HARJI is a key member of NYC’s Indo Warehouse collective, who are gaining worldwide attention with their Indo house sound, fusing their love for classic New York house with influences from their South Asian roots.
Born in New Delhi, HARJI moved to the US with his family at the age of three, and by the time he was 16 he was already playing in clubs like Pacha and Club LOVE, alongside artists like Benny Benassi, Ingrosso and Dubfire.
A passionate New Yorker, he told Inflyte+: “I feel like New York is the next big dance capital in the world.
“Every single weekend, there’s amazing talent playing in so many different places, from a larger warehouse party to more underground spots. There’s always something to do here.”
Read on for HARJI’s insider’s guide to the city…
Favourite club
I would say this spot called Refuge, here in Brooklyn, largely because the guys who built the space are pure audiophile guys. I think the gauge of a really great sound system is that you can still have a conversation on the dance floor when it’s at a good volume.
That place, it’ll transport you, and they’ve paid attention to every little detail. It’s a breath of fresh air, because everything out here in New York has gotten so commercialised.
In places like that, you could go there till 6, 7 in the morning and hear Hernan Cattaneo performing, or so many different artists and DJs. But they’re not just booking headliners all the time. They’re booking artists that know their shit and are maybe new or up-and-coming, but they know how to handle the dance floor. It’s not just booking a headliner and packing the room out.
Favourite bar
I live in Greenpoint, so there’s a lot of great places here. Eavesdrop is amazing because they have great cocktails, and it’s actually a hi-fi audio bar, too, so they always have great music playing.
It’s very warm and intimate. You won’t go there and expect them to be bumping music. It’s more so great drinks, intimate vibes, and a great place to get a quick drink before you want to go out and get crazy.
Favourite DJ
All-time favorite DJ from New York… Damn, that’s hard! I guess maybe Dennis Ferrer. I mean, he has been in the scene for so long, I’m talking about decades at this point. He’s never really followed any trends, per se, he stays in his lane, which is totally fine, but all his music’s got such an amazing groove, and almost every one of his records has been a hit.
It doesn’t matter what room you’re in, or what time you’re playing it, they work. And I think that’s the gauge of a great producer and artist.
You could make music all you want, but there’s a little bit of knowing, ‘Okay, am I making this for myself, or am I making this for people who really want to go out and have a great time and party?’. And I think he walks a really fine line between knowing what your sound is, and catering to something that works as well.
Is that inspiring for you?
Yeah, 100%.
Favourite festival
Halloween here is a festival, in my opinion. It’s the biggest night to go out in New York City and by far the most crazy time here, I think.
In New York, it’s a marathon. Think of it as the whole city lit up with parties everywhere, and I’m talking about 20,000 person warehouse parties, all the way down to the really exclusive loft parties in Soho or Tribeca, where you need to really know somebody to get in.
I would say my ideal sprint for that is, I’ll go out Thursday night, then I’ll go out Friday night, and then I’ll chill, and then Sunday morning, I’ll try to wake up at 7, grab an espresso, be a normal human being, and go to the afters.
The other cool part is that everybody’s always dressed up. Last year, I dressed up as a knight in armour.
Favourite label
A friend of mine, this guy named Mink, has a label called Love on Cropsey. It’s a very new label, they maybe have four or five releases now, but what I love about it is he’s also a New York DJ. He’s been playing as long as I have, maybe, and his sound for that label is very New York.
That’s something that’s nostalgic for me in a way, but also still works today on the dance floors, and it’s a very Brooklyn, underground sound. Very groovy, tribal, techy, got a great swing to it, a lot of percussive elements. It’s almost a New Age tribal sound, in a way.
Unsung hero
For the emerging sound spotlighting South Asian talent as a whole, definitely Kunal Merchant, who is coincidentally also from New York.
He’s been a true house head for years before he and Kahani started what’s become a whole new genre in the space, Indo house. His taste and knowledge come from deep roots in dance music culture, not from chasing a trend.
What they’re doing now is laying the foundation for thousands of talented artists from that part of the world. It’s exciting to watch, and I’m excited to see where it goes.
Biggest tune
The 90s is when I would say the sound of New York City really started to lay its foundations.
You had so many different DJs playing at the Sound Factory – Junior Vasquez, Dennis Ferrer, Kerri Chandler, Danny Tenaglia, Jonathan Peters. These are the guys who really laid the groundwork for New York City.
If there’s a song that I would say defines that sound, which I think is coming back slowly here in New York, it’s this record called This Is It by Tony Senghor. It’s a fucking banger – literally, in my opinion, New York’s signature sound.
This is a deep, deep hidden gem, in my opinion, and whenever I play it, people can’t Shazam it. I have a folder in my record box called Secret Weapons. That’s definitely in there.
Favourite hangout spot
The thing is, I live in the Williamsburg, Greenpoint area in Brooklyn, and there’s just so much to do here. I could walk out and go down the street, and I’ll run into a new spot.
Down the street from me, there’s this restaurant called The Snail that opened up. Great place to go, grab some great food, hang out.
But to be honest with you, and maybe this is because I’m older now, we’ve been spending a lot of time having apartment parties. Even here in my place now, I have a whole sound system set up and we’ll always just have a thing here. There’s no point in me going out, because I have literally everything here that I need.
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Favourite record shop
I do a lot of vinyl sets here in New York, and the best record shop, I would say, is Archivio Records. It’s owned by this guy Pablo Romero, amazing DJ as well. He’s been in this scene for a long time and plays amazing vinyl sets. The shop’s over in Dumbo, and you usually have to make an appointment to go there.
It’s super small, but the guy’s got really great taste so the records he curates are always primo. When I go there, I’ll just spend hours looking.