Hugh Lawton: First of all, you've been resident at Tribal Sessions in Manchester for nearly two years now. How do you feel you, and your musical style have changed since then?

Greg Vickers: Yeah, I've been playing at Tribal Sessions for over 2 years now,ﾠI think I've missed only a couple of friday nights in about 18 months! Playing a weekly night is a massive challenge, keeping your sound fresh is great as it keeps you on the ball, its easy when you are just guesting at clubs as you can get away with playing similar records!!

I've definetly grown into my residency, I've always been into deep stuff with a funk element to it, at the end of the day it needs to be music that puts a smile on your face when you listen to it. I would say my sound has moved more towards a pure house tip, but i will still drop breaks and tech house. I play with a wide variety of people, so my sound needs to be adaptable. One week ill be warming up for Digweed, the next for Jeff Mills! And as im usualy playing the beginning of the night at Sankeys the musicﾠI play needs to entice people away from the bar and onto the floor!

Hugh Lawton: How would you describe or define your sound?

Greg Vickers: "House Music with funk"... but not funky house if you get my drift, One of the main problems with dance music these days is that it has been splitﾠinto so many different sounds that people only want to go out and hear one sound and people categorise certain djs as playing only a certain sound. This in turn,ﾠI think has lead to a lot of negativity in the scene.. At the end of the day.. if I like it then ill play it!

Hugh Lawton: What was your first musical experience, and how did you eventually decide to try your hand at Djing?

Greg Vickers: I actually had quite a musical up-bringing! I started singing in the church choir whenﾠI was 8 years old!! Laugh you may, butﾠI had a great time, I was even on telly at one point singing my heart out! Anyway, this was definetly the catalyst to the rest of my musical up-bringing,ﾠI soon started playing the tenor horn, and then whenﾠI was 11 or 12ﾠI started listening to early dance music, stuff like the prodigy and stuff like that, anyway my mum was not amused. ﾠI left home to go to Manchester uni in 1998, Sankeys funnily enough was one of the raesons for me choosing to go to Manchester, it shut down 2 months before i got here.

I started DJ'ing in the summer of '99, and within three monthsﾠI was playing mates birthday parties, and it went from there..

Hugh Lawton: You're still pretty young, how are you approaching your career - have you a definite path mapped out which you are working on, or do you just take your opportunities as they come?

Greg Vickers: Up to a year or so agoﾠI pretty much was just taking each day as it came, now that it is much more of a serious career path for meﾠI have got a manager who is helping me achieve whatﾠI deserve, and i've got goals thatﾠI want to achieve, you have to otherwise you have nowhere to aim for!

Hugh Lawton: Recently you played five sets at the Tribal Gathering Weekender. Growing up, did you ever go to them, and how did it feel to be organising it and playing at it just a few years later?

Greg Vickers: The TG in 1997 was held at Luton Hoo which was only a few miles away from whereﾠI was living beforeﾠI came to Manchester,ﾠI really wanted to go but it was right in the middle of my exams at school.ﾠﾠIt looked amazing though!

It eally felt amazing to be involved in such a project, the feeling at the end when everything has come together and there were so many people having fun was just great!

Hugh Lawton: You obviously work hard at what you do, you're not just a Dj but you look after promotions and bookings for Sankeys too... but does it ever feel like REAL work?

Greg Vickers: There are times when it feels like real work, but then there are plenty of other times when it does not! At the end of the day we are putting on parties!!

Hugh Lawton: There are a few clubs you've played outside of Sankeys - Sankeys is obviously your favourite, but whats the number 2 club in the UK at the moment for you?

Greg Vickers: Definetly The End in london,ﾠI used to go there whenﾠI was younger, so to have played there was a massive buzz!

Hugh Lawton: Sankeys Soap has one of the most revered soundsystems in the UK - The Phazon. For those who havent experienced it, whats it like?

Greg Vickers: Hmmm, i've been asked this question before, and got a bit of stick for referencing it to "nice looking women"!ﾠ Lets just say its very very nice:)

Hugh Lawton: Over the two years or so, you've played with some of the biggest names in Dance Music. Were you really nervous at the start, and do you act any differently around them now than you would have back then?

Greg Vickers:ﾠI used to get nervous whenﾠI first started playing out to 50 people! And then whenﾠI first started playing at Sankeys, infact anywhere new i've not played beforeﾠI get a little edgy, butﾠI like that! It keeps me on my feet!

As for playing with the big names,ﾠI concentrate on doing whatﾠI do well rather than worrying about what the next dj is going to think about what im playing!

Hugh Lawton: Whats the most embarrassing thing you've done whilst playing at Sankeys?!

Greg Vickers: Errrm, lets have a think.... i've pulled the wrong record off before! That was pretty embarrassing! But im sure every dj has done that before.

Hugh Lawton: Why is Tribal Sessions so good in your opinion, and in a world where club nights get 'stale' very quickly and fall away, how do you try to keep it fresh?

Greg Vickers: Its about the family vibe, everyone knows each other. Also we are lucky to be in the best small club in the UK, sankeys rocks and that is so important too!

Hugh Lawton: Are you the youngest ever person to do an Essential Mix for BBC Radio 1? How did you go about putting it together?

Greg Vickers:ﾠI believe so!ﾠ It was a real honour to be asked to do an Essential Mmix, after all there are only 50 or so each year who get to do one!ﾠﾠI spent lots of time listening to lots of records in my room,ﾠI actually recorded the mix live from the club the night beforeﾠI went to miami for the Music Conference last year, that night was wicked, just me for 5 hours and the club was really packed!ﾠ One of the best nights i've had in the club that was.

Hugh Lawton: You've come a long way in such a short time - whats next for Greg Vickers? What do you see yourself doing in, say, five years time?

Greg Vickers: Thats a good question!ﾠ As long as i'm still making people happy with the music im playing then ill be happy! In the short term, im mixing the first Tribal Sessions cd which is going to be out in May, then we are taking Tribal Sessions on tour around the world, after that i'd like to spend some time on music production and get some stuff released! I've had so many people offering to do tracks with me, but Ii just don't have the time at the moment, thats my next goal! I will buzz having somthing i've written released on a 12"

Hugh Lawton: Finally, there were rumours on the Tribal Gathering messageboard some time ago that Tribal Sessions would be coming to Dublin in the near future... can you put any truth to these rumours or have you ever been to Dublin?

Greg Vickers: I've actually been to Dublin twice in the last year and really have a soft spot for it! Ii think if Tribal is to come to Dublin it would be one hell of a party, actually the moreﾠI sit here thinking about it... oh yes this could really work.. maybe we should have a chat ;)