Simon moved from Belfast to London to pursue his dream of a career in music. He got his first break at the age of 19 when he was asked by top Italian producer/DJ Dino Lenny to run his new labels. Here, he quickly found his niche and went on to work at top Universal dance label AM:PM and Ministry Of Sound label—Incentive Records.
In the summer of 2001, BBC Radio 1 DJ Seb Fontaine approached Simon to handle his A&R, which led to his current position as A&R for Judge Jules, in which he has helped to find and break some of the biggest dance records of recent memory. In addition to his A&R work, alongside Richie Kayvan he forms the duo Dogzilla, whose tracks “Your Eyes” and “Without You” have seen major rotation from all of the trance heavyweights.
Q: What first got you into the world of dance music? Any one track/artist or sound that set you on that path?
A: I used to listen to Judge Jules when I was 16 in my back garden playing football with all my mates. I loved everything he played. I used to have the volume turned right up (pissing off all my neighbours!) and thinking that this was the music that I loved. At that time I played pro football so I never really thought of having a career out of it. Unfortunately I had a car crash, and it forced me to think of other options. I begged my mum for a set of decks, and then I really caught the bug.
Q: You have worked with a lot of various people: Seb Fontaine, Darren Tate, Dino Lenny and now Judge Jules. Obviously each has a different style and vibe, but is there a commonality between them that many people may not notice?
A: They are all very individual people. Some are more relaxed and laid back, others more alert and focused, however the one thing they ALL have in common is the hunger to be successful. I guess they all wouldn’t have achieved what they have without that. I got along with all of them and owe them a great deal.
Q: What artist would we be surprised to learn that you listen to?
A: I used to listen to heavy rock. Sepultura, Pantera, Machine Head, etc. Nowadays I have such a range of music that I like. Loving Dizzee Rascal at the moment.
Q: If you were not working in or making music, what job or career do you think you would be doing?
A: If I hadn’t had a car accident then I would have been a footballer. Failing that, I would have liked to have been a sports journalist.
Q: Has illegal mp3 downloading hurt dance music more than other genres?
A: I think it’s hurt every aspect of the music industry. It’s good and it’s bad. I just can’t understand why DJs would want to share the most upfront stuff with each other? As a DJ, I want to be fresh and individual and don’t want anyone playing the same stuff as me. The fact that people are sharing everything means that everyone has access to the same tracks. How does anyone stand out? There has got to be more patrolling on these download sites.
Q: Name one track or remix you wish you could say you had done.
A: Madonna—“Music”—the production on that record is unreal.
Q: In the studio: mostly outboard gear or soft-synth plug-ins? Why?
A: Plug-ins. Some of the plug-ins around are amazing. All Dogzilla stuff is plug-in based. For compressors, outboard stuff for sure.
Q: Having worked for a variety of labels must have been a huge eye-opener for you. Any funny stories (no names) you can relate?
A: Not really any funny stories at all to be honest. It’s hard work and very pressurized. I worked for Incentive (Ministry-owned label) for a bit and that was an eye opener for me. The label boss was a guy called Nick Halkes (signed and discovered the Prodigy). Nothing short of 110% was good enough for him and I felt the pressure there. I made a few mistakes at the start and he came down on me like a ton of bricks but I learned so much from him and it’s made me the way I am today. There are no shortcuts in what you do. You’ve either got to give it all you got or not at all.
Q: “A&R for Judge Jules” sounds like a role that could be very stressful. One missed CD and that track could have been ‘the one’. How do you manage to get through all the submissions and remain somewhat sane?
A: It’s not easy. The amount of stuff that comes through is incredible. A lot of it is not great but you have to listen to all of it! If you’re not in the right mood you can miss a track very easily. I listen to so much stuff and now I am finding it very difficult to find tracks that I really like. I just don’t think the trance scene has moved on. It’s the same riffs, same bass changes —different sounds. I am loving more of the deeper Propspot stuff, Ozgur Can and Gabriel & Dresden. I am always speaking to close friends in the industry and if I miss something or vice-versa, we always tell each other about it. It can happen very easily.
Q: Walk us through a Friday in the life of Simon Patterson getting Jules’ Saturday Show prepared.
A: Fridays are the busiest days. All week Jules & I will have been listening to records/mp3s. I’ll get sent all the shop records on Friday morning. Go through them and meet up with Jules sometime in the afternoon. We will both go through the highlights and ultimately Jules has the final decision on what he wants to play. I know exactly what he likes but sometimes what I like he doesn’t. What’s good about Jules is that if I like it and he doesn’t, he will always go back to it and give it another listen.
Q: You are a very talented DJ in your own right. Most interesting gig you have played at?
A: A place in the depths of Russia called Ektenberg or something like that!
I had taken off from Heathrow at 6 a.m. and arrived in Moscow at 3 p.m. there time. Before I was due to go on the gig a good friend of mine—Auke from Fundamental Records was telling me stories about the internal flights in Russia. I am not sure if he was winding me up but he was saying that DJ Jean had taken a flight in Russia and the engine caught fire and they had to land. He also told me a story about another Dutch DJ who was about take off, and the captain came on and asked everyone for a fuel donation! So not being a great flyer, I was already a tad concerned. Anyway….
My flight was delayed from Moscow due to weather. I eventually got on the bus to take me to the plane, and was very concerned to see a somewhat decrepit plane that looked like it had been built around the First World War. I got on the plane (boarded it through the back like a military plane—we never have these planes in the UK) and it stunk of urine! All the seats were pushed down. The panels were hanging off the interior. There were no life jackets, but all oxygen masks were hanging down, etc. I was sh!tting myself! I got on the phone to my mum and she was saying “get off the plane”, however the doors were closed and everyone was ready for take off! I was praying to God that I was going to be OK. It was pitch black and the weather was so bad. The propellers made such a rusty noise; I just didn’t think they were going to make it. The scary thing was I was on my own and no one spoke a word of English. I was on that plane for three hours! People were smoking mid-flight, people were using mobile phones right until there was no reception. I had this Russian sitting beside me, drinking straight scotch from a bottle shouting at me the whole flight in Russian—it was the longest flight of my life! I eventually landed. I spoke to the promoter on the phone and said I don’t care what it costs I am paying to get a train back again. “The train takes three days to get back to Moscow” was his response. I had a gig the next day in the UK! I then took 20 minutes to prepare myself for a gig in front of 10,000 people! To say I wasn’t ready was an understatement. I picked up the biggest bottle of vodka and tried to consume as much as I could to steady my nerves. Once I started it was the best gig I ever did. They were so up for it and so appreciative of me being there. Atmosphere was just amazing. So much so, that I didn’t have a problem getting the plane back the next day. Luckily it was a bit more up-to-date than the plane from the night before…it even had jets! The whole day of events made this gig memorable but the venue, the promoter and the crowd were so welcoming that I’ll never forget it. Suffice to say that they didn’t book me again after that whole plane experience. I doubt they ever will!
Q: When can we expect to see you here in Canada?
A: I would love to play in Canada! It would be such an honour and great experience. I have lots of Canadian friends and they have a very similar sense of humour/personality of those back home in Ireland. I don’t know when I will be playing there but I really hope for it to be soon.
Q: Dogzilla. How did it come about? Was it the remix of Polaroid “So Damn Beautiful” that really got you guys some much deserved attention?
A: I guess it did. We had already done Dogzilla and we both didn’t really think much of it. It was sort of forgotten about. Then Chris from A7 who looked after Richie (other half of Dogzilla) called me saying that Tim for Nebula was interested in signing it. We then did a few changes to it, and Tim signed it. Then shortly after came the remix of Polaroid as they were also signed to A7, and Chris wanted us to give it a darker mix. To be honest, we both didn’t think that Polaroid sounded that good when we finished it. I remember playing it to Jules and thinking, he’s not going to like this but he loved it and really supported it. I guess it just went from there.
Q: You can invite any 5 people in the world to a dinner party. Who would you invite and why?
A: Thierry Henry (striker for Arsenal) —Would love to know how he does it.
My mum—great cook!
Nelson Mandela—For what he went through and what’s he done—legend!
My fiancée Louise—Keep me in check.
Bill Clinton—Why, oh why?
Q: You are given the power to bring back one trend from the ’90s. What is it?
A: I was too young to know what was a trend in the ’90s. A programme called the Magic Roundabout was good.
Q: What’s your favourite monster movie of all time?
A: Godzilla!!
Q: Night out or night in?
A: Love to do both. My Mrs. would like me to say night in with her, so I better! I love going out but I am out most weekends, so when I get a chance to chill out then I am happy to do that. With DJing, so much preparation goes into for me that I find it stressful having to be so on top of it. When the chance comes to rest, then I am normally happy to take it and spend time with my fiancée.
Q: Chicken or fish?
A: Fish for def. I could live off sushi and garlic prawns for the rest of my life!
Q: What posters did you have on your wall growing up?
A: Pamela Anderson. I used to love her. Watched Baywatch every week just to see that swimsuit!
Q: If they make a movie about your life, who would you like to play you?
A: My best mate Adam. He’s the only one that could deliver it 100%.
Q: Describe Simon Patterson in one sentence.
A: I would say that I am down-to-earth, constantly up for a laugh and focused on what I want to do.
Dogzilla’s latest release, “Without You,” is out now on Maelstrom Records. For any DJ booking enquiries, contact
