Words by Art Jefferson
Images courtesy of Kissy Sell Out
Anyone who has remotely been clued in to electronic music within the last 7 years or so has heard the name Kissy Sell Out. Whether wowing spectators with his rapid fire, four-deck mixing, producing varied styles of dance music and remixes for acts like Gwen Stefani and Mark Ronson, or breaking cutting edge sounds on his popular “Kissy Klub” show on BBC Radio 1, Kissy Sell Out remains one of the most charismatic and in demand DJs/producers in electronica.
Born in Colchester, Essex, Kissy Sell Out’s love for art and music began as a kid obsessed with album covers, playing electric guitar, and listening to records ranging from Nirvana to Felix Da Housecat. He eventually went on to study graphic design at London’s Central Saint Martins College of Arts and Design, where he initially created his San City High project. During his last year at school, Kissy landed a job working as a design assistant for POP Magazine. Never straying away from music, it was around the same time that he hit the streets of London hustling his own pressed recordings. Building up a reputation for a hyper yet versatile style of electro, he gained support from the likes of people such as Simian Mobile Disco and Sinden. Kissy Sell Out would continue to help shape that scene into what later exploded worldwide.
In 2007 Kissy Sell Out began hosting his infamous “Kissy Klub” on BBC Radio 1. Known for his maverick approach of mixing classical, electronica, indie, punk, grime and speed garage into one entertaining bonanza, his guests included Diplo, The Rapture, Felix Da Housecat, Kev Nish from The Far East Movement, Erol Alkan and an extensive list of some of the biggest names in music. The show which ran for 5 years, is considered to help lay a solid foundation for the direction of modern electro.
In 2009, Kissy Sell Out’s debut album “Youth” was released on Marrakesh Records. The inspiration for the content was drawn from his days of growing up in Colchester and the experienced trials and tribulations during the process of the recording. It was his successful 2011 sophomore album “Wild Romance” that captured the core essence of modern raving while incorporating a wide range of moods. Many of the songs’ compositions marked the maturity of the producer as he not only delved into his classical likings with some of the instrumentation, but maintained a dance music underlay.
As a DJ, Kissy Sell Out truly stands in a league of his own, mixing on four CDJ decks in a manner of almost an improv musical production. In fact, the East London based entertainer helped to develop the Pioneer CDJ-2000nexus. Playing the decks like instruments, he managed to raise the performance bar in a circuit that often times have been accused of containing DJs having their hands in the air more than on the actual turntables or CDJs. This showmanship is one of the reasons why Kissy Sell Out consistently remains one of the most sought after DJs today.
With the compilation “San City High All Stars” out now, Kissy Sell Out is busier than ever, globe trekking around the planet playing gigs and creating a euphoric time for the attendees. One thing that is rest assured – aside from his energetic sounds, forever will remain his signature of unadulterated fun.
AJ– You’re definitely no stranger in Ibiza. You played at the opening night at Judgement Fridays, not to mention you’re booked for another night with Judge Jules for the series. Having played a number of times in Ibiza, what are some of your wildest moments on the island? I know you have loads of stories.
Kissy– Judge Jules once made me do so many tequila shots in a row that I cried genuine man-tears and begged him to stop! I also woke up on the floor in someone’s room at the Ibiza Rocks hotel once. Ibiza Rocks has quite tight security and a pre-paid token system for buying drinks and food but luckily a member of the IR crew recognised me from secondary school and gave me his staff pass so I could get a cocktail. Then I jumped in the pool with all my clothes on! Boom!
AJ-You are considered to be one of the most exciting DJs in electronica, mixing multiple genres in sets and on your radio shows that many wouldn’t dare to do. What would you attribute to being able to take risks like that?
Kissy-You’ve got to take some risks if you are going to stand out from the crowd. There have always been things I love about music and things I am kind of indifferent to, so all I’ve done is follow my heart which is always the best way to resonate with your audience and keep them on your side I think. It’s also worth noting that pulling off something weird and different is less about what you do and more about how you do it – I practice A LOT before I try a new trick live!
AJ-Staying on the subject of multi-genre, what are your feelings regarding the various styles of music that are now being played in Ibiza? In the past, many clubbers and DJs have expressed a concern for Hip-Hop acts and other non-4×4 styles of music coming to the island. What are your thoughts?
Kissy-Can’t say I’ve really noticed that much to be honest. I think even the biggest pop stars in the world come to Ibiza for the house music – I even hear that Paris Hilton has her own night now, so if you want to hear pretend house music then I guess you can go there…but throw a shoe at her on my behalf if she drops “Up In Here” by DMX. I mean, the madness must stop somewhere!
AJ-For 5 years, your “Kissy Klub” radio show on BBC Radio 1 was extremely popular, helping to establish a strong platform for electro. Where do you currently see the scene in 2013?
Kissy-Electro has always been more of an attitude than sound really I think. The truest electro DJs in my eyes, a few years ago, would play as much alternative rock music or eighties vinyl as they did techno or house. My sound has always been more about speed garage, but even now, I will still play a folk song or a 90’s rave tune in my set, and that is the spirit of electro through-and-through. I also have a NEW Kissy Klub radio show which I am super excited about – you can check out here: http://www.mixcloud.com/kissysellout/
AJ-Can you talk about your latest single “Who Walks Alone”? This was released on Vicious Bitch, which is an Australian based company. Was this an exclusive Australian release and how did you hook up with that label?
Kissy-This has been a major new project for my own label San City High Records. I spent the latter half of last year working on the mega-compilation we released in February called “San City High All Stars” which has over 30 high profile names in dance music featured. After the impact that it made, I had the idea to tailor different versions of the album for different countries – and so, continuing the support of new talent which has been the label’s mission statement since day one. Vicious Bitch are a really cool bunch of people over in Australia. Their office is similar to Busy P’s Ed Banger office in Paris – mountains of cool merch, colourful posters and new CDs laying around everywhere, so we got on like a house on fire when I went over there to tour the album.
I love the current state of British dance music. There was a slight quiet spot about a year ago when I think many people couldn’t figure out what to do next – especially when the US “EDM” explosion kind of dwarfed the scale of the heritage-based scenes we have nurtured in the UK and Europe. I think the UK music scene has blossomed into the most exciting place in the world again, and my speed garage tinged sound seems to fit snuggly in there with it, so I’m having a huge amount of fun right now as a DJ and a producer. “Who Walks Alone” is very happy little tune I made in about 4 hours or so – the same amount of time it took to make my first record which kick-started my whole career, so I’m looking forward to it dropping officially on 2nd September!
AJ-You’ve stated that originally San City High was an art project created while you were at university. Can you go into detail about its inception?
Kissy-It was indeed, although no other students or tutors thought it would ever amount to much at the time. It was funny because when my Kissy Sell Out music exploded, off the back of the San City High label stuff, so rapidly during my last semester at Central St Martin’s, the tutors suddenly turned around and said that they refused to mark my work on the label project because it had become a “commercial product” (i.e. it worked!) – shame they decided to be like that, it felt pretty crushing at the time but it also kind of freed the concept from being university property so I still channel that bold and brave philosophy into everything I do with the label. I believe I am actually listed on the university’s famous alumni which made me chuckle a bit, I must admit!
AJ-You blew people away with your Pioneer CDJ-2000nexus performance. Pioneer really covered a lot of ground with the added features to the 2000nexus. As a performance DJ, are there any functions that you would like to see added to the modern CDJ? On the flipside, some have argued that the technological advances have made it almost too easy for people to DJ. Is the question really a matter of ease or more of a question of, “how do we incorporate the technology to further the live performance”?
Kissy-Thank you! I’ve actually just done a new video which I’m quite proud of (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fgAHaj0Uv28), see what you think! I definitely don’t think the CDJ design needs anything extra. I’m openly not a fan of the beat-syncing function, not for any moral stand-point but just because it gets switched on by accident so often that it causes me to make more mistakes! I think it’s incredible what Pioneer have produced though, especially when you compare it to the nearest competitor’s attempts at creating the same thing. As for the “is DJing too easy now” debate, mixing 2 records together has always been easy-ish for as long as I can remember. However, turning that into a performance which people will pay to see is another matter and that’s all there is to say really.
AJ-The DIY concept is something that you have incorporated early on in your career. While we are living in the internet age, there can be an overload of music, etc…coming at people all at once. What are some steps that you would suggest for a new artist to take in order to stand out and help build a solid career as you have done?
Kissy-I think being genuine speaks volumes these days. You can’t have a career without a fan base of people who actually care about what you are doing, so pulling one over on them, or trying to win people over with a product you don’t truly believe in, will leave people feeling cheated. If you really put enough love and effort into it, people will be able to tell instantly, and I guess that’s how careers are still being made now.
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