DJ DOMENICA (Spread Thick; Hollow Earth Radio)

Current Top 5 Tracks:

Doctor's Cat, "Andromeda" (Moonray, 1986)
"Italo Disco band Doctor's Cat are famous for their song 'Feel the Drive,' which is definitely one of my favorite songs ever, but I have come to love this later single of theirs almost just as much. At first I thought it wasn't that good, but I think it is only because I was comparing it to 'Feel the Drive.' 'Feel the Drive' (I MEAN 'ANDROMEDA'!) has this gorgeous, crystalline quality with this repeating section that sounds like the musical equivalent of a rocket landing on a distant moon. Also, the song is pure sci-fi. It appears to be about a robot who wishes it was human hurtling through space. It doesn't get any better than that as far as lyrical content. Also, it is pretty easy to find this amazing record unlike the pricier 'Feel the Drive.'

Amethyst, "Midnight Rendezvous" (Shar-Shia, 1986)
"I have been obsessed with this song for years now. It is pretty rare to find on vinyl. I bought a copy of it, but it was a very poor pressing that doesn't sound any better than the upload you can hear on YouTube. It is one of my favorite largely instrumental atmospheric tracks. It sounds like after the robots in 'Andromeda' landed on Mars and they have gone to an afterhours private lounge filled with garish neon and are flirting with their fellow Mars denizens. It feels like the soundtrack to a futuristic film-noir movie."

Glam, "More Than Ever" (Crash, 1985)
"More Italo disco from the mid 1980s! There is a ton of Italo out there, and while I love the genre wholeheartedly, a lot of it is mediocre, which is true for most genres. This song reaches the transcendent heights of the genre, and it is no surprise it was written by the person responsible for another perfect Italo classic—'Faces' by Clio."

George Lamond, "Bad of the Heart" (Columbia, 1990)
"I am a huge of Latin freestyle, a genre largely associated with the late '80s and early '90s that reached popular consciousness through artists such as Taylor Dayne and Shannon. I grew up in South Florida, and the sound of Latin Freestyle is ingrained in my soul. I also love unrepentant melodramatic music and this song delivers! It has the dramatic 808 stabs (or are they Fairlights?) and over-the-top vocals that I adore in music. It has that requisite booty bass line that I love, too, and the lyrics are pure soap opera."

Jackie Moore, "This Time Baby" (CBS, 1979)
"This is a cover of an O'Jays song, and it is everything that is best about classic disco. Moore's vocal performance is heart-breakingly good and it is both melancholy and super danceable."

Crews/Label affiliations: "Spread Thick is the crew I am apart of, but we are sort of on hiatus/looking for a new home right now. Mostly I am focusing on my radio show on Hollow Earth Radio right now. It is called Meet Me Tonight in Dreamland and it is on Fridays from 2 to 4 p.m., and it is just me and occasional guests."

Styles played: "Disco and its various strains—some house, Italo, boogie, R&B, Latin freestyle, Miami bass, electro-funk."

DJing philosophy: "I follow my heart in all of my musical choices. I am not the world's best beat-matcher or anything, but I try to be careful that the songs sound good together and tell a story through feeling. When I DJ, I want to create an atmosphere that is almost otherworldly, which is why I am especially drawn to music that is about or sounds like it is set in space."

Format: "Vinyl for sure, but it is expensive and heavy to carry around. I don't have the budget I wish I had for records, especially the ones I am after, which tend to be quite expensive. I am not a format snob, so on my radio show for instance, I don't have any qualms playing MP3s, because it is easier and cheaper. Ultimately, I will use whatever format necessary to get the music I love out there, but I do love vinyl."

Worst request: "I was a wedding DJ for a few years and there were many bad requests during those gigs, but that is a bit different than my normal DJ activities. This one time a very drunk lady requested that I play 'real hiphop' and I still don't know what she meant, given that night I had played both old-school hiphop and club stuff throughout the night. That was weird and I don't understand what she wanted exactly. During my normal events, I have been asked many times to play stuff like Drake, but I don't know if I consider those bad requests. I get why people want to hear Drake and I don't totally begrudge them their Drake desires."

Upcoming events: "I am DJing at Nacho Barracho on Sunday, July 20 with DJ Explorateur and I Want You. Otherwise, I don't have a lot lined up, so please ask me to DJ your event for all of your melancholic space-disco needs!"

Check out Domenica's mixes here.