In 1994 Eddie Gordon producer of the BBC's essential mix asked Paul Oakenfold to create a special two hour mix. At the time Oakenfold was at the fore front of the trance scene and out of the collaboration with Eddie the Goa Mix was born. The Goa Mix was voted best ever essential mix and most requested broadcast countless times eventually winning Specialist Music Programme Category in 1997 at the Sony radio awards.
It was first broadcast on 18th December, 1994 on BBC Radio One. The sound was influenced by the trance parties taking place on the hippie beaches of Goa, India. Trance music at the time used melodic synth compositions which differed to the bass lines and rhythm's used in house and techno. Goa trance had a faster , darker and more psychedelic sound than any other electronic music genre. Eddie and Paul conceptualised the mix, introducing european sounds to soften the over all audio and merged movie soundtracks and samples to make more of an audio experience. Paul adopted a different approach to the mix and tempo control by making massive shifts in BPM, the result shifted the mood throughout becoming an audio journey from start to finish. This was the first time a mix of it's kind had been created.
The two hour broadcast was split into two halves, the first hour referred to as the Silver mix, and the second the Gold mix. The Goa mix virtually created the building blocks for Oakenfold's Perfecto Fluro label. Laterly he moved away from trance by 2000, creating movie soundtracks and various other projects.
The Goa Mix has just been released for the first time - officially, reaching No.4 of the itunes chart on day one of it's release. We thought it was the perfect time to ask Paul a few question's relating to the release...
The Goa Mix is a seminal piece of music. How long did it take you to take to do the original?
It took a long period of time to put the GOA mix together because of the selection process and the nature of the tracks. Clearing compositions from film is very difficult and taking music from various different genres and making it work in key requires a lot of attention to detail in the studio.
Today many critics and dance fans credit it as a fairly seminal piece of music. Did it feel like that at the time?
I didn't feel that at the time. I just enjoyed mixing different genres of music together. I've always been a big fan of film and have used it in some way, shape or form in my DJ sets, so it was an obvious progression for me.
Why did you decide to release it as a proper album, and why now?
Over the years I've been approached by several record companies to release it. I just felt that the time was right.
What's different about this new release to the original?
There’s quite a big difference. The whole album has been mixed again and remastered so it’s a lot more seamless than the original. There are some new tracks that have been added and some re-workings of the classics.
Do you have any plans of any other albums or compilations?
Yes, my forthcoming artist album which will be out next year.
You continue to live and work mainly in America - Including playing your Las Vegas residency @ Rain. Are you enjoying it?
I live in Los Angeles mainly focusing on film work. I deliberately took a back seat from DJing but my residency at the Palms in Las Vegas is going so well that I just extended it for the third year. I play two to three Saturdays a month and we’ve had the good fortune of hosting some great special guests.
What's better about the US than the UK and vice versa?
In terms of electronic music, America has definitely caught up with the UK but England has always been a pioneer of electronic music from the beginning. We have some great new talent and it's important to support and help them develop within the industry.
What's else are you working on at the moment?
I’m currently finishing my new artist album. Also, in December I start scoring a movie called ‘Fugly’.
Who's the most exciting/interesting person you've worked with?
Robert Vadney, a young and talented producer / songwriter from Greece.
Tell us a secret about yourself?
I've been buying loads of art recently.
For more information, check out your favourite record shop for Paul Oakenfold's Goa Mix 2011, and enjoy!
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