Tom Stephan aka Superchumbo

Not long after that Tom’s alter-ego, Superchumbo was born – Superchumbo meaning Super-leaded in Portuguese - and the term adding “fuel to the fire” of dance music was given a whole new meaning. It was then that Tom’s breed of super fan, the ‘Leadhead’, started to appear and ChumboMundo was created giving something for the Leadheads to get high on other than gas!

Where most have died a DJ death amongst the constant influx of talent, Tom has remained a permanent fixture. And so it’s about time Tom returned to do what he does best, setting our ears and feet on fire, with his new compilation series, ‘Let’s Go Chumbo’ – A double disc filled with “edgy, energetic, dark, dramatic, high octane, twisted, electro-tribal house music”.
This brand new series on Tom’s ChumboMundo label - which has grown from strength to strength since it’s launch in February 2005 with dance publications all over the world giving it’s first two releases the accolade of ‘Tune of The Month’ - will house some of Tom’s favourite cuts of the moment, upfront Chumbo-esque belters, plus new and exclusive material from the man himself. Tracks include the latest Superchumbo single ‘Dog’, the new Superchumbo remixes of Nitzer Ebb's, ‘Control I'm Here’ and Pet Shop Boy's ‘Minimal’, plus Ralph Falcon & Charlie Solana's ‘Control’, Kamisshake's ‘High Voltage’ and unreleased tracks from DJ Pierre and West London Deep.

Tom Stephan explains, "On ‘Let's Go Chumbo’ I've tried to recreate some of my favourite moments from my live sets and mix them with some brand new tracks and remixes and hopefully come up with something that's 100% chumbo."

How did you give birth to the superchumbo sound?

SCI've spent many years trying to find that perfect sound. I guess that's a djs job. Always looking for that sound or that track that's going to drive the dancefloor into a frenzy.

Why did you pick that artist name? Did you not prefer Tracey and Sharon?

SCI was Tracy & Sharon for many years, but clubs were always confused when I was the only who showed up. Not a woman. No drag. Just me. I was playing in Berlin one night after two female djs who had only one name. I followed them- 2 female names but only 1 guy djing. I thought- ok this really doesn't make sense anymore!

Your music is very original and many people don't totally understand it, how would you define your style?

SC That's a great compliment. I wouldn't go out of my way to be understood, but I would say that that's a good description of a lot of things I like. Fashion, music, film. I like things that tend to be more on the edge. How would I describe my style? Well I've never been able to answer

that question so I made up a word for it. Chumbo.

What gear do you normally use for your tracks?

SCI write and produce on Logic on a Mac. I also use Protools for editing and Ableton for mash ups.

Who is Tom Stephan a fan of?

SC Amy Winehouse, John Waters, Danny Tenaglia, DEVO, Gilbert & George, Yohji Yamamoto, John Dahlback, David Sedaris, Augusten Burroughs..

When did you start playing an instrument and writing?

SC My Father is a musician so I grew up surrounded by music and musicians. I think when I was 1 year old my Father gave me a kids drum set. When I was 2 I got a keyboard and when I was 3 a guitar. Not sure I had much choice in the matter! I can remember writing songs before I could really even play, so it's something I've been doing all my life.

Have you changed your style over the years or have you had a defined idea from the beginning?

SC I think my style has consistently progressed over the years. But even when I was 10 years old, I was in DEVO. It was always about outsider music for me. I was very used to being the only one who liked something.

You have included two remixes of "Dog" on your album. Is there something special about this track that made you include two remixes?

SC It's something that I probably picked up years ago from Junior Vasquez. He used to work and tease a track all night before finally letting it drop. Something I don't find many people do anymore. So the dub of "Dog" is really just supposed to be a teaser or warm up to the full mix on CD 2.

Your artwork has been designed by a spaniard. What aspect of his style do you like the most?

SC The reason I chose Francesco to do the artwork (note- this is only on the ChumboMundo release- Star 69 have done their own artwork) is that I really like his edgy style. His works look like they've been cut out of magazines and photocopied- not just knocked up in photoshop. I met with him once and described what I was looking for and he nailed it the first time.

What's the track you've done that you feel most proud of, throughout your career?

SC I usually tend to be most proud of the things I've done most recently. I would say remixing "Control I'm Here" for Nitzer Ebb has been one of the greatest honors for me ever. I've been a huge fan of Nitzer Ebb since I was a teenager and they have been a big inspiration and influence on my sound.

On the Pet Shop Boys single Minimal, there's a remix of yours and you have included another on your album. You've remixed them a fair bit over the years and they admire your work. Have they called you to remix Integral?

SC No, I actually approached them because I loved "Minimal" and felt that the track would work with a chumbo makeover.

First chumbomundo, now we have chumboradio too. What can we find on there?

SC Radio Chumbo is my free monthly podcast. Each month a live set is featured from one of my favorite clubs around the world. You can subscribe at www.tomstephan.com

What projects occupy your mind right now?

SC I'm working in the studio later today with Roger Sanchez. We've been talking about working on a project together now for a long time but this is the first chance we've had. I'm very excited about the project.

Dog climbed to the top of the charts. How did you come up with that track?

SC Dog was a collaboration between Pete Gleadall, my engineer, Katherine Ellis, who sang on "Here I Come" and "Frenzy", and myself. Pete and I had put the track together and then we gave it to Katherine who, after working with, knew exactly the kind of thing I was looking for. Katherine is amazing. When she started barking in the studio I knew she totally understood what I like!

There's a track from Wowie Zowie that really impressed me: tranquilsier. The lyrics and music transmit more madness than tranqulility and the lyrics are full of double meanings. Who wrote the lyrics and what is this track really about?

SC I wrote the music and sent it to Neil Tennant who wrote the lyrics and melody. I think the claustrophobic lyrics were inspired by the tension in the music.

Junior vasquez opened your eyes with his music but you've met many producers since then.

Who are you most grateful to for what they've done for you?

SC Danny Tenaglia has been a big inspiration and really done a lot to help me and promote my music. He was one of the first djs to start playing my productions- back as far as "Get This" and a remix I did for Tina Turner. And of course, most importantly, he was the one who championed "The Revolution" at the WMC which is the spark that really started it all.

Tom Stephan aka Superchumbo

Who would you like to work with on a track?

SC I'm looking forward to working with Roger Sanchez today. I've been a fan of Roger's for years and it's always exciting to work with someone new. I want to get in there and see how he does what he does. I've also just done a track together with DJ Pierre. We actually did the track by working on it and emailing it back and forth to eachother, but he's also a big hero of mine so it was very cool to be working with him.

Out of all the people you have worked with, who have been the most professional and demanding with your work?

SC Neil Tennant. He's very honest and matter of fact. If he doesn't like something he just says so. And he's a real perfectionist.
He never stops working on something until it's right.

What countries will you visit on your new tour?

SC This weekend I start a 3 week tour of the US/Canada. Then I head back to Italy for a week before 2 weeks in Asia and then Australia. And that takes me up to the WMC in Miami.

Mr Fingers' can you feel it is a huge classic. What other one would you have liked to have included on your album?

SC I always like to play a few classics in my sets and I thought Angel's mix was perfect because it was a new take on a classic. I'm not sure what else I would have included, there are so many. DJ Pierre's Masterblaster is on of my favorite classics.

Do you think there's an acid reinassance coming soon?

SC Yes- I think it's already happened. Certainly in the UK it has. But also, just like in fashion, it seems that everything is back!
Anything goes.

Nitzer Ebb are heroes of yours. How did it feel to be able to remix them all those years later?

SC One of the highlights of my career.

House music is on top of the world again. Everyone wants house. However, there was a bit of a crisis. What happened?

SC The internet hit us hard. People obviously wanted the ease of downloading tracks but the music business didn't provide this fast and so people did it themselves and we ended up with this illegal downloading situation which is still hurting us. Record sales have been hit so hard that we've lost labels and record shops all over the world. It really makes me sad because the house music community isn't really that big. When sales go from 10,000 to 2,000, you suddenly find that you can't even cover the cost of making the record anymore. And let me just say- I don't use Soulseek or any of those sites. When you can get a proper WAV file on Beatport for a few dollars, I don't know how anyone can justify stealing the music. But yes- i agree with you, house music is alive and well. We're going through a period change but we're still going!

Is there much room left for the NY hard tribal vibe yet?

SC I think there's a place for it. I still play some tribal. Nothing sounds better after some electro minimal tracks than some bangin drums!

What do you expect from 2007?

SC I'm not sure what to expect but I hope that we'll see house music keep progressing and the djs and producers keep finding new ways of making us shake our booties!

Do you still use Logic in the studio? What is your favourite hardware synth right now?

SC I've used Logic for years and I think it's still the best software out there. My favorite hardware synth has been the Waldorf Q, but we just got a Virus in the studio so I'll be checking that out.

Do people still ask you to spin "The Revolution"?

SC Yes- so I'm always finding new ways to include it in my sets- alternative mixes, acapella etc.

Finally, send out a message to all your leadheads out there.

SC Let's Go Chumbo!!!!!!!!!!

Interview by Lydia Tennant , 17 January 2007