Internationally renowned San Francisco–based DJ/producer Miguel Migs knows exactly what motivates him.

“I always want to be in the studio because I really love it,” he says from his home. “More than almost anything, I love going in there, tuning out the world, experimenting with melodies and creating music. There’s so much excitement in not knowing what’s going to come out. It’s been the same for me from the time I first started doing this stuff.”

Migs turned his attention to making “this stuff” — sweet, deep house and other soulful electronic sounds — in the mid-’90s. The Santa Cruz native had played guitar in rock and reggae bands through his teens, but difficult band dynamics coupled with his discovery of San Francisco’s burgeoning soulful house scene led Migs to relocate and begin producing solo.

Settling in with “a cheap keyboard and minimal gear,” Migs started recording songs. At the same time, he began to DJ in earnest, blending dancehall and old-school hip-hop with deep house.

Thanks to his ear for a tune and his knack for playing and incorporating instruments including bass, sax, trumpet and congas, Migs’ original music stood out early on. By the year 2000, he had over a dozen EPs released on labels including Large, Yoshitoshi, NRK and Naked Music. He’s recorded and released his productions non-stop ever since, with over 100 originals, remixes and mix CDs to his credit. Migs started lining up bookings all over the globe, becoming in demand for his smooth, soulful sounds. Interestingly, he continues to hold that cachet despite the fact that club music trends have gone more tech-y and edgy.

“The dancefloor has never really been my main focus,” Migs says simply. “A lot of the stuff that I’ve done, and a lot of what I still do isn’t really peak-time clubby, dancefloor frenzy kind of stuff. I like writing quality music that has lasting power. I’ve always been into doing something that I feel is a bit more structured. I like to do things that have some kind of melody, live instruments and emotion.

“I like to write about life experiences, and take advantage of the fact that in making electronic music you can incorporate little hints of rock and dub, funk and soul, hip-hop and all of these different sounds and inspirations. That’s really what I’m driven by.

“Speaking as a DJ these days though, it’s a different story,” he continues. “Personally, I’m finding it harder and harder to find tracks that I want to play so it’s been forcing me to think more about the dancefloor than I ever really have. I used to play a lot more of other people’s stuff. These days, I find I’m playing a lot more of my own material and doing exclusive mixes of things just to have something special to look forward to playing.”

You can get a sense of this from the variety of remixes (both his own and other people’s) Migs has selected for his newest release, Those Things Remixed. A 14-track collection of reworked songs from 2007’s Those Things, the album finds Migs in top form, turning out four dancefloor-friendly reworkings alongside diverse remixes by artists including Faze Action, Alix Alvarez, J-Boogie and Cottonbelly. Thankfully, the release works as an album, maintaining your interest as it flows between boogie beats, disco, deep soul, dub and feel-good funky house.

This is an approach you can hear Migs developing through the releases on his own Salted Music. Started in 2004, the label is a vehicle for Migs’ music, but he’s also put out releases by like-minded house heads including Kaskade, Joshua Heath, Yogi & Husky and vocalist Lisa Shaw — the latter of whom is a transplanted Torontonian who has long called New York home, and who will perform live alongside Migs this Friday.

“What I’m trying to do with Salted is keep a consistency — music that’s upbeat, fun and funky, but maintaining the elements of live instrumentation and quality songwriting.

“I’ve never really been a crowd-pleasing producer or DJ,” Migs chuckles. “I just like to do things that I’m feeling. That’s all I know how to do with music.”