This post is also available in: Nederlands (Dutch)
We met totally unexpected in 2016 at a beach party in Noordwijk (NL), where he was playing at a private event. It was May and it was freezing outside, as if it were winter. Spanish DJ/producer Marc Dosem didn't know anyone and neither did I, except for the friend who’s plus-one I was. While standing at the warm indoor bar, Marc and I started talking about music and of course, when I heard his familiar name, I asked if I could interview him about his DJ debut. A few months later I did. “The feedback was fantastic.”
Having been a resident DJ in two clubs in his Spanish birthtown Girona, is the basis of DJ/producers Marc Dosem’s development. “It marked me until now.”
Next level
“I remember those days well. I had already performed at some small private parties with just a few friends, but we all decided to take DJing to the next level. So, after discussing how and where to do it, we rented a house for New Year’s Eve in an almost secret place halfway some mountain, near to Platja d’Aro, a well-known place on the Costa Brava.”
Gigantic turn-up
“A few weeks before New Year’s Eve we started decorating and preparing everything. Almost all the furniture was made by our own hands, so many friends were involved in the process. When the day arrived, the party was a big success. We got a massive attendance; all rooms were packed and several buses parked around the house. I played all-night and part of the morning in front of a room of approximately two- to three-hundred people. I have a fantastic memory of that night. I mixed all kinds of music: house, techno, disco, big beat and of course also some of my own first productions.”
First residency
“The feedback was fantastic and thanks to that performance I got my first residency at a small club in my city, Girona. The club was called La Via-Ruta 66 and I established a great friendship with the general manager, Pitter. In that club I developed my technique and had the opportunity to experiment with all kinds of music. On some nights I began with some hip hop & R&B and ended with disco, funk and house. The club wasn’t exclusively directed at electronic music, so at first I had to win the audience for me. There were two areas and mine was almost halfway to go upstairs to the main one, so the dance floor wasn’t full all the time. My mission was to make people stay there. After a few months I succeeded in doing this and I started having my own audience who came especially to hear my sessions. I still have a close friendship with many of those people until today.”
Blau Club
“La Via-Ruta 66 opened many doors for me; from this point things evolved fast. Soon I met other residents of clubs in the city and was invited to play with them. One of the most important ones was the Blau Club. The curious thing was that my first gig at Blau club was also the first time I performed under my aka ‘Dosem’, which represented a turning point in my life. It gave a completely live performance, techno and house-oriented from a through z. The floor was full of friends and I had no idea how people would react.”
Live set
“I guess it went really well because after that I was offered a monthly residency performing live sets. That first time my setup was pretty simple. I just had a laptop and a Midi controller. I was used to mix my productions with sounds and snippets of other tracks – creating remixes on the fly. Somewhere I still must have recordings of that era. During my residence at the Blau Club I had the chance to warm-up the room for many international artists, including Technasia, with whom a personal and professional friendship arose. After a few months I actually signed a contract with his label to release my debut album.”
Very open mind
“Looking back, I understand that those days in the beginning have been important to develop myself as an artist – especially because I was able to combine my roles as producer and DJ. These two facets evolved at the same time, and that allowed me to have a very open mind when it comes to making music. By being a resident I was forced to make very long hours and create different musical moments during the evening, with different styles and genres. That experience has been of great influence on me – it marked me until now.”
More Dosem?
This interview was originally published in Dutch on DJMag.nl on December 15th 2016.