DJ-producer Morgan Page beginning residency at XS
DJ-producer Morgan Page remixes songs for stars as big as Madonna, David Bowie and Florence + The Machine. But he usually does so in the studio without meeting them.
That’s routine in the world of remixes. Page isn’t complaining about it. He’s just explaining.
“The most I get is a call from a record label saying, ‘Madonna just listened to it at a hotel and she loves it.’ You’re lucky to get something like that,” says Page, who begins a DJ residency at XS nightclub tonight.
“The Stevie Nicks remix came about because Warner Bros. called up and said, ‘Do you want to try a remix? Because she’s turned down five remixes.’ I said, ‘Sure!’ ”
What’s fascinating to me about this is: Page and other DJ-producers are more relevant than many of the musicians they remix, so I would think they would like to see him in action.
Some musicians do join him in the studio, especially when they guest-sing on his own songs.
For instance, Tegan & Sara worked with Morgan to lay down vocals for his new single, “Body Work,” a follow-up to his hits “The Longest Road” and “In the Air.”
But just take a look at the insane amount of pop, rock and indie acts he has remixed (in the styles of progressive and electro house). Here’s a very short list:
Katy Perry, Korn, La Roux, Regina Spektor, Coldplay, Imogen Heap, Sam Phillips, Dolores O’Riordan and Alanis Morissette.
Page says that list signifies how quickly electronic dance music has gone from being “the bastard child of the music industry” to now being cool.
“Before, it was the outcast genre,” he says. “And now it’s like: ‘We really want to hire you for pop productions.’ … That’s just how the industry works. It’s cyclical.”
Page, 30 (from Vermont but living outside Los Angeles), probably won’t collaborate with Nicki Minaj anytime soon. He blasted her on Twitter for her performance at the Grammys.
“She’s just ridiculous,” he says. “It’s such a manufactured act. It’s kind of disgusting.”
But let’s be perfectly clear about his success: What turns DJ-producers into stars are the original songs they write and record — not their remixes of other musicians’ tunes.
Morgan’s most recent dance-pop hit, “In the Air,” was so big, its success delayed the release of his album of the same name, now set for April 3, since his record label didn’t want to overwhelm people with a full album while his single was charting.
That’s because we’re in an era where singles matter more than albums, although Morgan still sees value in them.
“I don’t think people really care about albums, but I care about albums,” he says. “It’s fun to spread your wings a little bit, so not every song has to be a monster track.”
Doug Elfman’s column appears Tuesdays, Thursdays and Fridays. Email him at delfman@reviewjournal.com. He blogs at reviewjournal.com/elfman.
