Golden’s Wakcutt is taking the stage at Spiritbar on Saturday night and before his show, our friends at Shambhala Music Festival got a chance to ask some questions about his career, what he’s listening to and more.
Q: Wakcutt, you are somewhat of a veteran in the DJ scene we have here in Western Canada. Where and when did it all start?
A: I was born and grew up in Calgary. I started buying records when I was 11 with my Dad. He was into cool jazz fusion stuff, so I got into some weirder stuff early on. I got a set of Tech 14s in ‘95, and that’s when I started practicing for many hours every day.
Q: How many years have you performed at Shambhala? And what is your most memorable set?
A: This coming Shambhala (2012) will be my seventh year attending and performing at the festival. I have enjoyed every single set I’ve played there but the most memorable would be a toss up between my first night time performance in the Village in 2009, or the first year I played the Rock Pit in ‘06 on a Thursday night right before BC/DC. All hip hop on wax (before Serato) went off the deep end! I still keep a photo of that crowd framed in my studio.
Q: You’ve played other festivals, what sets Shambhala apart from the others in your opinion?
A: I would say the main differences would be the location, and the energy the patrons bring to it. It’s an amazing meeting place for a lot of people that wouldn’t run into each other any other time of the year.
Q: Festival season is approaching. What do you look forward to the most about the summer festival season?
A: I love running into the same faces at all the different festivals all summer long. After a while you’re like – “Hey man, didn’t we do this last weekend? AND the weekend before?” See you next weekend!
Q: What’s your favorite party anthem/banger at the moment?
A: Cain.1 and Wakcutt — Night Nurse, Jungle Cakes #11, Pick it up on wax at Junorecords.com right now. OBVIOUSLY!
Q: What’s coming up next for Wakcutt?
A: This spring/summer is looking tight, with a bunch of the usual festival dates, and a couple new ones. I’ve just hired a booking manager, and that is really going to free up some time for me to focus more on the production side of things. A new mix is in the works with a lot more original material on it, and pretty much just to keep doing this music thing. It makes me so happy that I can do this for a living. My fans are the best. Thanks Nelson, you’re the illest.
