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DATGirl

Los Angeles, California, United States | SELF

Los Angeles, California, United States | SELF
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"Interview with Datgrrl and Zapper Live PA"

The wild West Coast of Humboldt county gets whomped out without a doubt from time to time, with the non-stop assault of DJs that frequent Humboldt County from all over the world. However, the night of August 15th would offer something a bit more unique. As computer based performances are becoming the most popular format for DJ’s on the scene, its nice to see some acts that embrace the unique sound and live playability of using hardware. The bass addicted duo Datgrrl and Zapper are more than willing to set up their arsenal of drum machines, synths and samplers for appreciative fans, and have the ability to tweak their all-original sets to custom fit the different vibes of the dance floor… Live. I, myself am musically dedicated to avoiding computers as much as possible, and when I heard that the pair were coming to town for local DJ Psy Fi’s birfday, accompanying Dubstep DJ’s Mykies McFilthy and AntiSerum, I made sure I could get an interview for LiS. Throw these acts into a Western cowboy themed atmosphere in one of the classier pubs in town, mix in a brand new set of Void subs, and it was sure to be a banger fit for the end of summer. The following is an almost precise transcript of my conversation with both Zapper and Datgrrl outside of Humbrews before the show.
A few words with Datgrrl (myspace)

LIS: How did you two (Zapper and Datgrrl) meet and what’s your relation… er… what’s your deal?

Datgrrl: (laughing) We met at a party in LA and he has been following me ever since. (laughing by all) No, but I plug my mixer into his sound so we are now… interdependent.

LIS: How long have you been playing your hardware sets and why did you get into hardware?

Datgrrl: Well I started as an emcee and was also doing computer music on Reason, ya know, but could never finish tracks. I never felt I was playing out, it was like I had 20 unfinished tracks on Reason and then I got my Radias three years ago, and then the EMX-1, and that machine really transformed my set in so many ways. There are pros and cons with having all hardware, like I’m not usually the person to play an impromptu set at after parties because of all the set up, but a reward is that every time I perform its different. What I love about playing live is all the little mistakes and glitches that happen that remind people that its a real person playing, and those moments when you have a comeback and really rock your shit and play it… play it LIVE. I also have a theatre comedy background so I do like sitting and producing something and going up with it ready to go, and knowing what its going to sound like. The variables are there but the pros are so fucking rewarding.

LIS: Can you describe “Slutstep” for me in your words?

Datgrrl: Oh that’s awesome. Slutty hip hop vocals with a dubstep beat or a breakbeat. I try to switch up the beat, a lot of people think that I’m all dubstep because they think anything with a wobble is. It tends to have the elements: the wobble, that bass that gets people going and the slutty lyrics. I used to think the lyrics would only get the girls going but I’ve played shows with a lot of guys there too and they were reacting. But we used to joke that I’ve played shows where there were girls going at it and making out with each other.

LIS: Awesome… What’s your favorite place to play, what’s the best setting for you, and what makes it the best to play and feel happy playing?

Datgrrl: Well, the outdoor setting is the most rewarding but the most work. One of my favorite sets I’ve played was in Hawaii on the beach where I had to hike my gear out a mile through the rocks. I was thinking ‘what am I doing’, and I had really bad laptop envy at that time. But it really turned out to be the most incredible set on the beach as the sun came up, and all the people were really appreciative. On the other hand, I also like doing shows with a sound guy, like tonight we have a sound person there with you checking levels, that’s the other side of it. It’s the shit too.

LIS: I really wanted to get an interview with you because I am into producing music live, without laptops, with our Hardware Heroes project, and love the way you guys share the philosophy.

Datgrrl: That’s really good to see, because some people tell me that this is going to fade out, and ya know it could go either way; with everyone using Serrato and computers, I think it could make hardware more valuable because it is different. - Lost in Sound


"MANIFEST"


“Hallucinatory, Funny, and Provocatively Perceptive.” – Robert Hurwitt, San Francisco Chronicle

“Zloof is tantalizing to watch. Her face and limbs seem to be made out of rubber. From the agility of her movements to her ear for different voices, this young Bay Area performer imbues each of the 19 characters she plays with focused energy and grace.”
-- Chloe Veltman, San Francisco Bay Guardian


“ (Subhead): Don’t let her willful strangeness fool you; Serene Zloof is a talented actor! … An engaging, disciplined, and sexy performer.”
-- Michael Scott Moore, San Francisco Weekly

“ Serene Zloof has a keen eye for the absurdities of twenty-first century urban living. Zloof’s portraits are both sharp and compassionate. She acknowledges the ridiculous in her characters without mocking them. Zloof is also a spirited and graceful performer, able to use vocal and physical tics to transform herself from one character to another even in mid-conversation.”
-- Loren Noveck, NYC Reviews

“ Watching Serene Zloof’s hyper-kinetic solo theater performance, MANIFEST, is like stumbling through a hall of mirrors in an acid flashback funhouse. Zloof has this scary talent for churning out surreal versions of people you’ve seen on the streets, or maybe known personally, and weaving their fates into a metaphysics all her own, made all the more terrifying because it makes sense and all the more human by its hilarity. Funny, beautiful, scary. I walked away thinking I just caught the beginning of a long career by a major new comic.”
-- Antero Alli, filmmaker


“ A playful metaphysical romp through the streets of 21st century techno-urban America. Zloof serves up her humor on the edge of a razor. Her wisdom seems beyond her years … Profound, witty, and right-on-target.”
-- Richard Moeschl, The Mail Tribune, Ashland, Oregon
- San Francisco Chronicle and more


Discography


SLUTSTEP LP -- January 2012

In collaboration with DJ Butterface, Awww Yeah Records:

Soulution EP, available on iTunes
Weed Dealer, available on JUNO

In collaboration with DJ Koz, Agent Flux:
(Unreleased tracks)
Only Human, Chain Lynk Jane, Quirk,
Breakfast, Orphetron, Afterimage

Over one hundred live hardware shows across the U.S. since 2009.

Photos

Bio

Where Ancient meets Android… Where Sweet meets Saucy…Where Chaos battles Order…
Here you will find the Sonic Manipulations and Lyrical Creations of DATGIRL
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This Visionary Gearhead Goddess is equal parts Producer,
Performer & MC – known for wrecking dancefloors across the country with her Deep and Dirty Beats, Alien Robot Frequencies and CandyPunk Princess Vocals … in a unique LIVE PA Hardware set designed to inspire Spontaneous Debauchery and OmniPhonik Eargasms.

DATGIRL’s unique blend of Dubstep, Electro, GlitchHop, and Bass-shredding Breaks with sexy hilarious hip-hop vocals and cutting-edge sampling is creating a new movement known as SLUTSTEP.

Playing a unique improvisational set solely on drum machines and synthesizers, DATGIRL delivers a high-energy sickadelic live performance, with her sonic
laboratory of blinking toys, electronic eye-candy and tactile
soundwave tools that engage a crowd into wild interaction.
Using an arsenal of vocoder effects, DATGIRL’s intoxicating
vocals explore everything from Dancefloor Talkers to being the DJ's Girlfriend, the Corporate Gangbang to the plight of the American Apparel Model, bringing a dose of raw hilarity that keeps
the dancefloor high on surprise.

DATGIRL has been blessed to headline some incredible venues, including the Chapel of Sacred Mirrors (NYC),
the world famous Lizard Lounge (Dallas), Alchemeyez Visionary Art Congress, SDC at the SILO (Houston), SOURCE Festival (Maui), ASYLUM (Honolulu,
Hawaii), SUMland (Big I, Hawaii), StillDream Festival (NorCal), NovaTRON Lounge (WA) and Photosynthesis Festival (WA), to name a few favorites.

With her ever-evolving live show, DATGIRL is constantly performing and
writing new material for every one-of-a-kind set. She is currently working on a
new album “Slutstep” to be released this winter, and is producing two music videos. She is also fusing music with her theater/film background to create an electronic musical whompera about the modern-day mythos of 2012.