WMC Up Close: DJ Joris Voorn
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Dutch DJ Joris Voorn is a rising star, and is blowing minds with his latest compilation CD Balance 14, for which he blended more than 100 tracks into a fresh, seamless mix. Catch him at the Sunday School for Degenerates party at the Ice Palace on Sunday, March 29
Is this your first time performing at the conference?
Yeah, actually it is – I’ve never been there before. Every year, people have been asking, but I just didn’t make it.
Have you ever been to Miami?
Nope. I was going to three years ago, but for some reason the party got canceled. I think there was something wrong with the venue. So I got stuck in Chicago, which was nice, too, but…
What have you heard about Miami?
I’ve heard there’s a lot of nice boulevards, and people are pretty much working out all day and trying to look glamorous – ha, ha – but you mean the music conference, right? It’s supposed to be this very big thing every year. I read things about the biggest tracks of the festival, that it’s supposed to be kind of a preview of what’s gonna come for the rest of the summer.
Will you be bringing new music to play?
I think so. I’m actually always trying to play some.
Are you able to apply the Balance 14 concept to your live shows?
Not really – to a certain extent, I can do things similarly as on CD, but it will be more simple. Instead of using eight or nine tracks at the same time, I will be limited to using only four, because of the software. But I think it’s a very good limitation, because it still leaves you with a lot of room for experimenting onstage.
Will we be hearing any tracks from Balance 14?
Definitely, yeah. I made some special edits of some tracks – I reworked them. I took some things that I can layer on top, so there’s definitely going to be some similarities, but it’s not going to be as deep or with as many breakdowns – it’ll be a bit more for the dance floor.
Do you get into the party scene that surrounds electronic music?
It’s a lot of work what I’m doing, so I really don’t go to a lot of clubs anymore when I’m not playing. I’m in clubs two or three times a week, which is quite a lot and quite tiring, and that combined with all the traveling, it is nice to do something else – see friends, talk to them in a bar or something, somewhere where it’s a bit more quiet.
What would you do for a career if you could no longer make music?
Yeah, ummm. . . I think that’s what my parents would ask me as well. If I’m not going to make dance-floor music, I might try to get more into the production side, because I think I’ve trained myself in a nice way that I can help other people, or a band. You build up a lot of knowledge over the years, and it’s a waste to just let it go and start doing something else. I could go back to my former profession, which was architecture and design, but since I haven’t been practicing that for a long time, it will be difficult to get back – I’d probably have to start all over again.
This story was originally published March 18, 2009 at 11:03 PM.