Scotty Coats spins disco, talks tacos

ILLUSTRATION by JOE MCGARRY

Scotty Coats is a DJ, producer, head of sales at Costa Mesa’s award-winning Ubiquity Records and deeply committed taco connoisseur whose recent 12” “Double Fisted” (originally released on Rong Records) is about to be re-released on tastemaking electronic label DFA. He currently deejays at Avalon Bar, Mozambique and Detroit Bar’s Abstract Workshop, the long-running hip-hop club he helped found, but will be spinning a set at the Pike on Wed., April 30, where he will probably eat a Philly cheesesteak even though he is surely thinking about tacos.

Would you consider yourself a foodie as much as a DJ?
I’m a way better foodie than DJ—anyone who has ever heard me can tell you that.
Why the obsession with tacos?
Tacos are the perfect food. All four food groups wrapped as a nice tasty morsel. Some people like to get pissed on or need to have the private-press prog 45 only released in Pakistan—I need tacos. I’m a simple man.
Have you ever considered trading in the turntables for a gas-powered grill and a busy street corner?
I’ll have to keep the turntables to play tunes while selling tacos.
What makes a good taco?
I’m a big fan of the ratio as well as the quality of meat. You can’t have too much meat and not enough onions, cilantro and salsa, and vice versa. Also the tortillas can’t be more than two bites and a push. The uber-white-guy mega-taco is just not my style.
Could you describe an uber-white-guy mega-taco?
An uber-white-guy mega-taco is usually a huge flour tortilla packed with cabbage, lettuce, sour cream, and any other not-needed filler for the perfect taco. They will usually run over $2.50 and almost never can be eaten with two bites and a push like a traditional street taco.
Where do you go in Long Beach to get a good taco fix?
I like Taqueria Mexicana on Fourth and El Gallo Giro is always good—the tortas are the shit there.
Have you ever had any food-related mishaps on the job?
I had a mishap that was related to food but let’s not talk about that—I’m still trying to get the stains off of my mixer. I take my taco eating very seriously—I can’t be distracted by silly disco records while chowing. C’mon—some things in life you have to take serious and deejaying is not one of them. But tacos on the other hand should never be taken lightly.
I noticed your Juno and recording equipment are set up next to your kitchen—is that for food-related inspiration?
I had to move my stuff out of my studio because we got a new kitty after Erica B got hit by a car on Cherry—R.I.P. Erica B! Rakim, our other cat, doesn’t like our new kitty Grace Jones very much, so I thought I’d let her pull up to the bumper in my studio. It’s also nice to sample the sounds of sizzling carnitas.
What meal at the Pike best describes your musical taste and why?
The Philly cheese, but with cheese and jalapenos only. It’s a hearty meal with a nice kick and usually burns on the way out.
What songs do you play at the end of the night to burn on the way out?
Sargasso Trio’s “Heels On Fire,” Free Blood’s “Never Hear Surf Music Again” and Welcome Stranger’s “Smoke Machine.”
Sounds sizzling!
Indeed!
Are you excited I’m taking you to get tacos for lunch?
Yes!

SCOTTY COATS AT THE PIKE BAR AND GRILL | 1836 E FOURTH ST | LONG BEACH | MYSPACE.COM/THEPIKE | WED APR 30 | 9PM | FREE | 21+

Tags: Long Beach, Music, scotty coats, tacos, the pike, ubiquity