Paul Oakenfold on 35-years of Perfecto Records, career-defining moments and that Ibiza epiphany

Great to meet you Paul, Gregg Kelly here. Thanks for taking the time to chat with me, it’s quite the honour, it’s hard to even know where to begin.

How’s your day been so far? How does a typical day in the Oakenfold household begin, what’s been on your schedule today?

Thank you for having me Gregg. There is never a typical day for me because working in this industry, you wear many different hats: A&R, DJ, producer and everything in between. I’m constantly having meetings, trying to figure out what’s next and travelling around the world with the Perfecto message.

Congratulations on 35 years of Perfecto Records, celebrating 35 years of anything is quite the achievement, but when it’s a celebration of one of the most influential record labels in the history of both electronic music and the industry itself, it certainly deserves heightened praise.

Q) Take us back to the very beginning of your record-producing career, your first release I believe was Jibaro in 1988, talk us through the creation of that record.

First release was Amnesia by the Project Club, which I did with Rob Davis at his studio in Epson. It was a creative-learning process that I really enjoyed that made me want to do more. Many things came after that of course, but this was the inception of my life as a dance music producer.

Q) Did you develop a tried and tested method for creating music after its success, or was it more, commit 100% and see where the adventure would lead?

It was trial and error to start. We played with lots of different sounds, influences and genres, incorporating elements of things we liked along the way. It was all very heat of the moment, you have no idea what would happen on any given night. We experimented with music we loved and let it happen. You have to find your own sound! Even more so in today’s scene, given the much bigger number of DJ’s/producers/labels all striving for the same.

Bedroom DJ, Covent Garden, moved to New York, Studio 54, Ibiza, DJ Alfredo, Acid House, from the birth of hip hop to the birth of dance music culture, as well as pop culture royalty in the 90s, and arguably the original superstar DJ...

Q) Do you believe in divinity, intuition, luck, or did you simply have an unwavering-determined focus and drive?

It’s a belief and drive in what I do. Things almost fall into place when you work hard everyday and really believe in what you do.

Known in this current-era as one of the central-flagship trance labels, and alongside personal releases, Perfecto Records has also released tracks and albums from past and present trance juggernauts such as Ferry, Cosmic Gate, BT, John O’Callaghan, Seb Fontaine, Man With No Name, Tilt, to name a few,

Q) Tell us about the origins of Perfecto Records? Did you have an idea (perhaps the aforementioned ‘intuition’) of the types of music you wished to release from very early days of the label?

No, Perfecto was a label that was set up for primarily British dance music, as there was no label out there at the time. So in that sense it filled a gap, but there was no dialled in target sound for the label – it was a general dance label that morphed into something greater over time.

Q) A central-nexus point for so many dance music evolutions, you seamlessly adapted your musical style to each new dance music-era – how did your musical writing process adapt when setting out to create new music during each new era?

I don’t feel like I adapted, I just was in a creative-mindset that changed with the time we all lived in. It is a process of influence, experience and time that affects your creative output as you progress.

You were immersed in all forms of music from the late 70s onwards and experienced such a varied range from the very start of your career,

Q) Did you find freedom to express more freely when you began producing? Perhaps even allowing you to escape the shackles of being tied to a single electronic music genre?

No, I just love music in general. Aside from dance music, there’s a whole world of opportunity for a dance music producer. Dance has great crossover potential across several different musical areas, whether it be pop, rock, movie soundtracks and everything in-between. There’s a lot of applications for dance music outside its own ecosystem. This kind of open minded attitude led me to work with the likes of Cher, The Happy Mondays, U2, Madonna and more.

Perfecto Records, created in the late 80s, you with near-10-years-experience by then, and fresh from the ‘Alfredo epiphany’...

Q) Did this collected experience influence the Perfecto Records journey, and what kind of philosophy was the early days of the label built on?

I just wanted to start a label because there was no label that focused on British dance music.

Q) I guess at the time there had yet to be pre-ordained electronic music sub-genres, you must have faced a few battles as one of the figureheads promoting the new, and somewhat untested style of electronic music?

It’s very simple. It is just about a song. I love songs. It has nothing to do with genres for me. The world loves a good song.

Within three years of Perfecto being created, into the early 90s, among other momentous events, you’d won Brit Awards, played on the lineup for The Stone Roses seminal gig at Spike Island, remixed for U2 and then in 1993 subsequently found yourself opening on their global Zoo TV Tour playing to stadium-size crowds,

Q) Those must have been a whirlwind few years, are there any glistening memories of those early moments you can recall as if they happened yesterday?

These were all big moments that changed my career. Traveling with U2, seeing the world through a box of records was an experience like no-other and took my career to the next level.

Q) You’ve remixed for the genuine who’s who of modern music (Madonna, Rolling Stones, Britney Spears, Moby etc)...Were there any tracks you found particularly challenging to blend genres, and of course is there anyone left you’d love to collab with?

The collaboration with Grand Master Flash, I found very difficult, as he was hip-hop and I was playing trance. And I’m always looking to collab with young new artists in various different genres. There’s some great young talent out there.

Q) Jumping back to our current 2025, with a 40-year-plus-DJ-career under-your-belt, what continues to inspire you on a typical day?

Both new music and in the studio are always very inspiring to me.

The contrast between making music back in the 80s vs now is beyond comprehension, genuinely Flintstones vs Jetsons in terms of technological advancement,

Q) Did it change your focus when seeking fresh musical inspiration, and is there anything from the older creative-process you continue to use?

As you said, technology has changed, and you have to move forward and stay current with the tech.

You must have answered this question an infinite number of times, but I feel it would be a disservice to dance music lovers everywhere not to bring up the Ibiza-Alfredo folklore…

Q) At that universal moment, amidst the mysticism of Ibiza, standing in Amnesia nightclub, and upon hearing that history-defining Balearic sound, did you, Rampling, Holloway, and Johnny Walker turn to each other and experience a Biblical-like prophecy?

There was a moment where we were in Amnesia listening to Alfredo play all different tracks from rock, dance, hip-hop, reggae, that all fit together in a melodic way. This sparked a creative-moment that I followed and ended up where I am today.

Knowing how precious your time must be Paul, I’ll only keep you for another couple of questions,

Q) Which DJs are you championing at the moment? And what’s next for Perfecto Records?

We are championing artists, Velvet Cash and Jessica Sweetman. Supporting artists and building the brand.

And final question, while watching the 35-year Perfecto Records documentary, was it an emotional experience to relive memories, some remembered, some forgotten, as well as remembering cherished moments of treasured friends from long ago?

Perfecto Records has achieved a lot, with some great artists/DJs/producers/songwriters/staff. This is what it’s all about.

Thanks very much for your time Paul, it’s been an honour to chat and good luck with the documentary, upcoming Perfecto releases and tour dates.

For more info on upcoming Paul Oakenfold tour dates, click here.