Max HeyraudAt 67, Nick Hayes, aka The Last DJ, discovered techno on the road as a travelling salesman and has since gone viral with hardware jams performed on his wheelie bins in his back garden.
TikTok and Instagram DJs have become something of a vicious trope, often associated with what people see as illegitimate or inauthentic social media electronic music acts. But for 67-year-old Nick Hayes, The Last DJ, it means something very different, mainly because he doesn’t DJ in the traditional sense, yet he has gone viral multiple times with his live hardware techno jams.He makes impromptu classic techno using minimal, often budget-friendly pieces of equipment, sometimes even in his back garden on his bins.
He doesn’t look like your typical live techno act, nor does he want to. He’s not particularly trying to “make it”; he’s already lived a large portion of his life. But after discovering techno while on the road as a travelling salesman, he’s decided to have a crack at music late in life, and he’s now reaping the rewards: connecting with artists across the globe, playing gigs across the UK, and claiming a small slice of internet stardom. It’s a heartwarming story about the universal power of techno and a reminder that chasing your dreams isn’t just for the young.
What was your entry point into dance music, and do you remember what first pulled you toward techno specifically?
My entry point into dance music goes back in time with Ike and Tina Turner when I heard their track Nutbush City Limits, way before the techno genre was introduced. Then later, with a mixture of techno and trance from Tiësto.
Would it be fair to say that your relationship with techno developed mainly through listening, rather than through the physical club experience, which can be quite inaccessible or obscure for a lot of people?
My relationship started with listening to techno in the car as a travelling salesman in the UK, with only going to a club on odd occasions, unplanned, on a Friday night out in Wakefield or Leeds. The car radio and CD player were my techno saviour.
Before you started producing a few years ago, had you ever thought about making music, or did it come as a complete surprise to you?
I never thought about producing or making music; it all seemed a very complicated and confusing process. I would always think, when listening to techno, where did that sound come from? YouTube changed everything, and I started to study music software. Before that, I had a DJ controller but was never very slick at mixing tracks.
What was it that drew you toward making music with hardware rather than working in the box?
I would watch YouTube for hours on how to make music with computer software, and then my suggested video feed from YouTube started to show producers using synths and drum machines, and they looked so passionate and involved in the process. And it looked more fun. So I decided to buy a groovebox, which was a combined synth and software controller.
At what point did you decide to start sharing your music and process on social media, and what motivated you to put yourself out there?
I initially started to put mini tutorials on YouTube and social media on how to make music, and one of my friends suggested I should appear in the videos, as it would make them more personal and encourage more people of my age to start making music.
Your content has clearly resonated with a lot of people. Why do you think it’s connected in the way it has?
I think that many people think that making music is reserved for the younger generation and not for someone starting late in life. My approach has always been just get on with it, have fun, and show that both making and playing music should not be complicated. I try to communicate that it’s all about the end result and not about the complexities of sound design.
Through sharing your work online, have you connected with other DJs or producers who’ve inspired or influenced you?
Yes, and I was shocked that they wanted to connect with me. I won’t name any names, but also, in addition to this, members of their family have also connected and have gone on to be musicians in their own right, following in their parents’ footsteps.
You’ve said this all began as a hobby, but you’re now playing gigs. Was performing ever something you imagined for yourself, or did it emerge organically?
It never crossed my mind to perform live music. I thought I would be too nervous. Then I got invited to join the Wakefield Electronic Music Open Mic Club called Electronica North, which is a platform for bedroom producers, and after three months of going to the club, they asked me to play live, and this gave me the confidence to perform. I play every month at the club and visit the EMOMs in other areas to play if they have slots available.
The idea of “going viral” means different things to different people. What does it mean to you, especially coming to content creation later in life?
Going viral meant to me being immediately under the spotlight, and I found it quite overwhelming at first, with some videos receiving over 1,000 comments, and I would try to answer them all. But at the same time, it also led to some great opportunities to work with some great brands and also connect with manufacturers of electronic music products.
Where did the name The Last DJ come from, and what does it represent for you?
The name of The Last DJ comes from an idea I had to write a book 25 years ago called The Last DJ, and the storyline was based on the fact that the world had been taken over by a supreme power and it banned all the DJs in the world, and I was the last remaining DJ on the run from authorities, playing illegal music and underground raves. It represents to me an unfinished novel, while at the same time creating techno music from a simple book title.
How have your friends and family reacted to you making, releasing, and now gigging techno, especially given how different it is from your previous life as a brake pad salesman?
A lot of my friends and family were initially shocked. Although they knew I had a passion for electronic music, I don’t think they expected me to take it to a level of playing live at venues across the UK. And now my relatives and friends come to the gigs and dance away.
If you could give one piece of advice to someone starting later in life, what would it be?
My advice is just do it and get on with it. Throw away the book of excuses for not starting music and watch YouTube; that’s all I did.
The Last DJ plays in Belfast at The Beehive on Friday, the 23rd of January. You can purchase tickets here.
