If you are from the Kitchener/Toronto area, you may know who this man is. If not, here is your chance to find out. I have known of DJ Kitcho for quite some time now, but even I didn’t know the extent to which Kitcho has contributed to the EDM scene over the years.
I asked DJ Kitcho to tell me a story about one of his experiences as a DJ. Here it is:
“Easy & the 5th Toronto, ON”
“I remember first going to Easy as a patron and really liking the layout and interior of the lounge. Its design resembled a suburban Loft. The music was ok, nothing groundbreaking; top 40, old school hits with some Latin flavor. I remember watching the DJ spin, and he would never beat mix the songs together. It was simply a fade in fade out transition. I thought to myself, “I can do that and much more”; and I eventually would. Fast forward to August 6th, 2004, I’m DJ’ing at Easy & the 5th and this guy comes up to the booth and informs me that Rick James had passed away earlier that night (2004). In respect to the man, I played Super Freak, Give it to Me Baby and Party All the Time (Sharam remix) all in a row. I didn’t make an announcement on the mic, for the reason that the owners didn’t want ANY MC’ing done at Easy & the 5th. Even when it was time to make the standard “Last Call Announcement” they would make me play a cd that had the message recorded on it; weird. Although I didn’t notify the crowd of his passing, they loved the Rick James montage and I was thrilled to have created that vibe.
During my set that night an attractive inebriated girl came up to the booth to request a song. Conversation went something like this…”
Drunken Girl: “Do you have the new Armani Van Halen?”
Me: “Who?”
Drunken Girl: “Armani Van Halen”
Me: I couldn’t help myself from laughing. I replied with a simple “Yes.”
The track she wanted to hear was My, My, My, by one of my favs, ARMAND VAN HELDEN!
I also asked DJ Kitcho to answer a few EDM related questions. Here they are:
Q. How many years have you been a DJ? Where?
A. I’ve been DJ’ing for 17 years. My first gig was in 1995 but I got my big break DJ’ing the club circuit in Kitchener-Waterloo and Toronto in 1997.
Q. What genre(s) do you DJ? Who/What drew you to this genre?
A. It depends on the venue I’m playing at, but I normally spin House music along with club versions of top 40 songs. I gravitated to House music the moment I first heard it. My introduction to House Music was in grade school when my younger cousin played me a tape and it was early techno stuff. This would have been around 1987-1988.
Q. If you could choose to relive one year of your DJ career, what year would that be? Why?
A. It would probably be the year I worked as a DJ for Carnival Cruise Lines. I was DJ’ing on the biggest ship in the world (at the time) and I had my buddy Steve Knisley with me. He was loads of fun and chatted the mic well – we made a good team. I was 21, DJ’ing on this massive ship that had a gorgeous Discotheque called the Point After Disco. I DJ’ed New Year’s Eve 1999 in that Club and that was probably my favorite New Year’s ever. Lots of fun and we played some really good music on the ship. Of course you had to play the hits but we were able to culture them a bit with some club anthems. We gave it a go and it usually worked out fine.
Q. What is your earliest musical memory?
A. My brother had lots of records and he would listen to AC/DC, KISS, stuff like that. So gradually I got into Heavy Metal and Rock as well. I was 4 years old and I remember opening up the KISS ALIVE 2 Record and I was in awe with what I saw. It’s a picture of KISS playing on stage, but it looks like something out of a Star Wars movie! To this day KISS is my favorite band and KISS Alive 2 is one of my favorite Records that I own.
Q. Give ONE example of something that is unquestionably “raver”.
A. I’ll give you three – Acid-House, Whistles and Glowsticks
Q. What do you feel has been your greatest achievement in the electronic music scene?
A. Hmm, I still don’t think I’ve attained my goal in the music scene but I guess I’m happy with spreading the voice of EDM to the clubgoers. I tend to play stuff and take chances with my dance floor, meaning I don’t always play it safe and play the obvious songs. Sure I’ll play a top 40 hit, but I’ll usually play a remix of it and then follow it up with something the crowd has never heard before like a catchy house tune that doesn’t’ get radio airplay. There’s so much good music out there to be heard. I think it’s silly to continuously play the same stuff you hear on the radio day in and day out. I like to add a twist to the songs I play and I’m fortunate that I DJ in a club that allows me to do that.
Q. Name ONE key feature/quality/element that the electronic music culture cannot exist without.
A. Its fans.
Q. Name ONE key feature/quality/element that a DJ cannot exist without.
A. Music! Without it a DJ is just a regular person.
Q. Briefly discuss women and the electronic music scene.
A. Women have been involved in the EDM scene since its inception really. If you look at the Disco Movement one of its biggest stars was Donna Summer who along with Giorgio Moroder created one of the biggest Disco Anthems – I Feel Loved. Not only has that song been covered numerous times it’s been remixed to death throughout the years. When discussing women and DJ’ing I think it’s great to see more females getting involved in the art. I remember when I first heard the song “Feels So Good” by Sonique. I didn’t find out till afterwards that she was a DJ. She’s extremely talented and she’s just one of many females that have contributed her talents to EDM.
Q. If you could be any other producer for 1 year, who would you be? Why?
A. That would have to be Armand Van Helden. He’s been my favorite since I started DJ’ing. His Speed Garage remixes are timeless. He’s contributed so much to EDM – Just listen to his album “2 Future for U” – it’s a classic.
Q. Who is your favorite non-EDM musician?
A. KISS
Q. Where in the world would the ultimate EDM party be hosted?
A. The Parthenon in Greece. That would be fantastic. Choose any Greek Island and that’s where the after party will be! ☺
Q. What has been the WORST contribution to electronic music?
A. Um, Paris Hilton DJ’ing. Yuk!
Q. Briefly discuss men and the electronic music scene.
A. Heterosexual men, Gay men, whatever type of Man; they’ve built this thing called EDM; but without the female singers; this couldn’t have been accomplished.
Q. Do you read/have a subscription to a music based magazine?
A. I’ve been reading Mixmag since the mid 90’s and I also read online blogs. Digital DJ Tips is also a great DJ website.
Q. What drives a DJ?
A. For me it’s sharing the music with the people in a club or on a mixtape (or MP3 nowadays). The whole process is exciting for me. I explore and search for new songs, I buy it or download it and then I play it for the crowd.
Q. If you had to pick one genre of electronic music to be destroyed, what genre would that be?
A. Hmm, I’m not sure. However I really don’t play anything over 140BPM.
Biography:
A. Christopher Mihas a.k.a DJ Kitcho was born on August 18, 1977 in Kitchener ON, Canada and is the youngest of three children. His parents immigrated to Canada from Greece in 1968. Adapting well to the Western civilization, a temporary stay turned into a permanent settle for the Mihas family. He is a founding member of the group Exo and has also released 3 songs as a solo artist. Aside from being a recording artist, Kitcho has been DJ’ing the club circuit in Toronto, Kitchener, and his hometown of Waterloo for 14 years. In addition, he has DJ’ed for Carnival Cruise Lines, aboard the Carnival Destiny at the Point After Disco & the Carnival Triumph at the Hollywood night club; which at the time was the largest ship in the world! Drums and percussion are his forte – at times he’ll include live Congas to his DJ sets. In 2010 he was runner up with his mix “It’s Not Techno It’s House” for the DJ MAG Top 100 Party competition. He’s currently working on new material for a 2013 release and also writing a book on DJ Culture and E.D.M. You can view his published articles at digitaldJtips.com
Website – cmentertainment.net
Soundcloud – Kitcho has 3 releases under SOAR records and is continuously recording new material. Interested in discovering new original pieces of music? Check out his sounds at www.soundcloud.com/kitcho77
Mixcloud – Take pleasure in listening to DJ Kitcho’s exclusive mix sets at mixcloud.com/djkitcho. His mixes transcend various genres but mainly focusing on House and Oldschool Funk music. His mix entitled “It’s not Techno its House” was runner up in the “DJ Mag top 100 party” competition.
Past Nightclub Gigs:
Stages
Club Renaissance
Wax
Elements
Inner City
Cocktails
Loose Change Louie’s
Easy & the 5th
Cache
The Drink
Splash
ZuBar
Hollywood Night Club
Point After Disco
The Vu
Exit 2 Eden
Sammys Garage
Whiskey Jacks
33 Degrees North
Big Sexy
S’opra
Money
