QUICKIE: Hacienda30 At The Arches - Catching Up With Todd Terry

There can be no mistaking the influence of Manchester’s infamous Hacienda. Opening some 30 years ago, it went down in the annals of club music history alongside Studio 54 and The Paradise Garage as being somewhere of exceptional importance. It of course had its financial trouble (something that ultimately contributed to its premature demise), but during the fifteen years it was open, Fac51 was a leading venue in the explosion of House, Acid & Rave. The many stories which consolidate the club’s legacy have of course been told time and time again, but looking back, it will always be celebrated as one of the world’s greatest clubs.

Tomorrow night The Hacienda 30 Tour comes to Glasgow, bringing a whole host of legendary names to the city’s suitably iconic Arches. Taking over the converted warehouse for 8 hours, the line up includes such luminaries as 808 State and K-Klass, while NY House legend, Todd Terry will top the bill. Having played many a classic set at The Hacienda, there is perhaps no one better to bring such a prestigious event to a close. Instrumental in the growing popularity of House during the late 80s and 90s, while just as relevant today as he was some twenty years ago, this is a golden opportunity to catch one of the greatest in action. We recently caught up with Todd to find out what the Hacienda means to him and what we can expect tomorrow night:

Synth: Obviously you’re considered to be one of the great influential names in House, coming up at a time when all eyes were on New York. In 2012 and certainly over the last year or so, it seems House has had a real resurgence in popularity, would you say that’s a fair assessment and what would you attribute that to?

Todd: Yes that’s fair, I think that old school music is coming back and a lot more people are getting into it and like it, which is what made it hot in the first place. There’s this new age of kids checking out a lot of the old stuff, making it more respectable.

Synth: Production wise you’ve been responsible for some certified classics and your early work is of course heavily lauded, but one of our recent favourites was last year’s remix on Ellesse, where would you say you’re at production wise at the moment and how has your sound changed over the years?

Todd: My production now is going more into a collaborative state. Collaborating with one of the newer guys, so there’s a newer sound. My sound changes with the people that I work with.

Synth: You grew up in Brooklyn and were DJing during the early 80’s when of course Hip Hop was becoming ever more popular and prevalent. How much did that influence you back then and how do you feel about all these big RnB stars now adopting the 4x4 for the mainstream?

Todd: Hip hop definitely influenced me, you can hear it in a lot of my work. I always try to throw in hip hop flavour; it makes the music more funky. RnB doing club records today is pretty extreme to me because I’ve been trying to do it for 20 years, but we’re there now.


Todd Terry: respect

Synth: You found favour in Britain during the late 80’s and you remixed many of the big names of the time during the 90s. Again, with reference to America, what is your opinion on the recent explosion of club music or ‘EDM’ recently? Fad or here to stay?

Todd: Music in general, no matter what is going on, isn’t going anywhere. I think people need dance music, American or European.

Synth: You’re joining the likes of 808 State and K-Klass for the Hacienda 30 party in Glasgow tomorrow, what does it mean to you to be celebrating the club’s anniversary and if you had to pick one defining moment from your time there what would it be?

Todd: I think it’s great. It was there from the beginning. Coming back together with those guys to celebrate the times we had together, I can’t wait to get there to work it out with them.

A New Years Eve party, I don’t know what year it was, but the power went out. People just started clapping and stomping their feet for 20 minutes. When it came back on it was the most amazing thing ever.

Synth: Finally, what can we expect from your set next week? Do you still find yourself reaching for the classics or are you focused on what’s hot right now? If so, who are you feeling?

Todd: My plan for next tomorrow’s set is me going old school, new school, going with what I feel works for the dance floor, keeping people energetic and healthy and just make their night. My collaboration with J Paul Getto is the new freshest, hottest thing I’m working on right now. It’s the new hip hop sound.

Todd Terry plays alongside Allister Whitehead, 808 State and K-Klass tomorrow night at The Arches for Streetrave

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Tickets: Arches Website