Shane O’Neill: The Disc-Spinning Barber

Shane O’Neill has a secret life. When he’s not working as a classic gentlemen’s barber, he is a DJ who has played sets at Burning Man festival, on a battleship, in the desert and on a porn shoot. We had a drink with him and this is what was fit to print.

On the similarities of cutting records and hair …
“With both of them, you need to know when to cut and when not to cut. You need to know how to achieve a perfect blend and a seamless finish.”

On his childhood in Ireland …
“I was the oldest of five boys. The only problem with that was as my brothers got younger, they got taller. In most houses, siblings were getting hand-me-downs but in my house I was getting hand-me-ups.”

On singing in the shower …
“I don’t really sing in the shower – I do more of a whistle or a hum and it’s usually the Gremlins theme tune! Don’t ask me why!”

On the album he’d save in a fire …
“Probably my family photo album. If that wasn’t an option, I would probably take Leftism by Leftfield.”

What’s is the stupidest thing you’ve done while drunk in Beijing?
“Besides breaking my leg and leaving my laptop and DJ mixer in a taxi, it must be roof-surfing up Sanlitun Lu on a limo at 9am after a good night out!”

On getting into electronic music …
“In my early teens, I was into rock and metal. I had long hair, ripped jeans and all that goes with it. Then a friend gave me a Prodigy album. I loved it so much I went down to the barber shop, got my hair cut, bought some Xworks jeans, and overnight became a raver!”

On becoming a barber …
“I left school when I was 15 and needed to get myself a job. I had an interview set up with a gas company laying pipes or something. I needed to get my hair cut for the interview, so I went down to the local barbershop. I told the barber why I needed a haircut. He told me he was thinking of taking on an apprentice and asked me if I was interested. I thought about it for five minutes and said ‘Yeah, why not?’ I started the next day and that was that!”

Shane ’s Cutthroat Playlist
“Let It Bleed” by the Rolling Stones
“Relax” by Frankie Goes to Hollywood
“Comfortably Numb” by Pink Floyd
“Clean-Cut Kid” by Bob Dylan
“Closer” by Kings of Leon

See Shane cutting hair at Truefitt & Hill or cutting records at Fez (Fri & Sat only).

Click here to see the Beijinger August issue in full.

Photo: Judy Zhou