Rave to the Grave

Germany's Chris Liebing has been a mainstay of the European techno scene since the late '90s, running the CLR and Audio labels and playing music that explores every dark, melancholy, pummeling corner of kickdrum and hi-hat. Upon the release of Liebing's second album for Mute Records, Another Day, we talk about his forays into more chilled realms of electronic music, his formative years at clubs like the Omen and Tresor, Berlin vs. Frankfurt, and the meaning of techno, plus he offers advice for DJs on how to handle anxiety, social media, and promos. Visit RavetotheGrave.org for extras and follow us on Instagram at @ravetothe.grave.

Elijah & Skilliam are a DJ duo and owners of London’s Butterz record label, which since 2010 have done more than anyone else to promote underground UK genres like grime, bassline and UK funky to the world. We talk to Elijah about growing up grime and what the music means to young black Londoners of his generation and talk about grime’s best MCs, mixtapes, and artifacts. Elijah also recounts some of his most ridiculous DJ stories and drops wisdom on how to maintain longevity in dance music. Visit RavetotheGrave.org for extras and follow us on Instagram at @ravetothe.grave.

Maria 909 has operated behind the scenes at some of the most famous events on the East Coast, from The Limelight nightclub to Industrial Strength parties, from Def Mix deep house events to Melting Point protest raves. Promotion, record distro, management: she's done it all. She joins us to revisit the dark and light of the 90s NYC rave scene, from growing up near Coney Island and falling in love with hardcore to witnessing the death and rebirth of the underground in the city that never sleeps. Visit RavetotheGrave.org or follow us on Instagram at @ravetothe.grave.

Noncompliant (fka DJ Shiva) is an uncompromising techno DJ/producer from the conservative state of Indiana, a queer punk skateboarder who would go from playing in barns and VFW halls to headlining in Berlin and Australia. In this interview, recorded as lockdown restrictions were easing in May 2021, we talk Midwest raves, learning to DJ on crazy equipment, speaker freaking, phone taps, buying mixtapes from The Blessed Madonna, sci-fi and epidemiology and the importance of community and accountability in club culture. Hosted by Vivian Host (aka DJ Star Eyes). Visit RavetotheGrave.org or follow us on Instagram at @ravetothe.grave.

Kurt Eckes put Milwaukee on the map in the ’90s with his Drop Bass Network parties and Even Furthur festival. In Part 2 of this interview, we talk about Satanism and rituals, how to throw a rave, the craziest stories from Furthur, the RAVE Act, the Drop Bass label and Midwest hard acid, plague raves and starting a Kult. Hosted by Vivian Host (aka DJ Star Eyes). Visit RavetotheGrave.org or follow us on Instagram at @ravetothe.grave.

Kurt Eckes put Milwaukee on the map in the ’90s with his Drop Bass Network parties and Even Furthur festival. With an aesthetic that combines heavy metal, Satanism, the acid-fried 1960s and a heavy dose of humor, Drop Bass became legend around the rave scene and beyond, while championing the darker, harder sides of electronic music, from gabber to hard acid to drum 'n' bass. Kurt is a true rave outlaw – in Part 1 of this interview, we talk about big ideas, heavy music, farming, how to talk to cops, drugs and legendary parties of course. Stay tuned for Part 2. Hosted by Vivian Host (aka DJ Star Eyes). Visit RavetotheGrave.org or follow us on Instagram at @ravetothe.grave.

Nottingham's DiY Collective, formed in 1989, were one of the UK's first house sound systems and played a huge role in rave culture as we know it today. DiY co-founder Harry calls in from Wales to talk about fusing punk ethics to acid house, his best friend Woosh, what it was like at Castlemorton in '92 (the largest illegal rave ever), the Criminal Justice Bill and rejecting capitalist club culture. Also, DiY's 40-person SF apartment, drug trips, fighting for your right to party and how raving really did change the world. Don't miss it! Hosted by Vivian Host (aka DJ Star Eyes). Visit RavetotheGrave.org or follow us on Instagram at @ravetothe.grave.

NYC scene staple OJ San Felipe of X-Ray Eyeballs, Acetone 4 and Sahd Wyte Guyz on growing up in SF's Mission District, the Filipino party culture that birthed the West Coast scratch DJ scene, the NYC underground past and present, and blood-and-piss-soaked rock exploits, plus how to write a song, perform live and wild out while sober. Hosted by Vivian Host (aka DJ Star Eyes). Visit RavetotheGrave.org or follow us on Instagram at @ravetothe.grave.

SF mainstay Marke Bieschke on Detroit clubs of the 1980s and ’90s, the birth of techno, NYC club kids, legendary looks, VOOM raves, writing about partying, the changing tides of queer nightlife, co-owning The Stud and San Francisco clubbing past, present and future. Hosted by Vivian Host (aka DJ Star Eyes). Visit RavetotheGrave.org or follow us on Instagram at @ravetothe.grave.  

L.A.-based performer Ms Easy on her extraordinary journey from St. Louis rave fixture to globe-trotting performer to managing clowns, stilt walkers and Fishy Fish as Entertainment Director for Insomniac, who throw massive EDM festivals like EDC and Beyond Wonderland. Hosted by Vivian Host (aka DJ Star Eyes). Visit RavetotheGrave.org or follow us on Instagram at @ravetothe.grave.