Interview with Big Daddy Brown - Headroom – 22.9.10
At 49 years of age, Big Daddy Brown has been around since before the birth of dance music. Or for that matter, punk, reggae, new wave or even metal. In fact, Big Daddy came rushing headlong into this world in 1961, the same year Patsy Cline was topping the charts with Willie Nelson’s immortal “Crazy”.
He was nine years old when he decided that blowing his pocket money on toy cars was for kids, and bought his first ever record, Led Zeppelin’s immortal classic, “Immigrant Song”, which remains one of his favourite songs of all time. The joy was short-lived though, his mum made him take it back to the record store as it wasn’t considered “appropriate” for a nice family home. (It was cheekily swapped for a Deep Purple record instead).
Variously falling in love with the sounds of Led Zep, Deep Purple, Black Sabbath ,The Ramones, Motorhead, Pantera and Tool, Big Daddy’s die seem cast in either the frantic thrash of punk or the dark grooves of heavy metal. But dabbling in the early Sydney dance music scene, attending the odd warehouse party and dusty weekend rave, Dave (as his mum calls him) became exposed to early psy-trance and acid house.
But it was a monumental set by the legendary Carl Cox at Bondi Beach Sydney on NYE 2000 that changed it all. “I was spellbound, the ability to take thousands of people on a unique yet collective journey, to unite the energy, to take 20,000 people up, bring them down and back up again…… it was a truly cathartic moment. I knew right then that this was what I wanted to do”.
Within two days Big Daddy had bought his first decks. Absorbing sounds from iconic techno and progressive house DJs like Carl Cox, John Digweed, Green Velvet and Jeff Mills, he started the long and lonely journey of every true DJ,… to find his own unique sound. Moving between progressive and funky house, techno, nu-school breaks to DnB, back to techno, back to house again, soaking it all up, Big Daddy discovered he loved it all. With one strict proviso. The music must be made for the music’s sake. The intent must be pure.
“Music is generally made for art’s sake or for the money. For example one day I listened to the Madonna album “Ray of Light” which she released just after the birth of her daughter. Until then I’d regarded her as a fabrication, a marketing stunt, more about clothing fashion and moving units. She’d just done that nude book and was pretty loose. But that album was different, it dripped with meaning and passion. She had truly been through an amazing catharsis, she had dropped her self-centredness and was telling the world about it. It had intent. Love or hate her, she wrote many of the songs, really believed what she sang, and that is what’s most important to me. Whether or not I liked the music was irrelevant, I respected her because she was making music for the right reasons”. Big Daddy’s filter has always been “intent”.
While developing his sound he also started developing his craft. He was intent on having an ability to cross genres, and programming became another vital skill. “To me programming is where the skill of being a DJ is at. I get bored when I hear massive tune after massive tune. To me playing a set is like having sex. There’s no doubt there are times when it’s hot and urgent and up against the wall. But more often than not it’s about ebb and flow, creating tension, building it up, releasing then going back up again, each time a little higher”.
Another Big Daddy pet subject is the perennial commercial versus underground debate. “Honestly I don’t really get either argument. Not everyone takes music as seriously as DJs, 99% of your crowd is generally there just for a fun night out, the worst thing you can do is try to educate them beyond their capabilities. Anyway, there are enough good tunes in any genre, any vibe, any era that no-one ever has to play rubbish”.
Having played predominantly in Asia, he earned a residency at the famous Bed Supperclub in Bangkok, one of the world’s iconic clubs. On returning to Australia he lived the corporate life for a while but now happily settled in Brisbane he’s decided to dust off the headphones once again and give the city his own take on dance music.
“I get the sense that too many clubs play what the next one does because they’re scared of losing punters to the club next door. They operate from fear. The irony is that every DJ, promoter and person the industry got involved because they loved music. Music should be played out of love, not fear. As a result there’s not enough of some genres and too much of others. Genres come and go but you're always left with just house and tech at the end of the day".
Big Daddy Brown is playing guest sets at various venues in Brisbane. Make sure you check him out. He’s living proof that you can play a good tune on an old piano.
Brianna Leehy

PS. For more mixes check my page on Mixcloud.com