As part of the new ‘Behind The Scenes‘ series, we’ve decided to catch up with the brains behind all these amazing events we all attend.

We caught up with Paul Quinsey who runs event TAKE based in Brighton & London which has taken the South coast by storm. We spoke about how the brand started, what they have planned for 2016 which includes Ibiza, how he books his headliners plus more…

Lets start with talking about how you decided on running events?

My biggest passion is electronic music and I am really lucky that both my professional and personal life revolve around it. Growing up I was surrounded by disco, dance music and garage.

I fondly remember Ibiza in 1998 while on a family holiday – legendary brands like Manumission, Cream, Clockwork Orange were in their prime. That world of Ibiza really intrigued me and has played a huge part in what I do now. There isn’t a day that goes by where I’m not trying to do something positive with the events that I run. 

What was your first event and what DJs performed? 

I’ve worked in the industry for roughly 7 years for a number of club brands. This has taken me to some amazing places across the UK, Europe & Ibiza.

In April last year I formed the brand TAKE with Paul Stephenson. Our first parties were at Concorde 2 – Headlining was a personal favourite of mine, James Zabiela followed by Secondcity.

Your next event has what DJ headlining and where is the event being held?

I’m thrilled to have booked Seth Troxler to headline for us at The Arch as TAKE present the official Brighton Music Conference after party. I’ve been a huge fan of Seth for a very long time, he is completely unique and a bonafide superstar. 

It’s a testament to how far TAKE has come in a relatively short space of time for us to be booking artists of this calibre.

In the next 2 years, where do you hope to see TAKE?

The dance music industry is fickle, different fads pop up almost yearly with a new hype to buy into. The key for us is staying true to our roots, we strive to always make the music and clubbers our focal point in everything that we do at TAKE.

Creating high quality events in unique locations with music as the top priority will always be the most important aspect for us – that’s what we’ll continue to be doing in two years.

Out of all the DJs in the world, how do you pick the DJs for your line ups?

TAKE centres around house & techno, so that element is important for us when booking talent. We don’t discriminate between certain styles as the vibe comes first, however we wouldn’t generally book any talent as far left as EDM – not that there is anything wrong with that style of course.

For us it’s having DJs play for us that share the same ethos and who are passionate. Moving forward we want to nurture talent, we have some talented residents like Paul S, Summerdaze, Cavalier and Maxine Garman. You’ll be hearing a lot more from Maxine soon, trust me.

Where is the home of most of your events?

We don’t have a home as such, however Brighton is where it all began, we love the city and the people. Currently we hold a residency at The Arch, the venue is steeped in history, starting as the legendary Zap club and then being Digital.

The Arch is under the King’s road and has a thumping Funktion 1 sound system. It’s an independent venue and over the past year has firmly cemented itself as the hub for underground music on the south coast.

If you could run an event anywhere in the world, where would it be and why?

Undoubtedly Space or Amnesia in Ibiza, no question about it. I’ve experienced some great moments in both clubs… some of which I can’t share… for obvious reasons.

What do you do outside of TAKE?

I’m the Head of Entertainment at McQueen in Shoreditch. It’s one of London’s leading venues and I work alongside a great team of people.

So what else is planned for TAKE in 2016?

It’s a busy year for our first birthday, we have events in London, Brighton, Ibiza and a few new locations that are still under wraps. We’ll also be bringing Cafe Mambo Ibiza back to London for a series of exclusive events at McQueen this summer. 2016 is going to be an exciting year and a lot of fun.