Heidi

“I’m inspired by genuine people and hard workers” chimes the affable Heidi. That she is easy on the eye doesn’t hurt either. And she continues, “There are a lot of fake-arse lazy people and haters in this business and I can usually clock them within five minutes of meeting them! So when I meet people that are truly in it for the right reasons it makes me so happy.”

“I’ve been a music lover ever since I can remember. My parents were quite young when they had my sister and I and that didn’t stop them from living their lives! The first album I ever owned was Purple Rain by Prince and let’s just say that pretty much explains what sort of sounds I love in electronic music. I grew up next to Detroit in Ontario, Canada and as soon as I was old enough I would go to concerts over the border. Then I slowly got into house and techno in the late nineties.”

Inevitable really, that music would be her calling. And unsurprising is her prowess within it – which isn’t to say she hasn’t driven the process herself, “In 2000 I moved to London and immersed myself in the scene and ended up getting a job in a record store called Koobla. Soon after we were approached to open up our own shop and in 2003 a few of us opened up Phonica Records. I gained so much experience working there and I sort of fell into the DJ thing. I met the Get Physical crew from Berlin and the rest shall we say was history!”

“It all happened pretty fast. The past six years has been an intense and amazing journey. I’ve always gravitated towards music. Nothing else seemed to matter to me when I was younger. It was my outlet in a city where not much happened. I always knew I wanted to be involved somehow; I just didn’t know what path I would end up on. This is the one and I’m glad I went down it. It was a big leap as it could have ended nowhere. Sometimes you just have to go with it!”

So getting physical (pardon the pun) was like a boon – but also a little inevitable. It’s not as though she wasn’t going to get picked up. It was just by whom. “Well I think the reason why they [Get Physical] loved having me around was because I didn’t play anything like them. I definitely have my own sound. I have never really played many Get Physical records in my sets. It was just nice to tour with them because the M.A.N.D.Y guys and DJ T became like my brothers. They kind of took me under their wing a bit and brought me along for the ride. The past few years I’ve been focusing more on my own projects. I guess I just want people to listen and not expect a certain sound or label.”

And to that end, she is open-minded – has a view, but doesn’t believe in just one sound or style. “Look, house and techno have always gone hand in hand. It’s great to mix it up and play around with it a bit. I get super bored if I play the same sounds all night. Sometimes there will be periods of people only playing techno – and then they get bored so they throw a bit of house in there with some vocals to lighten it up a bit. Same with house sets. Chuck a bit of disco in or whatever. I know what I like to listen to when I’m on the dance floor. I need it to move and change a bit. I need some vocals. I need to feel like there is someone in control in the DJ booth. Taking me places. When it’s the same all night long it feels like the DJ just put on a CD and walked away. I want to know that there is someone trying to warp my mind and usually fusing together all different genres in a clever way can result in some of the best sets out there!”

As for the tour, Heidi reflects on her third trip to Australia. “I can’t wait. I feel Australia has embraced the music I play more now than they did before! Expect a fat spanking and a fire under your feet!”

Heidi [CAN] plays at Brown Alley on Friday February 11.