Apollo 84 has risen through the ranks in 2014 with his trademark deep, energetic house sound. With a numer of remix credits under his belt from Vanilla Ace, Low Steppa and others, along with releases on Mihalis Safras's Material Series, 2014 has been a very good year indeed. 

Apollo 84 has played our club a bunch of times and shared the decks with headline talent as diverse as Amine Edge & DANCE, Hot Since 82, Sonny Fodera and Cristoph, so we thought it was high time we got him in for a SoundOf.

 

 

First of all thanks for doing an exclusive mix for us, what did you go for in the mix?

I went for a deep tech kinda style, with a hint of a raw London sound also.

 

Is this a representation of what you play out now or more what you listen to at home?

 

For those who may be new to your music, how would you describe your sound?

My sound is very energetic, deep, and bassy, with a hint of the 90's jackin sound.

 

How did you first get in to music, when did you know you wanted to be a DJ?

I first got into the music scene when I was around 15 listening to old tape packs, I then bought my first set of decks a year later, left school and started working in a local record shop learning from there.

 

What have you got coming up on the horizon?

I have a full release schedule lined up until next year with Mihalis Safras's Material Series label, and Supernova's Lapsus Music in Europe, as well as releases on New York house labels Nurvous, and King Street, whilst back in the UK I have several releases lined up exclusively with Audio Rehab. I also have a collaboration with Andme & Bastian that I am looking forward to, which will include some remixes from James Silk and Matt Fear. Remix wise I've just remixed for Matt Fear, Roberto Palmero, and Matteo Rosolare, all of which are due out this year.

 

What can the Ministry of Sound crowd expect from your set at Audio Rehab?

The crowd can expect non stop energy and big drops, I like to constantly keep a crowd entertained and interested throughout.

 

You have announced you will be running your own imprint, Twisted Fusion, from 2015, what was the thinking behind this and what can we look forward to from future releases?

Twisted Fusion is going to be a new imprint based on the more global sound of house music, in the past year I had a lot of success with my first imprint Deep Freeze, but felt that the label was very limited to the London kind of underground sound, which is why I have decided to set up the Twisted Fusion imprint for a wider sound, with releases lined up from Andme & Bastian, and myself to kick things off, we also have a host of top European artists like the Di Chiara brothers, and Truth be told lined up for the label.

 

What do you think of the state of dance music at the minute?

I think the current scene is in a strong place globally, mainstream radio are supporting house music and pushing through new artists. The one thing that has been detrimental to the dance scene is the loss of vinyl, its become harder for labels and artists to generate income and sales through the digital form due to piracy and file sharing etc.

 

Who are the most exciting underground artists that our readers might not have heard of but who you think will be big names to come?

Certainly the Di Chiara brothers from Italy, they have a great sound, very similar to Hector Couto's style.  Andme & Bastian are another duo who I feel are making a great sound right now also.

 

Who are your biggest influences?

Production wise I would say I am highly influenced by Dale Howard, Sidney Charles, Mihalis Safras, and Hector Couto, their sounds are top quality right now.

 

What do you like to do on your day off, what’s a typical Sunday like for you?

Days off are usually family time or a bit of Playstation time. Same for Sundays really.

 

How do you prepare for a gig?

Usually by making sure I have the most upfront music, burning CD's and hunting down any last minute weapon tunes I can find. I usually find some new mixes to listen to in the car on the way to the club to get me hyped for the evening ahead.

 

Who are your dream collaborators, past or present?

Dream collaborators right now would be Dale Howard, and Cristoph, their sound is really doing it in the clubs right now. Past collaborators I would have loved to work with the original Chicago house legends like Frankie Knuckles, Steve Silk Hurley, and Larry Levan.

 

Tell us something we don’t know about Apollo 84?

I hate big spiders!!!