CityLife

Lock up your record collection! Shoplifters return

Shoplifters (from left): Sapnararella, Matt Talbot and Grammar

REMIX (and covers and edits) night Shoplifters returns on Friday night at its new home the Deaf Institute, having been on hiatus since its tenure at Cord ended earlier in the year. 

The night started in 2007 and quickly gained a reputation for spinning left-of-centre reswizzles of popular electro and/or indie belters.

DJs Grammar, Sapnarella and Matt Talbot (must try harder with that deck moniker) bring the “playing tunes you know if a way you haven’t experienced before” party back this week, so we caught up with them for a few quick questions.  

Hello Shoplifters  

Grammar: Hello indeed.

Matt Talbot: Easy Now!  

Please describe how you started Shoplifters in no more than five bulletpoints.  

G: Had idea, found venue, sorted out loads of tunes, played loads of gigs, the rest is history.  

Covers are a cop-out used by bands who don’t have the talent to come up with amazing hooks themselves. Discuss.  

Sapnarella: Sometimes. But lets face it, a band that relies on solely on covers is never destined for great things anyway. Nowaysis anyone?

MT: Sometimes that’s true, but I think all bands should have a decent cover up their sleeve for live shows. As long as they have the ability to inject their own style into it its all good.  

What is your favourite cover version of all time?  

G: Giant Drag, Wicked Game 

MT: probably The Gourds cover of Snoop’s Gin & Juice

S: Hot 8 Brass Band Sexual Healing  

Do you prefer remixes that sound like the original but a little bit better, or those which sound nothing like the original at all?  

JG: That really depends. Sometimes, a remix only needs to have a slight adjustment to make it more dancefloor, while other times it needs a complete rework.

MT: There is no definite answer to that, it all depends on the track and the remixer.  

What is your favourite remix of all time?  

G: Hmm... tough one. I'll be pretentious: DFA's remix of Mars, Arizona by Blues Explosion is really rather good.

MT: Daft Punk – Harder Better Faster Stronger – Sponjie Riddim – EPIC!

S: That is impossible! But I’d say a remix which takes a mediocre song and turns it into something amazing always deserves a heads up, so The Hours – See The Light (Calvin Harris remix) for me. It’s pretty timeless.  

What are your favourite tunes at the moment?  

G: Phoenix - Lisztomania (Holy Ghost Remix) Tina Turner - Nutbush City Limits (Tronik Youth Remix) Whitest Boy Alive - 1517 (Morgan Geist Edit)  

MT: Sebastian Tellier – Kilometre (Aeroplane ‘Italo 84’ Remix); The Third Degree – Mercy (Duffy Cover); Dusty Springfield – That’s The Kind Of Love Ive Got For You (Disco 3000 Remix)  

S: Dizzee Rascal – Bonkers (Doorly remix); Patrick Wolf – Hard Times (Jack Beats remix); Lily Allen – The Fear (Duke Dumont remix).

Shoplifters is on Friday, June 5 at The Deaf Institute. 9pm-late.