by RAF KATIGBAK

Credited with throwing the first proper rave in this city (Solstice, 1993) and repping Montreal on the international electro scene, Tiga is probably the one guy that's had the biggest impact on Montreal's electronic music world. There, I said it. You might argue all you want, but if you're a fan of electronic music in this city, then there's about a 99.9 per cent chance you've come across him. Maybe not in person (he spends half of his time DJing around the world) but if you've ever A) been to Sona, B) bought a record at DNA, C) listened to anything on White Leather or Turbo, D) been to any one of his über-fashionable and hedonistic Neon soirées or E) danced your ass off to a track that sounds like Nelly's commercial hit "Hot in Here" with a white-guy-MC techno twist, then you're familiar with his work. The Mirror recently caught up with Tiga just before he took off for Europe (again) to get the lowdown on his latest all-night event, Pleasure From the Bass.

Mirror: So how is Pleasure From the Bass different from your Neon nights?

Tiga: With Neon, I started feeling limited. It was more of a drinking pub rock-out kind of vibe, ending at 3 a.m., with two or three DJs. You know how it is - when a new type of music comes along, your record box fills up with it and more and more you think, "Okay, well, fuck, I'd like to do a dedicated party with music like that." For me, the past year and a half, it's changed. It started with the DFA and Output labels and now things are moving a lot more house-y and minimal, with even sort of long disco-y stuff, more of the acid house mentality. It's really a return to the warehouse vibe, which was something I didn't miss four years ago, but I kinda miss now. I mean, at most parties most people want to stay 'til 4 or 5 anyway - usually, 3 a.m. is just a slap in the face.

M: Of course, going to an afterhours club and staying 'til 8 a.m. isn't really a new idea. In fact, mega-clubs have been on the decline in Europe for the last five years and here in Montreal, Sona had to shut down. Is it really working?

T: The thing is, all the clubs that have emerged in the past while - Sona, Aria, Redlite - all these big clubs, everyone forgets that they could be really, really good. It could be a lot of fun if it was good music all night and decent people, with a slightly more relaxed vibe. It could be fun once in a while. We chose Gravity 'cause it doesn't have that scummy kind of feeling.

M: It seems that newer clubs like Gravity and Circus are realizing that afterhours crowds are open to different kinds of music. Even DJs are coming around to the idea of switching things up in their sets. Could eclecticism be the secret to surviving past 3 a.m.?

T: The eclectic thing is interesting. It could be good or bad. It also gets thrown around very loosely. Playing an Abba record next to a Black Sabbath record next to an Akufen record is eclectic. But that can also be dangerous 'cause it's not actual DJing. It's more of a jukebox mentality. The thing with this night is that I want it to be a bit more unified in dance scope. I still want people to be dancing and that's where I see the acid house connection.

With Ivan Schmagge at Gravity on Friday, March 26, 2am, $20

>> Music Listings