Remixing is currently a popular word in the music world. It seems every commercial, and indie and pop artist, needs to have their latest singles remixed by producers so that they can be played in clubs worldwide. For artists like Justin Timberlake and Madonna, having one of their songs remixed by such producers as Jacques Lu Cont , Crookers or Diplo practically guarantees exposure in the club arena. And DJ/producer/artist Kasper Bjorke is no stranger to this phenomenon – he’s the one both playing and creating many of those remixes.

Danish-born and Copenhagen-based Bjorke has been DJing all over the world for years, and, recently, his first album, In Gumbo (launched this past September on Plant Music), was released to wide acclaim. While on tour in Europe and America, in support of his album, Bjorke took the time to explain what his remix world is all about. In his own words:

Do you feel that producing and remixing has had any impact on, or is really just an extension of, your DJing?
I started making my own productions with my band project, Filur, together with Tomas Barfod of Who Made Who. We have released three albums together and done extensive remix-work for Example, Junior Senior, Brandy, and lots of indie bands over the last 8 years. and then I started to get requests to do remixes and produce. A couple of years ago, I started doing tracks on my own, as well, and then DJing became a regular thing which expanded to become just as big a part of my life as producing music.

Who have you done remixes for?
Acts like New York's own The Glass, Danish bands like Turboweekend and Veto, and Swedish bands Kent and As In RebekkaMaria. I did a bootleg of MIA's "Galang," which only went around to my DJ friends. It was never a proper release, but everyone had it, and it was still played everywhere.

How important is it for mainstream artists to have remixes?
It’s important for a pop artist to have remixes that come from the underground, say people like Britney Spears, because they need to have DJs to play their music in clubs and they’d only play her music in the clubs if it’s remixed from the underground. DJs find underground remixes of commercial artists, because, for example, I would never play a Britney Spears song, but if Switch did a remix of it, I’d play that song. Even DFA did a remix of Britney that was never released, but they still did it and it was played. I think it’s important for commercial artists to have underground remixes. And, it’s really important for the remixers to have pop artists to do remixes for, because that’s where the real money is; big commercial names pay a lot of money for a remix to be done by a hot producer.

Are illegal and bootleg remixes considered the most sought-after for DJs?
Absolutely. That’s what every DJ wants to play because no one has it.

In the past year, the “French” vibe of Daft Punk, Ed Banger and Uffie seemed to be everywhere. Where do you think the next sound is coming from and who’s doing it?
Right now the whole angle is the global-ghetto vibe and beat. MIA, Diplo, Switch, Sinden/Herve, and Crookers, with the mash-up of electro, techno, hip hop and ethnic. That sound has a big base in the blog community, whereas the Ed Banger sound is not dead, but is already on the way down.

Do you think that movement helped the remix world and community?
Totally. I think the scene needed that wildness to reinvent itself. Not everything is good again. Before, the whole electro scene was very boring… it was getting generic. It was dead. They definitely helped the scene and made it fresh again, they got people excited about this kind of music.

What’s a really hot track that you’re playing that no one has?
My friend Tomas from Who Made Who gave me this remix he did of New Young Pony Club, and I’ve been playing it for everyone for the last few weeks. It’s red hot in my bag right now. I’ve also been playing a cover version of a Digitalism track. Those two from Who Made Who are really great. I just did one myself - it’s a cover version of Rage Against the Machine of “Killing in the Name Of,” and the cover version is by the FM Belfast, an Icelandic band. I remixed that track and everyone seems to be singing along to the lyrics when I play it.

Who is the most sought-after remixer right now?
On the underground scene, I’d say Crookers. They’re very, very good. Everything they’ve done is really fresh and wild. Not too noisy or too much. Another is Switch. I remember in 2001 and 2002 he was really techy, but he’s back. This sound they have is really hot; I love playing their stuff. That’s my job as a DJ, to introduce new and fresh stuff to people.

~Jessica McMenamin