West coast cooler

Just think. Just over a year ago, it was all ‘West Coast house this, West Coast house that’. Then electroclash came along and we promptly forgot about it. But did it go away? Of course not. The likes of San Francisco boys Miguel Miggs and Jay-J have spent the year solidly releasing quality 12”s that may not be front page news anymore, but sure as hell haven’t left DJ boxes.

Miggs might be the better known of the pair, but Jay-J is playing a deft game of catch-up. After DJing in High School, and tinkering around in clubs in college, he gradually moved into the producing world. Now 33, he’s hit his stride in the past few years after setting up Moulton Studios with partner Chris Lumm. And he couldn’t be happier.

“It’s become an entity in itself, which we’re pleased with,” he reflects. “We’ve done so much stuff for different labels, that people actually start to look for the Moulton Studios stamp now. That’s always been my goal – whoever it is, people know what they’re going to get. Whether it’s soulful or pumping, they know it’s going to be good quality house music that DJs can use. I started it five years ago and it’s grown to have an impact on the music that I love.”

Miguel is no stranger to these shores, in fact, he’s beome something of a local hero ’round these parts. He’s played Dublin, Belfast and Galway – but there’s one place that remains stuck in his memory, Shane Johnson and Greg Dowling’s now-defunct Sweat night at Henry’s in Cork. “That was an amazing club. I played elsewhere in Cork recently, and it was cool, but it just wasn’t the same. They are great guys – and the deep house scene is really well supported there.”

At the outset, Miggs’ reputation was bolstered this side of the pond thanks in no small part to the success of the Naked label. Two or three years ago, every release was a must-have for the discerning house fan. And then things went a little bit quiet. What’s the deal?

“Well, it’s been going through a lot of changes,” he says through gritted teeth. “It hooked up with Astralwerks (US major label that’s also home to the Chemical Brothers and Fatboy Slim stateside) and the emphasis moved away from 12”s to albums. It’s a little bit unfortunate – I’ve been on their ass to get back to the 12”s because they are important to me and to other DJs. It’s very disappointing to me – but I think the vinyl stuff is going to come back this year.”

The curious thing about Jay-J, Miggs and Lumm’s sound is that it’s managed to cross the murky divide between deep and progressive house with ease. In a scene that’s more divisive than your average Celtic/Rangers match, this is no mean feat.

“I think it’s because we come from a DJ perspective really,” offers Jay-J. “We make music that has a lot of energy and we make music that has a lot of soul. And when you fuse the two together, it has an edge. So it’s stuff that can be played at a deep house club and it’s stuff that can be played by a rave DJ for the kids. The only thing that’s intentional about it is that we enjoy making it.”

And now they’ve got around to putting together a CD so you can see what all the fuss is about. West Coast Sessions is a double mix that perfectly sums up the pair’s sound – it’s out now on the heavy-hitting house label Defected.

“We had the freedom to choose the tracks which was great,” says Jay-J. “It’s quite a middle ground CD. Both of the discs are very consistent, but at the same time, they’re both quite different. It’s not too pumping, but it’s not too laid back. It’s a party in a box!”