Interview with Mixnots

The Mixnots or CantMixWontMixShdntMixDontMix are a DJ collective from Liverpool with an irreverent DIY approach that has annoyed some purists but put fun back on the agenda. We interviewed all of them before their support slot with DJ Yoda at East Village Arts on 9th October and this is the mix we came up with.

By Paul Tarpey 7/10/2014

Handy tip. Parties should involve someone playing records. Records that delight you and surprise you. Make you smile and make you dance. Sometimes all at the same time. CantMixWontMixShdntMixDontMix knew this back in 2006 and more importantly noticed that a lot of Liverpool DJs had forgotten. DJs with impressive techniques alongside increasingly predictable sets were fashionable. So they all did something different for a laugh.

But now they are in danger of being taken seriously. A whisper on the streets that you can turn up to a club and go home happy became an assertive stutter. Now it might even be a demand. They have supported world class DJs such as Norman Jay, Mr Scruff, 2ManyDJs, and Craig Charles. They’ve become festival specialists travelling to Malawi in 2009 to play at the fantastic Lake of Stars festival, and have been regulars at both Standon Calling and Creamfields.

A rotation policy on the decks and eclectic tastes have meant that their firecracker shows are as unique as they are fun. Supporting DJ Yoda this Thursday 9th October at East Village Arts club has certainly added a playful slap of expectation to the event.

They have all become a major part of the Liverpool scene both as the Mixnots and as individuals, organising festivals and championing small club nights and promoters.

So why a DJ collective?

We were all partying in Liverpool at the same time and had the same attitude. Generally whoever was dancing at the front got to be the new member. Who better to run the party than the dance floor?

The Mash Warehouse parties Matt & Bob were putting on, would have some of the best Liverpool DJs playing and then us. We didn't know how to mix, we didn't know what we were going to play. It was 6am and we had 500 expectant clubbers stood in front of us. Everything clicked and people went crazy for what we were doing. It was like a huge 'in joke' that everyone gets.

We're quite often in the crowd if it isn't our turn. Our last tune at Glasto last year we all jumped in the crowd and danced, then we started booing the empty DJ booth when the music ended.

What are the most obvious differences when playing to a festival crowd?

At a gig people are coming to see you as they've seen a poster or whatever. At a festival people will stumble upon you and not leave. They go to festivals and lose their pretension so we were built for them.

How organic is your chemistry?

You spelled orgasmic wrong. In the early days, people used to say that it looked more fun behind the decks than on the dance floor. Nothing's changed, it definitely IS more fun behind the decks.

We've all seen each other with our tops off so nothing really comes as a surprise any more. We never play the same set twice, we never rehearse our performances and we play music to impress each other.

In 3 years we'll have been together longer than The Beatles were. Mixnots are like a gang, you're a member or you're dead. Bobby tried to retire once, there's still a contract out on him.

Do you feel there are certain times when party music has been more in demand?

Whenever it's from, it was made in a time when people needed to party. Greensleeves for example, it was a stressful time for Henry VIII but he had no qualms about smashing in a load of Meade and chopping someone's head off to that massive whomper.

To what extent has the Liverpool music scene defined your style?

Some would say we helped shape it. Things were getting very chin stroky and in some fields a bit samey. The fun had gone and it needed us. Where crowds were looking for the perfect mixes we created a shift that meant people were a lot more haphazard. Some local DJs disliked our slapdash approach when we started out but pretty much all of them don't play anymore. The first year we played Creamfields in 2008 one of the Mixnot girls was in the bathroom and overheard a Dj WAG saying; "who do they think they are playing Creamfields?" We've used that as a press quote on more than one occasion, often swapping Creamfields for.... Glastonbury, Isle of Wight or V etc. What we're saying is, if you didn't like us in 2006, you're probably still having no fun.

Last set you'd ever play?

If we had the choice then we'd do a 12 hour marathon set at the World Bowls Championships. If it's good enough for Barry from Eastenders its good enough for us.

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