This Saturday night the gang at XXL are welcoming a pair of music legends to the super club when remix and production duo K-Klass, aka Paul Roberts and Russell Morgan, rock up to the main room DJ box. The boys have chalked up hits in their own right such as Rhythm Is A Mystery and Let Me Show You as well as remixing many big acts from Cher to Kylie, New Order, Bobby Brown and many more. Dave Cross had a chat with Paul to find out more.
Hi Paul, are you looking forward to playing at XXL on Saturday?
Absolutely, yes, we are super excited. We know DJ Paul Morrell and like his music, the stuff he plays and puts on his label, so I think our sound will be a good fit for XXL.
How would you describe the music you play in your DJ sets?
It’s very much based around the 90s house music ethic. Loads of energy, uplifting with pianos and big vocals, that’s the stuff we are really into.
Do you play some of your own remixes and tracks?
Oh of course, we always play some of our classics from back in the day, big club tracks and remixes and we try to mix it up with modern stuff that fits in with the vibe of what we do.
Have you played many other gay clubs?
Yes, loads, going right back to Pushca in the 90s, and we always like it because you can experiment a bit more. You can be a bit less commercial and I think the crowds are more open minded. Gay crowds always love a good vocal and so do we.
You guys have been working together for a long time, how did you meet?
Originally we were a four-piece band. We met at the Hacienda in I think 1989 and on the first night Russ and I met the other two we ended up making tracks, which ended up being our first release on Eastern Bloc, a four-track EP, which charted at number 61. The label asked us for another track and that was Rhythm Is A Mystery, which made number three in the charts, and we never looked back really.
How has the dance music scene changed since those days?
Everything is much more available now. There used to be real kudos to being a DJ with a rare white label; quite often if you wanted to hear a particular record you had to go and hear a certain DJ. Now, to a large extent, that’s gone, and music seems more disposable now, sadly. You have to create your own mixes, edits or tracks to really stand out and keep it fresh.
As remixers you’ve worked on tracks by many huge acts, is it possible to pick a favourite?
Yes, actually I can. I would chose Frankie Knuckles and Adeva Whadda U Want From Me. The way it lifts and builds, I still get goosebumps when I hear it, and we met Frankie in Amsterdam once and he told us he thought it was the best remix anyone had ever done of one of his tracks!
Wow that’s amazing.
I know, we were like, oh my god, we can give up now and retire.
And you’ve remixed a track by XXL DJ Paul Morrell, how did that happen?
We’ve known Paul for a long time, maybe 15 years, and we really like the stuff he makes, the bootlegs and productions are always great and we play a lot of them in our sets. When he sends us something we always know it will be good.
What else are you working on now or got coming out soon?
We have a long awaited artist album we are working on, but I’m not sure when that will be. At the moment we are spending a lot of time producing the Cream Classical shows with the orchestra, including shows in Liverpool Cathedral, and there will be more K-Klass live shows coming up as well.
XXL at Pulse, 1 Invicta Plaza, Blackfriars Bridge Road, SE1.
XXL-London.com
Recommended for you
