For those who don’t know, Australia with Force is a brand new Aussie digital label with some hot DJ’s on it. AWF are currently in the planning to branch out to the UK in the hope to create something a bit different for the average UK raver! With this interview with James, we are hoping to shed some light on what exactly AWF is, and where it is hoping to be in the future!!



COXEY: 1. Right then, Hello James, thanks for taking the time out to do this interview.
Firstly, what is Australia with Force?

Starstruck: Hey!!! No worries, thanks for the opportunity, it's gladly appreciated. Australia With Force is a web-based label I started to plan in 2008. I've previously organized another label but I never went public with it. But I like to think of Australia With Force as just more than a label, I feel if I'm going to be representing a country with a much smaller name in Hardcore than the UK, I feel it's a really important duty for me to do it right. So basically it's almost 100% Aussie Hardcore (from now on it is 100%), and it has a strict quality control. I wanted to promote it as a Digital label that is different to most these days. A lot of people seem to think that just because you can "easily" start up a digital label, they'll do a lazy job. I guess Digital labels have a questionable reputation, that's what I'm also trying to change. Australia With Force showcases a lot of "unheard" or "new" artists from Australia with a large amount of talent, who haven't had the opportunity to get their name out there. Support and feedback has been overwhelming since the official launch in Late February 2009, so I'm very happy with how it's going!


COXEY: 2. At such a tender age, what a great time to start doing something within the scene. What is it that made you start AWF? Especially at the age you’re at?

Starstruck: Ha Ha, I'm not entirely sure. I came across Hardcore by mistake in fact, I guess it's snowballed from there. I fell in love with the music and started to make a lot of friends in the scene very early. What better way to contribute to the scene than to manage a label dedicated in keeping it alive? I just feel that way about it, I love running the label. Whilst it's been pretty tough and stressful and not to mention hard work at times, Someone’s gotta do it and I guess I'm the one responsible! But to answer your question more directly, a few friends of mine from Australia had a great deal of talent which I wanted to somehow promote. I wanted to have the control of what came out of Australian Hardcore, music wise, I wanted to show people what we're made of really. I want Australia With Force to have a name on the Hardcore map, I want people to remember the name Australia With Force and not to link it to me, but to link it to the talented artists and material on the label.


WEBBO: 3. What’s the rave scene like down under?

Starstruck: Here in Brisbane, there are a few main hard working promoters such as DJ K-Dose, DJ Hazzard and Jen from Jenocide productions (just to name a few). They're putting a lot of effort into maintaining the life of a questionable Hardcore scene here. But what I like about the scene here is that everyone seems to know each other. The Hardcore raves here pull around 200-600 people usually I THINK. But Sydney for example has bigger production companies, and bigger events, which pull more. But Sydney seems to be turning more Gabber /Hard style as far as underground dance music is concerned in my opinion. Perth seems to be a big highlight for the Hardcore scene in Australia, mainly due to the large amount of younger ravers, and the scene seems to be pretty much thriving!


COXEY: 4. Your production. Can you let us in on what makes you so good despite a massive lack of time in learning? I mean at only 16 there is only so much you know at this age right? Or am I wrong?

Starstruck: Haha, I wouldn't categorize myself as anything special or out of the ordinary, I just like to work hard at what I love to do. I'm one of those people who lose interest in something that doesn't provide interest to me in the first place. I think those who want to learn production must understand that they can't expect everything on their plate on Day 1. In better words, it's one of those things that won't come over night, it takes a lot of hard work, trial and error. It's essential in my opinion to trial and error stuff your self, to teach you self, and to see what works and what doesn't work. I think it's a very very good idea to have someone to talk to who knows what they're doing, so they can help you out and provide you tips along the journey. I'd like to thank people such as Influx, Inverse, Lumin8 to name a few who have helped me with my production, because it can be incredibly hard to start from scratch. I started producing in late 2005/2006, but I still have a long time to go and I accept that, I guess I'll just see how the future goes!


COXEY: 5. You’re doing a superb job at what you are doing; creating tracks, mixing tracks, and generally being top notch on the productive side of things. But as for playing out, what can you tell us about what you have in the pipeline in Oz and/or the UK?

Starstruck: Thanks for the kind words, I'm flattered, haha. Well I've recently gotten more serious in regards to the whole DJing side of things. It's a bit more difficult however considering I'm not of legal age to play at a nightclub or an over18 rave event. So a large amount of the parties I'm playing at are all ages. There are quite a few events here in Brisbane I'm playing at that's coming up, in particular an Australia With Force rave in May. On top of that I'm currently chatting with people from Melbourne and Perth in regards to bookings too! I've also got gigs in the USA this year that are nearly all sorted. I'm not too sure about the UK however, but I'm moving to the UK for a year in about 3-4 years hopefully. I know it's a while off, but I thought I'd mention that because I guess that corresponds to DJing there, because I've got a couple of people interested in helping me out when I'm there then so I guess we'll see how it all goes, I'd love to play there though!

 

WEBBO: 6. Are you looking forward to HTID down there in Australia?

Starstruck: Yeah it looks really awesome. I'm not sure if I'll be able to go. A lot of people have asked me, but I'm not sure if I'll be able to make it this year! The line-up is awesome however and it definitely promises to be an awesome event!


COXEY: 7. So that’s what you have planned for the DJ’ing side of things for the future, but the future on a whole. What does DJ Starstruck, Australia with Force have in store for the worldwide hardcore scene?

Starstruck: Well, I'm still working things out, I'm not sure if I'll be able to provide an accurate answer at the moment. In the next couple of years I'll be very busy. I'm currently working on a scholarship application this year to go to SAE (School Of Audio Engineering) next year, in addition to my final year of school this year, I've got even more things down the pipeline. I guess it's still very early days to predict what will go on in the future, but who knows!


COXEY: 8. What is your lifetime ambition in the scene? What would you ultimately like to achieve?

Starstruck: I've got a lot of goals I want to achieve in life, I'm not really sure if I can narrow anything down to just 1 single thing. I've always gotten a really pure energy out of doing things for Hardcore and doing things for others. It really makes my day when I know people are really happy with what I do. I don't expect anything out of it, or any kind of reward. All the profits from the label go to the artists or forwarding the label, not to me. The rewards I get from running AWF are Happy artists, Happy consumers, and people enjoying the music. :).


Thanks once again James. Hope everything goes well for you in the future. And it’s a pleasure to have you do this for EastCoast-Promotions on behalf of every single raver and promoter in the UK of whom are wondering about AWF!

Starstruck: Once again, thank you for the interview. I'd just like to say now, whilst I've got the opportunity, a big thank you to all the supporters and buyers, without you I wouldn't be running the label still. I've been working on a lot of tracks recently as well as organizing a lot of releases. Clips of existing AWF material can be heard here,

http://www.youtube.com/user/StarstruckAWF

And they can be purchased in full length and quality at these 2 places,
http://www.imodownload.com/australia-with-force
http://www.hardbeatsdownload.com

Please feel free to check out the MySpace.com page or drop me a email / hello @
http://www.myspace.com/australiawithforce
australia_with_force@hotmail.com


Thanks again!

-J / SS


Interview by Coxey and Webbo – EastCoast-Promotions
Words by Coxey

For more info on EastCoast-Promotions/AWF/or having an interview done please contact Ash Cox.

Tel: 07787870798
Mail: AshCox@EastCoast-Promotions.co.uk
Web: www.EastCoast-Promotions.co.uk