Exclusive Interview with Tall Sasha

Siam2nite had the opportunity to have an exclusive interview with Tall Sasha, shortly before his performance at Rockademy Thailand on 31st January.

You are an up-and-coming DJ & Producer from the USA. How did you get in touch with DJing and music production in the first place?

It all started when I was very young. I was a club kid at first, attending raves and underground parties in 90s where electronic music was played. I remember the nights when we would attend a warehouse party and dance till 8 in the morning. At that time electronic dance music was not as popular as now, you really had to know where to go as most clubs at the time were playing hip hop. But I loved the energy that electronic music created and I told myself that one day I will become a DJ and a music producer. That was 10 years ago, in 2005.

You play and produce Progressive- & Tech House. How would you describe your sound in a few words?

My music is powerful, energetic and emotional. It is divided into two styles; progressive versus deep and tech. Progressive sounds have a lot of energy and buildups versus my deep and tech house alias TOSIC, and whose tracks have a different feel, it's a more of an underground party sound, mysterious, spooky, seductive vibe and very addictive sound. Often vocals are distorted and there are powerful messages within the song..

You have made a highly successful remix of U2’s classic “With Or Without You”. What other tracks, remixes or mix sets would you recommend as an introduction for someone that is not yet familiar with your sound?

That was a great remake of a classic and legendary song by U2 and in the version I created we used a female singer so this song generated a lot of buzz in the worldwide EDM community. It is probably my best work to date and great intro song to Tall Sasha sound. I would also recommend a high-energy song "Revolution".

In just short period of time, both my original releases “Revolution” and “With Or Without You” have soared high (both reached to TOP 25) on the Beatport Top 100 Progressive House charts even overtaking tracks by big names such as Swedish House Mafia and Tiesto. Each song I made is a bit different so the best would be to check out the collection on Itunes and for my deep and tech house sound check out Beatport

What was the best and the worst gig you ever played and what was the funniest thing ever occurred during any of your performances?

The most powerful gig I played was “Beach Love party” in China in front of 40 000 people. The worst - there is no such a thing for a DJ. Every time you play live is a blessing.

The funniest thing ever occurred during my performance was when I played an opening set for David Guetta in 2012 at Ruby Skye, San Francisco's best club. Venue was a sold out with over 2,000 people attending. David Guetta was suppose to start at midnight but was running late, so I ended up playing much longer set, so some people in attendance thought I was him and a very drunk girl that was in the front of audience, thinking that I was him, climbed to DJ booth without anyone seeing and went under the DJ table. Then while I was DJ'ing I felt someone touching and trying to unzip my pants under the Dj booth! I looked down and there she was on her knees below the table, LOL. Of course security saw it and pulled her out of the club. I was really shocked but I guess it happens to superstars like David Guetta :)

You are from San Francisco, California where you hold Residencies at Ruby Skye and Vessel. What can you tell us about clubbing and nightlife in San Francisco? Do you have any nightlife related suggestions for first-time visitors?

San Francisco has a rich history of producing top-quality EDM acts. From Kaskade to Andy Caldwell, Max Vangeli, and Ken Loi, San Francisco has been used as a canvas for these artists to perfect their trade before stepping into a larger spotlight. I would highly recommend any visitor to visit Ruby Skye , which is an amazing club due to it history as it used to be an old theatre from 1920's that got converted in to top club in 2000 while maintaining a history and architecture. It has a very high ceiling and beautiful decor and it has two levels with huge balcony overlooking the main stage. Many locals also love Vessel nightclub, which is much smaller but among the local favorite due to it's underground vibe and powerful sound system.

You have recently played here in Bangkok as special guest at Soundset Sundays. On 31st January you will return to Bangkok to perform at Rockademy. Did you keep your previous show in good memory? What can Bangkok expect of your performance?

Yes, Soundset Sunday pool party was amazing. I started to play deep house and switched to progressive, it was something new and different, which created great ambience and for my point of view people response was great. It was one of their busiest events of the year and I am planning to return to it in February.

I love Bangkok and Thai people and that special feeling made me to come back here. I am pleased to announce that my next two confirmed performances will take place on Friday, Jan 23 at WAX, where I will play more of a deep and tech house sounds with a twist, which will be very exciting - while on Saturday, Jan 31st at Rockademy will be an all night rave style special open to close set, music ranging from deep tech and high energy to progressive house. It will be definitely my best performance in Thailand and people can expect to experience the best of Tall Sasha world of sound.