Brighton is well renowned for its nightlife and in particular for its quirky and alternative events. Berlin-Brighton is nearly 4 years old and it’s been great to see other events pop up flying the Germanic language flag with nights like Traumfrau (Dream Woman) making a big impression that add character and cutting edge music to our scene.
Next on the nightspot calendar we have an event that kicks off tonight Friday 15th June and has been put together by one of our very own residents Henning Schmitz aka Captain Wow aka be.so. ‘Frühschicht’ (Early Shift) will launch at one of Brighton’s coolest and most colourful venues ‘Presuming Ed’s’, which recently had a full internal refurb to accommodate more music led events. Not only that the full frontal facade of the building has had an incredible splash of colour and is certainly one of the most striking buildings on London Road.
To find out more about Frühschicht we caught up with Henning for a chat, a coffee and a general high fünf.
Hi Henning, how are things? And most importantly how are your nerves?
I’d like to get a spare pack of them…
Ha! This is the first event you’re putting on after a big break from music. What was the idea behind Frühschicht and what format can we expect?
The original idea came in a secret after hour. Tom from Evil Nine took over the decks and spontaneously played for 6 hours straight. All of us present thought it was such a remarkable set with a very diverse journey through so many genres, that it would be a shame to keep this to ourselves. In todays day and age it’s rare that DJs get the time frame to develop a session like this. And when Presuming Ed finished their refurbishment, it became clear we found the space to develop this project and we really like the idea of it being an early night.
So naturally, for the first one you have booked Tom from Evil Nine. What can we expect musically and will there be an equally long set time?
Yes indeed it will be 6 hours too. The best mindset for this Event is to not expect anything in particular. Yes, Tom is well known with his group Evil Nine, but it wouldn't be a 6h straight forward Evil Nine set, that’s the beauty of it. Tom has such an exquisite taste in music outside his well known repertoire, and that's what this event is all about, freedom of choice, freedom to develop, and of course, freedom to dance ;-). It takes a special skill set to pull of such a long set and tie together so many genres from Hip Hop, Breakbeat (obviously) all the Houses and Technos, and maybe some Drum N Bass? Just come along and find out.
I mentioned you had a break from music for some time. You used to head up your own weekly radio show with your former partner in crime Jakespeare on Codesouth FM for quite a few years. Plus you used to be a regular on the Brighton circuit including our own Berlin nights. What made you have some timeout?
My mum told me to… :-) Sometimes you have to set priorities in life to move forward. That does not mean that my passion for music will ever die.
You also used to run your own night club in Lanzarote. Sounds like lots of fun, sea and sun. Tell us more and how did you end up in Brighton?
It was fun but a lot of stress as well. We took a big risk opening just before the recession kicked in and after one year of having busy nights but empty pockets we had to give up on that idea. It was a hell of a ride but also put my romantic idea of Djing into perspective. Not getting home before 6am any day of the weekend for a whole year can be less fun that it sounds...
I remember speaking to you some time ago about your time in Cologne and loving Kompakt Records - What was your youth filled with during those years in terms of underground clubs you used to party in?
My best memories of Cologne's club scene? Without a doubt, every Friday dancing my soles off in Studio 672. Total Confusion was a Kompakt label party in this small club (about 150 max capacity) and I can’t remember being disappointed not once!
Presuming Ed’s is equally a smaller and wicked quirky venue, what made you pick this over other venues in the city other than for its funky decor?
Because they let me do it :-) I feel home here for various reasons and drinks are very affordable. I think it’s the right size to give this project a go too. Not too much pressure, apart from that of the awesome sound system I have hired for the occasion ;-)
What are your plans for Frühschicht, are you playing it by ear and taking it easy or do you have any plans to do the event elsewhere?
Let’s first see how this one turns out. The challenge for me lies more in finding the right artist for the next one. I would like to keep it small with a “party family” feeling. That keeps the risk to a minimum and allows us to have fun, too.
Any other artists we can expect to see in the near future?
Nothing confirmed yet. I do have my wishes… ;-)
Aha being secretive. I like it. Anything else you’d like to add?
I know it may feel strange to start an event like this earlier than usual but I say give it a go! (you don’t want to miss my warm up set, do you? ;-) The whole point is to be able to have some decent fun without compromising the entire weekend. Like an extended after work beer. Let's call it an early night: Frühschicht! Also I'll invite the non-germanic person with the best pronunciation of this word for a beer.
Awesome stuff! Thanks Henning for taking the time to speak with us and the Berlin Crew will no doubt be down in force to bust some grooves this Friday.
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