The Spirit of Peter
The Legendary Peter Rauhofer speaks to JustCircuit
Peter Rauhofer believes in reinvention. He's seen music styles and sounds come and go for nearly thirty years. In the past few months, even the most avid Circuit follower might consider Peter to have reinvented himself with his latest release "Live @ Roxy 4" which offers a variety of sounds ranging from those found from Club 69 days to today's hits. It was mere coincidence that shortly after this interview was made, and just as the "Live @ Roxy 4" CD was being released, a dispute with the management at the ROXY in New York City--the club of Rauhofer's longtime residency--abruptly ended, finding Rauhofer soon holding residency at New York's SPIRIT (formerly TWILO.) JustCircuit was just recently told by ROXY's *John Blair" that *DJ Manny Lehman* will now attempt to fill the shoes left behind by the Grammy-winning Rauhofer. To many in the industry, Rauhofer's perfectionist characteristics are well known. His focus and energies are absorbed 100% by the project on which he works. Deadlines come and go if Peter is not totally content with what he creates. As is with most producers, his time is spent in his Vienna studio working with new sounds and ideas which are eventually returned to the United States to test on the American party crowds. Back in March, during Rauhofer's remarkable set at the Winter Party Festival's closing party at Mansion (formerly Level) in South Beach, Peter completely sealed the success of a closely watched weekend of events, which was newly produced by the National Gay and Lesbian Task Force. In Peter's mind, reinvention is merely adaptation to the environment. He's quick to tell you he plays exactly the same from Coast to Coast, only more "compact" at times due to time restraints. Only last April did Peter win the award at the Winter Music Conference in Miami Beach for BEST REMIXER OF THE YEAR. The passion for the music is clear when speaking with Rauhofer. JustCircuit's *Shane Rogers* and *Victor Mauro* experienced both the passion and the spirit of Peter Rauhofer in this recent and exclusive interview.
JC: You're a DJ, a producer and and you're now into artist development? What's next on your list?
Peter: I never concentrate on just one thing. I always have to be very busy at whatever I'm doing.
JC: Do you always do your mixing in Austria?
Peter: I do some mixing here, but I started out in studios over there where there's a different vibe. I have my own studio over there. I'm used to working in Vienna, using my own equipment. I have a collection from the past twenty years of keyboards and all these things, so I like my own room. My work just doesn't studio-transfer from city to city. It has a totally different sound.
JC: The underground scene of the 80's-Club U4-and the early 80's experience made you the strong artist you are today, right?
Peter: I went through EVERY sound. It was more exciting back then because every year there was a new kind of sound…from new wave to hip hop to acid house to underground house, travel house, and the German new wave. When I started spinning, I was spinning soul and then disco. I talk like I'm 60 years old, but I'm not (LAUGHS) But the thing is, of course, I started in the 80's and lots of different music influenced me quite a bit.
JC: Speaking of your influences, you mention David Morales a lot on your website. Was he your strongest influence when you came to the US?
Peter: When I started my first studio productions, my major influences were *Todd Terry* and *David Morales*. I bought and collected everything they produced and released. It's just weird how time goes by…now David calls me every other week and we're like best friends. Ten or fifteen years ago, I would have never guessed how close we would eventually become!
JC: You won the Grammy in 2000. Where do you keep your Grammy now? In Vienna?
Peter: No, I keep it here. I have it in my New York studio.
JC: Do you polish it a lot?
Peter: Not really, but I DO put a new (date) sticker on it every year! (LAUGHS)
JC: Let's talk about your music. One of our JustCircuit members just attended the Vision event at Avalon in Hollywood, and he commented that everyone out West was pleased that your style has seemed to have transitioned into a lot more vocals. They expected to hear the NY Peter and more "pots and pans."
Peter: I spin the same as I spin at the ROXY. The difference is that it's very hard for some people to figure out my sound. At the ROXY, I spin a very long night- sometimes 11PM-9AM. At VISION or at any other town, it's a lot shorter as the place closes earlier. Then, they have an opening DJ. When you spin such short sets, you spin your best off. When you spin the ROXY, from 4-6AM, I usually just spin Tribal. It's not the whole night pots and pans. I spin a couple of those songs, and a couple of vocals. In the shorter sets, I spin the same music, but in a more concentrated way. I take the same music with me always. It is just a medley of my best stuff, with less fillers. The shorter the set, the more energetic I spin.
JC: Why do you spin so infrequently on the West Coast?
Peter: I turn down a lot of bookings, because it's very rare that I get a weekend off. Spinning until 9 at ROXY and then having to get on the next plane to the West Coast, it's exhausting. If I didn't have a residency, it would be easier.
JC: Are you still a resident at ROXY now?
Peter: Yeah, Victor and I were both there until he left, and I've been there since 1999 now.
[Editor's note: Peter left the ROXY for SPIRIT shortly after this interview. Beginning June, 2005, you catch Peter twice monthly at SPIRIT, 530 West 27th Street, between 10th & 11th Avenues.]
JC: Do you think the music in the Circuit is going back to the "feel good" music of the past?
Peter: I don't know if it's necessarily going back. A major problem is the drugs. People always feel different about their experiences with music. These days, there is such a HUGE influence from Europe. When I look at DJ's record books from the early 90's, you found 90% domestic and 10% European releases. Now it's completely the opposite. Many DJ's play primarily European music. The time is long gone that the straight and the gay clubs have the same sounds. In the mid 90's when Razor and Guido and Victor, Johnny Vicious and myself all had our high, all clubs had the same sound. There are so many different sounds and styles and trends, it's really hard to spin your own style. That's why I spin very diversely sometimes, because the crowd is so diverse. I don't want to spin in one direction. The hard monotonic tribal house was big for a moment, but I don't see it going anywhere. To keep parties going you have to play the right track at the right moment. Sometimes I play a track that the crowd likes that I would never have imagined I would play, but the crowd demands it. If it's a big party, you have to mix it up and play a variety.
JC: Speaking of your music, and just in time for my 40th birthday, you've come out with Live @ Roxy 4. Could you describe it for us?
Peter: We have a worldwide exclusive on *Madonna's* "Mother and Father" remix. The Madonna camp decided something different every week, so it ended up that Star 69 will release the remix exclusively. The two-disc set has 10 vocals and there are 22 sets on there.
JC: You're doing "Do I look like a slut"…that's the one everyone's buzzing about.
Peter: It's very Star 69 for the millennium. It's a funny song. We took it from the East Village in NY and it's all about sex and sluts and dildos…
JC: Your "Divas to the Dance Floor 2" comes in early March. Do the Divas of yesterday, like *Donna Summer*, *Aretha*, *Diana Ross* compare the new Divas of today?
Peter: The Divas of today are really Divas of the moment. The Divas from the day are legendary. If you look at all the new, upcoming Divas, there's something missing. Back then, it was about the whole package, the styling. Today, if you talk about a Diva, it's someone with an attitude.
JC: Like Elton John, right?
Peter: (LAUGHS) Exactly!
JC: What is your favorite disco song? I know it's a silly question, but we always have to ask!
Peter: You know I grew up in the 70's, and in 1978, my parents took me for a week to London, and I bought my first record. It was Donna Summer's "Last Dance." After Saturday Night Fever, my favorite Disco song was A Taste of Honey's "Boogie Oogie Oogie!"
JC: What song would you most like to remix?
Peter: That's difficult. I always wanted to remix *Grace Jones* or *Sade*. Sade doesn't want any of her songs remixed. I always wanted to do something "original" with Grace Jones. But, she's very "complicated." I've talked to her management for years. They said that she does not want to understand that DJ's want to produce themselves. She wants to overlook the whole production. Everyone knows that you have to work for her for a week before she shows up. Doing a whole album would be a whole years project. I love the thought of working with Grace Jones!
For more information on DJ/Producer Peter Rauhofer, visit his website:
www.peterrauhofer.com
Email Peter:
unique@peterrauhofer.com
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