ALICE NOT JOHN Episode 24: A Fictional Radio Transmission Guest: Dominic Sas

ALICE NOT JOHN
Episode 24: A Fictional Radio Transmission
Guest: Dominic Sas
Host: Joeri Bruyninckx

A conversation I overheard in a record store:

Customer: “Do you have Coltrane?”
Record shop owner: “In the jazz section.”
Customer: “I mean Alice, not John.”
Record shop owner: “In the jazz section.”

What was your favorite song as a child?

Dominic Sas: ABBA – ‘The Visitors’. This was my first LP. Everyone was crazy about the blonde one from ABBA, so I went for the redhead instead… The title track of that album sounded like nothing I’d ever heard before on my parents’ records. We’re talking the 1970s, you know.

What song do you sing most often in the shower?

Queen – ‘Bohemian Rhapsody’. A guilty pleasure. Needs little further comment, I think.

What was your favorite song as a teenager?

Anne Clark – ‘Our Darkness’. It was so cool, and it got me completely into synthesizers, drum machines, and sequencers.

What’s your favorite air guitar song?

Rage Against the Machine – ‘Bombtrack’. That energy! That sound!

What song do you associate with your adolescence?

A Split-Second – ‘Flesh’. The beginning of New Beat. The first 45-rpm record that was (accidentally) played at 33 rpm +8%. It shaped my life. When we made ‘Sound of C’—I was 18 at the time—we didn’t realize that it would become one of the first New Beat records people could buy and play at home without needing the expensive Technics turntables used in clubs. We had simply made it at that pace. I never dreamed of becoming a producer, but the success of that track suddenly gave my life direction.

Which song do you know the lyrics by heart?

Faithless – ‘Insomnia’. And that’s weird, because I almost never really listen to lyrics. I’m always guided by the sound and atmosphere of a track and only remember fragments of the words.

Which song makes you feel better when you’re feeling down?

Asaf Avidan – ‘Darkness Song’. Shared sorrow is half sorrow. You wallow for a moment in the heavy emotion of this song, then realize you’re clearly not alone in feeling this bad—and suddenly you feel better.

Name a song people wouldn’t think you liked?

Bedouin Burger – ‘Nomad’. I actually have a very broad, eclectic taste and tend to find tracks with crossover potential in almost any genre. This is one of those tracks. Not my go-to style, but it’s beautifully made, and the quality always rises to the top.

Name a song you think people should listen to if you think they don’t know it yet?

Yebba – ‘Louie Bag (Live at Electric Lady)’. First of all, it’s an absolute monster of a song. Second, this is a live recording (albeit in a professional studio), and the craftsmanship in the singing, playing, and mixing is almost otherworldly.

Eric Clapton’s ‘Wonderful Tonight’ is a breakup song. It’s about a couple who have decided to split up, but decide not to tell anyone yet because they don’t want to ruin the party they’re going to. Oddly enough, this song is often chosen as the opening dance at weddings. Tell me about a song you misunderstood the first time you heard it.

The Police – ‘Every Breath You Take’. Another wedding song—and my late mother’s favorite. But it’s actually about a jealous ex and a stalker.

What’s your favorite song now?

HAAI – ‘Shapeshift’. I like watching Later… with Jools Holland on the BBC because he has a nose for artists on the verge of a breakthrough. HAAI is one of those artists who recently caught my attention on his show. I’m not so sure she’ll break through internationally, but this track is at the very least striking and refreshingly different.

What song makes you do silly dance moves?

TC Matic – ‘Oh La La La’. I never dance, but when this is played, I’ll happily make an exception.

What song do you quote most often? What line?

Baz Luhrmann – ‘Everybody’s Free (To Wear Sunscreen)’. “Don’t feel guilty if you don’t know what you want to do with your life. The most interesting people I know Didn’t know at 22 what they wanted to do with their lives. Some of the most interesting 40-year-olds I know still don’t.”

I’m almost 57 now, and I still happily remain open to whatever comes my way.

Joeri Bruyninckx