Ever the innovator, Sven Vath was at the forefront of electronica when disco was still new. 25 plus years later, he’s still there, crafting in the hottest European clubs (including Frankfurt’s Cocoon Club, which he owns) and remaking the Ibiza experience. OUTinPerth stepped into the well-spun cocoon to find out what the future holds for the man who shaped techno’s past.
The Cocoon Club is described as not just a club, but as community, how would you describe that community to someone who hasn’t been in the club and felt it?
People who come to the club and enjoy the music and who are a part of it, they come and let themselves go. Here in Frankfurt, people like when I play 8 or 10 hours. They want to get the full picture. They want to listen from the beginning to the end to what I’m doing. They want to hear new music and they get bored if you play a record too often. This is something that is a challenge for me as a DJ. I play twice a month in my clubs and my crowd here, they are the biggest critics… Cocoon for me is a lifetime vision I always had – to bring a club to a new level. I think the community feel that the club is living, that the club is like an organic thing, constantly morphing.
The Cocoon Crew has been at the hot centre of Ibiza’s club scene. What’s the insider buzz in Ibiza this year?
We are just planning it right now. I just came up with the theme… We are going to have a crazy photoshoot after coming back from Australia. We are going to dress up very funky futuristic spacey disco style and probably build a huge UFO.
How on earth did you come up with an idea like that?
I don’t know [laughs]… I was thinking about Ibiza and outfits. I was thinking about where I come from and how crazy we all are because we all dedicated our lives to the dance floor. It’s so much fun that you can make so many people happy with your music…. .
In your 25 years in electronic music, what role have you seen the gay community play in supporting electronic music and helping it move from the underground to the mainstream?
The gay community was the community, especially in New York, who was the first dancing to electronic music in the 80s. They were one of the biggest supporters of electronic music in the clubs. This was happening not just there, but in Germany, where it was more mixed, but the gay community was always playing a big part in it. Nowadays, when I look at Berlin and also in Frankfurt, the gay scene and the gay community are still very much involved in it.
As someone who has spent 25 years at the forefront, what do you think is coming next for electronic music?
I think a very nice festival series in Australia, which is called Future Music [laughs]. I’m going to play and it’s about time that people in Australia get in touch with my music again.
Anything else you would like to say to Perth?
Be ready – I’m coming.
