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globalsource-blog · 7 years ago

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Global Source meets Mayday

Following on from last week’s post, where Global Source caught up with the girls of B.L.O.O.M. ahead of their debut night at Soup Kitchen, this week we continue our series on Manchester nightlife with an interview with Tom from Mayday, a collaborative project between two well-established names on the Manchester scene: CULT and Ossia. This Saturday at Hidden they’re hosting what looks set to be a pretty outstanding showcase of cutting-edge electronic music, with a serious roster of talent from the celebrated R&S Records, and none other than Talaboman (John Talabot and Axel Boman) headlining. Read on to find out about what it takes to throw a rave in a skatepark, the challenges of making high-end bookings as an independent promoter, and what to expect from Mayday in the coming months.

Global Source: First things first, for those unaware of what you guys are up to, can you describe Mayday in your own words? What’s it all about, and what’s the link with Ossia and CULT?

Tom from Mayday: Mayday is a collaboration between Ossia and CULT. It’s simply the joined forces of the brands. It’s opened up new possibilities for us in terms of bookings, both financially as well as by combining our roster of residents. We’re taking Mayday in a different direction from the other two brands, which tend to focus on more intimate gigs in medium-sized venues, usually showcasing 1 or 2 artists. Mayday on the other hand is all about collaboration with organisations, labels and collectives, really trying to provide some of Manchester’s most top end nightlife. Our show with Dimensions last year was a lot of fun and an amazing opportunity to bring high-calibre artists the likes of Daniel Avery to Manchester.

GS: Cool – nice to see a full-on long-term collaboration between the two crews. Having more of you involved must make it a little easier on the wallet to make those higher-end bookings… Does it also make it harder to agree on a lineup? What’s the decision-making process like?

TfM: The costing is definitely eased by the number in the group, sure, but it doesn’t detract from the huge risk we put on ourselves for every show! The lineup process is always a tricky one but thankfully we’re all extremely passionate about the music and appreciate artists from across the spectrum of the dance scene. There’s rarely a suggestion that gets completely shut down because ultimately we’d love to have everyone play for us. Most of the time the main restriction is availability and the booking costs of the artists, we may agree on a 5 stage contingency of acts we want and get in touch with them all, only to find out that they’re all booked, taking the month off, or tied up in something else. Finding a solution is one of the fun bits though, trying to work out who would fit with who, whether they played too recently or too near, all these things come into play.

GS: So back in June you guys hosted an event at Manchester’s Projekts skatepark, where you had Mall Grab and Shanti Celeste play. How did that event come about? I saw some pretty funny video of people who’d had a few too many trying to negotiate a quarter pipe – did you have to do a risk assessment?

TfM: We scouted out the skatepark because we saw that UKF had done an event there a couple of years back. It looked like a wicked event so we got in touch and they were fortunately interested in having us in. They have to get a TEN [Temporary Event Notice] to have an event there but even with that we got the council coming over an hour before the licence expired telling us to pull the plug. Luckily we managed to pull a filibuster and sweet talked them for the hour so that we didn’t have to shut down before Mall Grab finished! The venue was covered with a risk assessment already but we had to take out insurance in case anyone did bail on the quarter pipe while trying to backside blunt and split their chin open. Luckily everyone partied *fairly* sensibly and we didn’t have any issues. There’s always an element of mutual trust when holding events like that, and with a crowd who are there for the music not because they’re at “UNAYYY” and love chanting about the most recent footballer caught up in a controversy we were alright.

GS: I’m sure you heard about the recent controversy caused by Jeremy Underground’s agent threatening to bite someone if they didn’t book a 5 star hotel with a gym and sauna for his client. If you don’t mind, I’d like to get your take on it – should top DJs feel entitled to a post-set spa session? Is there anyone you guys rate highly enough that you’d pay for their sauna to get them on the bill?

TfM: To be honest most tier 1 artists require 5* hotels with room service, wifi, leisure facilities, all expenses covered, upmarket dinner, excessive riders etc. It doesn’t come as any surprise to me that JU asked for those extra facilities because as he said, he had a very busy week of shows. That said we’re always careful to read the contract beforehand to know exactly what we’re getting ourselves into. Everything is negotiable, so as long as you don’t blindly sign bits of paper you should know what to expect. Changing agreements last minute on the other hand isn’t okay. It’s a bit of a confusing situation and it seems that the agent and the promoters were both slightly in the wrong - Jeremy offered to pay for it all himself so in my eyes he wasn’t being out of order. Personally I’d let Dixon have my house keys, all of my savings, any current girlfriends, my watch and my best pair of shoes because I think he is an absolute god. Whether I speak for the rest of the Mayday team is another question but he holds a special place in my heart!

GS: While we’re on the subject of big bookings, at this time of year as we all know it’s Warehouse Project season. Obviously they’ve elevated the standing of Manchester’s club scene on the world stage as a heavyweight contender, but some feel they’re unfairly monopolizing the market. As a smaller outfit, what do you feel are the pros and cons of the WHP brand?

TfM: I remember a great piece of convo I had with Toby who was the original Ossia don, saying that he didn't mind WHP before this year because as much as they got most of the huge names they tended to leave a decent gap for more niche artists. This year they've just snapped up so many acts we wanted to book who we thought were a little more under the radar. So, kudos to them for improving the programming but also, rahhhhhhh. It's the exclusivity contracts that grind our gears – it takes away so many options for booking talent we truly love and who would provide a totally different show in a smaller venue that wouldn’t detract from Warehouse Project’s ticket sales. But there you go, they operate like a business whereas a lot of promoters do it for the love of the scene. I can't help but thank them for making the Manchester nightlife so revered, no doubt they're a credit to the city and the scene as well as a pain in the arse. I remember my friends travelling from down south to attend WHP a few years back and it’s always drawn people to Manchester. I’d love to see them find a better venue because I’ve definitely fallen out of love with Store Street, but maybe I take that back because it might make our lives even harder!

GS: Yeah it’s definitely a tough one, hard to argue with the lineups they put together but seeing the corporatisation of the “underground” music scene does leave a sour taste in the mouth. Anyway, enough party politics for now. Let’s get to the matter at hand – this Saturday! You guys are bringing the legendary R&S Records to Hidden. It’s a hell of a lineup, with Talaboman headlining, and you’ve even arranged an in-store pre-party with Space Dimension Controller at Eastern Bloc Records. How are you guys feeling about it? Looks set to be a night to remember…

TfM: Safe to say we’ve all been absolutely buzzing for this show ever since we got the go ahead from R&S. They’re a household name in the dance music scene and have proved time and time again that venturing into the unknown and embracing diversity in your taste creates a successful following. Their roster of artists is so impressive and we’re blessed to have Paula Temple, SDC and Renaat. Paula especially has been on our watchlist for a while, and ever since Ossia had SDC do a DJ set a couple of year back we’ve been gagging to see him perform live! Talaboman as the special guest was a no brainer for us - since the two heavyweights joined forces we’ve all been drooling over the prospect of seeing them play together. The fact we’ve got them on a line up is a dream come true. Excitement in the Mayday camp is second to none and we just hope that everyone who plans on joining us brings immense energy and we have a proper party!

GS: I have no doubt that’s what it’ll be. Tom, thanks for your time, and all the best for Saturday night and the year to come – can’t wait to hear what’s next on the Mayday Agenda. Any clues as to what that might be?

TfM: I can't give too much away yet but we've got something special lined up for next may… think Bongos Bingo and Schloss!

There are still a few tickets available for Saturday night, go cop right here.

Check out the videos below for a hint of what you can expect music-wise on the night:

Talaboman - Loser’s Hymn

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Space Dimension Controller @ Dekmantel 2017

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Paula Temple - Ful (R&S)

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#nightlife #r&s records #r&s #manchester #electronicmusic #underground #independent

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