For over a decade Sydney label and party collective Motorik! have been providing our fine city with boundless XTC and NRG via original productions and remixes, energetic radio waves and wild dance floor moments from the likes of Jensen Interceptor, Stereogamous, Horowitz, Light Year, K.I.M., Wordlife, Phil Smart, Francis Xavier and countless more.
This Friday night, the infamous party technicians take over our fine club to deliver dance floor mayhem like only they can. Expect fire sets from Francis Xavier, Phil Smart, and Motorik! bossman Pat Santamaria, the latter of which answers twenty rapid fire questions, right here, right now.
1. Can you recall the moment when you fell in love with music?
Extreme early memory - My brother and I used to have a little toy boombox with reading book cassettes. The little musical interludes on Wind In the Willows were definitely the best bits, even back then.
2. The best thing about DJing is?
It’s different, challenging and a bit scary every time, no matter how much you do it. The satisfaction of getting it right is like solving a complex, moving puzzle which rewards you in an abstract, expressionistic, human way.
3. The last book you read?
Rick Rubin’s 'The Creative Act'. It reminds me of Eno’s 'Oblique Strategies' cards, fleshed out into book form. Great creative insights from a genius of modern culture.
4. Best album of 2023 so far?
I’ve had James Holden's Imagine This Is A High Dimensional Space Of All Possibilities on rotation. The name alone tells you this is a super ambitious work.
5. Favourite film of the last six months?
M3GAN. I’m an absolute sucker for a genre film.
6. A track you haven’t been able to stop listening to lately?
'Tonight May Have to Last Me All My Life' by The Avalanches.
7. Who is someone that continues to inspire you and why?
xmunashe. An amazing new artist I manage alongside my brother, Andrew. I never thought I could learn so much from someone almost half my age.
8. Describe Motorik in one sentence.
Fun, but serious… but mainly fun.
9. What is one of your favourite Motorik releases and why?
Francis Xavier and Phil Smart - Way Down (Underground). Seeing two legends who formed the local scene who I’ve looked up to forever getting together to release on the label is an honour and a privilege. Watching it tear up a MTK dance floor is the stuff of dreams.
10. Who was the last DJ you danced to and where was it?
Kenfo warming up for xmunashe at a studio party. SYDNEY ACTIVITIES!
11. If I could go back in time I would…?
Go to the 70s and stock up on Roland and Korg music tech.
12. The last time you had an uncontrollable laughing fit?
When Steven Spielberg told Tom Cruise he “saved Hollywood” with Top Gun 2. I mean, he’s not wrong, but it’s still hilarious.
13. A track that never fails to win over the dance floor?
Ejeca - Firework. Has that quality that makes people feel like they know even if they don’t.
14. Sydney needs more of…? And less of?
More free thinking, less fear.
15. A favourite track or album to soundtrack a lazy Sunday afternoon?
'The Four Worlds' - Mark Pritchard
16. The last non-music podcast you were addicted to?
The Craig Shapiro Tennis Podcast.
17. The TV show you’re obsessed with?
The Wire.
18. What would you like to have accomplished with Motorik in the next five years?
Evolve creatively from one generation to the next. Passing down the knowledge of this community in the same way it was handed down to us is the essence of rave culture.
19. What makes me happiest is…?
Seeing friends and loved ones succeed.
20. The best place in Sydney for a cheap and cheerful, delicious meal?
No Names (RIP the Darlinghurst location, though).
Listen to Motorik! on SoundCloud
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