Since opening its doors to the public for the first time in 2007, WOEI has left its mark on the international sneaker and streetwear community with several collaborations including Asics, Patta, and Stüssy along the way.
But the interests and passions of the WOEI crew reach far beyond just shoes and apparel; Besides providing the streets with the latest from Nike, Adidas, and Co., music has always been at the heart of the store. Considering the highly curated playlists and mixes that can be heard in the store and hosting some of Rotterdam's most notorious parties, the belief that music unites is deeply ingrained in the WOEI DNA.
For edition #44 of WOEI FM, we’ve invited longtime WOEI friend Serge!
Scroll down for the full interview and live set he did for us over at Operator Radio.
Can you explain the origin of your DJ name and the backstory behind it?
Serge is my given name. I think it’s derived from an actor or singer my mom really admired back in the days. I always stuck with it for DJing and only used artist names for music production. The name for the label is a bit of a tribute because I greatly admired what all these record labels from Chicago and Detroit did in the 80’s and very early 90’s. That inspired me to DJ, and produce music. Basically I did the same thing as a number of others did before me… And beside that… ‘Clone Records’ sounded kinda catchy, so I just stuck with it.
When did you first come in contact with DJing and collecting records?
Back in the days it was a straight forward process; if you wanted to listen, spin, or have music, you needed to buy records. Automatically, people went searching for records everywhere they could, because at some places they always sold the same records. So I would always travel by car to all these import stores and buy as much as possible. Later on I even went to Belgium and Germany to collect records you wouldn’t find easily here in the Netherlands.
Some stuff was just very limited at the time, so some releases from abroad were gone in the blink of an eye. You already had these insane collectors that would either trade their records or put them on the market place section in the newspaper! It was actually a bit the same as collecting sneakers back in the days! If it was something rare, I’d buy more copies of it and then sell to some friends.
You’ve been playing since the late 80’s now, and when it comes to style you’re very diverse. Would you say this is also the image you wanted the label to have when you were starting out?
I’ve started spinning at home since maybe ’88 and really started to spin sets at clubs since 1990! When it comes to style, since the beginning I’ve had these alter ego’s. I was born in Zeeland and always use to spin at a local disco in Renesse. People from all over the country came to Renesse for vacation, so the sounds you’d hear at these nights were more commercial. At the same time I also used to spin at De Blauwe Aanslag and Acid Planet in The Hague and other more obscure parties across the Netherlands. I’ve always liked to play very diverse depending on where I was playing!
“Back in the days when I was buying records for the store I had to order by fax or had a call with the importer from the US to select the records by listening through them one by one!”
So you started the Clone Records label around the early 90’s. Was it immediately the intention to bring electronic music from abroad (mostly US) to the lowlands and how did you manage to set up these connections from the US to bring to the Netherlands?
It went pretty naturally, actually. When I started the label and store I already had these contacts from the US because I had been collecting for a while at that point. So when I wanted to bring over the first releases I already knew the artist and what sound I wanted to bring to the label. Back in the days when I was buying records for the store I had to order by fax or had a call with the importer from the US to select the records by listening through them one by one! They were so exited because I was buying all the way from across the world!
I believe Clone was one of the first to really stand out with it’s sublabels since the beginning, how did these start out? And do you think diversity is essential to a label while maintaining its core identity?
After a few releases I already knew it was going to be hard to stay at one label. People were expecting the same sort of level and style of releases while I was also bringing out Italo Disco and Electro from Detroit. When the re-issue label was already set up with a few releases it was just common sense to also put out these sublabels for each individual genre/style of music. For a lot of people it can be confusing because your taste as a listener changes through the years and so does ours when we release something, it can be either house or more ambient stuff!
Can you tell us something about your first gig and how did you prepare for it?
My first gig was actually pretty funny; at the local club in Renesse when I used to visit I would always bring my own bag with records and asked the DJ to play one of mine. At one point he was like: “Why don’t you just put ‘em on yourself?!”. So with shakey hands I managed to put on my first tracks at that club! Later on in the same club I got to play there more often as a resident. In the meantime I was just looking up places where I’d see myself spinning more with my sound, I suppose? That’s how I managed to do a demo at Nighttown and later on played at De Blauwe Aanslag, and the rest is history!
What is a highlight from the past years for yourself and the label?
The Exaltics did two very nice releases at our label this past year, and our labelnight at Club Raum was definitely a big highlight for us. And not to forget Legowelt that releases his own album every couple years through our label!
Vinyl or Digital?
Vinyl.
It’s something you can hold on to. Digital is just a few 1’s and 0’s. The quality of records is just timeless, and searching for these records is something special.
Club nights or Festivals?
Club nights for sure. A festival is just way different. A club night is just more intimate, you can take more outskirts/go more into depth when playing and explore things more.
Do you have some releases you'd like to highlight?
Legowelt - A Field Guide To The Void
One of your favorite clubs at the moment when it comes to sound/aesthetics in general?
Blitz Club in München is nice, I’ve also really liked Club Raum, and Panorama Bar.
Is there something on the agenda you’re willing to share with us?
There’s going to be a label night again at Club Raum that I’m really looking forward to, and DJ Sotofett is going to release something through our label. We’re also doing a few reissues with Speedy J that will be released during the year!
What can we expect from your Operator set?
I think I will do a house set. I’ve been really enjoying playing house again lately!
Any last words for the readers?
Free Palestine.
Check out the live set Serge did for us over at Operator Radio!
Can't get enough of WOEI FM? Check out WOEI FM #43 with Koboro!
