LE BAIN: It’s been a while since you've played in NYC… What do you miss the most, if anything?
DJ HARVEY: I actually made an appearance for Prada during NY Fashion Week, and I’m looking forward to returning to NYC to play Le Bain. Although New York, especially Manhattan, has changed a lot - and not always for the better - since my first visits in the early 80s, it still has a special place in my heart as the birthplace of the kind of clubbing I enjoy the most.
During the last two years, you've been super busy, touring everywhere, playing festivals, releasing an album … probably two of your busiest years ever. What has been your greatest satisfaction?
The last couple of years have been really great for me. I've been DJing for many years, but it finally pays the rent and affords me to live off only my art - I'd say that's any creative person's greatest success. It took me a long time.
DJ Harvey's BIS Radio Show
You've built such a great aura and following that you've achieved the same kind of freedom as the most famous ‘resident’ DJs, while playing almost anywhere you want. Is 'resident DJ with no residency' the ideal definition of DJ freedom?
There has indeed been a focus on guest DJ culture, with DJ's traveling the world to make guest appearances at various clubs and festivals. Although many people believe that I have the freedom to play any music I desire, it's actually the audience at each event that determines my selection. I do put a lot of thought into what to play, and I'm lucky that a lot of my gigs are return bookings. I really enjoy holding a residency - it gives me an opportunity to explore a wider scope in my music selection and it's something I look towards having more of. This summer I have residencies at both Pikes and Amnesia in Ibiza for part of the summer, and I'm really looking forward to both.
Personally, I've never contrived to generate any mythology around myself - I just live my life.
Joel Tudor in DJ Harvey’s Wildest Dreams’ Last Ride by George Trimm
Probably no one in DJ history has generated a mythology like yours. What kind of phantasms do people project on you?
Personally, I've never contrived to generate any mythology around myself - I just live my life. It's an unconventional one, I know, but I live simply so I can take time out. People create and further their own myths and legends around stories they may have heard and experiences they have had in my presence.
What is the future of the discotheque?
If discotheque is just an old fashioned word for dance music, then it has a very bright future, with many young entrepreneurs, producers and dancers eager to fuel and fill the discos of the future.
Friday June 5th, Le Bain celebrates its 5th anniversary with DJ Harvey. The Standard, High Line.
