Although not everyone knows their names, Sharam and Dubfire
(aka the Deep Dish Boys) have been a major force in music, both in house and pop music. They have
done remixes for some heavyweights, including: Janet and Michael Jackson, the Rolling Stones, the
Pet Shop Boys, Tina Turner, Everything But the Girl, the Shamen, BT and Tori Amos, and the list
goes on and on... They own Deep Dish Records and Yoshitoshi Records, and are on the roster of
Deconstruction Records. Sharam and Dubfire are busy guys, yet they still made time to give us some
advice on life, on goals, competition, and innovation in music. Kenya made their heads spin.
Everyone pretty much knows the story, your story, and your success...but let's go back to before the success. Did you always feel/know that you wanted to take the music to the next level and produce? Did you both realize that producing is where your goal and destiny lay? Or was it something that came about with time? DD: A little bit of both really. We always knew we somehow were going to get involved in the music making and the music industry, but we didn't know how or when. It all came together because subconsciously we wanted to do it. One day we just said let's do it. When we had the opportunity we both knew that we wanted to be stylistically very different from the way everyone else was making music and doing business. So we started making and paving our own roads as opposed to following someone else's footsteps. Of course like any other goals in life you have to have the right mind set to achieve them. Our's was quality rather than quantity. With these years behind you now and every house dj having at least one of your tracks or one of your labels' releases, have you achieved what you wanted to? Looking back, have you accomplished what, in the beginning, you were setting out to do? Hopefully not everything you want to do is done, so what is left? What's in store for Deep Dish not just in '98 but in 2000 and beyond? DD: It's funny how you set different goals for yourself in life and when you achieve them they don't seem as big and unachievable as when you first set them. So you go on and make even harder and less attainable goals thinking that's it; that's where I want to get; that's where I want to be. But, no matter how unrealistic and far-fetched they might seem we still commit to them. But that's the fun part. Life is all about setting goals and working towards them. You gotta play to win. We are both very much goal-driven characters and we use any excuse to set the next goal for our future. Whether it's short term or long term; whether it's about the music or something personal, we don't give up. We think about it everyday and we do something everyday to get us closer to that ultimate level that we created in our heads. Right now we have so many of them that it's really sickening. Let's just put it this way: whatever we have accomplished up to now is peanuts comparing to what we have in mind for the future. So don't worry we aren't going anywhere! In hiphop, drum and bass, etc etc, there are always clashes between camps, about what is "real" and what progress is and what is "too commercial". Do you experience this at all with other house producers and dj's? Why do you think house pretty much is able to embrace all its changes and evolutions w/o so much tension? DD: You must first realize that competition brings tension and tension brings competition. The 'real' versus 'unreal' argument rears it's ugly head within many camps. We've sometimes found ourselves smack in the middle! We don't necessarily think that house steers clear of these issues. in many instances, especially in the past, we've found that the more 'garage' based dj's/producers are less eager to embrace or give the music we make credibility. They seem to think that it veers too much towards techno and not enough in the other direction, whatever that means! But at the end of the day, if you believe in what you do nothing else really matters. These issues pretty much take care of themselves. Has house music evolved in your opinion? Have all the boundaries been pushed? A lot of people refer to house as "the same old thing, over and over" Do you feel that? Has house evolved to it's fullest extent or is there always room to grow and rules to break within house music? DD: It's stupid to think that music will no longer evolve. People who make the music evolve everyday and so will their music. It doesn't matter if it's house , techno, jungle, hip-hop, you name it. As long as there is that hunger for originality, music will evolve. There is always new people poppin' up that want to go to the top so they will try anything to be different and unique to surpass your achievements. That alone opens doorways for new ideas and new tricks. I just can't wait to see what will happen next. We are in this thing for the long run because we love it so we pay close attention to what's going on. There are many talented producers out there that make our job more exciting; harder, if you will. So we make sure we give them a good run for their money. It's a healthy competition that exists in the industry which, at the end of the day, makes it all the more interesting and exciting for the fans and the music itself. Just like life, music will always find a way. Lastly, being the 'house mack daddies' and other groovy names, hehe, what does it take to create your music? What goes into each song? Are all your works a collective memory of emotions and events or does each individual song take on it's own character and evolution? Is remixing for artists fun or is it more demanding than sitting down and just creating something from top to bottom? DD: Could you have asked more questions in one sentence???? Damn my head is spinning!! You pretty much answered the questions with your questions. All of the above at some point will happen in the process of a production. the good part is we don't know when. Sometimes it's easier to do a remix than to start with nothing and vise-versa. It all depends on our mood; whether we are inspired or not and to what level. We kinda get inspiration from everything. It could be a car that we see in the street. It could be the bank trying to reposess the house! It could be a broken heart! It could be a movie, a basketball/football game or a soccer match. Skiing in Lake Tahoe, meeting someone new, big fight between the both of us, you name it! If it stirs the emotions, it gets translated into the song. You never know who the lucky one is! Here we are at the end, if I havent touched on anything in the short time feel free to throw me some comments here and any forthcoming releases or events you'd like to mention feel free to do that here too. DD: Basically check out our web site at www.deepdish.com for all the latest information. As far as what to look forward to, our next single, "Mohammed is Jesus..." from our forthcoming album on Deconstruction will be out in March followed by the album, "Junk Science", in May. There is a double-cd compilation of the latest material from our Yoshitoshi label that's coming out through Twisted in March and it's mixed by us. As far as remixes go, check out Adam F's "Music in my Mind", the Rolling Stones' "Saint of Me", Michael Jackson's "Is it Scary" and Love and Rockets' "Resurrection Hex". Thanks a lot for your time and I'm looking forward to future releases. DD: Thank you!! Activated Online |