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Music

Kenny Glasgow’s Big Mix-up

KENNY GLASGOW with TIGA spinning as part of NATION at Life (240 Richmond West), Saturday (September 22). $15 before 11:30 pm, $20 before 2 am, more after. 416-598-1221.

Rating: NNNNN


A lot can be learned about DJs from the mixed discs they compile. Take, for example, the Toronto Mix Sessions (Turbo) CD assembled by local hero Kenny Glasgow, which avoids the simplistic strategy of throwing together a few desirable club hits with a load of generic dance-floor dross and instead presents a choice selection of uptempo house, banging techno and Kraftwerkian electro-boogie.

Clearly, this is the work of a dedicated crate digger who’s spent far too much of his life in record stores, and the disc’s broad scope demonstrates the crowd-pleasing eclecticism that makes Glasgow one of the city’s best-loved mixers.

“If your goal is to play Ibiza,” Glasgow explains, “then you might just go for the biggest commercial tracks. I went for older, more obscure recordings that most people wouldn’t know about.

“Anybody can rock a party with the popular records of the moment, but it takes some skill to get the dance floor jumping with stuff that nobody’s heard. That’s like my disc — I went for things that would make people stop and say, ‘Hey, that’s cool. What is it?'”

Although Glasgow has already established a name for himself throughout North America, the Toronto Mix Sessions should stir up some attention in Europe and Britain. So why aren’t T.O.’s talented jocks on the covers of the UK dance glossies? It’s all about production, says Glasgow.

“When I was working at Play de Record a while back, I remember Nick Holder came in saying, ‘Whaddya doin’ this weekend?’ I told him I wasn’t doing much and asked what he was up to. He tells me, ‘I’m flying to Germany for a couple of days and then working a week in Belgium.’ Huh?

“From the time he was very young, he was running his own record operation — production, manufacturing, distribution, all of it. That got him the recognition he needed to get DJ bookings, and his DJing in turn promoted his production and records.

“As for me, I’ve been getting many more calls for remix projects lately. They say everything comes to those who wait, and I’ve been waiting a long time — but putting out a mixed disc helps a lot.”

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