The Carry Nation is a production/DJ duo comprised of Will Automagic and Nita Aviance, based in New York City. They throw a roving monthly party in Brooklyn also called The Carry Nation – named after its sometimes 12-hour run-time! They’ve also played out of town from Toronto, Chicago, San Francisco to Pittsburg, and from this weekend, London!
How did you guys hook-up?
WILL: Nita and I have known each other for many years, though not well until more recently. Both of us have DJed all over NYC since – or before – we were old enough to be in the clubs we were playing. Early on, we used to go and hear each other DJ, sometimes secretly. Years later we would reveal the DJ respect we had always had for one another, though we never discussed it back then. As time went on, we began to invite each other to guest DJ at whatever party the other was doing at the time, mostly Tubway and SPANK. One day Nita asked me to lunch and said, “Let’s make a record together.” We pretty much gagged when we discovered how fun it was to work together. We both continue to work alone as well as part of other collaborations.
Describe your sound to us.
NITA: Sometimes we look at each other and say, “OMG this is too crazy.” We tend to make the weird mix within any remix package. We both draw inspiration from a huge variety of genres, similar to the way we DJ. Because of this, we like to go different directions for different projects. That said, there are some conceptual and sonic elements that are consistent throughout our productions. The length of the parties we throw in New York allows us to get to many different genres throughout the night – and day! Nothing is off-limits, but we are very grounded in house and the NYC historical context as it relates to house music.
You’ve produced some big tunes.
WILL: One of our first tracks was ‘This Bitch Is Alive’ featuring Viva Ruiz. We sent this to many, many labels without much response. Early on we had decided that Batty Bass [UK DJ Hannah Holland’s label] was the one we really wanted it to come out on. We were just about to go with another label in Europe when we got a message from Hannah that she wanted to sign it. We were very happy and have loved being adopted by the Batty Bass family. That track and its video got us a lot of attention and kept things moving. In addition to Batty Bass, we have released on Nervous, DFA, Get Up, Kinetika, HNYTRX and Cocktail D’Amore. We also release on Tribal, which re-launched as a label with one of our collaborations with London’s The Cucarachas. In May we will release a two-part mix album on Tribal comprised of tracks from the back catalogue and new Tribal material.
How is the New York club scene at the moment?
NITA: Anytime someone says that the NYC club scene isn’t happening, it just means they aren’t looking hard enough. The city is filled with drive and possibility, so there is always something great and unexpected, though sometimes you have to work to find it because of the way things are structured. That said, the bigger clubs are beginning to adopt really good music policies, which we are very happy about.
How does London compare?
WILL: We LOVE London, and nothing makes us more excited than coming and playing here. The magic is completely different and exciting. The team spirit within our DJ community across the sea makes it fully contiguous with New York.
The Carry Nation Top 10 Tunes
1. ‘Vodka & Valium’ – Tony Blitz
Crying on the dance floor.
2. ‘Sweat’ (The Carry Nation Remix) – Stereogamous ft. Shaun J. Wright
Shaun’s vox are so luscious.
3. ‘Feel This’ – Stefano Ritteri
Bass and imagery.
4. ‘Run’ – Carter Bros
This is where you are dancing to the vocal more than the beat.
5. ‘Klaxon’ – Wongo
So crazily massive.
6. ‘Ramp’ – Ms. Dynamite + Menta
Old School! Been listening to this for inspiration.
7. ‘Nostaljack’ – Robert Dietz
Impossible not to dance.
8. ‘Baby Hell No’ – Elijah Collins ft. Ned Palmer
We love everything Elijah does but had to pick one.
9. ‘Live It ft. Xander’ (The Carry Nation Remix) – Hannah Holland
Odd one that completely changes halfway through. Xander’s vox representing NYC.
10. ‘All Night Dancing Party’ (Justin Martin Remix) – Pezzner
Pretty much a perfect dance record.
• The Carry Nation play at Blocheads at East Bloc (217-219 City Road, EC1V 1JN) on Saturday 29th March, 10pm-6am.
