Hannah Holland

 
Art & Culture

Hannah Holland is a product of all the best bits of London club culture. She condenses all the most innovative and exciting parties, scenes, movements, subcultures and music into one frenetic curly haired whirlwind of DJ. Ahead of her Glastonbury DJ-a-thon next weekend which sees he all over the festival we caught up with her for her thoughts on the greatest show on earth and an exclusive mix she’s done especially for this here publication… check it above, siiiiiiiick!

Describe your first Glastonbury experience.
I was 14, bunked the train with my boyfriend and jumped over the fence. we got there in the pitch black and had never put up a tent before, so we slept under it like it was a duvet! Pulp, Orbital, The Orb, errrr who else?! cant remember… But it was a pretty big experience!

You’re playing all over the place @ Glastonbury this year. Block 9, NYC Downlow and with Mr Dan Beaumont @ The Beat Hotel as your superb Paris Acid Ball. Can you tell us a bit about what to expect from the 3 different sets.
Ok, so at the incredible London Underground, you’ll get the full spektrum of Batty Bass with a 4 hr set with myself & Deboa plus the ‘phearsome’ Feral Aka MC Kinky jumping on for some numbers.

 

 

Then it's a hop skip and a jump over to NYC Downlow to join the East London Tranny family for some 1989 inspired, Paris Is Burning, fierce vogue acid and house.

The following night myself and Dan Beaumont will be raising the roof with some festival bangers and classics, the bigger bouncier tunes in our collections for full festival impact!

You recently spent a year in Berlin, does Germany have anything close to Glastonbury?
I’ve never been to anything as big or as diverse as Glastonbury. Where NYC Downlow and Beyonce can exist in the same place!! Berlin has great spaces for festivals, Fusion is amazing. But nothing compares.

You’re playing at London Underground in Block 9 this year with your other Batty Bass co-horts Deboa & Feral. Tell us about these two.
Deboa is our faithfull and trusty resident. He’s one of the best warm up djs in the world as well as smashing places to pieces at peak time. Our history goes way back to teenage jungle days, so we have a mutual understanding of the music we love.

Feral AKA MC Kinky has been part of the extended family since the beginning, an east end legend, an acid house top of the pops star, her ragga drool and phearsome tunes gets dancefloors wild.

Festival ‘Do’ from our roving reporter Jack Le Pen: “Keep sunglasses on day and night and simply blank anyone that you cant face trying to talk to.” Agree/Disagree?
Depends what drugs your on!

Back-stage camping, what are us ‘normal’ folk are missing out on. Is it all porcelain toilets and champagne and oyster bars?
Yes! and naked men fanning you as you lay around eating grapes!

What do you think of the whole festival chic fashion police that have emerged over the last few years? Impractical and too much pressure or another aspect everyone can get excited over.
Who cares??! Just have a laugh and do whatever floats ya boat.

Is there part of you that would prefer to be without the commitment of performing to just indulge in the festival or are you able to manage both/a professional?
It’s a real honor to perform and i love the whole experience, ive been going for over 15 years , so to now be able to perform and enjoy the whole weekend is a really full circle moment and i thank my lucky stars!!!

There are certain culinary delights I start to look forward to and signify Glastonbury for me such as the thali cafe, brothers cider… and pies! Any staple there that gets you through?
I usually live on those nut/energy bar things and cider, really cant remember eating anything else worth discussing!

Have you ever sat down to watch a film in the cinema tent?
The first time i ever went we watched Pulp Fiction, that was really nice, but it was outside not in a tent.

Have you ever broken in?
Yes the first 2 times i went, age 14 then 18. The rest i have luckily been performing there, so the breaking in worked out and obviously inspired a lil teenager to one day play music at this incredible place.

What other festivals in the world fall in your top rated?
Exit is mindblowing, set in medieval castle grounds, its spiritual man! Sonar is great for checking out really interesting new electronic acts.

Weather predictions this year?
Sun Sun and Sun :)

Most confusing festival story?
I saw a tranny give birth at about 10 sunday morning in the Block 9 crew bar ?!

Biggest festival cliche?
Overdoing it on the first night, which is unavoidable this year…bring it on!!!!!!

Been quite a year for BB, with the move back from Berlin. What’s ahead for Batty Bass in 2011 and beyond?
We’ve got load of great releases coming out this year and our residency in XOYO and The Star to keep the party bouncin.

Apart from heading over to see you (3 times of course!), who else should we be checking out this year?
Beyonce is ganna be such an amazing moment, cant wait! Dan Beaumont, Sqeaky, Robert Owens as well as some other amazing djs will be gracing the NYC Downlow decks, along with some magical trannys, which is where ill be mostly!!!

You’ve put us together a mini-mix for the festival. Can you tell us a bit about it.
Laced with Janice Joplin and Jefferson Airplane’s festival chitchat…the tracks are the big festival bouncers condensed.

In 3 words, what does Glastonbury mean to you?
Outta this world

battybass.blogspot.com/

Catch Hannah all over Glastonbury festival next week… gonna blow! Amazing mix above… check it!
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