Anyone who is familiar with dance music in New York City will automatically recognize the names Sleepy & Boo. As the driving force behind Basic NYC (named as New York Magazines “Best Dance Party” in 2009), the duo has been bringing top notch talent to various venues around the city for years now. On top of being excellent promoters they happen to be excellent DJs as well. Cielo, Pacha NYC, Water Taxi Beach, Love and, of course, their home base of Sullivan Room have all felt the diverse sounds of a Sleepy & Boo DJ set over the past six years. The thick drums, big basslines, hypnotic grooves and sci-fi synths that make up their sets are favorites of clubbers and respected by the world’s top DJs. In 2010 alone, the duo played alongside the likes of Steve Lawler, Danny Howells, James Zabiela, Sander Kleinenberg, Paco Osuna, Lee Burridge and Cevin Fisher while bringing DJs like Mark Farina, Derrick Carter, Jeff Mills, Justin Martin and Carl Craig to New York. Last year Sleepy & Boo were on hand to open the inaugural Electric Zoo festival and their set became one of the events many highlights, truly setting the stage for what was to come over the rest of the weekend. This year they return to Electric Zoo, where they will be opening the Sunday School Grove on Saturday afternoon, September 4th. In anticipation of their set we caught up with the duo to talk about their experience at last year’s festival, the thriving New York City dance music scene and whats coming up in the fall from Basic NYC.

Sleepy & Boo will be performing at Electric Zoo – Sunday School Grove on Saturday, September 4th. Click here to attend his set!

You performed last year at the inaugural Electric Zoo. What was your experience like?
We had a really great experience. I think everyone who was involved with the first Electric Zoo was curious to see what it would be like, considering that it just had never been done before. But as soon as we got on site, we knew it was going to be something really special. And it absolutely was. We had the opening set in the Riverside Arena tent and the vibe and the energy in there from the beginning was tremendous – the whole place was going wild, we were really in awe of the response we got. It was an intense way to kick off Electric Zoo, and from then on we really enjoyed everything else – catching the DJs, hanging out with everyone, just soaking up the whole atmosphere and feeling like you were part of something really big and new.

What were some of the festival highlights from last year for you?
For us personally, playing our set was our top highlight. Music-wise, I think every artist we saw was inspired by the festival and really gave it their all – Luciano, Tom Middleton, Frankie Knuckles, Richie Hawtin, Steve Angello, Ben Watt, Kaskade, Roger Sanchez, Adam Beyer; those were some of the standout moments that we caught. Some of the backstage stuff was a blast as well: having our own trailer to chill in before and after our set, meeting all the other artists, eating a falafel while David Guetta was playing (sounds funny but it was a memorable moment). Even getting driven around in a golf cart from tent to tent was something we’ll never forget.

For those that missed last year’s festival – what can people expect?
Top-notch production, all the way around; the sound and lights in all of the stages and tents was impeccable, and we’re sure this year Made Event is improving on the whole experience. And you can expect a real wide variety of electronic music, which is really reflected in the diversity of the lineups this year.

What are your top 3 festival survival tips?
1. Make sure to be well-rested before the festival kicks off, because two back-to-back days (plus the afterparties) can be a little draining.
2. Make a schedule for the artists you want to see with Made Event’s cool new online scheduling tool. But definitely try to catch someone new or someone you wouldn’t ordinarily check out while you’re there. One of the best aspects of a festival like Electric Zoo is having so many different artists in such close proximity to each other. Sometimes you’ll be surprised that you might enjoy something you thought you wouldn’t be into. We definitely did last year.
3. Try to connect with other Electric Zooers. Festivals really bring together all the different people who are connected through this music and culture, and its important that we all reach out to each other and strengthen that connection.

This year you’re opening the Sunday School Grove. Quite different that the tent you played in last year. Are these Sunday School artists more in line with what you’ve been playing lately?
We always enjoy playing music from across the board, from techno to house. These days those lines are really blurred, and we think you’re going to hear that in the Sunday School Grove especially. We definitely play music from a lot of the artists that are playing in the tent, but for us as DJs, we always strive for variety and mixing things up sound-wise. Its a bit easier to do that when you’re two DJs working as one.

Who are you most looking forward to catching at the festival this year?
Tom Middleton is someone we love, and he’s one of our dearest friends and inspirations as an artist. He always comes prepared with loads of surprises for his sets, and considering that he was at Electric Zoo last year as well, we know he’s going to have lots of tricks up his sleeve. We’re also very excited to be playing before Joris Voorn, who is one of our all-time favorite producers, and hearing John Digweed closing out the tent on Sunday is going to be quite an experience. Victor Calderone, Steve Bug, Reboot, the Chemical Brothers, Kaskade…they are all going to be rocking it. And we can’t wait to hear Guy Gerber at Pacha on Sunday night after the Zoo. Goodness gracious, there’s so many DJs to hear.

Best track of summer 2010?
Too many to even pick! Every week there’s a new champ. But the Solee remix of Colonel Abrams’ “Trapped” has been really special for us – the vocal connects with the old-schoolers, while the driving tech groove gets the dancefloor moving.

Most underrated producer?
Not underrated, but maybe not widely known: Oxia, Uner, Coyu, Acumen, Anil Chawla, Gorge, Jay Lumen, Mihai Popoviciu, Mitch Wells, Shans and Schwinge…the underground is awash in talented, up-and-coming producers right now. Hats off to all of them making music.

This summer your promotional group Basic NYC has been hosting parties at Sullivan Room and Water Taxi Beach. What have been some of summer’s most memorable moments?
This summer has literally been a blur, but a very exciting and fulfilling one. We’ve had weekends with three parties in a row, and we’ve been privileged to have had some pretty memorable experiences at almost every event. For us, the highlight of the summer has been our two “Sleepy & Boo + friends” nights at Cielo. Both totally exceeded our expectations in all aspects, from the turnout, to the energy on the dancefloor, to the huge support from all our friends and fans. Getting to play a headlining set at Cielo in front of a packed club that’s completely into the music is just about the ultimate experience a DJ can have, and to be able to do it twice this summer was pretty major. And they’ve just asked us to do a monthly on Fridays at Cielo, where we’ll be working on interacting with the crowd and thinking of some ways where they can be a part of the music as well. Playing with Steve Lawler at Water Taxi for Dance.Here.Now, Lee Burridge at Love for ReSolute, and with Cevin Fisher at Pacha were all some of the top parties we’ve played at. We work hard to present our own events, but it’s so much fun to be a guest at someone else’s, and really give it your all as a DJ.

What does Basic NYC have in store for NYC this Fall 2010?
We’ve got a lot of things coming up this fall. We’ve got a jammed schedule at the Sullivan Room, with some bookings we’re really excited about: Nick Curly, Jeff Mills, Cajmere, Joel Mull, Frankie Knuckles, Satoshi and Hector, and we’re doing our first-ever double night where Layo & Bushwacka! and Carl Craig with Amp Fiddler will be playing at both Sullivan Room and Sullivan Hall on the same night. Our first post-Zoo party will be Sept. 11th, featuring us and a very special surprise guest along with Connie. We’re also excited to be presenting our Sleepy & Boo + friends party at Cielo, and we’re looking forward to working with District 36, which has invited us to bring our best Basic NYC artists to the club – Mark Farina, Derrick Carter, Jeff Mills, Carl Craig and many more. They’ve also asked us to be opening there on certain nights with some artists we really respect – Timo Maas, Claude Von Stroke, and a few others. It’s going to be fun working with Taimur and the staff at District 36 and it’s going to be a very exciting addition to New York’s nightlife landscape. And we’re also helping Dance.Here.Now bring Mirko Loko and other artists to Cielo and other venues. Our goal is to help spread our passion and love for great music and we’re honored to be able to have so many great outlets and resources for that mission.