037: FRESH RO
“Keep coming on so strong”... So are the first words uttered on the opening track of Fresh Ro’s mix for OVER&OVER® Studios. While you won’t see Fresh Ro’s name on any trendy RA events or features, make no mistake, Rolando Chavez has been coming strong for nearly 40 years in the business, albeit in a quiet, no bullshit fashion. In so many ways, Fresh Ro is emblematic of the spirit of underground dance music, having contributed to the evolution of the musical landscape of his environment as a creative in the sub-cultures that define it. His love for the music is unmistakable, his DJ’ing representative of a range of sounds and influences, harnessed over a lifetime of experience.
A San Gabriel Valley native, Ro started throwing and DJ’ing parties in the early 80s. The sound at the time was high-energy disco, electro and new wave; an expression of the LA urban experience for Freshro and his young Chicano crew. By 85’, Ro got his hands on Roland’s 707 and 808 drum machines and dove into production work. Fresh Town records pressed his first three releases with his crew the Scratch Zone Symphony and pal Mc Clock- Ro was the drum programmer and scratcher on each track. Relics of the 1980’s LA underground, you can fetch these records on discogs, but it will cost you.
From ‘85 through ‘95, Fresh Ro’s popularity rose as a resident DJ at esteemed LA nightclubs at Monopolies in Riverside in the Inland Empire, where he foraged into the early LA Hip Hop, electro and break beat scene while always adding a unique house music spin to his sets. While Fresh Ro gained valuable experience as a Hip Hop DJ, house and disco remained his true love. House music was not always well-received by a more mainstream crowd at the parties he DJ’ed. Ro knew he needed to get off the grid from the SoCal capital to be able to express his full musical pallet.
By the mid 90’s, he had established connections in his favorite vacation outpost, Puerto Vallarta, where he began throwing underground house parties with his pal, Dj Popo. It was at this time that Ro helped establish the club scene in Puerto Vallarta, before pushing the dance fantasy further into the deep jungles surrounding the city. These famed nights in the jungles were called “Organic” for obvious reason; soon, the outlandish party locations caught the attention of DJ’s interested in exploring the Mexican dance scene. As contacts reached out, Fresh Ro became Puerto Vallarta’s main booker for house music, bringing in DJ talents from around the globe,including Dj Harvey, Doc Martin, Garth, Eric Duncan,Woolfy, Lance Desardi, Miguel Migs, Osunlade, Mudd, Jamie Thinnes, Silent Servant, Club Tularosa, Tony Watson, Mark Quark, Juan Nunez, Liza Richardson and many others.
In the 2000’s his productions were picked up and released on DJ Spun’s Rong Music Label and on DFA Records “Not Wave” compilation. Fresh Ro continued to produce music for prestigious record labels Claremont 56, Is It Balearic, Basement Records and, most recently, Rare Wiri. Fresh Ro’s residencies over years have spanned “Monopolys” Riverside , Organic Puerto Vallarta, Kin Kin, Guadalajara, Galaxy, Guadalara, De santos Puerto Vallarta and Hold the Sun, Puerto Vallarta.
After hearing Fresh Ro’s mixes, we knew we had to reach out to him about the series. Ro’s. Recorded at his good pal Tony Watson’s place, his mix for OVER&OVER® evolves from deep house and balearic to industrial music, a sweeping arc containing the influences and sounds of his long career in dance music. We were able to sit down with Fresh Ro for some questions. Put down your Shazam and dive into the mix and interview.
Fresh Ro Links:
Freshro! Thank you for this beautiful mix. It’s everything we hoped for and more. We were introduced to you by Juan and Tony and have been enamored with your productions and DJ’ing ever since (the Dream Chimney mix in particular has been on constant rotation ever since it was released). How have you been holding up as of late?
An honor doing the mix alongside some of my favorites selectors. Everything is great. Covid gave me a break from life and I was able to start living a more healthy lifestyle. Eating well, exercise and skateboarding again have all been a part of the balance.
So let’s get into the mix. Can you tell us a little bit about it? How would you describe the sound and arc? What’s the best place to listen/ experience it?
The mix consists of recently purchased tracks and some older tracks I just had put on my usb for listening. Pretty much a long set compressed into a two hour mix. I’d say the best place to listen would be on a long drive, in the gym (Qué pasa,Tony!) or doing housework.
What are your biggest influences as a DJ? Do you see yourself as part of the lineage of West Coast / LA DJ’s? What unique thing do you bring to the table?
My biggest influence would be my cousins Gerardo and Holly in Ocotlan, Mexico. Both were the first DJ’s I got to experience when I was 13 years old and gave me my first taste of disco music. Also the early LA mix show DJ’s in the 1980’s like Michael Mixxin Moore and Magic Mike of the Traffic Jam on LA’s urban station Kjlh. Magic Mike had a record on Saturn Records produced by Westcoast pioneer Rich Cason that was amazing.
To answer the second part of the question, I really don’t see myself as part of the LA DJ scene . I’ve always had to work at least a 9-5 every day, most weekends I worked at my Dad’s club. Maybe I would go out twice a year to some parties… for me it’s when I took time off from work I’d just go to Mexico and we’d be off and running.
Can you give us a sense of your favorite records or labels? How do these represent your tastes and life experience?
Prelude was my favorite label growing up. I would buy the stock at Tower Records in West Covina. When I was digging as a younger kid, I’d purchase any long player that had a New York address. Prelude was the label I could get consistently anywhere I shopped, which should tell you something.
My sound has evolved a long way from those Prelude records, I’d say my favorite labels now would be, of course, Claremont 56 (the UK indie label producing beautiful balearic-tinged music), Adult Contemporary (our pal Tony Watson’s digi take on West Coast dance music) ,and Best Record (the Italian reissue label digging deep into rare material) among others…
We know you’re a skater. Does this relate to your musical career? How have you evolved as a producer and artist over the years? You still skate, right?
It’s part of my past and present, especially as of late. I was a skater and surfer from 76-90. Little by little I did it less until I eventually stopped . Always considered myself a skater even when I wasn’t actively skating - part of my attitude in life. One of the positives of Covid, was it forced me to get back on the board and skate weekly .
Tell us a bit about your summer plans in PV? We’d love to hear a bit about the parties coming up and what to expect.
Every Summer I do a small mini tour between Guadalajara and Puerto Vallarta area. This Summer I am just keeping it coastal. Tony Watson and I will be doing some bar and restaurant gigs, a little bit of different flavors while adding in the late night house music rooftop parties. My “Hold The Sun Balearic Sunset” gathering is held at a local beach bar. It’s always a fun turnout of old friends and new friends.
What’s next for Fresh Ro? Where should people find you?
Just going with the flow. I have given up producing for the time being so I focus more on digging. Right now my life focus is being physically active between skating, gym workouts and jogging.
Finally, any shout outs?
Shout out to Deepersoul,Tony Watson,G Rock,Everardo Napoles, Alfredo Camion, Rana, Lenny, Indalecio, PV skate crew, Mufti, Alf Champion, KSA, Hector Reyes, Garth, Jamie Thinnes, Woolfy, Cocoe, Dean Decosta, Mudd, Scotty Coats, Spun, Ben Cook, Is it Balearic?, Rayko, Dennis Kane, Ritesh,Sleezy Steve, Cris Lomeli,Club Tularosa, More Lotion,Disto Disco,Sunday Sunday, Milhouse, Cheto, Sequencers, Format, Berna Barranqui, Soul in Beats and anyone else I forgot to mention!
