Derrick Carter, one of Chicago house music’s true originals, rarely gives interviews – an unusual position bearing in mind his long-held success and contemporary clubland’s requirement for perpetual promotion – but Defected’s Ben Lovett managed to snag one. Here’s how it went down…
Derrick Carter is supremely content within his “Derrick bubble”, busily doing “what I do.” He is mindful of the distractions younger artists are tempted and torn by today and refuses to play ball.
“Everything’s fine within the bubble,” he remarks, “it’s a Zen thing. I travel and play, I work on new music and in the middle of all that maybe grab a sandwich and some sleep. I don’t bother with anything else that’s going on, I just focus on my life. I don’t chase after this or that, I’m not trying to be cool. I have a regular life and that is fine. There’s nothing for me to worry about.”
Does Carter think that living a bubble-like existence might hinder his creativity? How do the ideas get through? “It’s enough to say they get through fine” he reassures. “I still record shop so I might hear something inspiring there. Or it could be a conversation with someone and a sudden turn of phrase. It could be anything.”
Really? Carter tells me that he was at the vets this morning seeking treatment for one of the seven dogs he shares his home in Chicago with; the pooch in question had broken its paw. Did that experience suggest any musical thoughts? “Not really, it was an annoying wait” he answers. “The waiting room was deadly quiet and I kept nodding off. But, not to sound arrogant, I think that I’m quite clever. I read a lot of books, I keep a book of my own poetry, I follow current affairs, and tune in to those things around me. There is always food for thought. Plus living alone with my dogs helps; they’re more honest than people. It’s better than surrounding myself with social climbers and plotting assholes... it’s a positive environment.”
The dauntless determination to pursue his own agenda more than informs Carter’s new biographical compilation album, a fresh chapter in Defected’s illustrious House Masters series. Carter avoids his best-known licks and remixes, opting instead for long-lost DATs and material from forgotten hard drives. 15 of the cuts on offer are previously unreleased; consigned until now to ‘secret weapon’ status within his record bag or CD wallet – cuts like SoCalled’s Richie, given a 16-minute, seriously funked ‘n’ flanged ‘Full Phat’ workout, and DJ Bang’s re-edited skank Hallelujah. Familiar underground gems Squaredancin’ and Where U At? are also present but these were never big money-makers, reinforcing the fact that this is an album not of hits but personal, sharply accurate reflections of Carter himself and his irascible dancefloor spirit.
“I’m about the booty shakin’, nothing else” he proclaims. “I thought that House Masters was a nice thing to do, ultimately. I wanted to give a good representation of who I am, and show people how far ahead of the curve I was all those years ago. I did a similar album nearly 10 years ago, Nearest Hits & Greatest Misses, but I think this is better. It’s on another level, it’s really different and unexpected, and for that I’m really pleased.”
Nearest Hits was released on Classic Recordings, the label Carter continues to run alongside Luke Solomon, interviewed recently on these very digital pages. Solomon highlighted Carter’s unease with strategy when the label officially re-launched in 2011, focusing on new remixes of its back catalogue. Classic has evolved rapidly since then, so what is Carter’s current take?
“Luke and I exist almost in different realities; we’ve always had very different ideas of things but been prepared to give each other the benefit of the doubt and that has pushed Classic in interesting directions” he explains. “Luke was interested in revisiting the back catalogue and that was fine; there are always checks and balances when running a label. I like the fact that we’re up and running again, but I’m not keen on mountains of work. I have other things to consider, so Classic needs to grow at a pace I’m happy with.”
The pace of clubland’s younger DJs and producers is clearly baffling. “I don’t know what’s going to happen in the future and frankly I don’t care” Carter says. “I’m not a twentysomething social climber... one of those kids whose only focus is on elevating their social position. I don’t read the trendy magazines or blog sites, I’m not chasing after trends or any ridiculous shit like that. The younger artists are moving around so quickly, caught up in so many different things, that they’re forgetting about the music.”
Derrick Carter isn’t one for textbook questions on growing up and becoming the artist he is today. For the already well-documented record he began DJing at the age of nine, spinning disco at family gatherings. Born in Compton, LA but raised in Chicago, he keenly embraced the Windy City’s house revolution as a teen and was soon pulling shifts at key record stores like Gramaphone, not to mention playing block parties and securing residencies at hotspot venues Foxy’s, Shelter and Smart Bar.
Amidst everything, Carter squeezed in college and the beginnings of a now far-reaching production career. Early influential tracks Love Me Right (1987) and Mood (as Symbols and Instruments alongside Mark Farina and Chris Nazuka, 1989) would lead in due course to output via Cajual and (as Sound Patrol) Organico, a string of dynamic releases on Classic and inimitable remixes for everyone from Ricky Martin and The Human League to Blaze, Sven Vath and Chez Damier. Meanwhile, his DJ itinerary exploded, catapulting him around the world and back on a monthly, even weekly basis.
But the question, burningly so, remains – how exactly has Carter got himself to this point? How does he quantify the type of electronic music career that today’s clubland upstarts would instantly kill for? A career that has brought delight to millions and spawned a jackin’ new genre of house – ‘boompty’ – though no other has come close to replicating it....
“Look I’ve been lucky, blessed, whatever you want to call it” he says. “But I suspect some of it is also down to my curator’s mind. I feel like I’ve always had the kind of good taste that allows me to attach myself to the kind of records that move crowds but will stand the test of time. I’ve future-proofed myself, working on the music that I can still see doing it much further down the line. In terms of the DJing, I go for the balls of the dancefloor; that’s always been my way. I want to physically move people, really push them. That focus has seen me through and is still working.”
So would Carter describe himself as an aggressive musical beast? “I am a beast, a wild hinterbeast... I’m all over the music. But my personality is something intangible. I like to see people dancing; that makes me happy. I also like to catch them off guard. I might achieve all of that by playing slightly harder or injecting a little humour, which I often do. I could do anything. I don’t like repetition; no DJ set or record I make is ever the same. I appreciate that makes me sounds obtuse but that’s just who I am.”
Has his sonic personality developed at all over the years? “Of course it has, if only because of age. I’m a 43-year-old male, no longer the 20-year-old runabout who had energy for absolutely everything. Music is a crapshoot so you need to try and focus on what works. It’s hard, but I’d say I’ve brought greater focus and clarity to what I’m doing now. When I was younger I was more crazy and experimental; now, I realise I don’t need to try certain things in order to get to where I want. I still have the edge but use it with greater discipline.”
Ahead, Carter plans to drop a new studio album in the next 12 months. He has eight tracks in the bag already, and plans to record several more in order to then start a process of creative shortlisting. “I’ve already spent a lot of time working on it” he admits, “but haven’t thematically tackled anything yet. I need to start bringing things together... working out how the vocals, the songs... the trumpets all fit together.”
Carter is also working on “crazy hot shit” projects for Classic, including a revamp of seminal 2002 album Squaredancing In A Roundhouse. “There were some outtakes and unreleased bits that I wanted to look at” he reveals. “I also asked some good friends of mine to remix specific tracks like Do You Believe? I’m real excited.”
Is there any rationale behind which projects he decides to work on and which he doesn’t? Aside from his own there are those offered, in their truck loads, by the scene around him; and countless demos via young undiscovered producers thirsty for his A&R support. Like it or not, Carter is a valuable commodity.
“Friends get consideration, there’s a little nepotism” he frankly replies. “Otherwise, it’s down to something grabbing me; simple as that. It needs to wow me, feel special. After that, there’s what mood I’m in”
So what mood was he in when he accepted the House Masters brief? “A strategic one” he ponders. “It was a great brief, a great opportunity to reintroduce myself to people.”
Not that Derrick Carter ever went away....
House Masters: Derrick Carter is released by Defected Records on November 12 - listen & pre-order
Carter plays an exclusive ‘Derrick Does Disco’ set at London’s Loft Studios (NW10) on November 30 - buy tickets
