Austrailian DJ duo Hermitude seeks “shelter” in Shanghai

Your first release, Imaginary Friends, was vinyl-only. Why did you go down that route? Having a vinyl release was always a big dream for us [as we were] coming up. Vinyl is expensive to manufacture so it’s not always affordable for first releases. When we did Imaginary Friends, it was a pretty big stipulation for us that it had to be vinyl, regardless of the cost, also because we wanted to release something for all the DJs out there that are avid vinyl collectors. You guys have toured, who’s been the best audience? Everywhere’s different. We go back to Japan a lot because they really dig our sound. The U.S. and Norway were great audiences to play to. Malaysia was a little quiet at the beginning of our set but we had them in a frenzy by the end, and of course you can’t really beat playing to your home crowd. Who knows, maybe China will take the crown! What’s one thing you miss when on tour? Hmmm, its hard to get a good coffee when you leave Australia. There’s only so much Starbucks you can drink. What are you looking forward to checking out when you get to Shanghai? We can’t wait to try some local cuisine. We love Chinese food back home but we know that it’s probably nothing like the real thing. China’s the land of illegal downloading. As a DJ, what are your thoughts? Illegal downloading is an out-of-control beast that’s close to impossible to tame. On the one hand, if people are downloading your music all over the world, it’s reaching ears that may not normally be covered by your distribution network, which is spreading your fan base. However, you’re basically giving away the music that you've put years into making. It can be quite disheartening not to receive any money for all the people that are enjoying what you’ve made. What are some tracks fans can expect to hear at The Shelter? Listen for “Sunsetter” off our last EP. This is a reggae-flavored number which features the amazing talents of Matt Ottingong on the tenor sax. Another tune we’ll play is “Gustos Theme” off our first album Alleys to Valleys. This is a straight-up, hip-hop banger featuring El Gusto as he scratches up a storm. And finally “Cartridge Kings” and “Slychain” which are both off our new album. “Cartridge Kings” is a track we made featuring sounds off old video games and “Slychain” is a fat, up-tempo, hip-hop track with myself on the keys and Gusto cuttin’ it up!

DETAILS

What: Hermitude
When: Oct. 9, 10pm
Where: The Shelter
Cost: ￥30