In recent years ALISHA has built a burgeoning reputation in the UK house music scene, originating from thehumble UK city of Peterborough. A city which isn’t commonly associated with house music talent but there is always an exception to the rule and the exception is ALISHA. With a recent release out on East End Dubs label Eastenderz, we caught up with her to find out what’s new in her world, and her plans for the rest of 2022…
Hey ALISHA, what’s good and bad in your world?
Hey! Thanks for having me. Only good things here, can’t complain when you have the best job in the world! 😊 Everything’s going great and couldn’t be happier!
How did you hook up with Eastenderz to release there on your new release?
East End Dubs has supported my music for years now. I’ve also been going to his parties for a very long time and just loved the sound & vibe it has created. After sending some music to him I thought I’d actually create some demos to see what he thought. Luckily he loved them & signed them after playing them a few times whilst I was there in the club.
The label text says you have been away but are now back – where were you?
I’ve always been here. I just took a short break from releasing music, especially in the pandemic. I moved studios and wanted to really create the sound I loved to play. It’s important not to rush music to release, what’s the point? Quality over quantity is what I live by!
How much has your sound changed and evolved in that time?
All of my productions have that ‘ALISHA’ sound to it. It’s just how I process the music to make it sound more mature over time. I never sit down in the studio and tell myself what I’m writing. It just happens! I believe you learn and grow with every track you make. And that’s exactly what’s happened with me.
What inspired the new VISIONS EP? Where and when was it written?
The underground feel to the clubs inspired this EP. It’s quite gritty but also has the groove at the same time. Hallucinate & Offenn was written last year in my old studio & Visions & Burnen was wrote early this year in my new studio. East End Dubs wanted to take the raw sounding tracks he once heard and supported last year and merge them with some fresh material. Almost telling a story!
What is in your setup now, and does that affect the sounds that come out?
I’m all in the Box, always have been, always will be. Personal preference, everyone’s different. But nope I just experiment as much as I can with new plugins & sounds.
When it comes to DJing – are you someone who likes to get people in a trance, or who likes a sense of fun in their sets, or who likes to shock etc etc etc?
Every set / crowd / venue is different. You can never determine what will be infront of you. But each and every gig I bring my energetic sound & groove and making people dance and happy is my priority.
And where is your best environment? A small dark club or a huge outdoor festival stage? Late at night for the weirdos or early so you can play slow and eclectic etc etc?
Both are amazing but a smaller capacity club I love. I’ve just recently done an all night long in a 400 cap club and it was one of the best shows I’ve ever done. You can connect differently with smaller venues. Festivals are amazing to play though of course.
What’s next? What else have you got coming up?
Summer is very busy. Lots of debuts such as Paradise IBZ & Creamfields, and some exciting elrow shows abroad & lots lots more. More music to come also of course..
What was the last record you heard that made you go wow and why?
A track by a good friend of mine Max Dean – Future is bright. Probably one of my favourite producers right now. The track is incredible & switches the crowd everytime. Currently unreleased but hopefully will be shared to the world soon.
ALISHA EP “VISIONS” is out now on Eastenderz
Grab it here
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