Beatcast #05: Eltron John – Adventures in Funk

The fifth edition of our Beatcast series comes from Kraków’s very own Marek Stuczynski, better known under his DJ moniker Eltron John, who has been spining records for three years now, and who currently hosts the regular „Ktoś Cie Kocha“ (Someone Loves You) night in Kraków’s Caryca and Warsaw’s Balsam club, as well as playing gigs all over Poland. As the title already suggests, this ain’t your average minimal techno mix, but rather a journey into the depths of Funk and Disco, spiced up with a love for vocals and skillfully blended House music, taking a bow to Eltron’s personal influences and favourite records, all of this while maintaining a tight groove, which also touches your heart in places. Whether it’s New York City or southern Poland, it is the prove that Funk and Disco are still going strong.

# Download: Beatcast #5: Adventures in Funk (Mirror)

Three questions with Eltron John:

Since when do you DJ?

I’ve been djing in clubs for about 3 years now, but I’ve been into music for my entire life – listening, collecting, dancing, playing in bands, writing music, trying production, although I still have to get a proper demo out…

How would you describe your musical origins and influences?

Soul, rock, funk, jazz and blues. My first ever tapes were Stevie Wonder and Queen – that was when I was about 6. When I got a bit older I got into things like Hendrix, the Stones, all the George Clinton Parliament/Funkadelic stuff, Prince, Miles Davis etc. We had this band with a couple of friends, called Act of Intellect. I wanted it to sound something like Bitches Brew. Later, when I got a sampler, I took some interest in dub as well. And through soul, funk and all that I got into disco, which has definitely had a huge influence on me – both musically and culturally. It is only through disco that I discovered house music for myself.

What is your mix about?

The idea is very simple – I wanted to keep it as natural as possible. I love variety and value surprise, but I didn’t want to overdo it and record something completely abstract, something you could never hear me do in a club. So I just took some well-loved tunes that I enjoy playing out (you can tell from the state of the vinyl), threw some of my own stuff for good measure and tried to put it together so that it makes sense – musically and emotionally. I hope it does.