"I Love To Play Some Obscure Disco, Crazy Acid Stuff": Catching Up With MCDE

This Saturday sees MCDE Recordings', Danilo Plessow (aka Motor City Drum Ensemble) venture through our doors to join the likes of Neville Watson, Point G and our main man Craig Richards in Room One. Having touched the contemporary deep house scene with his trademark style, its Plessow’s ethereal, Detroit-leaning productions and distinct audio wizardry that have garnered him the support of luminaries the world over. It was of course a no brainer to invite MCDE to once again join us here in Farringdon, so, before he touches down on London ground, we quickly caught up with him on everything he’s been up to the past few... Hey Danilo, how’s it going? All good, had a really nice day visiting a new studio here in Utrecht that’s stacked full of insane vintage synths and gear. A very inspirational place! What do you normally do when you venture to London for a gig – do you have to time to hit any record stores or work with anyone musically? To be honest I’m a bit out of the loop as to where find the good stuff these days. I’m mostly looking for second hand stuff and so the Spitalfields Record Fair was the last thing I did in London. It’s always a bit too hectic in London to properly dig for records so I prefer to have a good dinner and maybe meet some friends instead. The RA mix you did last year is great! Is that the kind of thing we can expect for your set this weekend? Thanks, that was a great night for me as the crowd was really up for it and I always really depend on the people on the dance floor to get the best out of me. I don't like to play it "safe" if you know what I mean, I love to play some odd records, obscure disco, crazy acid stuff etc. I really don't want to limit myself in any way - I think in the last two years I’ve been getting more and more back to my roots as a DJ, playing all across the board. What plans do you have for MCDE this year? There’s going to be three or four releases on my label, one of them will be the Raw Cuts Remixes that a lot of people keep asking me about. Other than that some of my own stuff, some collaborations with my label partner and other stuff that comes from my basement studio here in Utrecht. Is there anyone you think will really stand out in terms of production this year? Jay Daniels debut on Sound Signature was dope, so let’s see what else he has coming up. It’s no question that you’ve charted some heavy critical acclaim – with critics focusing on your signature ‘Deep and Soulful’ sound but why do you think you’ve achieved so much? It’s kind of a weird thing. I guess I’m honest about what I do. I don't pretend to be "the next big thing"; I’m not and never will be a part of the industry that is behind of a lot of things these days. For me it all comes back to my love for music - if I wasn’t traveling as a DJ I would still go out and dig for records. If I would work in a supermarket I would damn sure still bang on my MPC at night. People that know me personally all know that I’m not one who is crazy about the stuff he does, I’m quite critical of my own music - but I will always make it as it is a way for me to clear my head, get in a certain mood where I phase out and forget about all the troubles that may be around, And I guess this kind of honesty about myself as an individual and my policy of releasing only the stuff that I truly like has given me a following. And that to me is a wonderful thing and I am eternally grateful for it. You’re playing for us in Room One on Feb 8th. Most people can recall a particular special ‘fabric moment’ whether it’s a monumental set or the first time you heard a record. Can you tell us yours? I’ve only been to your lovely club once. But I remember that Juan Atkins was playing in the main room, and he played a couple of things that really messed with my mind in a good way. And finally, if there was one podcast or mix that you could only ever listen to again – what would it be? Let me tell you a funny story - In my old car, I used to listen to a ton of Ron Hardy and Theo Parrish mixes. I love Theo as a DJ and his mixtapes especially were a huge influence on me. Theo is quite something when it comes to his use of EQs, so my shitty car stereo, over the course of 2 years, more or less adapted to the Theo mixes with his crazy high frequencies, distortion and in the end, the only thing you could play and still enjoy on this stereo were Theo’s mixes as the stereo took over the distortion and only with his mixes you wouldn't notice it that much! I now have a new car with a Theo-proof Soundsystem, but those were the days! Oh and my favourite from him is ‘Methods of Movement.’