Name: Mathew Scott
He's also the in-house DJ for Steve LeVine Entertainment, which hosts nights at venues all across the Valley.
Get the skinny on Soloman by checking out his answers below.
AKA: DJ Soloman
Current Club Nights: Thursday nights at Zuma on Mill, Friday night House 7340 resident at Axis-Radius, and Saturday nights at Zuma.
Preferred genre(s): There are many sides to DJ Soloman. There is the house music soldier that has been spinning since the early days for KIND and Freedom nightclub. There is the Old Town Scottsdale/Mill Ave club DJ that plays to the masses and loves to make people dance to every style of music. There is the corporate/wedding DJ who just does if for the money. There is the traveling breakbeat DJ who has played shows from Portland to Orlando spreading his love thru the underground.
How did you get started as a DJ? As a freshman in high school, I met some guys who were spinning at my high school for a pep rally. I ended up making friends with them, buying my own equipment, and getting their gigs spinning at local high schools and junior high schools. When I came to ASU, I got a job with a profession DJ company and began to do corporate gigs and weddings. Being a huge house music/underground fan, I also began a radio show at KASR. There I met Jas Tynan, Markus Schulz, and everything blew up from there.
What's the explanation behind your DJ name? I was sitting in the Congo Café, on Scottsdale Road in 1990 or so, and they were playing the movie Roots. My name at the time was Sonic. One of the slaves in the movie's name was Solomon. I found it to be a name that can stand by itself, and does not need dj associated with it. So, I have been Soloman ever since. Many people don't realize that Matt and Soloman are the same person.
Where have been your favorite places to spin? The coolest place I ever played, was the MyStudio grand opening/launch event at Fashion Square Mall. The mall was closed, and we set up a huge stage in the middle of the mall and I got to play for over 1,000 people. Not a lot of people can say they've done that!
Favorite experience as a DJ: There are two. The first was opening for Paul Oakenfold at Freedom in 2001. That was the most up for it crowd I had ever seen. The room was electric, the crowd was amazing, I'd graduated from bedroom DJ to nightclub DJ. Then the second was opening up for Tiësto at the Marquee Theater in June 2008. The power and the excitement (for them and for me) was overwhelming. It was 8 p.m. on a Monday night, and I was spinning for close to 1,000 people going mental.
What do you usually drink when DJing? One vodka drink, one shot of tequila, one bottle of water. Repeat.
What do you like best about the Phoenix scene: The weather.
Would you change if you could: The weather.
Scottsdale's nightlife has its haters. How would you respond to them? I do my best to not get involved in that. The scene as a whole can be very political. He said she said, if you play here you can't play there. It can be very cliquey. I try to just keep doing what I am doing.
What are your feelings about the local house music scene? [It's] definitely growing. There was time last year when there were five different house/electro nights taking place on Friday nights. There was House 7340 at Myst, Fuse Fridays at Bar Smith, Plush at the Mondrian, Party Foul! at Homme Lounge, and there were "one" events at Sol y Sombra. That to me is amazing. There is so much going on and so much great music to go out and hear.
Are you involved/associated with any DJ group? Vinyl Tech DJs with Tranzit, Michael James, Beatnick in NM, Maurice in LA, & Dooz. I am also a resident DJ for Steve LeVine Entertainment and have recently played shows with Tiesto and Deadmau5.
Where do you shop locally for your music? There are not a lot of places left to purchase music for a dj. Most spots are online, since most of the music is digital. Gone are the days of shopping for records at stores like London West, Swell Records, and even Plastik Records (back, back in the day).
Last album purchased: Breakestra's Dusk till Dawn. I am digging the chill funk vibe.
Track currently stuck in your head: Kaskade and Deadmau5, "I Remember (Caspa Mix)." That track is haunting! Not quite Skream's mix of La Roux's "In for the Kill Haunting," but close.
What else are you working on? My next project is to start working in video. I a lot of work but into it, but have not launched myself out there yet as a VJ. I give so much respect to the local guys who are working so hard as video djs, Steel, Wyatt Brice, and Sterling to name a few.
