Q+A: Dubfire

Is being around peers important to you?

I don’t try to psychoanalyse myself, but I feel more comfortable in the booth when I have 30 people behind me. I think maybe it comes from being an introvert when I was younger, not having a grasp of the language, not being the popular kid. Maybe from that feeling of loneliness that I remember having through my teen years and not wanting to experience that again in my adult life.

Maybe it also comes from having all the family around the dinner table?

I love what I do and do what I love, and that becomes your family. For a lot of people who are passionate about it, like Seth Troxler, music is a living, breathing thing. It’s not just a word or a genre. It’s something deeper than that.

Have you met any veteran DJs who clearly don’t enjoy it any more?

All the time. I know great DJs who are so jaded by how the industry changed. I’ve seen a lot of people lose their fire, fizzle away or decide to do something else. Some have cut back on gigs or don’t make music any more and are raising a family and DJing locally. Others have immersed themselves in drugs and alcohol, passed away or are in danger of damaging themselves or taking their lives. I’ve seen it all.

Guys like you, Rich and Carl Cox still seem to love it, though...

You’ll see me dancing next to Rich during his set at ENTER., jumping up and down. I’m one of those guys who’ll stay to the end. I’ve had moments of self-doubt about certain things, whether it’s gigs or career choices or decisions in the studio, but I’ve never lost that fire. DUNCAN DICK

The Hybrid Live tour hits Ji Expo Kemayoran (Indonesia) festival on September 29 and Freaky Deaky, Chicago on October 29

Duncan Dick is Mixmag's Editor, follow him on Twitter