Artist Interview

I watched what is now the RAVE culture explode.

Hi, Please introduce yourself to those unfamiliar with your DJ life.

My name is Cindy aka MODIR (Mo Deer) and my journey into sound is pretty long having been around the dance music scene since its inception in 1987. Pre that I grew up in a disco, funk and soul fuelled ghetto in Liverpool where my love of music pretty much became part of my DNA.

At seventeen, I went to a warehouse party in Slough with no idea how my life would change, as a direct result of that night.

It was pre the notion of a RAVE. We called them warehouse parties because they where actually in big warehouses that were either broken into or hired. This was also pre any concept of genres and we mainly listened to Chicago house, early hard house, hard floor and German techno. Most of the music were imports with only a handful of UK Dj's surfacing at that time.

What we did know, is it was never going to be the same again. Over the next eight years I watched what is now the RAVE culture explode.

I played my first set in Corwall at an after party in 1991… Simon DK (DIY) had played the Warehouse where I worked as one of the Children of Kaos (massive shout to you all) in Plymouth and the after party was in a railway siding in Cornwall? If anyone knows what party that was, please do tell . I played Platypus, Plink Plonk, Hardfloor Respect, Sven Vath, Musk and Underworld tracks and remember the people dancing and smiling like it was last week

I lived, worked and played in that culture until 2004, just after the criminal justice bill and some personal issues associated with the party culture. I personally, had just had enough of partying and for me, music production values lost something in those years. I took some time out and went to University and travelled still working events and later working with digital and creative projects just not in the dance music scene.

In truth. I missed the people. The attitude and mindset of ravers is something pretty special and I was called home again in 2016. I went from vinyl straight onto a digital platform. It was curiosity initially. I sorted a Traktor set up and downloaded a few tunes onto my iPad and... two weeks later I was playing for about 200 people at a party in Bournemouth… and yes it was on my iPad  that raised a few eyebrows from the sound guys.

Everyone loved it so I played on and upgraded to industry standard kit… going on to grace stages at Boomtown, Clockstock, Give, Boardmasters, Great Estate and Westival to name a few.

I currently have two promotions/stages. HOUSE of MODIR and Culture Seventy Six or C76 that I am building, taking on tour and booking into venues.

Describe your DJ sound.

I have a few passions that include Disco, Funk and Rare-groove and Underground Tech/Deep House and pretty much (in those genres) love anything with a phat baseline and high quality production values. I still do love my classic house and techno, but honestly I don't tend to listen or play it anymore… yeah, I know, don't throw things at me.

Some tracks will surface into the mainstream club scene but mostly it is about a subculture of deeper and more cerebral tracks...