ATQPOD016 || Dave Juric

Updated: Oct 7, 2020

With great joy, we welcome one of Melbourne's most established DJ in Dave Juric--to craft together a magical mixture of electronic dance music for ATQPOD016. This one is for the ages, and you'll understand why as you listen. A timeless masterpiece that will hold true in years and decades to come.

Dave, thank you for such an incredible, professional mix. You're making us look good ;)

More below from Dave Juric and Arteq Productions.

What direction did you take on the podcast, and why?

When I got asked to make the mix we were deep in lock-down and I was desperately trying to find something to keep me sane and this mix was the perfect avenue for me to express my creativity. I had been reflecting at the time on what makes a set “great” from a personal perspective and with this in mind I set myself the task of coming up with “the best mix I’ve ever made.” I used this lofty desire to drive me to create something sonically complex and interesting while also sounding timeless. This was the starting point and I spent a lot of time sourcing music that reflected this concept. The mix begins with a bit of a celebration of syncopation. Broken-beat techno I guess you can call it that, then manoeuvres in and out of some 4/4 exploring some pretty heady, dark soundscapes before finishing on more of an electro tip. For me I really wanted to explore a range of rhythms rather than melodies which I’m usually drawn to. Something I really wanted to capture was the movement that can be created through music. A break beat is a great vessel to get the shoulders swinging and I kept the BPM ramped up towards 130bpm in an attempt to drive a perpetual forward movement.

What did you use to record the mix?

For these mixes I use Traktor as it enables me to focus more on layering and looping and slowly teasing track in and out.

What artists are on your radar at the moment?

Straight off the top of my head..

Techno: Lake People - Redshape - Etapp Kyle - Ness - Addison Groove

Progressive: Analog Jungs - B.A.X. - Antrim - Kamilo Sanclemente - Jaap Ligthart

What inspires you to DJ?

It’s an interesting question and one I’ve been thinking about a lot lately. I’ve been DJing for 15 years now. I’m married with a kid and another one on the way and I’m really starting to take my career as a teacher seriously… and so I ask myself why do I still do it? I always thought I’d have stopped by now. There’s two ideas that spring to mind:

1. The music. It has never failed me. In an almost selfish way I DJ because I love finding music that inspires me and putting them together in mixes. If no one else heard them I still don’t think I’d stop. There’s nothing better than scrunching your face up with a big stupid grin rocking out to a new tune that you’ve found.

2. The actual physicality of mixing / performing. Standing in a booth with my headphones on is my absolute happy place and getting into the zone and completely losing my inhibitions and forgetting life for that moment is bliss.

You warmed up for Undercatt at our recent event. Tell us about your experience.

Hot damn that was a party! I’ve spent a lot of time over the years warming up for progressive DJ’s and so I’ve always kept it quite slow and deep and gradually built tension but this was something quite different. Given the time + place, the absolutely up-for-it crowd and Undercatt taking over it gave Rollin Connection (Daniel Banko) and I some wiggle room to play some quicker more aggressive sounding house / techno. We’ve played together quite a few times over the years but we agree that was one of our favourite sets we’ve played. It was absolutely rocking.

Is there anything else you’d like to say?

I just want to say thank you for giving me the platform to share the music I love and I hope you all enjoy the set! 