Max HeyraudBefore their sets at Jägermeister’s #Savethenight gig at Wigwam today, we talked to Gemma Dunleavy, X Club. and Collie about the places, sounds, and people that inspired them and still do.
Collie
Where did you play your first gig, and are there any memories attached to that venue? What did it mean culturally at the time?
My first gig was in a little place called Quinn’s in Drumcondra. It’s completely gone now. Culturally, it was a place where a lot of young DJs and club goers felt less intimidated going to it, rather than the cool places like the Twisted Pepper, that feeling soon faded lol.
You’re one of Dublin’s busiest DJs now, but your journey started many years ago. Which club nights helped shape your sound in those early days?
Illicit will always be the party that helped me shape my sound, but it was also pepperings of the All City shows in the OG Bernard Shaw and the early days of Berlin Bar, which really helped me carve a name for myself.
X Club.
What was it like getting into club culture in Australia? I imagine it was a bit of a bubble. What was the scene like, and how did it influence your style?
The beauty of Australia being a bubble is that we are all friends. The same mates we had around us at the very beginning are the ones we are playing alongside all around the world today. It’s a tight-knit community, which can be a challenge to break out of at times, but has meant there’s a mutual support like no other.
Our style was definitely influenced by a mixture of what we saw going on around the world and what was happening in Australia. Australian producers being so far removed from the rest of the world gives us a unique spin on things, which is something really unique.
Which clubs and parties were important to your rise, and what were your first experiences DJing like?
The TBC club in Brisbane was very much the hub for our generation in Brisbane where we are from. Back when we were 19/20, this is where we met each other, and met so many other Brisbane legends such as Skin on Skin, Willaris K, JamesJamesJames. This club very much gave birth to a lot of the talent from our city.
Brisbane also had a very strong scene of underground parties that really shaped our taste and style. Cyber, Pocketmoth, A Love Supreme, BTHC, these are just a few that were really formative for us and important in our local scene.
Gemma Dunleavy
Can you tell us about discovering Dublin’s club culture—where you went, what the crowds and community were like, and your feelings stepping into that world?
My first club experiences were all at a club called The Twisted Pepper (now called Wigwam) in Dublin. It had that cosy, sweaty, dark basement vibe that made you feel like you’d transcended to another world for a few hours, a deadly sound system, and a crew of dedicated regulars who would staunch it out until close every night. I saw so many memorable DJ sets there, Four Tet, Joy O, in this tiny basement with sweat literally dripping down the walls. It was glorious. There hasn’t been anything like it since, and I don’t know if there ever will be. My friends and I went there most weekends for years; it was a real institution with a solid staff and door crew. I don’t think we ever imagined a time when it wouldn’t exist. It was a perfect moment in time, and I’m grateful to have been a part of it.
The Dublin club and music landscape is constantly under threat; venues close, new ones open, and the cycle starts over. How do you think that affects the culture?
It doesn’t allow culture to breathe, which in turn stops the community from growing. My clubbing nights at The Twisted Pepper were formative in shaping my music taste and the friends I made. Sharing those one-off moments, knowing they won’t happen again, with people you care about, that’s magic. I couldn’t imagine not having that in my life.
