Marcus Lambkin’s heady blend of beats and visuals

Date Published: 19-Sep-2012

As the success of the Stone Roses’ reunion has shown, there is a demand for the sounds of the late eighties and early nineties. In the world of dance music, rave and acid house are resurgent. Fans of these genres, or anyone who feels like putting on their dancing shoes, should check out The Shit Robot Show when it comes to Galway City to play the Róisín Dubh in Dominick Street this Friday.

This audio/visual show is the brainchild of Dublin-born DJ Marcus Lambkin. Marcus’s love of house music began in his teens, when he used to sneak out to the now defunct nightclub Sides.

“I started reading about it in Face magazine, and hearing about this acid house explosion that was taking off in the UK,” he recalls. “Then one time, weirdly, I went on holiday in the South of France with my parents. And they had this nightclub on the campsite and the guys there were playing acid house, and it was kind of blowing me away.

“I came back and then started seeking it out, going to Sides a lot. Then I bumped into [fellow DJ] Johnny Moy, who’s from where I grew up and I knew him all my life. Then Johnny started DJ-ing and throwing parties there too.”

Marcus and his friends were rave enthusiasts, and organised shows around the country. But the nascent scene soon became more popular, and illegal raves were replaced by successful club nights. What was it like being part of that scene?

“It’s very hard to describe, but there are certain records with that warehouse vibe which to me says ‘lasers and hand in the air’,” says Marcus. “This was before they clamped down on the rave scene, and it moved into the clubs. It had this great atmosphere, which I’ve always tried to recapture when I’m making music.”

But Marcus’s youth wasn’t just about partying. He finished his apprenticeship as a cabinet maker and began to get itchy feet. When he won a green card lottery for the US, Marcus left his native Ballybrack and headed across the pond.

For more, read this week’s Connacht Tribune.