That's MarQ with a Q

Known for being one of the nicest guys in the scene, MarQ is still no push over. He quickly rose to the top as one of the hardest hitting trance DJs in Seattle, and was soon on his way to making himself known as a national headliner. But unlike many successful DJs who later go on to produce, MarQ was producing before he made crowds jump on the dance floor from behind the decks. He later used this fame to start promoting his own events.

MarQ and the rest of the crew at Phase 3 Events have been taking the Northwest by storm. They have been a vital part of renewing the scene both in and out of the clubs in Seattle, bringing music to fans young and old alike. They have worked hard to bring of the hottest talent from the around the globe to the Northwest, including hard trance legend Phil Reynolds, as well as Dark By Design, Paul Mendez, John Askew, 4 Strings, and many others. But they aren't stopping there. Phase 3 Events has a lot in store for the upcoming months, and MarQ shares with us some of their plans for the Seattle area. He's got some tricks up his sleeve as well, and gives us a look at what's been going on behind the scenes in the studio as well in this exclusive interview.

How long have you been DJing?

I started DJing in 2002, so seven years now.

What kind of tips can you offer DJs who are just starting out?

The best advice I can give you is decide what you want to be, a DJ or an artist. These two things are VERY different. An artist plays a narrow style pertaining to their own tastes. A DJ plays a diverse range of music, often outside personal tastes because it fits the gig. I can't stress this enough. If you only play 1 style, or genre, you only have opportunities available in that style, if you play a diverse style & can fit in different settings you have many more opportunities. That has been the key to my success in Seattle. When I started I was playing high energy trance, 140+ bpm, real banging stuff. I was given the opportunity to open at Last Supper Club IF I played 125-130 progressive house/trance. So I went out and bought a bunch of records and took those bookings. After a while I became a regular, opening for people like Armin van Buuren, Ferry Corsten, Markus Schulz, Infected Mushroom, Cosmic Gate, Blank & Jones, Darude, Oliver Lieb, Scott Bond... the list goes on and on. That is how I got established in Seattle, playing outside of my comfort zone to open for headliners. Had I just stuck to playing what I liked at the time, I don't think I would have gotten as far.

When and where was your first paid gig?

I played my first gig in October of '02, it was a Free Tuesday night. I played there a few times and quickly got more opportunities. New Years Eve 03 was my first paying gig 3 months later.

Which DJs inspired you to become a DJ yourself?

I can't say it was any one DJ, but it was at a specific event: USC 5, a massive in Seattle with about 9000 people. I had been making music for years, most recently industrial. The industrial scene had become influenced by the trance scene and I began to get in to some trance artists. I went to USC 5 to see Juno Reactor, and while standing there realized, "This is what I need to be doing." It was at that point I also started producing trance.

As many people know, you promote the events you play for. If you were only able to do one or the other, promote or play, which would you choose?

I am both a promoter and a DJ. I run Phase 3 Events in Seattle, and we host 21+ club events and two major all ages raves a year. I enjoy the event promotion side, but I like the performance side more. So I guess I would say DJ, if I could only do one.

As well as spending a lot of time promoting and DJing, you also produce your own music. Do you feel it's necessary for DJs to spend time in the studio to make it to the top of their game?

Absolutely. I began as a producer and DJing was the vehicle for live performance. It's clear to see that there is a "glass ceiling" for most DJs. When you look at all the top names, Paul van Dyk, Armin van Buuren, Tiesto, Ferry Corsten, Above & Beyond, etc... they are all producing as well as performing. Plus there is such a great sense of satisfaction when you are playing YOUR OWN track and the dance floor goes wild!

Which producers encouraged you to start making tracks?

I can't really even tell you it was so long ago... A lot of old industrial like Front 242, Nitzer Ebb, Skinny Puppy, Front Line Assembly, KMFDM, Ministry, stuff like that.

What can party goers who have never seen you play expect at the next P3E event?

I like to have a very high energy performance. I jump around; I get the crowd involved. I hate DJs that look bored. If you are standing up there with your eyes down, a blank expression on your face, and you're not having fun, how can you possibly expect the crowd to? When you are up there, looking like you are having the time of your life, the crowd sees that and it helps get them amped on the music.

What track do you play that always gets the crowd pumped?

Well, there are a few but it depends on the setting. Some of last years go to tracks are from people like Rank 1, Martin Roth, Markus Schulz, Nadia Ali, Matt Zo, Sean Tyas, Simon Patterson, Andy Moore, Stoneface & Terminal, Mr Sam. John O'Callaghan, OceanLab/Above & Beyond... too many more to list...

Apart from Phase 3 Events, are there any other projects that you can tell us about?

I have a few other projects going on right now. Light Horizon is my trance production alias. I have a few tracks in the works under Light Horizon and one remix of my original track "After Thought" currently released. I am working on some other tech trance/tech dance tracks that will be released under yet another alias, but I haven't settled on a name for that project yet. Of course my productions as MarQ are more on the progressive tip. I currently have a bunch of tracks under MarQ ready to go, and the one I am most excited about is a collaboration with one of the best vocalists in dance music today, Kirsty Hawkshaw. Kirsty is the voice of tracks like BT - Dreaming, Tiesto - Just Be/Walking On Clouds, and the classic Opus 3 - It's a Fine Day.

If you hadn't of discovered dance music, do you think you would still be involved in another music outlet?

Yes, actually I was already before I got into dance. I started playing guitar in punk bands when I was 15

Well that's about it I think. Thanks so much for your time MarQ. Where can we expect to see you in the future?

Phase 3 Events presents George Acosta, August 28th @ Last Supper Club
Phase 3 Events presents Will Bailey, September 18th @ Last Supper Club
Phase 3 Events presents 4 Strings, October 16 @ Last Supper Club
Phase 3 Events presents Whiteout 7 w/Mike Koglin, Phil York & Kutski, @ King Cat Theater



For more information about MarQ or Phase 3 Events, you can go to www.marq.org, www.myspace.com/djmarq, or www.myspace.com/phase3events.