Yo, its been a little while since we have had a one on one with a pal. This time we got talking to FingerManEdit all the way from the UK.
We’ve had our words, plus he was kind enough to hook us a mixtape.
Need no delay.↓
Firstly, How did you get your name?
Haha! It came about when a friend of mine clocked a weird stop motion video I did on my phone about a shouting finger. It sounds ridiculous I know but its the truth. The guy had never met me before so to him i was the “Fingerman”… kinda stuck with it I guess. When you Dj about you use various names. Thats the one that suited me with the edit stuff.
You have been djing for over 15 years, you must have seen some trends come and go. How did you start out?
My sister got me into music as a teenager. My parents too for that matter. We used to listen to a lot of Eagles, Crosby Stills Nash & Young etc. One day I was at a party and heard the Orb’s Ultraworld LP and was instantly hooked on Electronic music. I went through many phases over the years that followed. Psy-Trance, Ambient then onto Techno, House and Breaks. A couple of years ago I was into Bass and Electro stuff then a bit of Dubstep. That got stale really quickly for me. During this time (about 5 years back) a friend and myself were playing at a Funk & Disco Bar/Club in Brighton (Casablancas) every week and thats when I caught the disco bug again. I wanted to play dj friendly versions of those tracks as the live production was a bitch to beat match. My dj partner got me into Ableton and I just went from there really.
To me you are some one of an Edit King. I dont think ive gone a week with out an email from you with your latest edit. Having what seems to me, a billion edits under your name. How does your process go down?
Haha! Edit king! Thats funny. Anyway… Like I said above I want to make Dj friendly versions of old classic disco and funk tunes. Make em sound a bit more up to date without losing the original feel too much. I sometimes have a few projects on the go at once… i tinker… i leave them to set then I tinker again until i’m happy!
What gear are you running, do you have a mix of both the Analogue and Digital worlds?
I use Ableton for my editing and production. I would love to try out other software but to be honest I’m pretty shit at understanding how they all work. 2 years in and i’m still finding new ways to manipulate Ableton!
Living in the UK, hows the disco scene suriving. Are you doing many Gigs with yourself?
It seems to be alive and well, yes! Lots of great partys knocking about. This month I’m playing at a party in Southsea with the guys from Civilisation Of The Rough (COR) which promises to be a good crack. They’ve hosted some top guests in the past. In May i’m playing at GG’s Funk party in Stamford with Justin Green from Grooveskool Radio… those guys are off the hook. Later in the year I should be also playing in Brighton. (Fingers Crossed)
Coming from the Old School, have you made your switch to running serato or traktor. Or just use CDs?
I guess you could call me old school. When playing out I use cdj’s. I enjoy the hands on feel of a turntable. I also have nightmares about laptops crashing during sets so I steer away from laptop djing… plus if you’re a punter theres nothing more dull than a dj staring at his/her computer when they should be engaging with the crowd. Others would disagree I’m sure… its a never-ending disagreement! Haha!
Having said that do you still go crate digging?
Yeah sometimes. I still have plenty of vinyl. I had so much until last month but I moved to a smaller property and had to downsize. I kept the stuff that i couldn’t part with and have recently started looking at vinyl again. It’s a bitch to carry to gigs. Thats the part i don’t miss!
What are the future plans of Fingerman?
I have my “Too Much” edit forthcoming on Touchsoul music which i’m really chuffed about. Plus my “I like the Sounds” edit has been picked up by the wonderful boys at Get Down Edits that will hopefully be a vinyl release! Thats gonna be amazing. To Be honest I’m just scratching the surface so in the meantime I shall be keepin’ on! Oh and I have my weekly radio show on Grooveskool to keep me occupied! Every Sunday night from 8-10pm on http://www.gsrs24.com/, people!
Top 5 Tracks at the moment?
Bob James – Stealin’ Feelin’ (HartJam)
Fingerman – Too Much (Classic edit)
LeSale – Make Me Feel So Good
Dj Steef – I Can Wait
Gazeebo – New Directions (Organ Donor Mix)
Artist to look out for?
Andy Hart has some mad skills, Il Totoro Fratteli (2 Guys just hopping on the circuit), Dj Steef, Thomass Jackson, Alphabet City, TV, The Shit Hot Soundsystem, Anything by Nelue and Dynamicron. There’s heaps more but i’ll leave it there 
Grab the Mixtape off our Soundcloud.
Tracklist
Fingerman – I Like The Sounds (Edit)
Late Nite Tuff Guy – One Night In The Disco (Greg Wilson Version)
Late Nite Tuff Guy – Hold Tite
Mighty Ryders – Evil Vibrations (SteEdgeEdit)
Wilson Pickett – Don’t Knock My Love (The Owl Edit)
Kasso – Walkman
Gazeebo – Bedroom Bullies (Rayko Remix)
Melba Moore – Take My Love (Fingermanedit)
Moton Records Edits – On The Run (Diesel & The Reflex Edit)
Rocco Raimundo – Steamy Summer Sonnet
PBR Streetgang – Downstroke (Original Mix)
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