REMIX & MATCH - ERIC KUPPER

American DJ Eric Kupper spins sophisticated house, but he has an extensive past as a producer, remixer and session muso. Active in the mid-’80s, the multi-instrumentalist can be linked to records by everyone from Madonna to Coldplay to David Bowie. But, because Kupper was often embellishing remixes, his contact with such legends was limited.
“One of the few times I did get to meet someone – [which] was probably one of my favourite projects, anyway – was with Kate Bush.” When Kupper accepted the gig, Bush was in the US for the first time. (“She did not like to travel.”) Ironically, he was on the other side of the Atlantic. “I was in the UK, oddly enough, so I literally jumped on a plane, earlier than expected.” Kupper hurried to Bush’s hotel. “She was just amazing. She was lovely. She was a very strong personality – in a really positive way.”
However, the days of the big production houses are over, now that the music industry has contracted. “There’s not a lotta session work to be had these days,” Kupper laments. “But I still do session work for certain friends of mine who I’ve been working with for many years. You know, if the right situation came along, and I wanted to do it again, of course I’d do it.”
Myth has it that Kupper (a punk kid) was introduced to dance by Arthur Baker. He’d play keys for Def Mix’s Frankie Knuckles and David Morales – and had a big hand in Knuckles’ The Whistle Song. Kupper launched his own production concern, Hysteria, but continued to play on tracks like CeCe Peniston’s Finally. His 1995 LP From The Deep (as K-Scope) is deemed a lost classic.
Last year Kupper issued Electrikiss – the follow-up to 1998’s Instant Music – on King Street. He doesn’t plan to leave it 10 years for the next album. “I would like to do another one this year.”
Kupper is resident at London’s Fierce Angel, the club a spin-off from Mark Doyle’s label. Doyle originally A&Red Hed Kandi – and Kupper played its night, too. “Mark is a dear friend of mine. We met in the South of France at MIDEM, which is the music festival in Cannes, many years ago and we’ve just been great friends since. When he made the move from Hed Kandi, it wasn’t even a choice for me. I just went with him. We support each other on a musical level and as friends.”
As a house stalwart, Kupper is diverse. “I’ve always been a little all over the shop musically. I make different kinds of music, and I enjoy different kinds of music. So, as much as I might be known in certain circles for having a NY sound, there’s a lot of stuff that I do, like the early Hed Kandi stuff, which is very UK-sounding, and some of the stuff I do even has a European flavour. I’ve been lucky enough not to have to subscribe to a particular sound.”
Kupper DJs infrequently in New York – and, then, alongside other vets like Tony Humphries. The best NYC parties are presented by oldtimers. “As much as I love them, it’d be interesting to see something kinda new and different happening in NY.”

WHO:    ERIC KUPPER
WHAT:    PLAYS FIERCE ANGEL 4 AT BELLA VISTA
WHEN:    SUNDAY 14 FEBRUARY