Jeffrey Sfire is set to DJ at Skylab Gallery Saturday. Credit: Courtesy of Suzy Poling
A long-running Columbus record label specializing in dance music continues its revival with another installment of its party series at Skylab Gallery.
Skylab — located at 57 E. Gay St. — will host DJs Titonton Duvanté and Jeffrey Sfire Saturday at 10 p.m. for the fourth edition of Residual Presents, a series of collaborations between the gallery’s performance space and Columbus-based record label Residual Recordings. The series, which began in March, marked Residual Recordings’ first event in Columbus since 2017.
Duvanté, who founded Residual Recordings in 1998, said the Residual Presents series came from his own desire to perform in a more relaxed and open environment when playing Columbus shows.
“I play quite a bit out of town and I don’t really always have the opportunity to play in an open format when I’m in town,” Duvanté said. “These shows are just a way for me to really stretch out.”
Duvanté said he wanted to provide a space where other DJs could play longer sets than at typical shows.
“These parties are an opportunity for artists that we really look up to and respect to be able to play for longer than 2 1/2 hours,” Duvanté said. “I enjoy hearing DJs come and play the hour set — it’s bangers from start to finish — but it’s kinda nice to give them an opportunity to play longer, to tell a story with their set.”
Sfire, a DJ who spent much of his youth in cities including Detroit, Chicago and New York City, said his sound is a mixture of variations of the house music that emerged from those cities throughout the late ‘80s and early ‘90s. He said his sets also include a variety of regional styles, including acid techno — known for its squelching synthesizer sound — freestyle and Italo-disco.
Sfire said the inspiration for many of his sets results from listening to DJs on the radio and at shows in the Midwestern house and techno scenes during the 1990s, which he referred to as his formative years.
“I grew up in Detroit, so I was surrounded by such talented, high-quality musicians and DJs, and it pushed me to be very skilled and do my homework,” Sfire said. “The standards are very high there, but that also means we’re always hearing incredible music.”
Sfire said he’s been familiar with Duvanté’s music since his adolescent years.
“I’ve been seeing [Duvanté] at parties since the mid-‘90s when I was a teenager,” Sfire said. “He would play at all these raves I would go to, these warehouse raves in clandestine locations, and so I’ve known him for a while.”
Sfire said the idea to perform with Duvanté came from a mutual appreciation between the two, adding they had been seeing each other perform at various events over the past five to 10 years.
“I lived in Berlin for a while, so when I came back, I restarted DJing a lot more in the Midwest and I was seeing [Duvanté] around in Pittsburgh or Detroit,” Sfire said. “I think we were just like, ‘Oh yeah, we should DJ together more,’ and that’s how this happened.”
Sfire said Saturday’s show will be his first time ever performing in Columbus. He said he’s seen a lot of artists play shows in Columbus, and that he’s always admired the city for its extensive alternative music scene.
“I know Columbus’s claim to fame is that the Cocteau Twins played there in the ‘80s, so I’ve always known that there must be something cool there,” Sfire said. “Being from Detroit, I have a lot of love for those smaller Midwestern cities. I know there’s a lot of heads and people that appreciate good music there, and oftentimes, those are fantastic parties to play at.”
Duvanté, who has opened for the three prior Residual Presents shows, said what sets the label apart is that it encourages artists to explore the more unusual strands of dance music.
“The term ‘residual’ is kind of the leftovers, something you may not always get to experience,” Duvanté said. “So that’s what we’re trying to do, both with the label and the parties: play music that may not otherwise be heard.”
More information about the event can be found on the Resident Advisor event listing. Early bird tickets can also be purchased in advance via Resident Advisor for $13. Additional tickets can be purchased at the venue the day of the event — $15 before midnight and $20 after midnight.
