Interview: Slim Goodgroove has no fear
On 24th March 2016 Slim Goodgroove hits Eastbourne on England’s sunshine coast to party with the Jellyfunk Allstars with some exclusive cuts in his DJ set. Somethingyousaid.com’s 25ThC caught up with him in advance of the show to discuss his record label, the Shindig Weekender and more:
You are the head of Goodgroove records. When and why did you set the label up?
Yes I am, the label has been aiding the world’s DJs to bring fine funky beats to the floor since 2005. I set it up to do just that.
You have recently released an EP on the label by our good friends, Shaka Loves You. How did you link up with them and what do you like about their productions?
It’s all about disco on the new Shaka release, my roots, I love a bit of disco. The plucky young Scots that are Shaka Loves You have disco in their blood and a whole bunch of talent to boot, they are definitely an act to watch in the coming years. The release has been played twice on Craig Charles’ BBC 6music show, they have at least one new fan and he runs a radio show!
Which artists/labels particularly influenced you as a DJ/record label?
As a label it has to be Featurecast. He was on my first ever release and in fact without his contribution to the label I’m not sure it would have ever started. But as a DJ I am influenced more by old house and disco. I love Dimitri From Paris, The Reflex and Late Night Tuff Guy. They are really bringing back the sound that got me into music in the first place.
You are heading down to play alongside the Jellyfunk Allstars at Maxims in Eastbourne on 24th March 2016. What do you have planned for the event and will you be playing any exclusives?
Really looking forward to coming and rocking the place. I play as one half of the Ghetto Funk Allstars and plan to bring a good chunk of our Hell Stage show from Glastonbury, there is always exclusives involved, but I have no fear of mixing in the classics. Good music is good music.
You are heavily involved in the successful Shindig Weekender now in its third year. Why and how did you set the festival up?
We setup Shindig after running the Ghetto Funk nightclub at several UK festivals. At its peak we had a 1000 capacity venue within another festival, thats when we realised we could setup our own event. In our first year there was 1200 people, now it’s 3000, so it’s going in the right direction. I am pretty much full time on Shindig these days, it’s a huge amount of work for a very small team.
Which artists are you particularly looking forward to seeing at Shindig Weekender and how do you go about choosing which artists will work well at the festival?
Glad to have Skratch Bastid coming over this year. I met and played before him at Shambhala 2011 in Canada and the guy blew me away, really nice person too. Always love to have A.Skillz and this year he is hosting his own night at the festival which is gong to be a highlight. Beardyman, Weatherall, Dub Pistols and well most of the acts, we picked them to come for that exact reason, we want to see them all!!
Can you tell us what the music scene in Bath, where you live, is like and in comparison to close neighbour Bristol?
Bath, not great for nightlife, but is still a hub of new music, the birth place of The Heavy, Danny Byrd, Propeller Heads. On the other hand Bristol, only 10 miles down the road, is where it’s at. There are always masses of gigs to go to over there, plus talent coming out of its ears.
Ghetto funk has been around for a number of years now and the sound seems to be perpetrating into every day life. Which artists do you particularly rate?
I think a few acts have really made that sound into something very special. One that is amazing and still evolving is WBBL. He is still so young and the talent he has in production and live is something to behold. It’s exciting to watch his progress. I have to mention Featurecast, he is still a legend in the scene, his music still leads the way.
When you are not DJing what type of music and artists do you listen to to relax?
I love original funk and disco. I have a good 45s collection. Listening to them is as close to relaxing as I get.
Other than Shindig what else do you have planned for 2016?
We have a venue at one of the UK’s largest festivals this year (top secret). It’s all very exciting, but I can’t say too much.
You can catch Slim Goodgroove at Maxims, Eastbourne on 24th March 2016 10pm-2am. For more details check out the Facebook event page
Interview by 25ThC.
