Born in London, Horse Meat Disco is four DJ’s who curate vintage New York disco, real Italo, and new rarities to form a different kind of dance party. They’ve successfully grown their schtick to residencies at The Eagle, London, Lux in Lisbon, Tape in Berlin and Cihan in Istanbul. Currently, they are promoting a new mix, “Horse Meat Disco Volume 2″ out now on Strut/k7! Records. On Thursday, October 7th, Horse Meat Disco lays it long for Stardust’s 2nd Anniversary at Berlin Nightclub. This will be their Chicago debut, and they’ll be joined by Clique Talk (Live), Chrissy Murderbot and Kid Color. I was able to get them to answer some questions about their scope, their party and their style (FYI, they love American breakfast). Read the Q & A and check out a download link and teaser mix below!
The name “horse meat disco” is really “out,” maybe even confrontational. What kind of limitations or opportunities has this presented?
The name came from a newspaper headline that read “horse meat discovered in british salami.” James noticed it had been partially obscured so the name was a mistake really – it just sounded slightly sleazy. People love the name and really want to know where it came from but it hasn’t presented any limitations, in fact quite the contrary.
How long have you been doing this? What has changed?
Seven years, the scene has got bigger that’s the major change–that people’s eyes and ears are more open to the sound out in clubland.
Who is your audience? How is it different from other gay communities? Are you concerned with creating a community?
Our audience has always been a pretty mixed affair. We started the club seven years ago because we were tired of the same old gay clubs in London where women and straight people weren’t made to feel at home. We cut our teeth in mostly straight clubs and we wanted a queer space where all our friemds were welcome – gay, straight or otherwise.
What about trends? There’s new-disco, fashion, ebbs and flows of house music. Since all the “real” disco was made back in the day, how does Horse Meat Disco relate to current and passing trends in order to keep the party relevant?
We have always tried to keep a hand in what’s playing out there at the minute. A couple of us play newer records as well as real disco really tend to dig deep into the vaults. Having said that, I think part of our success is the shared knowledge we all have and the sense of diversity that we all tend to introduce to our sets.
What’s exciting to you about touring the states? What’s exciting about chicago?
The musical heritage in America feels greater in terms of soul, funk, disco and dance music so people are really open to what we do. We love the breakfasts, the record shopping and the scale of the USA. Chicago is the home of HOUSE! I’ve only been there once a long time ago and can’t wait to play there
MP3 of “Cherchez Pas” by Madleen Kane, from Horse Meat Disco 2
Preview mini-mix for “Horse Meat Disco 2:”
