We questioned Department of Defiance's Tim Popham and Ben Gough about the trials and tribulations of life and music!
Who is your musical inspiration and why?
Tim: Tool would be number one. Pure energy behind their music and vocals is amazing. Dance or electronic – Booka Shade for the deeper stuff. Their Live act is something to make the mind boggle. They work so well together (the duo). James Lavelle for his ability to make anything work, and work well.
Ben: I really like Mr OIzo and what he does with his tunes, he's pretty twisted and unexpected. Actually the french really do seem to just get music, I love Daft Punk, Cassius, Dj falcon etc. Also, I love music with great energy, stuff you just cant help but dance or sing along to.
What's the greatest thing you have seen on stage?
Tim: Anything at Glastonbury. Any artist who performed there didn’t do just an ordinary performance, was always pretty out there.
Ben: Its gotta be daft punk, right?
What's your most treasured possession?
Tim: Until a few days ago it was my custom 1961 VW Beetle, but I had to sell it L But probably my signed Lateralus picture vinyl, signed by Tool themselves.
What are your vices?
Tim: Bacon. I even have it tattooed on my left bicep.
Ben: I love late night episodes of C.O.P.S
What's on your dream rider?
Tim: Bacon, coconut rum, pineapple juice, a box of puppies, a Velcro wall, a conversation pit (giant pit filled with soft toys).
Ben: Phoar! What isn't? I guess I could whittle it down to new socks, curry and plenty of beer.
If you could be a character in a movie, who would you be?
Tim: Raoul Duke from the film Fear and Loathing in Las Vegas. Or Petrie, the dinosaur from The Land Before Time.
Ben: Drop dead fred.
Who would you most like to tour with?
Tim: The Subs. Recently hung out with them, they’re absolutely insane. Maybe some of the 90’s house gods, but I dunno if they’d be as loose as the cats these days.
Ben: Oh there's so many! We hung out with the subs when they were in town (we were there for the infamous airport arrest too!) the certainly know how to have fun, so Id definitely tour with them.
What is your favourite instrument?
Tim: The bagpipes.
Ben: Definitely the piano, Im rubbish at playing but I love it.
What music do you like to listen to from the other side of the DJ Box?
Tim: Progressive metal. Deep deep house and tech. Or any kind of party tunes. You can’t knock back a great set full of house and disco and bounce.
Ben: Usually the radio, triple j!
If you had the opportunity to head back in time, what advice would the '2011 you' give to your younger self?
Tim: “Stop it, or you may go blind”.
Ben: Learn the piano! And don't throw fruit at the computer.
What is the theory behind your music?
Tim: Stop taking everything so seriously, dammit.
Ben: We love party tunes, we like to try and play a little bit of something for everyone. Create a fun atmosphere, tunes from all over, It dosen't always have to be this weeks beatport top 10 list!
What is happening with (your group/DJ/Band) at the moment?
Tim: We’re just having a hell of a lot of fun playing as many gigs as possible! My dj partner (twoshoes) is producing some incredible tunes, we’re playing gigs all over the place, all we want to do is have a bit of a party all the time really.
Ben: Well we're playing Warehouse obviously and we're pretty gosh darn excited. We're busy making and hunting outedits, remixes, bootlegs, originals and exploring for new and interesting ways to mix them together!
What can we expect from you at Warehouse?
Party, party, party! J We want to get you all dancing, we have our ways! Some great party tunes, classics and new stuff. Also we'll be turning the mixer up to 11
