Fresh from collaborating for a single on Tiefschwarz’s Souvenir label, Mahk and DJ Morpheus join forces once more to give us a fascinating insight into the development of their musical taste.
What’s the first record you ever bought?
DJ Morpheus: It was the first of Phil Spector’s productions that I’d heard – a ‘Da Doo Ron Ron’ 7” by The Crystals that I asked my dad, who was visiting New York at that time, to buy for me… It blew me away and I looked for other Spector productions from that moment onwards.
Mahk: Squeeze – ‘Cool For Cats’. I can’t remember why I chose this at the time, but I was eight and it was the first record I bought with my own money. Previously I would ask my Aunt to bring me a record every time she visited – which she duly did – which resulted in a lot of strange random 45s in my growing collection.
The first time you remember hearing electronic music?
DJ Morpheus: Well, back in the 70s – Gina X’s first album Nice Mover. It has the track ‘No G.D.M’ that is one of my all-time favorite tracks and is the first electronic track I played out as a DJ back in ’78 alongside Kraftwerk’s ‘Man Machine’/’We Are The Robots’, in a new wave club in Tel Aviv.
Mahk: The Tornados – ‘Life On Venus’. I was obsessed with records from a very early age and started collecting when I was about five years old, starting with raiding my parents’ records. This was one of my favourites from my mother’s collection. I was captivated by the weird noises at the beginning of this track and on the B-side ‘Robot’ too.
Your favourite ever record?
DJ Morpheus: A very difficult question to answer as there are at least 10 records that come to mind immediately… But the one I still love and have played the most times in my life since it came out in the 60s is the album by Love, Forever Changes.
Mahk: It’s probably a bit of a cliche, but Donna Summer’s ‘I Feel Love’ is the one record I could play day and night and never get tired of it. Stick on the Patrick Cowley Mega Mix and I’m a happy boy.
The guaranteed floor-filler?
DJ Morpheus: Bohannon – ‘Let’s Start The Dance’ is still a floor killer. I had dancers shouting, hugging and kissing me when I played it at the old Food Club back in the early 90s.
Mahk: I run a regular Afrobeat night in Vienna, and this track by Amadou Balake always gets things going.
The guilty pleasure?
DJ Morpheus: The World’s Worst Record Show album compilation by Kenny Everett, Jess Conrad‘s ‘This Pullover’, and P.J. Proby‘s- ‘I Apologise’.Totally over the top, exaggerated singing and I love it!
Mahk: I have a soft spot for 60s girl bands and singers, particularly the Shangri-Las and Lesley Gore, but Peggy March is one of my all-time favourites, even though she doesn’t really get the props some of the other 60s acts have. Her early records produced by Hugo & Luigi are among my favourites.
The last track of the night?
DJ Morpheus: Lou Reed’s ‘Goodnight Ladies’ from Transformer or Yello’s ‘Bostich’ (the Kenny Dope and Little Louie version).
The best chillout record?
DJ Morpheus: The Freezone compilation series (1-7) that I compiled for SSR/Crammed Discs from ’94 to 2001. I might not be too modest concerning that one but it’s the dog’s bollocks! Very proud of it, and many people told me that it introduced them to the wide variety and richness of electronic music for the first time ever.
Mahk: For me, any of the Berlin School period Tangerine Dream LPs. But particularly Rubycon, which a teacher at school introduced me to when I was about 14 or 15.
The record everyone loves but you hate?
DJ Morpheus: Daft Punk – ‘Around The World’ (and I like a lot of their other stuff), as I’ve heard it to death. You couldn’t escape it when it come out – every shopping mall or supermarket played it. I got sick of it very quickly. The same goes for ‘Stairway To Heaven’ (and I love Led Zep to bits) or The Eagles’ ‘Hotel California’ or Pink Floyd’s ‘Brick In The Wall’ – overheard it when it came out and can’t listen to it again without a feeling of nausea.
Mahk: Not so much a record, but almost everyone loves The Beatles and I really can’t stand them. Some of the songs are great – when covered by other artists – but there’s just something about the vocals that rubs me up the wrong way.