Where else are you going to hear a big, ketty beat laid over the top of ‘Here Comes The Sun’ by the Beatles? You will dance, you will laugh, you will turn to one another in disbelief and weep tears of pure joy.
Brace yourself, Sheffield – Super Hans is bringing his Big Beat Manifesto to town. Before he does considerable damage to the decks at The Leadmill later this month, we spoke to our favourite techno-peddling, snake-charming delinquent to find out what we can expect.
Hi Hans. How are you getting on today?
I’ve wrenched a ligament in my ankle actually. I thought I was at my gaff when I woke up – but I was at my girlfriend Ümlaut’s place and she’s got stairs. My place is a flat, so I wasn’t ready for them and took a bit of a tumble. It doesn’t hurt because of the morphine, which luckily I was carrying about with me from a festival in Denmark a few weeks ago.
You’ll be bringing your Big Beat Manifesto to The Leadmill next month. What can Sheffield expect?
Big beats. Massive big beats, wearing flares and marching down the street on a sunny morning, whistling to the milkman and going ‘Fuck Off!’ to all the old ladies. Those kinda beats.
When you’re up there on the decks and laying down some really big, eff off beats, what is running through your head?
Often I get beautiful imagery, like for example – the other day, I had a mermaid called Susan Godbold riding a giant technicoloured owl over some mountains that were made out of other people’s memories of me. Symbolic shit like that.
Are there any artists around at the moment who you’d like to work with?
No.
Plenty that do your nut in then?
Yep.
How do you balance a career as a DJ phenomenon with family life? You’ve got the twins to look after, haven’t you?
It’s tough sometimes. But you have to carve out time when you’ve got little ‘uns. The boys are 17 or maybe 18 now I think so when I go over to Dusseldorf every March it’s getting even harder to meet up. They’ve got their own lives to lead. Last time I was there I took them to the zoo but I lost them in the Tropical Tunnel, and I eventually found out that they’d fucked off back home to their mother’s place in a taxi. I just dropped half a tab and stared at the new baby giraffe until they kicked me out at closing.
What tune always gets Super Hans super-pumped for a big night out?
I like just dancin’ about in my underpants to ‘Bear Necessities’. I pretend I’m Mowgli and that my sofa is Baloo’s tummy and we have a proper good time. That is a tune.
What is the secret to a colossal DJ set?
Build, build, build, build, drop, wallop, build, build, frenzy, drop, wallop, set fire to the decks, fuck off.
In your music career so far, what moments have stood out?
I don’t really remember previous gigs. I prefer to live in the present moment, like that Tripitaka fella from Monkey.
Will you be slipping any Sheffield bands into your set? Some Arctic Monkeys or PULP perhaps?
Most of the second half of the set might be Joe Cocker, Moloko and The Human League. Or it might not.Depends really.
Super Hans plays The Leadmill on November 24th. Get tickets and more info here.
