Soane: Doorman - DJ - Producer

Auckland House DJ Soane Watkins (nee Filatonga) has certainly come a long way since he first started DJ-ing hip hop in 1989. Then he was working as a doorman at The Box/Cause Celebre in Auckland's High St.

This was the same time as other influential DJs and musicians like Nathan Haines, Manuel Bundy and Rob Salmon were residents at the now sadly defunct nightclub.

Soane is now one of New Zealand's most popular and highly paid DJs, who has compiled three mix CDs to date and frequently plays around the country and overseas in countries such as Australia, Britain and France.

Not content with spinning other people's tunes all the time, the 33 year old, Vava'u, Tonga-born DJ first started making his own tunes in 1998 and, after many years of hard work, has finally released, his long-awaited debut album, 'TonganChic', named after his former 95bFM radio show.

"I've often said that the defining moment was when I was working the door of The Box / Cause Celebre and standing at the top or the bottom door between the two rooms," recalls Soane when I meet him at a Karangahape Road pub.

"There would be this 'oomph oomph' coming out of The Box but every now and again, someone would walk out of Cause Celebre and they'd be tinges of jazz filtering through over the top of the 'oomph oomph.' I'd be like 'this is amazing!' I was exposed to some really great music and great musicians.

"I used to hang around in Celebre as well because I was friends with Nathan and that. I remember before samplers had come out, Nathan and I would go into the studio and make loops off records, put them onto DAT and take the DAT player down to the club. Manuel Bundy would be in the booth and I'd be sitting there with a DAT player. I'd play the DAT with the backing track and then the band would come out and jam over the top of it. Then Nathan would cut the backing track and the band would play on."

Soane first began making music around five years ago after meeting his 'TonganChic' collaborator, producer and engineer Luke Tomes, who has since worked with the likes of Bic Runga, Stellar* and King Kapisi.

"We got hooked up through Esther (Watkins - Soane's wife)," recalls Tomes. "I'd been working at a studio doing soundtracks, commercials and stuff which was kind of like slow torture for me because I didn't enjoy it musically. I was at an advertising function, standing there in my hoodie amongst a hundred suits and Esther was at the bar. She was like, 'You don't fit in here, do you Luke?' 'Yeah, I've just noticed that too.' 'You should hook up with Soane and do some music.' Esther then put Soane up to calling me and doing something."

Soane may have first worked in a studio with Tomes but it was his burgeoning friendship and musical partnership with touring English DJs Ben Davis and the now Auckland resident Dick Johnson that was to prove pivotal. The trio released Le Saucier, the first 12 inch vinyl single under their 'Troffman' alias on Blackpool-based Shaboom Records in 2000. Soane's inaugural solo outing Go Master emerged in 2001 on the closely-linked Manchester label paperecordings, who also signed him to an album deal.

Unfortunately, delays inevitably occurred as Soane took time out to master the necessary technology and by the time 'TonganChic' neared completion mid last year, paper had folded. The album was then picked for worldwide release by Karangahape Road-based independent In Music, who had previously distributed paperecordings in New Zealand and had already enjoyed success with their Soane-helmed first mix CD in 2002.

"We decided to go with In Music because it was going to be released on an independent label anyway, which gives you creative freedom. The major labels have a colour-by-numbers way of marketing and it's not necessarily always the best way. I didn't want to get lost and become yet another act on a major label."

Despite house being Soane's main DJ staple, 'TonganChic' encompasses a much wider musical palette, which harks back to his hip hop roots on tracks like Feelstyle (former King Kapisi cohort/ House of Downtown rapper) and Boh Runga-sung first single All I Need.