The designer/DJ, Belda Farika is ready to stomp the dancefloor tonight to celebrate the 3rd anniversary of Never Too Disco! We talked to her to reveal her story during her stay in San Francisco and dig deeper about how she got the whole connection to Japan’s finest DJs.

You were once living abroad in SF and immediately exposed to its party scene and music. Did it help you to develop certain music reference?

Definitely broaden my knowledge and taste in music and ripped my bank account to “nada” for all those goody records! California party scene was so much different than the party scene in East Coast and Midwest where I used to live before moving to San Francisco. Being exposed to the underground party scene in California was probably one of the best thing that had ever happen to me. It really changed my life and shaped me to the person I have become today.

I remember my cousins took me to see Jeno play at DNA Lounge for the first time and it really got me curious about all these underground parties and the music they played at the party. I didn’t have that many friends back then in San Francisco, so I usually go to party by myself if I’m not with my cousins. I went to Jeno & Garth’s Back 2 Back party at 222 Hyde for the first time and showed up too early at the party. DJ Garth saw me and recognized that I’m Derry’s cousins, so he came up to me and says hello, then he gave me a drink ticket (laugh). I think he felt a bit sorry for me being there to early and not knowing any else there? That’s okay, I had a great time and I made my first few party friends that night!

You’re an avid music collector which later on were encouraged to start a radio show called Imaginary Voyage. What’s the manifesto behind this show – what did you offer through Imaginary Voyage?

To me, the radio show was a challenge. When I first started the radio show in 2010, I was in my last year of my master degree program and was going through a lot of changes in my life. At the time, playing records was one of things that I like to do when I’m not in school, working on my thesis or at work. Psychologically it helps me go through many rough patches in my life. So, I just wanted to play records and share the all kinds of music that I’m really into at the moment through the radio show. However, when I listened to the archives of the show again, it felt like there was a lot of feelings involves throughout every single shows. It may sounds cheesy but true. There was some part of it that reminds me the exact feeling I’m having at that exact time when I played on the show. Needless to say, Imaginary Voyage had become a place for me to share not just music but also my personal life journey.

What’s the story behind “Never Too Disco”?

Well…, someone once told me that the music that I played was “too disco” and my first respond in my mind was, “you can never go too disco.” After a short period of time, debating with myself on whether can one be too disco when it comes to music preferences, I found myself in my studio, picking out my favorite disco records and edits (including the cheesiest ones) and was just playing for hours. A few hours later I decided to make a short mixtape and called it Never Too Disco. The mixtape was published on my Mixcloud account in June 2013. In 2014 the mixtape evolved into a small intimate disco party in Jakarta and later on I was lucky enough to do Never Too Disco party in Singapore and Tokyo last year.

Does this party come with different kind of disco? Because we came once and you played Acid Arab.

Definitely all kinds of disco. Just like any other genre in music, disco has many different sub genre. When I first started this party with Gerhan in 2014, we were playing many kinds of disco music, from balearic disco, electronic disco, cosmic disco to disco rock and everything else in between. So my intention at the party was to not sound the same every hour for the next 4 to 5 hours. Every guest DJs that had played at NTD has their own definition of disco music. I like giving them the freedom to pick and choose their own disco and even mixing it with other tracks from different genre that goes well with disco. To me having all these different sounds creates different energy on the dance floor.

Never Too Disco will have its 3rd anniversary this week and KZA will be the guest star of the party. You seem to have a special connection with Japan’s finest selectors. How did that happen?

I’m not sure how I ended up knowing all these crazy Japanese guys (laugh). But maybe because I met DJ KASEP? (laugh)

I first discovered Force of Nature from the disco underground scene in California. Their music was one of the ones of many that got me started on buying records. I remember seeing the flyer of Force of Nature at Sarcastic Disco in LA and my thought was, I have to see these guys play at Sarcastic Disco! So I flew to LA, by myself, went to the party and it was one of the best party I have ever been to for as long as I can remember.

When I moved to Jakarta, I met Chida and DJ Kent, they both played at Potato Head on a different times. Then not long after, one of their friend from college, Hikko aka the infamous DJ KASEP, moved to Jakarta to open a new branch of his company. We met and became really good friends and even started a party called Laid Back Sessions (LBS) at Mondo in Kemang. I think this is where I started knowing all these amazing Japanese DJs. I got all starstrucked when I met KZA for the first time in Jakarta because I’m such a big fan of his music!

Before he left Jakarta, I wanted to have him sign one of his records but I can’t picked which one I want him to sign on. So I brought all his records to Tetsuya’s house, where he was staying, there were probably about 10 different records, and asked him to choose whichever he felt like signing on! (laugh) I’m glad to meet all these amazing people and I have to say they are all very humble and fun to hang out with.

Suffice to say, we’re in the new budding phase of party scene with its evolving music collectives. How do see it as one of the participators?

I’m really happy to see the progress of the party scene in Jakarta for the last 7 years I’ve been in this town and I am really proud to be a part of it!

Any last words to wrap up this interview?

No disco, no future!!

Okay that’s enough… I need to get my smoke machine and fake lashes ready for the party tonight! (and I hope the fake lashes made it through the night!)

See you guys at the party!
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Never Too Disco 3rd Anniversary

8 September 2017
21:00
the SAFEHOUSE

KZA (Force Of Nature/JP)
Gerhan
Omar
Belda