Upclose with Matt Darey
Remember "El Nino (Matt Darey Remix)"? Of course you do, you big gurner. Matt Darey was probably best-known for euphoric trance music, but now he's got his own label, Darey Products, where he releases tracks that (surprise, surprise) involve stuff like rock music fused with dance.
HK Magazine: Were you a baggy-panted rave kid?
Matt Darey: Haha, you guessed it. That was me with the smiley faces and glow sticks!
HK: So did you bemoan the commercialism of rave and feel betrayed and so on?
MD: Yeah, when anything gets too mainstream it doesn’t feel so special. I moved on to the nu-NRG after rave so I wasn’t that upset when “Trip To Trumpton” hit the charts.
HK: Some bill you as one of the founders of trance.
MD: Yeah, I found it under my pillow. Nah, I was there right from its early beginnings back in 1993, when I was a student. Before that, the rave scene was massive and I was making breaks and house. I never really set out to do everything I’ve done though. I was just passionate about making music and everything fell into place.
HK: Do you ever feel like plain old trance is pretty dated?
MD: Haha. Yeah, sure. Nowadays I play a bit of trance, electro, progressive, house, breaks… Whatever the crowd is into. Music moves so fast and you have to keep up with what’s happening now. I also produce rock music fused with EDM (electronic dance music).
HK: Speaking of random genre fusing, what do you think of “new-rave”?
MD: Could catch on… What’s it sound like? Does it involve glow sticks and smiley faces?
HK: Who is your best friend?
MD: Danny Diablo - he’s always sitting on my right shoulder whispering to me in my ear telling me to do naughty stuff.