“It has been a great for the last couple years coming out to Australia and playing records. Kind of getting to know what moves people out there and the really open minded crowd that comes to Future Music Festival. Hopefully there will be some awareness about what I do and people in the crowd who will be up for it and want to jump around. Even if they just want to get there early for The Prodigy then I’ll try to make that wait exciting for them.”
Lowe has the kind of infectious energy and enthusiasm for his work in music that is immediately obvious. The 39-year-old New Zealander grew up with a love of music and it has translated into a prime time drive show on BBC Radio 1 plus a thriving DJ career.
Being a radio host with the responsibility to present new music is the perfect place for him. “It’s constantly surprising! That’s the thrill of what we do – there is no real expectation beyond the hope that the music is great. You know what’s really cool about it? I can play a record two hours ago and everyone is sharing this in real time. The distance between being a facilitator, or a conduit, for music and being a fan, and being someone who listens to it like everybody else, is a lot shorter. You no longer have to wait forever for it to get to you.”
So why is Lowe back here for the third year in a row? “To be honest, it was The Prodigy that swung it for me. I always want to come back and I love the festival. I would be lying if I said that I wasn’t concerned about whether there is an impact about doing it three years running.
“I sort of felt it was okay because the first year I played I was just such an unknown – no one knew who I was. I was playing before Pendulum in Australia – tough gig, you know. As much as I’m friends with those guys, anyone who has any sense of logic will say that there are going to be a lot of people who just want you to get off stage and make way for those guys!”
Last year Lowe had a breakthrough at Future. “I didn’t play the festival style stuff and played a fairly bass heavy set. It felt like I could come over for the festival for another year to drive the point home. I did some really good work last year but I wasn’t sure how it would pan out.”
The Prodigy provided the answer when they asked him to be part of their Warrior’s Dance stage. “You just don’t say no to them. I never have and I never will, I don’t think.” The Prodigy’s Warrior Dance arena is part of the introduction of artist-themed and curated stages at Future Music Festival. It’s an evolution that Lowe sees in a positive light – even if it confused him at first. “I think festivals are going through an interesting time,” he reflects. “For example, last year Coachella decided to do it across two weekends with identical bills. I think a lot of people took notice of that. It was a very simple shift but people realised that it doesn’t have to be a typical three-day weekend. I think if you can just make a simple shift in the way it’s perceived then all of a sudden it’s fresh again. I think Future have done that their way.
“I mean, I was as confused as anyone because I was looking at the bill and the Stone Roses are playing. That’s huge! Then they were like, ‘You’re on The Prodigy stage,’ and I was like, ‘I don’t understand.’ So I spoke to them about it and they gave me more clarity that it doesn’t really work based around one headliner. It’s kind of, ‘These are the headliners and we’re doing our own stage.’ That’s cool and I have been lucky enough to play with The Prodigy from Brixton, to Milton Keynes, to Belgrade and I’ll never say no to them.”
As a fan of The Prodigy it has been a great experience for Lowe to join his heroes on stage. “The Prodigy kind of exist in their own universe, you know. They bypass anything like trends. That’s why their last album was so incredible for them and their fans. They used all the sounds they made famous and updated them but it didn’t sound like anything out there. Their music is timeless, not timely, and that’s why they continue to be such a draw.
“Combine that with the fact they are the most ferocious live dance act ever. I mean, there are others who are better at different things. To me, The Chemical Brothers are the best at what they do, Underworld are the best at what they do, Skrillex is the best at what he does right now. To me, though, no one goes to war like The Prodigy on stage.”
In fact, getting out of the DJ studio and onto the road was a bit of an accident. “The DJing thing started out as a fun thing and then it started getting busy. Then I was like, ‘What is it? It’s fun but what is it?'” he says with a laugh. “This was before dance music was back in the public domain in such a big way. We had this summer in Ibiza where it started to make sense. My tastes and how I want to present them within the context of dance music started to make more sense too. People seem to be having a more diverse experience – you don’t have to lock it into four-on-the-floor. You can get away with playing everything if you do it your own way.”
That revelation led to more DJ bookings and it now requires balancing with his main job at the BBC. “That’s when I started getting really busy and getting booked. You know, it’s a good problem and it has posed itself. You have to deal with it sensitively and you have to make sure you prioritise.
“I’m not going to lie to you – I’m not a full time DJ slash electronic music producer who is looking for Beatport charts in his life. I’m a full time employee of the BBC, working for Radio 1 which is my single number one priority in the creative domain of broadcasting. Then I have to balance from that starting point into how we get out and how we play.
“For instance, I can’t do Ultra this year but I can do Coachella. It’s about what works at Radio 1 – keeping everyone there happy and realising that I’m dedicated to that experience. Then, most importantly, making sure that I’m there in my family’s life. Then we look at the diary and we see what an appropriate amount of time is for DJing.”
Juggling a busy schedule isn’t a problem for Lowe though because he gets so much energy from his work. “It’s a really good problem to have and I love what I do man!”
BY SIMON HAMPSON
