:: INTERVIEWS :: HELEN G

Sunday 4th May (Bank Holiday) sees Frantic take over the huge Heaven complex in London for Hard House Heaven. With a strong line-up which sees award winning resident Cally Gage joined by mighty names such as Andy Farley, Rob Tissera, Steve Hill, Technikal, Phil York, K90 and Phil Reynolds (to name just a few), HHH is sure to pack out the Villiers Street venue.

Another name on the line-up is probably one that you won’t necessarily recognise, yet. That name is Helen G. Predictions are something I tend to be good at (two years ago I told you to look out for the name Cally Gage for example!); Helen G is one of those people who is not out to make a name for her self, she just loves Hard House, that much shows no matter what side of the decks she’s on. Her DJ-ing career may be in its infancy, but she’s already got a following and with a couple of production credits to her name Helen G is a name you will soon recognise - you read it here first! This is what Helen had to say when I managed to catch up with her:-

Ru: Hi Helen, how are things?

Helen: Lovely to get the chance to speak to you!

Ru: What was your first hard-house club experience?

Helen: Well, I was in my final year at University and one of my friends, Caz (Wood), persuaded me to go with her and her boyfriend (Wain Johnstone) to Gatecrasher @ the NEC in November 2003. I remember borrowing one of her pink and white cyber outfits to wear and being amazed by the effort that many of the other clubbers had made with their outfits! The rooms were enormous and the music was so loud, lol! That night I remember seeing Rob Tissera, The Tidy Boys and Cally & Juice play; The Tidy Boys played their Coca Cola intro into a mad mash-up which made the crowd go wild! I came away from that night both excited and exhausted!

Ru: How did you get in to hard house?

Helen: My housemates at Uni listened to a lot of hard house so I heard it all the time and from the moment I experienced my first hard house night, I was hooked! The way it makes me feel and the energy that it gives me…well, I still find it amazing!

Ru: What was the first hard house record you ever bought?

Helen: The first hard house record I bought on vinyl was Take Off – Stimulator as I loved the happy riff…might be a bit cheesy but I still love it! He he!

Ru: How did you get in to DJing?

Helen: I used always go round to a friend’s house after a night out clubbing and I used to watch them mix for hours, wishing that I could do it but being too scared to try. Then my boyfriend at the time and I decided that we would get decks to try to mix so we got our Technics 1210’s in December 2004 and so the long journey of learning to beat-match began! I have to admit I nearly gave up several times as I found it so hard but I loved the music so I carried on and eventually after many months, something seemed to click and I could finally mix! Naturally, my mixing has changed vastly since those days as I have grown in confidence and thus, my mixes have become more interesting….I hope, lol!

Ru: What tracks are in your current top 10?

Helen: There are so many tracks that are doing it for me right now and which I love to play out but here are my current top 10:

1. Don’t Stop – Technikal presents Helen G: This is my first original track that I made recently with the talented Alf Bamford. It has a really catchy vocal and an uber happy riff; I get such a buzz whenever I play it out as it seems to make people stomp hard and smile lots!

2. Shining in the Ecstasy – Jason Cortez remix: Everyone loves this tune – it’s a happy track that you can sing your heart out to!

3. Partridge This – Digital Groove: When I first heard this track, I remember thinking that it had the most amazing bassline and I’ve been addicted to it ever since!

4. What U Do – Tom Parr remix: I love the hoovers in this track, it always gets me dancing hard when I hear it being played.

5. Supersonic – Technikal vs. MDA & Spherical: This track is awesome! Influenced by Eskimo, it has all sorts of chopped up samples in it; a definite crowd-pleaser!

6. Get Down – Helen G: This has got a really warpy bassline which just makes you want to wiggle!

7. Gigabyte – Wayne Smart: This tune is brilliant, it’s full of familiar samples that work really well together and gets people dancing really hard.

8. Body movin – The Resonates: A harder tune than I normally play but the vocals are ace…love it!

9. U Ready? – Technikal remix: A brilliant remix of U Ready? which works well in both warm up and peak-time sets.

10. U got 2 be there – 2007 Original Rework: I’ve played this track quite a lot recently as I really like the rolling bassline and vocals; it always seems to go down well!

Ru: Who is your favorite producer?

Helen: There are some pretty amazing producers at the moment including Matt Lee, Steve (Klubfiller) and Tom Parr but my favourite producer has got to be the legend, Alf Bamford aka Technikal. He is one of the most talented producers I know having just made my first 2 tunes, Don’t Stop and Get Down, with him – shameless plug I know!

Ru: What one track is guaranteed to get you on the dance floor?

Helen: I absolutely LOVE Stalker (Hoodlums remix) and it is guaranteed to make me scream and jump as high as I possibly can to express how much I love it! Anyone who has seen Andy Whitby drop this in one of his sets can vouch for this! Haha!

Ru: If you could play any venue, which venue would be your ultimate dream come true?

Helen: Wow, what a question! I often talk to my housemates about where I’d love to play and one place that always crops up is the main room of Storm (The Emporium). I love the club, there’s always a brilliant atmosphere and it’s somewhere you know that everyone is up for having a good time!

Ru: If you could have a one-2-one with any famous (dead or alive) person, who would it be with and what would you talk about?

Helen: Um, let me see…one person I’d like to talk to is Banksy! I love art and I’m fascinated by his work; it makes you really think. I’d talk to him about how he started and about all the inspirations for his pieces as I think they’re very clever.

Ru: Please complete the following sentence… “I love hard house because…”

Helen: …it makes me feel alive! I love the way that different tracks can make you feel so many different emotions – it’s amazing!

Helen G plays at Hard House Heaven on Sunday 4th May. Tickets available from moreonthedoor.com and other leading ticket sites.