Posted date: April 2006

Picture it…you are in a club on a Friday night, the music is just right and the dance-floor is packed to capacity with sweat dripping off of everyone. You look over at the dee-jay booth and see a petite, pink haired, electrified looking girl in the booth. It makes you then wonder how a girl could make a crowd move with such momentum and feel you must rush up and ask, “Who are you?”

The person just described is an amazing new DJ from the DC area, 23 year old Jen Lasher. Her appearance may be deceiving, some may even mistake her for any other club kid but she is much more than that. Jen Lasher is quickly becoming one of the leaders of the pack in “new school” Dance. She has previously worked with acts such as legendary Floridian break-beat extraordinaire DJ Icey and has collaborated on a double disc with the equally enigmatic Baby Anne entitled Assault and Battery. Lasher’s innovative mix of electro and industrial makes her a major force to be reckoned with in the future. 

Lasher, born in Washington DC, was originally a classically trained pianist until she heard the pulsating rhythms of dance beats from her inspirations such as local DC DJ’s Scott Henry and Feelgood. She began touring the East Coast and spinning in the renowned DC nightclub, Buzz, at the age of 19. She was later given residencies at the equally celebrated Sonar Lounge in Baltimore, MD and Alchemy in the DC area. Alchemy, which has a strong Gothic Industrial vibe and which Lasher is big fan of, helped her to perform next to some of her idols and fine tune her craft.

Throughout all of her performances, Lasher maintains the same lively, intense, and funky energy from start to finish. Lasher, who also sings and produces some of her tracks, makes her a quadruple threat to anyone trying to take her spot at the top.

Onbeat: What made you start to spin? What was the exact moment when you knew that was your new passion?   

Jen:  I was originally turned onto electronic music by bands like Depeche Mode, Lords of Acid, NIN, New Order, Madonna, etc, etc.  These groups have since had a major influence on my musical taste.  Though it wasn't until the mid 90's that I discovered the underground club scene.  It was always very fun to go out and dance at the local spots here in DC/Baltimore, people were friendly and I loved what the DJs played.  Scott Henry and DJ Feelgood were residents at my favorite party, Fever.  It had crossed my mind once or twice to become a DJ myself but after hearing Prodigy live for the first time I bought their album on vinyl at the show and officially started my record collection, buying turn tables shortly there after.   

Onbeat:  What do you like more, spinning, producing, singing or playing classical piano?

Jen:  This is a tough question to answer because I enjoy music in general & it would be impossible to picture an absolute favorite out of these three things.  Spinning in front of an enthusiastic, open minded crowd is such an amazing sensation.  It is very similar to the feeling of a song in the works at that point where everything sort of starts to come together.  The development of your own music is such an exciting thing, personal expression in the form of art.

Onbeat: What is your favorite city/venue to play at?

Jen: Wow, there are so many great cities to perform in; I don't think I could possibly pick a favorite!  Baby Anne and I have had a blast in almost every city on our CD release tour; nice people, fun crowds, & efficient promoters.  There are just too many good spots to choose from!  Ultra will be a blast, kind of a rare multicultural mix in attendance to make it a fun new experience!

Onbeat: How did you get linked up with DJ Icey and Baby Anne?

Jen:  I met DJ Icey in the year 2000; he was here for a gig in my hometown of Washington, DC.  At the show he played an unreleased song “Scram” by the Plump DJs.  I wanted so badly to get my hands on a copy before the release date I let curiosity take over and asked him where he'd found it.  He was excited to meet someone with similar taste, later we talked about music through long e-mails and phone conversations.  Have since become good friends and exchanged many song ideas.  I met Baby Anne through Icey at a show in Florida; we have also become close friends over the years.  She and I have had a lot of fun working on our double CD set “Assault and Battery” and the tour together has been quite an experience!

Onbeat: How do you feel about fans downloading your music instead of buying it?  

Jen:  The Future is now!  There really isn't much we can do about the inevitability of people file trading.  In a way this is a good change because it allows music from undiscovered artists to travel fast all over the world.  I know there are a lot of people in other countries who might have not yet heard my songs if it weren't for such easy global access.  I would prefer people use Itunes, Beatport, etc for their downloading needs; they allow you to preview the tracks and are reasonably priced.  Also, if a ripped album gets TONS of playtime on your I-Pod or car stereo, please buy it! 

Onbeat: Tell us what you are like in the studio, do you already have a game plan of what to record or are you an off the cuff musician?

Jen:  Most of my ideas for lyrics and melodies come from either playing the piano or listening to music and sample kits to gathering ideas from different sources.  Sometimes it's fun to build the song from the vocal & melody, sometimes its fun to start with a good beat and build the rest from there.

Onbeat: What’s in your CD player/on your I-Pod right now? 

Jen: Imogen Heap "Speak for Yourself" has been in my car player for days now; I very much enjoy the relaxing sound of her voice.

Onbeat: Are you excited to be performing at Ultra? Who do you want to see on stage?  

Jen: Over the past 5 years I have gone to Miami for WMC and haven't missed an Ultra yet!  I am honored to be playing along side so many talented artists at this world renowned electronic event, it is more than I could have ever expected or hoped for.  It should be exciting to see Prodigy as I have not since that first show back in 96, been waiting a long time for a second round.  I'm going to try not to miss The Killers, Hot Hot Heat, Benny Benassi, Armand Van Helden, Dj Hell, Keoki, Icey, and I do Love Infusion!  Can't Wait!

Onbeat: Who are your biggest influences on your overall mixing style & personal style?

Jen:  For almost 2 years I've been a resident in Washington, DC at an Industrial weekly "Alchemy".  Many influences lately on my mixing style have come from other DJs at the Goth and Indie rock nights.  They do long mixes but also these real short choppy ones for wild songs not made for mixing, it's opened up my mind to playing a more broad spectrum of songs in any given set.   As far as personal taste, Tommie Sunshine, Icey, John B, DFA, LCD Soundsystem, Trent Moeller, Prodigy, Tiefschwarz, T Raumschmiere and many others have had a huge influence on my current musical style.  I LOVE rock, industrial, techno, and breaks.  There has been so much good music to choose from lately it's impossible to pick any one genre, more fun to play it all!    

By: Megan Silvera