James Ruskin on Tresor, Blueprint, and the enduring appeal of vinyl

James Ruskin is one of the leading figures in techno. The DJ / Producer / Label boss paradigm is a classic career path in dance music, not least in the case of the presenter of this show. But few have nailed all three elements quite as well over the last three decades as this week's guest on the show.

Blueprint is Ruskin's label - an absolute foundation of UK techno, and techno generally it should be said, with seminal releases from the likes of DVS1, Mark Broom, Oliver Ho, Sigha, as well as the boss himself. It will soon be celebrating 30 years of releases, which is a pretty incredible achievement.

As a producer he's released prolifically outside his own imprint, most notably via an association with Tresor that goes back to the 90s. And as a DJ he's been a key part of the UK scene and beyond for at least that long too.

We discuss familiar themes such as the state of the scene today, the comparative challenges of releasing music over a thirty year period, the evolution of his approach to work in the studio, amongst a lot of other stuff besides.

This is a great conversation with an absolute key man. Get involved!

00:00 Intro and how you can support the show
03:50 The definition of Techno
11:05 Small clubs vs. festivals
16:30 Hard Techno and 30 year cycles
20:33 "Minimal was so fucking boring"
25:03 AD
25:39 30 years of Blueprint
35:45 UK Techno brotherhood
37:30 Digital vs. Vinyl
42:43 AD
46:25 "I still buy vinyl every week"
49:50 Hip-Hop, Beat Street and Breakdance
54:05 Learning how to mix in the club
58:11 Illegal raves and commercialisation
59:50 AD
01:01:33 The legend of LOST
01:06:00 The importance of Tresor
01:10:13 Playing Detroit tunes in Detroit
01:11:15 Techno in Spain
01:16:40 James Ruskin the race car driver

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