Long appreciated for his garage, progressive and trance sets, Tall Paul has consistently rated highly in England’s various “favorite-DJ” polls. And now after years of European success with productions like “Rock Da House” and a slew of mix comps for Ministry of Sound, Tall Paul is the latest U.K. DJ to concentrate more fully on the American market.

A DJ since 1987 when he started at legendary London venue Turnmill’s, Paul ventured into pirate radio and “legit” airwaves before achieving populist status in English clubland and hotspots like Ibiza. Now signed Stateside to L.A.’s Moonshine Music, the 6-foot-6 spinner has consistently wowed clubbers at parties like San Francisco’s Nikita and Los Angeles’ Giant. It was there that he recorded his latest Moonshine comp, Mixed Live, which includes “Precious Heart,” his own trancey take on INXS’ “Never Tear Us Apart.” DJ Times caught up with the Tall One and asked him about making mix comps, America and the Jurassic days of DJing.

DJ Times: How do you approach your sets? What kind of material are you looking for?

Tall Paul: I like the big moments, you know, the big drops. It’s all about having fun and seeing the place going off. I think the tempo [of dance music] is slowing down overall. You got your progressive deep/tribal around 125-130 BPM and hard house hitting 140 BPM, I think I fit somewhere in between. I don’t like records with too much filter. When it’s done right it’s good, but these days as long as the gadgets are on anyone can take a crash course and in 10 minutes be tweaking records with nonsense. If I’m familiar with a home setup, then I might go a bit crazy, but mostly I keep it to the minimum.

DJ Times: How did you record Mixed Live?

Tall Paul: Giant was your basic setup, two Technics 1210s and a Rane mixer, I think. I might have brought a CD or two with some effects, but nothing too technical. It was tricky ’cause I had the set planned and, when I started playing, I realized the stage was hollow underneath, which made for like another speaker, and the stacks were quite close—so the bass was really amplified.

DJ Times: Do you remember the old club gear you started with at Turnmill’s?

Tall Paul: Oh, mate, back then I think I learned on a Citronic. Remember the ones with the rubber bands? This is going back ages. Now and then the bands would fly off and, depending on where it landed, you’d either get a record doing 1000 BPM or a dead stop. Eventually, we got the Technics in and problem solved.

DJ Times: Using the INXS track as an example, what’s your remixing process?

Tall Paul: That track [“Precious Heart”] was quite unique when I did it, but the legal stuff took so long it seemed dated when it was finally released. Basically, when I get a track to remix I take the original and listen for what they were trying to create. Then I go and hopefully complement it with what I feel it needs. If it’s a big vocal track, then I’ll dub a part I like and build around it. If it’s dark and a bit more moody but I like it, then I’ll bring the tempo up some. My goal is to leave an imprint.

DJ Times: Now that you’ve signed to Moonshine and are playing more here, what are your impressions of dance music in America?

Tall Paul: I think its going in a fantastic direction. Here [in the U.K.] things have gotten a bit stale with everyone trying to spot that next big thing. You got a lot of choices and you guys really seem to know what you want. I know DJs from the U.K. like to take over different stuff when they play and it’s great because the thing with America is the open-mindedness of the crowds. It’s very refreshing.