DJ Three is undeniably one of the most promising DJ and producers to come out of the USA. He has produced some stunning productions under the monikers of Second Hand Satellites, Three AM, Montage Men, and his great DJ’ing ability has led him to the main room of Fabric in London on the last month. He also used to reside at Twilo, one of NYC and indeed the world’s finest ever club. An unsung talent, it was finally time for RA to raise their voice and interview DJ Three.

For those who may not be aware of your insightful aural pleasures, could you describe yourself in a few sentences?

Describe me aurally? Prefer music you can dance to rather than “dance music”. “Tech-soul” got thrown around the other day and although that’s a stretch...it sounded good to me! A lot of tech-house these days should be called “tech-tech” LOL

How did you get into the music industry? Who were the main influences for you?

Spent my college money on it! First DJ influences would’ve been Laurent Garnier, Derrick May, Doc Martin and Factory-era Junior Vasquez. Cd’s with a sound their own, but never without surprises and a lot of range musically.

How has the year been for you so far?

A labour of love. By the turn of Y2K dance music had shed its skin …and by this year the business model along with it. Call me crazy, but it seemed the perfect time to start Hallucination LTD. I think it took a small toll on DJ’ing in terms of the “rat race”, but I’m in a bit of a renaissance with my love for it now. Enjoying a great night I do at home…sometimes with guests….a wild bunch from Josh Wink to Harvey to Felix the Housecat. Avoiding musical trends …in terms of pandering to them.

What is your current plan for the year? Are you heading to Ibiza or plan to go play internationally?

To get the label distributed better and do a label mix cd. A Second-Hand Satellites mix cd is being talked about with a couple people. Sadly no Ibiza, but I did get a call from a friend @ Amnesia the other day as Sven Vath was doing an encore with “Second-Hand Satellites – Orbit Redux 1.5”. That completely made my day. I’ll be back at Fabric on September 27th then Kindergarten / Manchester and Folies Pigalle in Paris the 3rd and 4th.

Can we expect any new productions from you in the near future as Three AM or with Sean Cusick as Second Hand Satellites?

Holding out for the end of the year / early 2004 for several things. Not sure what project names they’ll fall under and only one working track name for this old meets new ditty called “Theme from Madchester”. Remixing the next UBU for Shaboom and a remix of RITM’s – Timebomb (along with some others artists like Freaky Chakra and Terry Francis) as Three A.M.

What is it like being a major part of one of the classic labels of our time in Hallucination Records?

Wow! That’s very kind, thank you. We’re hardly like Factory Records, but I’d say like “24 hour party people” …except nobody’s going to be making any movies about us and you’d only know if you were involved! I don’t think its something you are aware of until…well…until this year’s April Fool joke on our site that we were going out of business. We set up an e-mail address (outofbizz@hallucination.com) and we could not believe the outpour of response from respect to love to anger. People we hadn’t heard from in years paid respect and it really made us step back. It meant a lot. Ultimately, the first 10 years legacy is really about RITM. I’m hoping Hallucination LTD will leave a similar musical legacy within its catalog and that we’re able to navigate through these new times where some great (and much bigger) labels have already shut their doors.

Can you name any favorite albums or tunes of all time?

Currently on the iPod… songs I’m listening to today: Sinead O’Connor’s cover of Cole Porter’s “You Do Something To Me”, Playgroup – Bring It On, The Roots – The Seed, Led Zepplin – The Rain Song, Killing Joke – Eighties, Iggy Pop - Nightclubbing. Recently listened to album’s: The Orb’s – Orbvs Terrarvm, New Order Box Set – the Fan Disc, Primal Scream – Echodek. Some favorite tunes of all time…. House: Master C&J – Dub Love (Trax) Rock: Rollings Stones – Heaven. Ambient: Moby - God Moving Over the Face of Water

Most embarrassing DJ moment?

WMC 1995…wink, RITM live and myself. Closing the night and records were covered with residual from a sweating ceiling at a club the week before…..skipping needles and no clue why at first. I was gutted even though I made it through.

Highlight DJ moment?

Being invited to play Wicked (Garth, Markie, Jeno, Thomas) @ Townsend in San Francisco. Their previous list of guests reads like a who’s who of dance music. They’re legendary in SF. Then afterwards being asked to leave infamous after club the End-Up for being too …festive.

What do you like to get up to in your spare time away from music?

Dive bars with good jukeboxes. Conversations where I listen more than talk. Go outside (daylight is under-rated). High thread-count sheets.

Name your top 3 women of the world :o)
Be more specific, please :o)

You are heading to play again at Fabric soon alongside Craig Richards. What can the people in London look forward too?

Never know until I start really. How’s that for a cop-out answer! I’m hoping to do some “three” things and drop some different tunes while still making people dance how they’re used to. I guess I’m eclectic in terms of house, techno and some unique stuff, but I wonder if in print that says much? Probably says something like “blah blah blah”! I’m told everyone’s “eclectic” these days. Everyone’s different -- just like everyone else (LOL). Dance music. Some much harder…some much less…all sexy and weird. Can you tell I don’t like this type of question yet?