Written by Gene Convery

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Referring to himself as "a life-sized Tickle-Me-Elmo party starter", Dash One is well known for bringing a high level of energy to his Bass and House sound. 

His music has been played across the globe, having remixed for artists such as Bombs Away, Krafty Kuts and Kyro, and gained support from international DJ's including David Guetta and Timmy Trumpet.

 

What inspired you to get into the music industry, more specifically DJing?

From a very young age, the opportunity to perform for people really resonated with me. I started classic singing tutorage when I was 8, started guitar tutorage when I was 9 and then got into Hip-Hop and Break Dancing when I was 10. That then lead to musicals and bands from the age of 11 onwards and it’s been a continual journey in music since.
DJing was never really something that was a plan, I sort of just fell into it but from the moment I started, I knew that I loved it and wanted to and have kept doing it.

 

What was your first paid gig and how did you get it?

It’s was one the best accidents that ever happened to me that I could ever ask for haha!
The year is 2010. A week or so prior, my band decided to split up which had devastated me. I’d been making some really terrible Electro/Indie-Pop tracks on Logic 5 on PC and decided that I’d try to get them played at my local venue.

 

I went in there before a Saturday night and they let me show them; told me in the most polite way that the songs were really bad but they were looking for a new DJ to join them and they’d show me that night how to play.
I was thrown in the deep end, playing 5-hour sets and fell in love with it!

 

What was the first track you made and what does it mean to you today?

Most of the early stuff I made back when I started working with a DAW in the early 2000s was Rock and Indie music. Most of them are lost to time on an old Pentium 2 computer somewhere in a landfill.
When I was in my mid-teens, Exceeder by Mason came out and that absolutely blew my mind. To that point, I was mainly into bands with the odd Breaks and Drum & Bass tracks on my iPod, but it just rocked my world. I wrote a song inspired by it and it was extremely average (not understanding how limiters done badly and lacking EQing can destroy a track did not help it). It did stoke the fire of needing to learn how synth design works and drove me forward.

 

What one bit of advice would you give to DJs who are just starting out?

One thing? That’s tough as there are a few things haha! For just one thing, I’d say:
Love every moment of this journey with those around you. There’s going to be highs and lows, people come and they go in this industry all the time. However, if you love it, it can take you amazing places, meet amazing people and 10 years (which I’m hitting this year) will fly. These are the times of our lives.

 

Unlike most DJs You play a blend of genres and styles, do you find it helps with your creativity when making music?
For sure! It adds extra flavour to your inspiration!

 

Considering the diverse range of music you play, what do you enjoy listening to in your own time?

I don’t tend to have a lot of spare time to listen to music and when I do listen to music, it makes me really want to jump behind the decks and play. In transit between gigs, I tend to listen to audiobooks or watch thought-provoking YouTube channels so I don’t too hyped up.

 

If you could go back to any year of music what year would it be and why? I.e for me I would go back to 2015 as it was the height of BIG ROOM!!

I’d love to go back to the early 2010s only for the simple fact the general crowd was more tolerant of a larger variety of music. That said, I think in the next 6-12 months they’ll open back up again. It goes in cycles.
Outside of that, hindsight only hinders progress.

 

2019 was a big year for you, what were some highlights?
2019 was a real year of change; I’d had a run of goals kicked and was heading on an upward trajectory but it didn’t feel right. I didn’t feel right.

I sought professional help again with mental health issues which had plagued me for years. For some people, they’re lucky; they go through a bad patch and they’re all good after it but I was in denial and finally admitted that this is something that I’m going to have to deal with for the rest of my life. I love my Bi-Polar and it’s part of who I am. It doesn’t define me but I do have to treat it with respect like any health thing.

Get a cold, rest up and regather yourself.
Get exhausted, rest up and regather yourself.
Get in a rut / bad headspace, rest up and regather yourself.

I also travelled to England and France and had the time of my life; came back and rediscovered my passion for everything.
I started the year in the Australian Charts with a Dash One remix and finished in the Top 20 with a side project collaboration with one of my really great mates, Felixx. 

 

What’s coming up for you in the next 6 - 12 months?

Far too much haha! Elysium Entertainment took over my management right at the tail of 2019 and since, it’s been all go in the Dash One camp. In the first 2 months of the year, we’ve racked up over 100k streams of just new music.
Expect 4 original releases this year!

 

We close all our interview with the same question, What’s the craziest thing you have seen from behind the decks?

Are you the cops? I haven’t seen anything…

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