On the level

>> King Britt is Philadelphia's cream of the crop

by SCOTT C

Who's the dude from Southwest Philly makin' DJs and producers worldwide look silly? King Britt, you got-damn right. From his '80s roots in Depeche Mode, New Order and Level 42(!), music-man about town King Britt has let his first love lead him to work with Digable Planets, the soulful entourage of Sylk 130, and now high-school buddy Vikter Duplaix. Hot off the plane from a quick European tour, he's gearing up for a visit to Montreal, care of Genesis and Nujazz Productions, who are now shifting gears from weekly clubnights to higher-profile one-offs.

Mirror: Whatup, King?

King Britt: Chillin', man, it's just crazy today.

M: Why? Everybody tryin' to get a piece of you?

KB: I got in from Europe yesterday, and I'm only here for one day. I'm going to play in Amsterdam tomorrow, so I'm hangin' out with my daughter today.

M: I consider you one of the most internationallyknown DJs who's basically known for playing a little bit of everything. That makes you old.

KB: I'm 32.

M: So you've been DJing for a while. Do you think more and more DJs are turning to playing a wider range of music in the course of a night?

KB: It's weird to say, but all the DJs that I associate with are very eclectic. The guys from Jazzanova, Gilles Peterson to I.G. Culture and Josh Wink, I mean, we play all types of music right across the board. I think it's really the media, no offense, that tends to pigeonhole DJs all the time.

M: You know writers, man, they like to be spoon-fed sometimes.

KB: Exactly, but it's not fair to the DJs. The younger DJs buying turntables really early on don't have the knowledge that comes with time, so they throw themselves into one genre of music and they don't expand. They're either house, hip hop, trance or whatever, but they don't buy records in other genres that might relate to what they're playing.

M: So what do you cover in the course of a night?

KB: It depends. On this tour I'm playing deep, underwater, sexy house. Then maybe I go into a little drum & bass, and end the night with some downbeat, maybe playing some Sade or some shit like that. I try to play a little bit of everything, but keep the energy up so people can dance. It's a seamless education, so you might not even hear it!

M: I'm listening, man, I'm listening. Oh yeah, congratulations and 'nuff respect for biggin' up Level 42 on that Inspirations comp on Dynamite Joint.

KB: (laughs) People just don't know about them, man!

M: Those dudes killed it for years, but people just don't get it.

KB: You gotta sneak it in on 'em!

M: I play "Livin' It Up" all the time--

KB: (laughs) That's the shit! I don't know anyone who plays that song in the clubs! I can't wait to hear what you guys are doin' up there.

With Brass Knuckles Crew at Tokyo on Wednesday, Dec. 20, 10pm, $10 advance, $15 at the door