Paul-O on top times, tragedies and tales from the Northern underground

[@djpaulo]

Thanks for the opportunity to chat Tom - it was great fun. I'll answer any questions if folks have them btw - as Lee says, we could have probably gone on for much longer......

[@ROARUKPods]

I wonder if we could set up some kind of live Q&A sometime? You'll need to make your audio better though Mr O. ;-)

[@djpaulo]

@@ROARUKPods definitely - and yeah I need to invest in a better mic (used the one in the webcam - sorry). I've literally just ordered one from amazon, so let me know

[@ROARUKPods]

@@djpaulo Let's chat about how us luddites might do it and make it work.

[@mixmastermiddy]

Hi Paul, great interview. For me I was a big fan of your resident dj’s (and mc’s of course 😁) how much do you feel that contributed to the success of Uprising and how did they come about gaining residency? Cheers

[@sniperauditsuk6237]

How many times did you retire in 25 years ?

[@LeeUHF]

Quality stuff right here. More of the Yorkshire scene Please... M-Zone, Stu Dizstruxshon, Topgroove?

[@sigh909]

Another vote for M-Zone 👍

[@joelswatten9611]

Lee just like to say Hardcore Machine is one of my favourite records, absolute banger mate.

[@LeeUHF]

Andy Bowler would certainly be another good one along with Stu At Dizstruxshon events.

[@CHRISDJS72]

What a brilliant interview, uprising has to be the best event in yorkshire,You have to give it to Paul-O and Kenny for creating such a event, Last rising was a belter

[@nickdavis531]

Loved watching this! Met Paul-o a few times, he lives near me. Top guy, who brought a great rave to us in South Yorkshire. The best thing about uprising was the vibe and the people, a truly unique atmosphere compared to other raves. There are no strangers at Uprising.... Just friends that you haven't met yet. Top stuff Paul-o. Hope to get to the rising soon.

[@sigh909]

Good interview. Paul O sets from Tomorrows World were always wicked!

[@rottweiller8759]

Nothing can compare with uprising at the aldephi DJ and mcs atmosphere was second to none

[@amnesiahousetv3953]

Another great interview. Respect to Paul-O! Noizee.

[@solesearcheruk5587]

Interesting interview! Think Paul hit the nail on the head! I went to Uprising many times, particularly late 90s early naughties. And it was quite unique from what was going on from around the rest of the country. You could have M Zone playing hard German Trance, then Demand playing really hard gabbery stuff then Dougal straight on after playing happy hardcore. It did really cater for all tastes, probably why it was as successful for as long as it was.

[@rottweiller8759]

Mc natz would be a great guest knows his stuff about the scene.

[@deanwild7641]

Great interview. Paul-o talks a lot of sense and seems so down to earth. He gave me my first paid Dj gig at uprising as warm up. How many promoters can say they pay new talent warm ups? Always respected him for that. Loved what he did with uprising putting different styles in one room. Definitely educated people from Yorkshire and introduced them to new music. Respect paul 👊🏻

[@M3ow_pawzz]

Loved Paul O, played some absolute bangers back in the day! Great bloke, and great DJ 🙂

[@KevGee]

Great interview guys! Just a a quick one on the MCs. You really have to be at an event to see the full picture as on the tapes its doesnt translate as well. But yeah. Paul-O is def one of my Hardcore heroes and saw the slide way before it happened and decided to actually get a full time career doing something else before the inevitable happened. Paul - You missed one name of your best djs list!!! STU ALLAN!!!! But yes UPrising was great as a MULTI Genre event! just like most raves in the 90s!! Really enjoyed this guys thanks!!!

[@djpaulo]

I know Kev - I've already apologised for Stu. How did I miss him off?!

[@KevGee]

@@djpaulo I must have missed it mate! Apologies if you mentioned the big guy!

[@sigh909]

Andy Bowler (Vortex) the man behind North Radical Technology would be a good guest. Be nice to hear more about the hardcore techno scene from back in the day. 👍

[@zak3428]

Always rated vortex

[@tomevans4833]

Agreed

[@stevebradley3145]

Best.Event.Ever... Some of the best nights had and best friends made at this club from 96-03. Shout out to everyone from that era !

[@mickmoss9119]

Glad to see some chat about Revolution; though it only lasted a year or two was something super special - I went to every single one, and even now 20 years later, i still wish i could go just one more time!

[@djpaulo]

Cheers Mick - I often think the Rev events didn’t get the same love as Uprising, yet they were very successful at a time the scene was fucked. We just about managed to keep it fresh and not slip into the boring happy stuff that was, well......boring

[@SlapDashVideos]

Never made it up to Uprising sadly but this has been a fantastic interview. Been a great insight into the shit that happens behind the scenes for a top promoter. 25 years in the game, massive fair play! 👏 The "Poundland Eminem version" description about the MCs cracked me up I've gotta say! 😆

[@alwhyte6533]

You put the album on, and you listen to it. Great advice!

[@kjn6505]

Rhythm nation every Saturday getting my Uprising tapes. Would love to have the 4th Birthday sets from 99

[@djhightoweruk]

Wicked thanks Tom, Chrissie and Paul : )

[@willgraham5105]

Loved this Big up Mr O always knows how to get the place bouncin

[@Cloughjordan23]

Didn't know this fella but this is a good interview. He came across with a sound attitude and was refreshing to hear.

[@colingram8785]

that was great, really enjoyed it. Great to see the 'North' getting some recognition!! ;)

[@djbrettcoopere3498]

Loved this podcast, uprising was easily the best event around the 2007- 2011, always got a good mixture of music there

[@bigtwentytwenty]

That's a very good point regarding skipping album tracks which in the olden days might have grown on you, which nowadays get skipped or deleted altogether! I don't know about you but the value of music vs. the cost vs. the time we have to listen to EVERYTHING which is now available to us means personally i now actually need to reduce the size of my digital crates so that when I'm playing I don't waste time. The time it takes to listen to music is more expensive to us as we get older than anything else so I've developed an attitude that if I can survive never hearing a track again, or can cope just letting other people play with them, into the recycling bin it goes, sadly. In the 90s I used to edit together tapes of John Peel playing one or two rave tunes here and there because it was free music in a time when I was getting into debt buying vinyl... A question I wish you'd ask your guests is if the "current day you" could go back in a time machine and meet the "1992 you" (for example), where you told them about life in the 2020s, how would your 90s self feel about the easy access of everything? I think teenage me would wonder why 40 year old me is ever depressed. This should be absolute heaven yet many of us miss the record shopping. Every town I visited, I'd pull out a Sanctuary flyer, look up the ticket outlet as they'd usually be record and merch shops, and go there to meet people. Now I have nowhere to mooch in a new place and end up in a pub getting fat. LOL

[@krisbuckley3059]

Fantastic stuff. Being a Rotherham lad my first ever rave tape was Paul-O and Topgroove at Uprising, somewhere around ‘95-‘96, copied from a mates older brother (soz for the lost income Paul but I was only 13 😂).

[@djpaulo]

Haha - it's all good pal. I'm not gonna send the bailiff's round.... ;-)

[@hobokeegan]

Yessss this should tide me over til Force & Styles pt 2 hehe

[@benblackshore]

Really enjoyed this one, the chilled chat felt very relaxed - well done

[@rottweiller8759]

I remember a tape I had for years at school it was Paulo kenny sharp topgrove back to back think they called the night legends last sets best tape I’ve ever owned gutted a didn’t have a back up copy because you hammered them cassettes and they used to chew up every time 😔

[@LeeUHF]

And 100% Gary Vibealite. He is on Facebook as Gary Jaques. He replies and is active, And he has a wealth of knowledge and stories

[@ROARUKPods]

Have added him.

[@LeeUHF]

@@ROARUKPods Tell him I said hello

[@undergroundbass946fm]

Yes please. Vibealite was incredible and I went to nearly all of them at venue 44

[@robynswain8044]

Loved uprising mcs and m-zone they were the best it was a yorkshire thing 😀

[@LeeUHF]

You know what also, If they'd be up for the tough questions you could possibly throw at them. Mike & Grant at Slammin. They always seemed quite open when you did catch them for a chat and sound guys. Obviously there was a lot of hate for Slammin at one point not having their fingers on the pulse etc. But they are responsible for the biggest parties the Rave scene saw around the late 90s and early 00s

[@CraigCairney83]

Really enjoyed this interview. Well done chaps.

[@Happyraver82]

Went to Norma Jeans on a Thursday when Paul was playing. Went to first Uprising and was one of the regulars when it was at Revs in Roth. Went to the Stu Allan night at the Tivoli, those who were there that night do know what a night that was! Oh and it was my tape of Paul's first ever Uprising set that Paul got hold of and uploaded to his sound cloud... Goodtimes ;-)

[@djpaulo]

God bless you for that too - back in the early days, I only did a couple of tapes and pretty much gave them away. It was Gary (Vibealite) who put me onto doing tapes properly and I only started from the 26th Jan. Those first 2 weeks are probably buried in some lucky folks' collections somewhere - a proper piece of raving history. Oh, and if you ever want to let the original come back home.... ;-)

[@Happyraver82]

@@djpaulo if I had the original I would. I got your 1st Uprising set off Danny Wooton. I was part of his crew back then and he let me copy it. Had no idea I had only copy until I let someone called Tony Benson lend it, then he told me he gave it you to listen to and you uploaded it. Pretty much sold all my Uprising stuff to him, I've just got the memories now :-)

[@djpaulo]

@@Happyraver82 yeah Dan RIP. WE were hoping to take him wild camping before he passed and drink this crazy Bacardi 151 rum I managed to get a hold of

[@LeeUHF]

Some great insight to people who aren't used to that Yorkshire scene. Coming this myself and crossing over if you will into the regular Midlands/London scene it was a big big change and having been one of the few that has done this from Yorkshire I can see the big differences from a point of View like Paul's who nails it. Easily could have gone 3hrs of chatting here I bet with some of his stories haha

[@benblackshore]

Ron Wells would be a great interviewee, when he was on Jay Cunnings he was interesting AF.

[@AngryBulldogg]

Haha same as the northeast MCs. They did some rabbiting but that was just how they are in the northeast. Used to love Techno T when he was on one going mental

[@reggie933]

Rained off work this morning, so brew and roar it is then

[@paulgibbons4461]

Top interview hopefully you’ll get some more northern lads on

[@ians691]

Fantastic interview with a fantastic interviewee. Not coming for Yorkshire I'd heard of Uprising but never even seen a printed interview with Paul-O. What a great guy. Have asked Lomas on Twitter about the "drink" incident :D

[@djpaulo]

We actually did him twice - his "trip" back to Wales was probably fun :D

[@ians691]

@@djpaulo I'll report back if he replies :D

[@djpaulo]

@@ians691 I'm still in touch with Steve - he's doing much more sensible things these days

[@ROARUKPods]

What's his Twitter handle?

[@ians691]

it's @lomas_to_a_king

[@jayviperdj]

i was lucky enough to play at Uprising and Revolution late 90s and i had never experienced monitor speakers so loud in my life, i could feel the bass wobbling my cheeks (on my face i may add) I contacted Paul to ask if he could sort me cheap tickets for my Birthday as Sharkey was playing and his response was "fuck that lad bring your tunes you can play again" long long time ago but you remember stuff like that for as long as you live. Great times and what a fantastic thing to do for a young lad as i was at the time.

[@ROARUKPods]

He's a great guy.

[@LeeUHF]

He mentions why it may be harder up north, I don't think it necessarily is but the further you went the harder it got. My opinion on this was that Up in the North area from Scotland to Sheffield you had a few Djs playing the main rave circuits who were championing a much more European sound. Scott Brown etc were playing alot of Mokum, Paul Elstak and the like, M-Zone a a handful of others were playing the Bonzai trance etc. both of these sounds had releases at 170-190bpm and beyond so they fit well into rave music. Where as it feels as though the South of this the breakbeat sound was prevalent and not so much the euro sounds of the north. This seemed to lead to these Djs like Paul etc been booked for harder sets and Mzone for fast trance sets at hardcore raves and the genres were featured much much more.

[@djpaulo]

I'd say there was a hug influence from Europe - and it was largely down to M-Zone; first booking the acts from Holland, then the trance acts. A huge influence for me was Scott Brown and I lapped up his Shoop, Evolution, Twisted, Screwdriver, etc. Plus we were blessed with some great record shops - especially the legendary Rhythm Nation in Doncaster

[@ROARUKPods]

@@djpaulo We will aim to get Mick M Zone on soon. And Scott brown too, of course.

[@LeeUHF]

@@ROARUKPods That would be ace!

[@colingram8785]

I was from Stoke in the North, I was mostly into Breakbeat Hardcore but the prevailing sound around 94 onwards was a bouncier version of Hardcore that was humongous in places like Club Kinetic, Diehard and Uprising etc. I probably would have been better in relocating South lol, but I enjoyed dancing to the bouncy stuff, but my heart was always in the Breakbeat style. It wasn't always a given that everyone in certain places was into whatever was the dominant sound; it killed me a bit to see the music mid-95 change tack and become Toytown et al, I just couldn't embrace it as much anymore even though I like a lot of the Dutch 'Happy Gabba' of the time period!

[@nsrpnsrp]

I remember those Thursday nights in normas (Norma jeans) chesterfield amazing times when you could go to Hudson’s records and see Kieth to get the latest white label tracks on vinyl 👍

[@twixaphen9386]

DJ Mashdocta on the wheels of steel and ELL on the mic too 😂😁

[@ians691]

One suggestion for interview - The Rhythmic State. They were interviewed on Mallorca Lee's podcast (soundcloud.com/mallorca-lee/the-1994-oldskool-show-ep03) - Any interview that features anecdotes about being in a tank in the first Gulf war listening to Technotronic, being subject to police harrasment, having guns pulled on them, and having to have meetings with the IRA prior to performing in a club (including being banned from mentioning the word "hardcore" in their set). Brilliant (although of course, maybe people will have already heard the Mallorca Lee interview)

[@eremiteghost1572]

Good stuff.

[@pr5235]

This was great love it get Natz Would be very interesting!!!!!

[@bobskins12]

Cracking interview. Sean and Dave from Diehard next ;)

[@ROARUKPods]

How do we find them?

[@bobskins12]

@@ROARUKPods Daves pretty active on the Diehard Facebook page (m.facebook.com/profile.php?id=17318168368&ref=content_filter) not too sure about Sean

[@Dee-l2g]

I missed a trick, having never been to Uprising. Despite listening to the best of it 95 - 98 (like Paul O says) on the regular growing up.

[@simonbuck1623]

Yes yes Paul its Bucky bro (aka mc merlin )from Worksop. Me and my pal heathy used to come porterhouse Thursday nights banging.big up urself n all da lads beats mick m zone byo crew Marcus and ell etc too many to mention bro shout to robbie e and my old army pal Mr Glen Pilling. Not forgetting chezzy crew Gary vibealite massive cheers for letting me mc downstairs at doghouse. God time flys miss the 90s bro nuff respect browse Bucky

[@djpaulo]

Wotcha buddy - good to hear from you. Seems like a lifetime ago, doesn't it?

[@simonbuck1623]

@@djpaulo yes Paul Bucky here bro nice one for reply n yes it does seem like a lifetime ago. I miss those days pal.well I'm still living in Whitwell stook in this lock down pal hope you and your family are all good ya know with this covid brother

[@dc110770]

Yes, great idea. Let’s get someone on talking about Jungle Techno! A lost style which was great.

[@ROARUKPods]

Not lost, quite a lot of new stuff being made in that style.

[@rottweiller8759]

Remember the revolution they where great

[@leolicursi3536]

Saw him tomorrow world

[@simonbuck1623]

Rising best do's going Paul one in a million best days of my life apart from having my kids brother.

[@Dee-l2g]

Ruff neck mixing chicken 🐔 in the place!

[@hobokeegan]

ok yes pleasseee get Ron Wells on the show. Would be amazing

[@andylilley6543]

Yea I gotta get MZONE on legend, and jay Prescott would be good aswell DJ/ promoter

[@Aceface007]

'Screw House... play this Hardcore shit'

[@sniperauditsuk6237]

How many times did you retire as an artist ? 🤣

[@LeeUHF]

Like I said he was there from start and is here now. That's the overall bulletpoint Not really sure what your point is here buddy as you're bringing up a technicality that they cover in this interview anyhow. He mentions bri took over. It's just a finer detail you're pointing out that no one would really care about

[@badda_boom8017]

I think I'm alone with this. But the comment about vinyl. I totally disagree. I hated carrying my huge ass record bag.

[@vinman3057]

Who