Master of techno music raves into Edmonton

For Chris Sheppard, success is always played out on the dance floor

Publication title: Edmonton Journal

Pages: D4

Section: ENTERTAINMENT

Publication date: Dec 2, 1993

Copyright: (Copyright The Edmonton Journal)

Author: David Howell, Journal Music Writer

Abstract:

[Chris Sheppard] is a Toronto nightclub and radio DJ who has made a big mark on the country's dance music scene. He says it all stems from his ears for a good dance tune and his love of a great party.

Tonight, Sheppard will be at Club Malibu downtown, 10045 109th St., promoting some Quality dance compilations and an album called Powermix.

Sheppard and B.K.S. partners Hennie Bekker and Greg Kavanagh took the songs by [Nicole Jones] and [Rebecca Sather] and made radio and club remixes which also appear on the album. They couldn't remix [Naomi Carmack]'s song because the master tapes from her recording sessions had been lost.

Full text:

Canada's foremost producer of dance and techno music is in Edmonton this week for two events showcasing aspects of his craft.

Chris Sheppard is a Toronto nightclub and radio DJ who has made a big mark on the country's dance music scene. He says it all stems from his ears for a good dance tune and his love of a great party.

And what's a great party to Sheppard? He says it's a dance-fest where "we're at one with the audience, where we're in a movement together."

In the last two years, Sheppard has produced five dance music compilations for the Quality Music label. Canadians have bought more than 100,000 copies of albums in his Techno Trip series.

He's one of three members of the production team B.K.S., which has released two of its own dance-music albums, For Those About To Rave . . . We Salute You and Dream Catcher. A single from the Rave album, Living In Ecstasy, rose to No. 23 in the Billboard dance charts.

Sheppard also hosts Pirate Radio, a top-rated Toronto FM radio show, and promotes rave events - his biggest attracted 10,000 partygoers.

His career began in Toronto nightclubs in the mid-1980s. As a club DJ, he learned how to judge dancers' tastes - "You have to stay on top of it, it changes daily"-- and later delved into the art of remixing.

Today, using a sophisticated Synclavier computer, he can radically re-work a tune by toying with its elements. He's made dance remixes for groups including Jesus Jones and Ministry.

Starting with the individual tracks from the recording session, Sheppard can speed up and alter the melody, change the drum sounds, remove the vocals or otherwise give new flavor to the original ingredients.

But his work on a song is never completed until he's tested it in clubs.

"It's a perfect indicator of how things work," he said in an interview. "If you put a song on and the audience walks off the floor, that's a pretty good sign it's not working."

Tonight, Sheppard will be at Club Malibu downtown, 10045 109th St., promoting some Quality dance compilations and an album called Powermix.

The Powermix recording was a joint project of radio station Power 92 and the Alberta Recording Industry Association. Thirty-three music makers submitted 55 dance tracks to a songwriting/performing contest for unsigned artists.

The album features the work of the three winners, who shared $10,000 in prizes. First-place winner was Nicole Jones, for her song Start Love Over. Rebecca Sather was second with Never Leave Me, and Naomi Carmack finished third with a track called Be My Baby.

Sheppard and B.K.S. partners Hennie Bekker and Greg Kavanagh took the songs by Jones and Sather and made radio and club remixes which also appear on the album. They couldn't remix Carmack's song because the master tapes from her recording sessions had been lost.

Sheppard said each of the Edmonton singers impressed him.

"I felt they were young (but) I was pleasantly surprised. This stuff is coming right out of Edmonton; these people are making this stuff in their home studios. It's nice to see."

The Powermix recording will go on sale in a few weeks in compact disc and cassette formats. Gary McGowan, the project's executive producer, says it will cost less than $10. Proceeds will go to the AIDS Network of Edmonton.

On Saturday, Sheppard will conduct a seminar on remixing techniques and technology. It goes at 11 a.m. in the Fantasyland Hotel's atrium boardroom.

Tickets are $10 for ARIA members, $15 for non-members. They are available at the ARIA office, at the door, or at Club Malibu tonight.