Morgan Page.
Electro house DJ Morgan Page’s most unlikely pairing has proven to be his most fruitful. He first teamed up with folk-rock singer-songwriter Lissie in 2008 for “The Longest Road”; Deadmau5’s remix of the song would go on to be nominated for a Grammy in 2009, and Page would go on to make three more singles with Lissie. Here’s where you start to see the importance of remixes. So for Page and Lissie’s latest collaboration — “Open Heart” — they recruited a whole slew of DJs and producers to remix the EDM banger. Dave Audé, who’s worked with everyone from Yoko Ono to Rihanna and co-founded the electronic label Moonshine Music in the early ’90s, has a go at “Open Heart” in a high-energy house remix Flavorwire is pleased to premiere below. Read on for a quick Q&A with Page, who’s in the midst of a US tour, about what makes a great hook girl in dance music and more.
Flavorwire: Dave Audé and his Moonshine Music have been around for nearly 25 years. Was he someone whose work you followed when you were younger?
Morgan Page: A lot of Dave’s productions on Moonshine were definitely an inspiration. I’ve been wanting to get Dave to do a remix for ages, and felt like “Open Heart” was a good match. He’s had over 100 Billboard #1s [across various charts], so it’s hard to argue with that!
You’ve worked with Lissie multiple times now to much success, particularly with “The Longest Road.” What is it about her vocal style that you think makes a good accompaniment to what you do?
Lissie has a certain sawdust to her voice that I love… it’s missing from a lot of dance music — that extra grit. There’s so many records where the singers are just imitating each other, and you can’t even tell the songs apart.
Lissie’s voice works especially well when I combine it with analog synths and guitars, so with every song I’m trying to combine synthetic and organic elements.
You have a new album — DC to Light — out June 9, and it’s your first in three years. What’s changed for you in terms of inspiration since then, and how does that factor into the album?
DC to Light means full frequency — it’s more clubby and more aggressive than my usual stuff, but the focus is still on great songs that last the test of time. My inspiration always changes, and you can wrap up the songs in different ways, but the song is really the foundation of everything.