URLOPOP – Hi Mario, tell us about yourself, where are you from, where did you live before living here in London?
MARIO – Hallo and thanks very much for this interview… Let’s make something clear at first! I have not yet moved to London. I live in Athens and I am moving to London usually three times a month. As I mentioned before I am from Greece, but I fell in love with London since the first time I been there.
URLOPOP –How long have you been working as a DJ?
MARIO –I am djing since I was 18 ….
URLOPOP – How old are you?
MARIO - I prefer not to say my age!
URLOPOP - Who and what influenced you in your work as a DJ when you started?
MARIO – Love for the music and nothing else… Of course there are big differences in the music of 1980’s decade and the music of our years… Now the music is coming out of machines, everybody easily can make music, but the point is if all this stuff is ‘’real’’ music! I like house music, but I prefer at my home to put a Pink Floyd’s cd in my cd player, and enjoy it.
URLOPOP – In which clubs did you work before coming here to the Buddha Bar London?
MARIO –Lots of venues as Enigma club Santorini, Dekko Passa, Baraonda Athens and more...
URLOPOP – How do you find it living in London compared to your home?
MARIO –A lot of clubs as Enigma club Santorini, Dekko, Destijl, Baraonda, and I am still djing in Athens some days of the week at the best cocktail bar of the town called 360 degrees.
URLOPOP – How did you end up playing as a DJ at Buddha Bar London? Was it just a coincidence or something you planned?
MARIO –I was in love with the music of Buddha bar since Claude Challe released the first cd of the series. Dj Ravin continued this great work and I believe Ravin inspired a lot of people, not only djs to this kind of music and that’s the reason he is a legend! I met Buddha bar London’s resident dj Omar Gharbi in Athens one year ago. He came to the place I was djing, he listened to me and he offered me a gig at Buddha bar London last September…. It was the same period I had release a track with my project ‘’DREAMERS INC’’ in Buddha bar XVI cd compilation, so things became more easily …
URLOPOP – What is your favourite kind of music?
MARIO –That’s a difficult question. For example as I mentioned before, my favourite group is Pink Floyd but I love also to listen to groups as Secret Garden, Pink Martini, Club Des Belugas, composers as Mike Oldfield, Craig Armstrong, Brian Eno etc… I love good music and good music has no borders and limits….
URLOPOP – What kind of music do you prefer to play for your audience?
MARIO – It depens of the place. When I am playing at a club, house music has the first word… But I also love to play music in bar-restaurants because there I can play more styles of music.
URLOPOP – In your opinion how do you make a strong transition from one track to the next?
MARIO – Just take a look at the crowd you are playing for. Dj needs to be a psychologist too!
URLOPOP – A strong set can truly be more than the sum of its parts. How, do you feel, is the music transformed in the hands of a DJ? What do you think, in what way are you trying to create an experience that is more than just stringing together a few excellent tracks?
MARIO – Dj is an entertainer. He has to feel the people and what the crowd wants… For example if you are djing for 1000 people, you must have variety in your dj set. It depens of the venue and of course the age of the crowd you are djing for.
URLOPOP – Would you like to mention some person that has worked with you and you would like to thank?
MARIO –Of course my mate at ‘’Dreamers Inc’’ Thanos Kalentinis and my partner at ‘’Sub Thoughts’’ (the new project) and also my teacher at conservatory, the man who learned me keyboards, Costas Christodoulou (he is one of the most inspired composers of Greece and its pleasure working with him).
URLOPOP – Tell us about an evening you enjoyed in particular?
MARIO –There are so many! My last experience at San Marino and Snapps Cube with my friend Fedderico was perfect!
URLOPOP – What are your wishes or expectations for the new year?
MARIO – Hapiness and luck for all the people. I also want to make a wish for the people of my country to find again their lost smile and have a brighter look to the future.
URLOPOP – Please recommend two DJs to our readers.
MARIO – Because most of the questions was about bar, what else ???? Mr.Claude Challe and Ravin!
