December 1, 2023 |
Very few DJs command a dancefloor quite like Saoirse. The Irish-born, London-based talent has been in the game for over two decades – rising from a regular on the Dublin free party scene to a mainstay on line-ups across the globe’s biggest clubs. Be it Circoloco in Ibiza, Manchester’s Warehouse Project, or London’s Fabric, you’ll find Saoirse playing extended sets that meander through a hypnotic cocktail of genres, concocted to take club-goers on a journey.
When she’s not behind the decks, Saoirse’s running her own label trUst, which has put out her own tracks as well as an EP from Mella Dee. She’s also the music director and co-founder of Body Movements, East London’s bi-annual, hedonistic queer festival which is set to return next February with its biggest line-up to date, stacked high with 24 LGBTQ+ dance music collectives from across the UK (tickets here).
Before all that, though, she’s headed up to Tottenham this weekend for a special B2B with Job Jobse at the inaugural False Idols. Taking place at Drumsheds, the former Ikea-turned-dance mecca, the all-day party will be soundtracked by the likes of Shygirl, Eliza Rose and Josh Caffé, before Noughties pop legends, Sugababes, bring the night to a close.
As she digs through her record collection ahead of tomorrow’s set, we grab Saoirse for a very quick round of VIQs (that’s very important questions).
1. Who is Saoirse?
“Saoirse is an Irish DJ, producer, event curator, trUst recordings label boss & veteran raver.”
2. What can we expect from your B2B with Job Jobse?
“So one of the reasons I was keen to do a back-to-back with Job was that he plays a lot of music that I grew up with; the kind of stuff that actually got me into electronic music. I’m going to be diving into the volts for this one for sure. I think we’re going to meet in the middle with the kind of stuff I play and kind of stuff he plays – it will be quite a fun mashup of both of our sounds. Quite the spectacle, I would imagine.”
3. What is the key ingredient(s) to a great B2B?
“I think not having too much ego is really important. You’re not trying to one-up each other with someone needing to be the one that plays the biggest tunes and wants the biggest reaction. You still need those dancefloor tools, the bridge tunes which are so important but may not get the ‘hands in the air’ moments. Also, it’s good to have a little chat with each other beforehand just to check in that you’re both on the same understanding of the vibes. There’s nothing worse than bringing a box of records and realising that person had a completely different idea of what they wanted to do.”
4. How would you describe your DJ sets to someone who’s never seen you play before?
“They can be quite unpredictable, a little bit cheeky. I like to flow between a lot of different genres but it really depends on the night and what the audience is like, to test how deep you can go with them. Plenty of different flavours.”
5. What is your favourite club to play for in London?
“Fabric and Fold take the top spots; they’re competing which with each other. Fabric is a club that’s very close to my heart and that I see more of a family. I’ve been going there as a raver since I was very young and I’m now curating my own night there. Fold has every different corner covered with its attention to detail: amazing sound, amazing ethos, the crowd is fantastic – I really love playing there, it’s quite intimate, just fab really.”
6. What can we expect from the upcoming winter Body Movements?
“A mixed dish of everything! We’ve really tried to cover a spectrum of different electronic music in this edition. We have new crews such as Unorthodox who do drum and bass and jungle, we have a new Latin collective called 2CPerrea. Seven new collectives are joining the party this time around. We’re platforming a lot more local talent which is super exciting.”
7. Who are your three favourite DJs to see play?
“That’s a tough one. It definitely changes each year but Ricardo Villalobos will always have the top spot, then probably either Donato Dozzy, or Phuong-Dan. I’ve always been a huge fan of Aurora Halal and Powder, but it really depends on the mood I’m in.”
8. If you could teleport to anywhere in the world now, where would you go?
“I would go to Tbilisi, it’s one of my favourite places in the world. The food, the clubbing scene, the people: it kind of has everything as a city. It’s extremely beautiful, also, as it has a lot of nature if you go a little bit outside of the city. It’s one of those places a lot of people haven’t been to but it’s a must.”
9. If we were heading to a Dublin for the weekend, where should we go out?
“Dublin is a lot more about the nights rather than the clubs themselves. There’s Tengu which is always a favourite and some queer parties such as Strawberries which is a great one to check out as well.”
10. What can we expect from you for the rest of the year?
“I’m spending a huge amount of time in the studio right now. I have some remixes that I’m working on, some white label stuff and also I’ve got a new EP coming out at the start of next year so it’s all head in the studio at the moment. We’re also working a lot on Body Movements summer which is looking to move to a new site next year – that’s all very exciting, but a huge amount of work. More news on that very very soon, woo!”
Photography courtesy of Saoirse. Last remaining False Idols tickets here.
Drumsheds has announced its second season of music shows, which will include the second instalment of False Idols. See the full event listing here.
