Posted on: March 4, 2008 Posted by: James McQuiston Comments: 0

Few tales from the Playboy Mansion make mention of the light switches.
Yet, when Dimitri from Paris played in the Gothic-Tudor LA estate, he paid
more attention to the fixtures than he did to the Playmates. “The whole
decor of the place, the furniture, the light switches,” recalls the Gallic
disco selector, “it was like something out of a James Bond movie.” Dimitri
visited the world famous LA pad in 2000, for the launch of his album, A
Night At The Playboy Mansion. Though Playmates were in attendance, he was
more attracted to the décor: “Being in the Mansion was like being in those
magazines.” You see, Dimitri’s penchant for design classics began almost as
early as his love of music.

Born in Istanbul in the 60’s, yet raised in the French capital, he
developed his sense of style during those initial years in his adoptive
city. “My mother used to take me to the movies from when I was eight until
I was 12,” he says, adding that he soon acquired a liking for Rat Pack
movies. “Men were extremely elegant,” he remembers, “they were wearing
everyday suits, but these suits were great.”

His love of vintage tailoring and classic dance sounds dates from that
time, and while rivals have altered their style, Dimitri prefers to stay
true to his chic, discofied roots. “My sound is basically the same as it
was twenty years ago,” he believes, “yet I’m getting booked more than ever
before.” For further evidence, peruse the track listing for this latest
men’s entertainment magazine endorsed release: Dimitri From Paris Return To
The Playboy Mansion. “With this compilation, I have to get a vibe going,”
he explains, “mix tunes that people aren’t used to hearing with ones
they’re more familiar with. I consider it as a single chunk of music,” he
continues, “I want people to be able to listen to the whole thing. It
should have peaks, lows, some sort of a story.” The first disc pairs
break-in-case-of-emergency floor fillers like Jamiroquai ‘Cosmic Girl’
alongside obscure tunes like Musique’s ‘Love Massage’ and recent jazz-pop
oddities like Mario Biondi’s ‘This Is What You Are’.

“Some music lovers might deem the Jamiroquai record too obvious, but
capturing people’s attention was what it was all about” he explains. “’Love
Massage’ is from late seventies, just something I dug out of my
collection,” Dimitri adds. “I’ve been a very avid disc collector, and
depending on the subject matter, I dig deeper to pull out something
suitable.” The Mario Biondi release dates from 2006, yet is no more
familiar to many listeners than the vintage dance 12”s. “It charted in
Italy, where he’s from, but it deserved a bit more success,” he says, “its
one of my favourites from recent years.”

The second disc, meanwhile, features Dimitri’s selection designed for more
intimate moments. “Many people came up to after my sets and said that they
made out to my CDs,” he explains, “I wanted to give them something to make
more of that.” It features sophisticated bedroom tunes like Marvin Gaye’s
‘I Want You’ and William DeVaughn’s ‘Be Thankful For What You Got’. “It was
fun to get the chance to do a downtempo mix,” he reveals, “its not
something I’m usually asked to do.”

Modern and classic, Dimitri still enjoys evoking the sophisticated,
nice-light-switches-and-sharp-suits, Playboy life. “We have this saying in
France,” he explains, “‘in the old pots you make the better soup’. I have
been playing now for over 25 years. I do an old fashioned heart warming
soup, it goes down well, I like it l and I want other people to taste it.”
Stick on the CD and you’ll soon gather that Dimitri’s hopes are well
founded.

Defected Records presents…
Dimitri from Paris
“Return to the Playboy Mansion”
Released: April 22, 2008

North American Tour Dates
Fri March 21 Chicago @ Crobar
Sat March 22 NYC @ Pachita
Thu March 27 Miami @ Prive
Sat March 29 Boston @ Underbar
Thu April 17 Mexico City @ Hyde
Sat April 26 Denver @ Crobar
Sun April 27 Indio @ Coachella
Sun April 27 Las Vegas @ Playboy Club, Palms Hotel and Casino
**More tour dates and venues to be announced soon**

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