Heretic - THE RANSOM NOTE MIX

Music

Recently, there was a certain exceptional track that alerted our ears to Heretic… that track was Geodesic on the very excellent Days of Being Wild.

The latest Ransom Note Mix comes courtesy of said Heretic. And we are excited.
We caught up with him to find out what we could about the mix and the man behind it;

Please introduce yourself…

Hello, my name is Timothy Clerkin.

Who are you:

I am a musician that makes (sort of) dance music, in the loosest possible terms.

Where are you:

Currently in the living room of my flat in Hackney, London.

What are you:

Beyond being a sentient, 95% water, sack of flesh and bones, I am also a music enthusiast who puts out records under the name Heretic and I am one half of Eskimo Twins.

Where was the mix recorded?

This one was put down in my flat, just next to London Fields on a beautiful, sunny morning.

What would be the ideal setting to listen to the mix?

Wherever man! Everyone has their own preferences, my idiosyncrasies are mine so stick it on wherever you want to, make it your own.

What should we be wearing?

I suppose preferably something comfortable for lightly dancing in, perhaps a velour tracksuit. Or just entirely nude. Add a banana hammock or sports bra to the latter, according to your sex, for maximum comfort.

What would be your dream setting to record a mix: Location/system/format?

Setting, probably somewhere warm, but cool enough to not be too hot in a suit, either at dusk or dawn – half light is always the most romantic; a nice big festival system; and some decks with a Pioneer mixer. Having said that, I do equally enjoy pitch-black, sweaty little dinge holes….

Which track in the mix is your current favourite?

I really love the opener, Hunters In The Snow by Paresse. Definitely one of my favourites so far this year.

What’s your favourite recorded mix of all time?

That's tough man. I'm not really one to look back too much and I think DJ's are forced to view music as quite transient – we're always striving to play the newest, unheard tracks / stuff other people don't have etc. Consequently, I don't really go back to listen to older mixes and I'm sure if I listened to ones I loved ten, fifteen years ago I'd be quite shocked! But I remember really liking the Colette comps, probably Volumes 4 through to 9 – they soundtracked a lot of driving around New Zealand for me.

If you could go back to back with any DJ from throughout history, who would it be and why?

Tiesto, preferably at one of his big outdoor shows. I'd play solely sludge metal. So I could say "Mix out of THAT, mate".

What was your first DJ set up at home and what is it now?

The first one I think was in our studio which was at my house in Leeds at the time. I was quite late to DJ'ing, about 23, I'd spent my youth playing in bands and I never had the opportunity to learn to mix. Then after Nathan and I had written the first lot of Eskimo Twins material it became apparent that we needed to learn to DJ, fast! I think the first setup was some fucking awful Behringer mixer and some CDJ1000's borrowed off our manager. It did the job. And it hasn't changed much since, to be honest.

What’s more important, the track you start on or the track you end on?

Well, it depends on the setting but if we assume that the venue is full from when you start to when you finish, for me, it's the one you start on. That will affect your and the audiences mood and almost dictate what happens next. Get it right, you'll have the crowds trust and they'll be more willing to follow wherever you want to go with the set.

What were the first and last records you bought?

Blimey, I'd be very tempted to lie profusely here, but I will be honest; first one I'm pretty sure was Hobo Humpin Slobo Babe by Whale on tape when I was a kid (think Beastie Boys meets Deelite). Not great, but it could be worse, I think. The last one was Giudecca by Ghost Culture just today actually. Have been meaning to purchase that one for a while, it's a great record.