Judge Jules on Ibiza, Progressive and The Big Room Sound

"Club-land does have problems in some areas but it's not a pan-British issue, there are lots of areas where it's very strong. It's the clubs who have pushed themselves in the media and played the superclub game that have to an extent seen their attendances fall, if not every week then certainly on some weeks."

Always outspoken and always controversial Britain's most loved and loathed DJ of all, Radio 1 superstar DJ Judge Jules spoke to Skrufff's Jonty Adderley ostensibly about his new single The Oboe Song (recorded with Paul Masterton under the name The Clergy). The track itself, a big room hard trance anthem packed with more hooks than a fisherman, looks like being Jules biggest hit for some years, while his Ibiza weekly Judgement Sunday, goes from strength to strength, despite a reductions in visitors to the island.

"The numbers of British visitors are down ten or twenty percent but it really hasn't affected our club at all- it's as good as ever," he says.

"We're an unpretentious club who unpretentiously aspire to attract people who like big room arms-in-the-air clubbing rather than filling it with 30-something cool Latinos."

Clearly on good form (he's speaking from a limo on his way to a gig in East Anglia, two days before he decamps to Ibiza for the rest of the summer) we begin with his big room arms-in-the-air anthem- the Oboe song, inspired by the sound of an oboe…..


Skrufff (Jonty Adderley): How much did you set out to create an anthem-style tune-

Judge Jules: "I'm travelling quite often and the way we work is that Paul will put together ten or so hook lines, I'll choose the best three, then we'll concentrate on developing those three from there. We made this track six months ago and what we started out with was just the oboe riff. The exercise then was to create a track that builds up to the hookline and fits in with that particular mood. I would imagine most writers of instrumental music must work in a similar way."

Skrufff: The Beatpusher's mix is a pure breaks version, how interested are you in this breaks trend that the UK dance magazines are getting behind-

Judge Jules: "It depends on the set I'm doing and also what records are out there. I like breakbeat records but they need to have some kind of accessibility about them. For our club in Ibiza we've booked either Stanton Warriors, the Plump DJs or Adam Freeland in the back room every other week, largely because I do like that sound and I don't think it's been massively exposed yet in Ibiza. I'm quite a fan but I wouldn't want to back something just because the media told me to. It's more about what records are out at any one time and how they fit into what I do."

Skrufff: You've changed style dramatically over the years, what do you make of Muzik's recent article proclaiming progressive house is dead-

Judge Jules: "I just think that for a magazine to build a genre up then declare it dead, shows how ludicrous it is to pay any attention to announcements saying what styles of music are in or out. I've always believed that good or bad should be the only descriptions of music and none of the world's leading DJs are slaves to scenes, styles or fashions. It's perhaps those who aspire to be, who ultimately get sidelined by playing what they think they're supposed to play rather than playing what comes from the heart. Who knew what progressive actually meant in the first place anyway-.

Skrufff: What's your perception of Ibiza's season so far-

Judge Jules: "Anybody in the tourist trade will tell you bookings are down so far eg there are still a number of hotels that are closed, and the hire car companies are doing less well. The numbers of British visitors are down ten or twenty percent but it really hasn't affected our club at all- it's as good as ever.

Ibiza as a whole is down but the better dance clubs haven't been affected too much, which suggests it's the more family orientated side that's struggling. One area that is definit Tags

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