Exclusive Hector interview

A dance music fairytale of sorts, Hector’s rise from working behind the counter at Soho’s esteemed Phonica Record to becoming an A-list DJ, has long served as an inspiration for many. With a flair for eclecticism and a relentless work ethic, the Mexican producer has totted up releases on the likes of Desolat, Tsuba and mobilee - whilst becoming a fixture at some of the most esteemed clubs in the world. The latest milestone in a career full of them came last week, as he began his summer residency at Marco Carola’s Ibiza dominating Music On party - pretty much the most coveted slot around right now.

With more trips to the White Isle planned alongside his own jaunt out to Barcelona with his Vatos Locos party next week, it’s shaping up to be a very productive few months for Hector - who tops the bill at FACT’s OFF Week warm up on Saturday at Egg London. Touching base with him ahead of the weekend, we picked his brain on London, Ibiza and more.

Hi Hector, thanks for taking the time to talk to us - where are you today and what are you up to?

Today I’m in Ibiza. I’m just chilling - apparently since last week there’s been a little virus going around, so I’ve been in bed since about Sunday with like cold, flu and chest infection. So I’m here chilling - not partying.

Last Friday you played the first date of your residency at Music On - how did that go?

It was really good, they broke their attendance record. They had so many people there and the vibe was amazing, I was very happy with it.

I've read that you never plan your sets, however for an occasion like that do you ever make certain preparations?

Before I had a day to focus on the kind of music I was gonna play. Other than going through my records though, there wasn’t really anything special - I just tried to get ready for it. Once you get there of course everything changes with the amount of people and the vibe, so there’s no need to make special preparations for it.

Do you play on vinyl most of the time or have you got USB sticks or CD’s?

I normally play vinyl and sometimes on Traktor with timecodes. I don’t like CDJ’s or USB’s.

So you're back in London this weekend - time permitting what's do you always try and do when you're back in your old home?

Normally I try to go to Phonica Records where I used to work. If I have time I’ll go do some shopping, as most of my favourite shops are in London. Every time I’m in town I try to have a browse.

Since you worked at Phonica, the shop has remained intact whilst many of the neighboring stores have been closed or moved on. How do you feel about the loss of these places, and what impact do you think it will have on vinyl lovers in the area?

Phonica is still one of the last independent shops open, it’s strong. Every week they’ve got more and more music out there pressed exclusively on vinyl, which is the stuff that I do. Most of my EP’s and pressed on vinyl rather than digital - I focus on putting my productions out on labels that release on vinyl and the same with my remixes. You can see in Phonica when they’re doing exclusives that this is still going strong. It’s more limited, but there’s definitely a demand for it.

Next week in Barcelona you'll be hosting your own Vatos Locos party - how are you looking forward to that and your time at Sonar/OFF Week?

I’ve got all my homies playing and then we’re announcing two live acts on the day - they’re gonna be the bomb. I’m really looking forward to it, because these are two of my favourite live acts right now.

We start off with Hito - this Japanese DJ who played at ENTER. where she was amazing. Most of us are gonna go back to back with each other, then in between we’ve got these live acts - one is three Romanian guys, and the other is my favourite German friend. I’ll leave it at that because I don’t want to spoil the surprise!

People can expect an amazing vibe. We’re going to bring some of our merchandise and t-shirts to give away - it should be great.

As you get firmly into the rhythm of summer, are there any tunes that you've noticed as becoming 'anthems' for this year?

We’re still working that one out - we’ve got a while to go, so there’s no rush.

Your career seems to be at a real high point right now - what ambitions do you still hold after having already been on such an amazing journey?

I want to focus more on growing the Vatos Locos brand, and continuing to hit up some festivals that I’ve wanted to reach for a long time. I’ve still got to explore a lot, I just want to keep aiming bigger and bigger.

You’ll be coming to play at Egg London on Saturday - what do you remember from previous visits?  

I played maybe ten or twelve years ago, but since I’ve only been back one other time - this will be my third visit I think. I heard they’ve changed a lot of things and that the soundsystem is really good, so I’m looking forward to it.

Thanks Hector, see you on Saturday!