, there was still sufficient residual optimism. It's difficult to find such sentiments expressed in today's music, we've all become far too cynical, and despairing of the possibility of anything changing for the better. So no wonder that music made in a different climate still holds such an influence not only over my generation but also many who are far too young to have experienced the culture and music of those days first hand. Of course there are plenty of examples of those who choose to run against the grain, and though I might seem to paint a bleak picture I'm never despairing. There's still so much to live for , to believe in, to hope for and whilst the culture of the mainstream leaves me speechless with wonder at its absurdity and fatuousness, (Paris Hilton earning millions as a DJ!!), the pockets of resistance and goodness are deep and rich!!
"So good music abides, a bit like the dude!! And when I say good music, I think you know what I mean by now, music with craft and care, skill and musicality. The rest leaves me cold, the latest forays into EDM are inevitably just ephemeral blips in history, whereas music made with genuine passion by those who've paid their dues and are ready to stand up and be counted at least stands a chance of surviving the vagaries of fashionable taste!! Oh no I'm ranting again! Less exclamation marks, more calm and collected deliberations methinks."
— Patrick Forge, August 17, 2014
Patrick Forge in deep concentration. Photo via Facebook.
Please briefly introduce yourself: name, background, anything you’d like readers to know about you.
Patrick Forge!? There is no separation between me and my DJ persona, no weird moniker to hide behind, I like to think that it's my connection with and passion for music that dictates how I play and what I play. Music has always been my source of inspiration and my mainline of joy, from the earliest age using my parents "record player" and immersing myself in The Beatles, Debussy, and Danny Kaye. I never expected to have a career playing records, I wanted to be a musician , but when things didn't work out in that respect , it all seemed to fall into place. I feel very blessed by the opportunities I've had.
You’ve had a highly successful career as a DJ, probably most notably with the Dingwalls "Talkin Loud And Saying Something" parties you and Gilles Peterson hosted in the late 80s, early 90s (and are bringing back in recent years). How has DJing and record culture changed since you first began, especially with the advent of technology and the Internet?
Wow.... well the Dingwalls sessions were something that grew out of the jazz-dance scene of the early eighties, and the "rare groove" phenomenon that became such an integral element of club culture around that time. We were a generation of diggers and explorers at a time when all knowledge of music was essentially hard won, you paid your dues and largely earned respect from the tunes you found and played, and of course it was all vinyl back in those days. The seismic change since those times is hard to quantify or describe!! All music and all knowledge is available to anyone who cares to rummage around on-line, and Paris Hilton can earn millions as a DJ using an mp3 controller!! I think that kind of sums it up! But seriously, it's a very different world, even a serious vinyl collector can assemble an amazing collection these days without ever having to traipse around record shops in the hope of unearthing a previously unknown gem. I'm not nostalgic about those times though, I love Discogs!! However something has definitely been lost in the process!
How has DJing remained the same?
Music, people, dancing....selecting.
What makes for a successful DJ? Is it skill? Selection? Collaborations?
Well it depends how you quantify success!! For me it's always all about selection, no matter what the context, on the radio, in a bar/restaurant, in a club, the music you choose to play creates an energy and determines the mood.
Reborn: Gilles Peterson and Patrick Forge have brought back Dingwalls in recent years.