Sean Miller live in Mexico
Saturday, March 17th, 2007
I first met Sean Miller at an invite-only Big Dj Small Club event in 2003 at Revival in Toronto. Sean got the party started that night and immediately heads were bobbing with his edgy progressive sound. It was a smooth transition for Steve Porter’s Porterhouse and the legendary Sasha, who headlined the event. I knew I would be hearing more from this DJ in the future and I was right.
By the time I met Sean he had already played many big raves and Gold Club Series events, opening for Deep Dish and of course Sasha. Since then Sean has been steadily making a name for himself, playing at some of the world’s biggest clubs including Space in Miami, Avalon in LA, Pacha in NY and Red Light in Paris.
Sean held a residency at Toronto’s Boa-Redux Nightclub for two years, allowing him to play alongside crowd favourites such as Chus & Ceballos and Satoshi Tomiie. His discography includes productions for these DJs on their respective labels, Stereo Productions and Saw Recordings, as well as for Steve Lawler’s Harlem Records.
Sean’s worldwide recognition as one of Toronto’s rising stars in House music helped him in being signed to the elite roster of The Collective Agency, which also includes DJ greats such as Lee Burridge, Luke Fair and Nick Warren. And proving that Sean is a rising talent, Steve Lawler made him his official opening act on his recent ‘Lights Out’ and ‘Viva’ tours.
After ten years of DJing and producing there is much more to come from our hometown boy. And finally, after touring abroad, Sean is back in our hometown. You can catch him at Toronto’s official WMC pre-party at the Docks on Mar. 17th alongside DJ Vibe and fellow TCA talents Chus & Ceballos.
For a little preview of what’s to expect at the Docks here’s a live set from Sean’s recent trip to Mexico. For those of you who love to get down and dirty with deep progressive tech-house, this is for you!
Download (left-click and unzip):
Sean Miller live in Mexico part 1
Sean Miller live in Mexico part 2
And as an added bonus Sean answered a few questions for us. bringthebeats features its first ever interview… with Toronto’s Sean Miller…
Everyone has a story of how they were first introduced to the underground scene, when and how did you become interested in electronic music?
I had my first experience with electronic music when I was in high school, some time around ‘94-95. I had been to a couple raves during that time and was completely blown away. It was funny cause the only person I could convince to come with me was my neighbour across the street…. Lol ….. but the first time the music flicked my switch was one day during a class break when I asked this guy in his car for a light. It was freezing out, so he told me to get in. Anyway, it turned out his brother was a promoter in Toronto at the time and he had all these mixes in his car. I’m not 100% sure, but I’m almost convinced it was a Sasha mix we were listening to that day. And what ever I heard got me!! It was very deep, slow and chunky with a lot of melody and groove and sounded amazing. It wasn’t long after, that I bought turntables. The rest is just good memories….
Being that your roots in music stem from playing drums in rock and punk bands, do you still listen to this type of music and do you still play the drums? Who are your rock and punk favourites and how have they influenced you in your DJing career?
I still listen to all sorts of music. It helps me mellow out. Listening to a variety of stuff helps me since I’m working on a lot of projects right now. Going back, I started out playing drums in music school to people like George Benson, Phil Collins, Michael Jackson and stuff like that. This was the kind of music played in my house when I grew up. So all kinds of have influenced me. Once I got into high school my friends and I listened to groups like Alice In Chains, Stone Temple Pilots, Guns N’ Roses, Nirvana and so on….so my first band kinda captured that vibe. I don’t think it’s influenced my DJing but its all music to me at the end of the day.
Over the years you have been able to make a name for yourself in Toronto as resident DJ at the former Boa-Redux and Sonic. How has this helped to expand your career and how would you compare your experiences there with your international gigs?
Having a residency has definitely helped me grow and playing in your hometown is always amazing. You always have your core people who come out each time and it’s a nice feeling to know you can do your thing at home as well . That venue has been amazing for me over the years, so I’m very fortunate.
What was your reaction to learning that you would be going on tour with Steve Lawler for his “Lights Out” and “Viva” tours?
LOL… I almost fell off my chair when it actually happened. We were talking about it for a while and there were a lot of preparations. When it came time I was ready to go. Steve has always been one of those DJs I have respected with everything he has done for himself. The amount of work he puts into every tour showed me what it takes. It was inspiring to see and I took a lot away from being on the road with him.
You have now joined the The Collective Agency, what does it mean to you to be included on a huge roster with the likes of Sasha, Steve Lawler and Luke Fair– just to name a few?
It’s actually kind of crazy when I think about it. Couldn’t be happier, but it’s been a long road to finally get here. I feel very fortunate and I’m working harder then I ever have.
Can you give us some insight on any future projects? What should we expect from Sean Miller in 2007?
I’m working on a lot of exciting solo projects and collaborations right now that will start bubbling in 2007. I have a few releases still due out - seems like it’s taken forever - two mixes out on SAW recordings, and a collaboration I did with James Doman that should be released around conference time on Alternative route.
