Camden has always been great, for years now it has attracted all kinds of weird and wonderful characters and has been the hub of all the best live music and DJ sets in London. Last Friday i jumped on the Northern line and headed to NW1's best pub, The Lock Tavern to meet party starting Ca$hback DJs (and sisters) Ash and Steph Barker for what proved to be a great night of music, drinking and dancing. The girls were kind enough to sit down with me over a few beers before their set and have a little chat about what makes them tick and how they came to be putting on what has turned into one of London's best nights out.
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| Ash and Steph rocking out |
We're from County Durham, the posh part of the north of England, (well, we tell people it's posh, it's not really!)
So what brought you to our fair city?
Steph: A boy! i came down for a boy! ha!
Ash: and i came down to get her away from the boy!
Oooooohh scandal! wanna elaborate?
Both: No!
Hahahaha fair enough! Why did you settle in Camden?
Oh well a couple of years back it was pretty cheap plus all our friends were here so it was natural for us to end up in Camden and we wouldn't swap it, it's awesome.
Tell me about the name, how did you come up with ca$back?
A: well it's a few things, one is an Alan Partridge reference and another is that i used to work behind the bar and all our friends would always ask for cashback...
S: and it's also something our mate Dave Danger shouts at that special moment when he is in bed with a lady!!! hahahaha.
Really?! He sounds interesting!
S: Dave Danger is a legend!
How long have you been running this night and how did it start up?
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| Shuga |
A: well the the pub approached us to start it really,
S: i think it started September 2009,
A: i was working behind the bar anyway and the pub was normally taken over with all of our friends so the management thought it would be good to put some bands and DJs on and they knew we would get people down and fill the place up.
How did you two end up DJing at the night?
S: we agreed to do the last hour of each night.
A: we said we wouldn't do more than an hour,
S: we haven't got the patience for more than that and we end up arguing about the songs and stuff!
I guess that's inevitable being sisters?
A: well yeah. we like a lot of the same stuff but when we are both behind the decks we sometimes end up trying to pull in different directions.
So how do you pick the songs?
A: Steph normally pics them and if i disagree then we normally have a fight!
Both: hahahahaha no we love each other really! We are actually really close.
S: i remember the first gig we ever did we had a massive row before we went on over which songs to play, we were literally stood back to back playing!...
A: but then we played a song that we both loved and it helped us make up and then we were fine! We always make up and it's usually over someone like Beyonce!
Beyonce?!
Both: hey! we LOVE Beyonce!
S: we don't want just anybody coming in, it's normally friends, regulars etc, we never normally let big rowdy groups in,
A: we have people we don't really know that have been coming to the nights for ages, its a little exclusive but it has to be, that's how we want it and the place isn't huge so we want just the right amount of people in.
How often is Ca$back on?
S: it's only once every 3months now, it's too stressful and too much hard work to do it anymore than that. We both work other jobs, and mainly do this for fun,
A: it's so much easier having two of you doing it, it really helps and is more enjoyable.
S: it really helps if the bands are up for it too,
A: we have had bands that are a bit arsey and it makes everything more difficult but then we have had bands that we haven't been able to pay, just given them some food and drink and they have brought like 30 people down that have stayed and partied all night, if the bands really want it, it makes the nights go off a lot better.
You always get pretty good names here,
A: yeah we have had Tribes play about three times, Turbogeist, Bebe Black to name but a few,
S: we seem to be a lucky charm, every band that plays here seems to get signed pretty soon after!
What do you guys do when you when your not DJing?
How do people hear about the nights you put on?
A: we put the stuff on facebook but it's mostly word of mouth,S: we don't want just anybody coming in, it's normally friends, regulars etc, we never normally let big rowdy groups in,
A: we have people we don't really know that have been coming to the nights for ages, its a little exclusive but it has to be, that's how we want it and the place isn't huge so we want just the right amount of people in.
How often is Ca$back on?
S: it's only once every 3months now, it's too stressful and too much hard work to do it anymore than that. We both work other jobs, and mainly do this for fun,
A: it's so much easier having two of you doing it, it really helps and is more enjoyable.
S: it really helps if the bands are up for it too,
A: we have had bands that are a bit arsey and it makes everything more difficult but then we have had bands that we haven't been able to pay, just given them some food and drink and they have brought like 30 people down that have stayed and partied all night, if the bands really want it, it makes the nights go off a lot better.
You always get pretty good names here,
A: yeah we have had Tribes play about three times, Turbogeist, Bebe Black to name but a few,
S: we seem to be a lucky charm, every band that plays here seems to get signed pretty soon after!
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| Fun Bobby and Ash |
A: i work at an advertising agency. it's great and a really creative environment,
S: i work as a PA at a music management company, we deal with some pretty cool people like Suede and Chrissie Hynde, it's all good, it has it's moments.
When i meet interesting people like yourselves it's always nice to hear your recommendations, little pearls of wisdom to pass on etc so here goes:
Can u recommend to me:
A, a restaurant in London?
S: Bintang on Kentish Town rd, amazing thai food and you can bring your own booze!
A: it's got to be the Big Easy on the Kings Rd, its a crab shack, does great American style food, steaks, ribs, wings, lobster, crab etc, its brillant.
B, holiday destination?
S: i will always say New York, i just love the place.
A: Barcelona for me, it's a beautiful place.
Place to shop?
A: there is a place on Redchurch st called Labour and Wait that does great kitchen wear, really quiky stuff, it's a bit expensive but i love it!
S: for the record i'm 23, i'm young and hip, i'm not bothered about kitchen essentials!
A: i love kitchen essentials, so sue me!
S: if it's vintage your after you can't really beat Brick lane or Covent garden, i know everyone says that but it's true, oh and the Rokit on covent garden is better than the one over east by the way.
Film?
S: Point Break, no question! Love it!
A: Parenthood, an old Steve Martin film, brilliant.
Tv show?
A: i love the American Office and right now i'm loving Homeland.
S: i'm obsessed with Eastenders and Coronation street!!!
New band?
Both: you have to check out our friend Bebe Black www.myspace.com/bebeblackmusic we heard her singing in our kitchen one day and she just blew us away, we told her she has to start making music and she has, she has just been signed and i can't describe in words how good she is.
What are the top five acts of all time you would have play at your dream festival?
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| Steph |
S: Nirvana, Johnny cash and Beyonce! i don't need anyone else!
A: Nirvana, Tom Jones (when he was all young and chesty), Bruce Springsteen, Pixies and Tina Turner.
What song are you going to have as the first dance at your wedding?
S: i know i'm not getting married but if i ever did it would be November Rain by Guns n Roses but only if it was exactly like the video.
A: Mine is gonna be The way you make me feel by Michael Jackson!
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| Shuga |
A: believe it or not i do think about this stuff too, my music to die to would be anything by Edith Piaf.
S: oh my death tune would be Bye bye bye by N'sync, defo.
Really? i thought you may chose Interpol or something like that..?
S: nope, N'sync 100 %,
Haha, fair enough.
A: my walking off into the sunset tune is Tiny Dancer, Elton John.
That is a brilliant choice, love it!
S: i'm choosing Pressure drop by Toots and the maytals.
Girls these tracks are fucking perfect! Well done!
What gigs and festivals have you got planned?
S: Leeds festival is the one we love, we go religiously, adore it,
A: This has got to be the 7th year on the spin that we're going, oh and Field day too.
I think for the line up and the people that go, Field day is London's best festival, i think it pisses all over Lovebox which is pretty popular.
Both: totally.
A: and i like that they have brought it forward to June, the weather will be better. Oh i think i'll go to Bestival too, always a great laugh.
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| It's a DJ love-in |
Was there a special moment that turned you on to music? I hadn't been to a single concert until i was 18 then a load of us went to Milton Keynes Bowl to see Oasis and that was it for me, it just blew me away and totally transformed my life, it was like a message from God! This was where i belonged! i must have been to about 500 gigs since! What was your moment?
A: my story doesn't really matter we've got to talk about Steph's, go on Steph,
S: no its embarrassing, you tell it,
A: when i was about 19, so Steph would have been 15, i was rather lamely, massively into Jet, we went to this big gig up north where they were supported by 10,000 things, you know Sam Riley who went on to play Ian Curtis in Control, they were his band. Well my sis had never been to any kind of live music before,
S: never, ever,
A: this was the kid that wore a tracksuit and was into Blazing Squad, the whole place was going mental and i just looked round at Steph and she was just going crazy, really loving it, i thought 'ahhhh you cute little bastard!'
S: it's something that can make me and Ash cry when we think about it,
A: you're right it was like a seminal moment that we will never forget.
S: i just changed over night, like, bought my converse, started buying the NME, haha who the fuck did i think i was, but yeah, i realised this is for me, this is my music, i can't be listening to fucking Scooter for the rest of my life! ( even though they are wicked! haha, leave that in).
Any strange shit happen at any of your gigs?
S: it's something that can make me and Ash cry when we think about it,
A: you're right it was like a seminal moment that we will never forget.
S: i just changed over night, like, bought my converse, started buying the NME, haha who the fuck did i think i was, but yeah, i realised this is for me, this is my music, i can't be listening to fucking Scooter for the rest of my life! ( even though they are wicked! haha, leave that in).
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| Photographer Beki Cowey |
S: hmmmm mostly just Bobby, he's not one for getting wrecked all the time but at our nights he always gets wasted and has the best time, he's so funny, he DJs with us.
A: he says Ca$hback makes him the person he wants to be! hahahahaha!
Fuck, that's brilliant, you should use that as your tag line!
A: yeah 'come to Ca$hback and become the person you always wanted to be!'
S: he makes it for me really, so yeah keep an eye on Bobby.
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| Tuuuuuune!!! |
S: hmmm not really, they can't get to us cos we're tucked up in the corner.
A: i remember one time we DJ'd in Sheperds Bush and i was shit scared that we wouldn't have enough songs so i went and bought this multipack cd of RnB classics, This group of guys kept asking for all these new hip hop tunes and we didn't have a fucking thing!
S: that's the thing with us, we don't keep our ear to the ground or anything, we play all classic hip hop and RnB, like Wu Tang clan and Jay Z, Warren G stuff like that.
A: i mean all the bands we put on are mostly guitar bands so we like to offset it by playing hip hop in our set.
S: we never have a set list, it's always just what we feel, we DJ off cd's or records, we never have anyone playing our nights off a laptop or ipod, we don't allow it.
A: you won't here any minimal or anything like that, i want to play Michael Jackson and i want people to go fucking nuts i don't want a room full of people standing there nodding their heads.
So, the whole thing about female DJs, i must say it's very very hot! Do you get chatted up by the punters? I'm your mate and i know you both have boyfriends but if i was just some punter i would defo chat you up after seeing you in the DJ box! hahaha,
Do you play drunk?
A: no never,we would mess it up!
S: i did it once years ago, i was DJing at Proud for Smash n Grab and i was off my nut because i was so nervous, there must have been 600 people in the room and i hadn't been doing it long, i was thinking 'shit, i have to play music for all these people, i ended up so drunk i was just slumped in the DJ box, i think Bobby had to come and rescue the set! That was a wake up call, never again.
Is there a song that always makes the room go crazy?
S: well when i was a kid i used to love wrestling and i remember The Rock brought out this tune with Wyclef, i dropped that one night for a laugh and the place went mental! i think it took everyone back to being kids, it was pretty funny, i thought i would get in trouble but they loved it.
i'm really looking forward to playing MIA's new song, Bad girls, tonight, i think it will go down well.
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| Ash |
S: would you!? but you said i was weird!
I said i like you cos your weird, it was a compliment, weird people rock, normal people are really boring!
S: ah that's ok then, ah thanks Dan,
A: we have had a few people removed but that's because they were being dicks, not really chatting us up, we always have all our friends with us so we are pretty protected.
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| Steph |
Both: if you want to have loads of fun, see great live bands, dance your asses off to wicked old school tunes and mix with a really friendly crowd then you should hit up Ca$hback! It makes you the person you always wanted to be! hahahahahahaha xxx
I'm a Ca$hback regular now for sure and i strongly suggest you check the girls out, you will find them in The Lock Tavern, 35 Chalk Farm Rd, Camden, it's one of the best pubs in London and you would be mad not to check it out!
All attached images are strictly © Beki Cowey / Bekitakespictures (2012) and are licensed to Ca$hback for use in conjunction with internet promotion of their club night. Further use is not permitted without prior consent, and unauthorised use in any media is prohibited
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