Richie Hawtin is a bloody legend, period.
Whether it be releasing mind-melting techno under moniker Plastikman (getcha melting quota in and stream here), casually playing in a taco truck (!technotaco¡) or rocking out at New York’s Guggenheim Museum – Hawtin has proved himself to be one of the most unique and interesting techno purveyors in all the land.
We were pretty excited when we then found out he was doing a Reddit AMA – and true to form those keyboard warriors gave him a grilling. Lucky for them (and us), Hawts talked honestly and candidly about his experience. Here’s what we learnt from the techno master;
1. He’s a trendy white-boy badass.
Why not have it all? One questioner inquired as to the attitude of the Hawts after watching this video…
The cheeky motherfucker! And what was his defence of such bad-boi behaviour?…
“… well sometimes I get a bit worked up with the energy of the moment, specially after playing 5-6+ hours. Suddenly the night is over, the lights are on, everyone’s looking at me for more music or something, the club owners want things to end, people are practically climbing into the DJ booth… so seemed like the best thing to do was to give them something! At moments like this, it’s probably best if I get out of the club as fast as possible!”
2. He’s concerned about Tinitus, but things are going swimmingly.
Many were concerned about the health of Hawts. I mean, he’s a slender bro, techno is hardly the resounding music of wellbeing, and that boy tours a lot. What was his response to such claims?
“Constant touring and then running the label, working with other companies/investments, seeing your friends & family and just keeping everything in balance is extremely challenging… but well placed downtime, constant sports (especially swimming) help keep me focused and enjoying this crazy lifestyle. Tinitus is a problem with me and most of my DJ friends… think about it, I’ve been pummelling my ears for over 25 years, there’s bound to be some damage… but I do the best to keep things in check (doctor checkups, ear plugs etc) and definitely bringing my own sound engineer to ALL gigs…“
If you were wondering, here’s proof a brother eats. Get it into ya!
3. He DIDN’T get kicked out of Berghain, although he recognises he probably could’ve been.
After a dicey allegation a few years ago that Hawts & co. were booted from Berghain, many were interested to know how he could’ve been shown the door in a place renowned for bad behaviour. Hawt’s was straight up.
“The music business is all about timing…. and on that night I actually left before getting “ejected”. The Sake pre-party at my house with Dubfire and friends probably wasn’t a good idea before going there.”
And just incase you were wondering what makes a good sake, Hawt’s deconstructs;
“Something that hasn’t been overlay polished so that I can still taste a connection to the rice that was used in its production.”
Mmm, dicey and ricey. We can dig it.
4. He has been LEGITIMATELY thrown off the decks at some of the world’s top clubs.
“Funny enough the first time I played at SPACE on Ibiza AND at Cocorico in Italy I got thrown of the “decks” … both times the club owners didn’t like what I was playing… thankfully that was in 1991/2 and I got over it! Happy to say, both clubs enjoy having me play now!”
No shit.
5. There are talks of another Hawtin/Deadmau5 playtime!!!
After causing a stir at their b2b at SXSW a little while back, Hawtin confirmed the desire to work with the Mau5 (who just release his new album) once again with a short and sweet,
“We’re talking about doing something else together in the future!”
Please, dance gods. Let that shit happen!
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