About the author
Whether you went out last weekend to check out an uber-geeky beat magician or a depressingly awesome indie rock band, we all know there’s always some serious musical talents rocking around the Dam. You might not recognize them all yet, but don’t worry, you will soon. In this series of interviews we talk to remarkable artists about their music and their inspirations.
I’ve seen him many times in Amsterdam, but I never had the nerve to go and talk to him before (his outfits are a little intimidating). Paul van der Zanden a.k.a. Monsieur Plastique, who recently won a Golden Gnome for Best Dressed DJ, was very willing to tell me all about his inspirations, his fun and his upcoming projects, exclusively for us here at Overdose.am.
What are your main inspirations and influences?
“Most of the things I do just pop up in my head. When I started out (at age 16 or something like that) I had no inspiration whatsoever. I just did what came to mind make-up wise etc. Later I got to know people like Michael Alig, Leigh Bowery, Amanda Lepore and Marilyn Manson and those are the people I still look up to (even though half of them are long dead). I also get inspired by music and the people around me, but I try to stay close to myself and not to be influenced by others too much.
We are all human, thus we are all equal.
Please tell us about how you came about creating Homogenic in Ruigoord.
“My friend Carlo Dijckmeester and I decided we wanted to do a party together. I wanted to create a place where you could express yourself and where no one would be judged by age, gender, sexual orientation or background. A homogeneous substance is something of which you can’t differentiate the different things it’s made of. We are all human, thus we are all equal. I also wanted to create some sort of dreamland. Clubs then (and still) did almost nothing about decor and such. We put almost all of our money towards decorations and tried to keep everything as cheap as possible.”
How do you feel about the scene in Amsterdam? Is there even such a thing?
“What scene? The one I’m in? There are probably many different scenes, but I don’t care much for them. I feel that it limits you in experiences. I know a lot of people from a lot of different “scenes” and I’m really happy about that. I don’t constantly hang around with the same crowd, go to the same clubs and talk about the same shit over and over. Because of that I have a lot of input and inspiration from different angles. Plus I don’t really feel that I fit into one specific scene.”
What party have you enjoyed most?
“It’s not one of the most outrageous or biggest things I’ve ever been to, but my heart lies with Rauw. It’s the place where I started my crazy shit, it’s the place where they let me experiment and develop myself. It’s where I found my best friends, and where I got all the support I needed. Rauw for me is my family, with great music, even better people and shit loads of fun. For me it’s not just a party, it’s a little bit of home.”
Tell us about your upcoming projects and what you feel a great event should be about.
“I am now working on a new party called Demokraten Disko with my friends She Male. We were extremely annoyed by the fact that other people (bookers, organisers) always decide what’s hot and what the crowd should listen to THE ENTIRE, FRIKKIN NIGHT (I can only stand so much minimal/techno on one night). So, we thought it best to give the crowd a voice. Each edition, our audience can decide what the theme for the next edition should be. They can put suggestions in our idea box and they also get a say when it comes to the music. We will hold contests for DJs who submit their stuff to us because they want to play at our party. I’m really excited about this! First edition is April 7th at Studio/K.”
Photography by Bas Losekoot
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