(Visit Morgan Page on Eventvibe : http://eventvibe.com/morganpage)"I got hooked on electronic music."
-Morgan PageEV: What was it like growing up in Vermont, and how did this influence your musical tastes?
MP: Vermont is a fairly isolated, rural place - but I grew up on the edge of a college town (Burlington) that had an excellent college radio station - WRUV. There was also one big club called Higher Ground that actually had a great sound system. Most people listened to jam bands, classic rock, and hip-hop - and they thought that anyone who liked electronic music was a tweaker or some kind of drug addict. However, thanks to some great mixshows, local record shops, and a few clubs - I got hooked on electronic music.
EV: Starting out as a DJ on WRUV 90.1 FM in Vermont and WERS 88.9 FM in Boston. How might your radio experience influence the way you perform at shows now, and/or your music production?
MP: I prefer more musical sets than many DJs, which stems from my radio experience. To me it's much more satisfying to have all the elements, and be playing several splinter genres. If it has a vocal, it doesn't need to be cheesy or commercial. There is a fair amount of club music that is engineered to sound massive in a club, but falls short everywhere else. Some of that is fine, but I really like the records that work in every setting.
EV: You started out as a bootleg remixer and released an entire album, 'Cease and Desist', back in 2006. What was the response from this album?
MP: The response was beyond my expectations. There were enough downloads to crash a server. The goal was to just get some mixes I felt strongly about on to people's ipods - but it went much further. Booking agents heard it, artist managers heard it -- i still get requests for the Hide & Seek mix all the time at shows. It helped me really build my remix career, and actually legitimately remix one of Tegan & Sara's singles called "Back In Your Head."
EV: Can you tell us about your first club gig?
MP: The first gig was at Phoenix Landing in Boston. It was a dark, sweaty Irish pub that I had been kicked out of prior to this for drinking underage. I hauled in my MPC2000, EMU sampler, Mackie mixer - and let loose. I couldn't believe the sound coming out of the speakers. I could barely recognize the kick drum because it sounded so massive. The pub happened to have a really talented sound guy who was responsible for the sound at most of the underground parties in Boston.
EV: The Longest Road (Deadmau5 remix) was up for a Grammy. How did you feel when you found out about the nomination?
MP: It was definitely an unexpected thrill. Definitely an honor to just have the song nominated.
EV: What have been your favorite remixes to date?
MP: It keeps changing because I feel that the new stuff keeps growing and improving, but here's a handful of my all time faves out of the 100+ remixes:
Kaskade "Be Still" bootleg mix, Hide and Seek bootleg mix, Lal Meri "Bad Things," Madonna "Miles Away", and my own remix of "Call My Name.”
EV: If you chose any artist to remix right now who would it be and why?
MP: Fleet Foxes or Imogen Heap, just because I'm a huge fan of them both.
EV: What artists or DJs influenced you most when it comes to your style of electro house?
MP: Right now it's more progressive leaning, but initially I was really influenced by the Melbourne producers like Dirty South and Vandalism. I'm a big fan of the music coming out of Stockholm and the Swedish House Mafia, and the new wave of German producers like D.O.N.S., Miles Dyson, Inpetto, Dabruck & Klein.
EV: What program or hardware are you using to produce and perform with these days?
MP: In the studio I use Pro Tools and Logic. When performing I use Ableton Live. I'm a big fan of Waves and Sound Toys plug-ins.
EV: Could you describe your remixing process? And how do you keep on top of your heavy production schedule?
MP: With remixes I work very quickly - about three days for a mix. I check out the parts provided, time-stretch them, delete the extra things I don't want (usually the original drums, vocal harmonies, keyboards), and just find a groove that works for the song. Every mix calls for something different, so it's really different each time.
EV: You've landed at the top of the Billboard charts on multiple occasions and have some of the most sough after remixing skills in the industry, what can we expect to see from you this year?
MP: You'll see more cool Indie remixes - probably less Billboard stuff. The problem with Billboard focused mixes is that they don't really see the light of day. They get sent to a small pool of DJs, hang around the charts for a bit, and then disappear. Keep your eyes open for my remixes of Tom Geiger, Shelley Harland, and there's a new Yoko Ono mix coming out soon.
