At CC: DISCO!'s House

For over fifteen years CC:DISCO! has been carving out a name for herself as one of Australia’s most respected & in-demand DJs spinning at revered clubs and festivals all around the world. As well as her skills as a selector behind the decks, CC:DISCO! has hosted a number of influential radio shows spanning PBS FM in Melbourne through to her bi-weekly residency on London’s iconic Rinse FM, with her curation skills leading to two editions of the First Light compilation series that highlighted Australia and New Zealands burgeoning disco, house, jazz and offbeat pop talents.

Now she can officially add producer to her already impressive resume, with her debut release on Erol Alkan’s Phantasy label, Chez Moi (Waiting For You) featuring Confidence Man. A euphoric cut of balearic & latin influenced house sounds, Janet Planet’s jubilant vocals are the cherry on top of an addictive slice of dancefloor exhilaration. On the b-side is Out Of Your Mind, a rolling, deep & layered cut that brings classic NYC house vibes into 2023, providing the perfect counterpoint to the vocal a-side.

Currently a few dates into a 12 show tour around Australia (see below for all dates), we checked in with CC:DISCO! to find out all about her new release, producing vs DJing, what’s next and more!

How long have you been planning this debut release?

Well to be honest, I never thought I’d get to this day. I was always dabbling in production here and there but gave it up 12 years ago. Then something sparked in me again and I knew what I wanted to make. So technically, those tracks were only made last year but we decided they had to be out for the EU summer which made everything move fast from there.

How did you land on Erol Alkan’s iconic Phantasy Sound label?

I met Erol last year when we played a festival together in the UK and we ended up getting on the same train which was really nice because we got to chat about music and his history. Once the ep was ready, we thought why not have a crack at Erol and he signed it within a week. The rest is history!

What was it like working with Confidence Man?

I mean bloody great, we are old friends and Janet Planet had been demanding I come into the studio with her for ages, there’s something so easy about working with them we literally wrote Chez moi in 2 hours and Janet sang the vocals into her phone once I showed her “Out of your mind” within a minute. Sometimes you just gel with people, I’m not huge on working with other people, but when you have magic like that you can’t deny it. Collabs are good, we should never shy away from them.

When does a track “need” vocals for you?

It really depends on the track; I’ve made so many with no vocals. For ‘Out of your mind’ it had no vocals to start with which was fine, but when Janet started singing the ‘Ooohhhh ohhh’ part I was like hell yes! It gave the track a sweet RnB, eyes closed, dancing on your own moment that I had to add.

Do producing and DJing influence each other in your creative process? What are your most and least favourite things about each?

Yeah, they definitely do, but it also makes it harder because you have studied music by djing and it can be heart-breaking to not be able to make what you want. You just have to continue trying - it's not easy, but nothing good in life is!

Least fav thing about djing - Young boys telling you to play harder and faster. Relax boys, learn how to move your hips more and find the groove.

Least fav thing about producing - The time it takes to learn. I’ve been making all my tracks in my downtime which means I work 7 days a week, day, and night. I do love it, I just wish I had time solely dedicated to the studio, as opposed to in hotel rooms or planes. I can never switch off and smell the flowers as they say!

What are you most looking forward to about your upcoming Australian tour?

Clubs! It's been a while since I did a full club tour. I've been playing mainly festivals which are out of reach for some people, taking it back to clubs means longer sets and more of a journey. It can’t all be wham bam thank you ma'am like a festival set, so I’m keen to get back to clubs and focus on the groove.

What can people expect from your sets on this tour?

Groove, groove, groove!

What’s next for CC:DISCO!

Finishing up the second ep which will be out in the near future, and playing club shows in EU until the end of the year. But who knows beyond that...

What have you been listening to in your downtime lately?

Well, I try to listen to podcasts but every time I do I don’t last more than 3 minutes before drifting off. I've trained my brain weirdly to sleep as I listen to them on the trains, and often on planes when I’m travelling to the next gig on little to no sleep. But even though I fall asleep within 10 minutes, I’m loving the The other world - C-Thru album out on Pacific Rhythm, an amazing 80s ambient chill as hell record.

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