Some producers can plod away for half of their careers and still sound as nondescript as the next faceless electronic music maker sitting in their bedroom trying to replicate the sounds of the music they love. Others hit their stride straight away, indelibly forging their mark on everything they touch. Dave Henson under his Nochexxx handle has achieved the latter with just three proper releases in a little over a year, carving out a sound for himself via hotly tipped emissions on Ramp and Werk Discs. In his earliest musical incarnation he played keys in the English post-rock band Gwei-Lo, who had a promising career ahead of them which sadly ended with the tragic death of guitarist Al Brooker. Following the dissolution of the band Henson began indulging more in his penchant for electronic music, releasing experimental electronics under the name Ascoltare, before deciding that he wasn’t get the sound he wanted out of his software studio. Turning to a hands-on, hardware setup, he became Nochexxx, and embraced a raw, primitive sound that evokes early acid-house and new beat. LWE got in touch with Henson to find out more about the Cambridge producer and what the future holds for his music. He also put together our 111th exclusive podcast, which due to a feverish bout of the flu and its resulting woozy delirium, is a brilliantly surreal yet soothing journey Henson issues with explicit listening instructions.

LWE Podcast 111: Nochexxx (70:20)

Tracklist

01. People Like Us/Wobbly/Matmos, “Shenandoah” [Tigerbeat6]
02. Aphex Twin, “Goon Gumpas” [Warp Records]
03. Ennio Morricone, “Ricreazione Divertita” (Titoli) [Saimel Bandas Sonoras]
04. Malcom Cecil, “Crystal Lullabye” [Unity Records]
05. Nuno Canavarro, “Untitled” [Moikai]
06. Dome, “Cruel When Complete” [The Grey Area]
07. Walter Marchetti, “Per La Sete Dell’orecchio” [Vandalia]
08. Grouper, “Moon Is Sharp” [Yellow Electric]
09. Nuno Canavarro, “Untitled” [Moikai]
10. Harco Pront, “Dawn” [Music For Speakers]
11. Labradford, “El Lago” [Flying Nun Records]
12. Pierre Henry, “Après La Mort 1″ (Fluide Et Mobilité D’un Larsen) [Philips]
13. Durutti Column, “Requiem For A Father” [Factory]
14. Harco Pront, “Dinner” [Music For Speakers]
15. Aphex Twin, “Lichen” [Warp Records]
16. Angelo Badalementi, “Twin Peaks Theme” [Warner Bros. Records]
17. Boards of Canada, “Fonec” [Music70]
18. Bernard Szajner, “Crash Diet” [Island Records]
19. Hieroglyphic Being, “I Am That I Am” (New Age House Re-make) [Mathematics Recordings]
20. Laurie Anderson, “O Superman” (For Massenet) [Warner Bros. Records]
21. Alvin Curran, “Fiori Chiari, Fiori Oscuri” [Ananda]
22. Slowdive, “Blue Skied an’ Clear” [Creation Records]
23. Laurie Spiegel, “The Expanding Universe” [Philo]
24. Pete Um, “You Will Never Let Me Fall” [Grist]
25. Ennio Morricone, “Ninna Nanna Per Adulteri” [Saimel Bandas Sonoras]
26. Grouper, “Mary, On The Wall (For Betre Jackson)” [Yellow Electric]
27. Panabrite, “Octopus In Your Dreams” [Hobo Cult Records]
28. Jim Ferraro, “Heaven’s Bathroom” [Muscleworks Inc.]
29. Test Dept., “Fuel Foundation of The Nation” [Sweatbox]
30. Ennio Morricone, “Il Grande Silenzio (Restless)” [Beat Records Company]
31. Conrad Schnitzler & Wolfgang Seidel, “Consequenz 010B” [Mirror Tapes]
32. Seefeel, “Charlotte’s Mouth” [Too Pure]

Starting with your first musical output, you were in the band Gwei-Lo, which is very different from the music you’ve been making since then. I understand the dissolution of the band was due to tragedy, but what brought about the shift in music? Was this other side of you something you had already been fostering?

Dave Henson: From the get-go I’ve been into electronic music, and during this formative period I had begun producing my own tracks using an Atari ST. After Gwei-Lo’s demise I continued working on my own ideas, some music surfaced, which eventually led to loading floppy disks on stage — we’re talking sometime ago!

Nochexxx is a relatively new moniker for you. What was the decision behind changing your name from Ascoltare to Nochexxx, and how do you feel the music you make as Nochexxx differs from that of Ascoltare?

Ascoltare was computer derived and I became increasingly frustrated with the software I was using. I was unable to make records the way I wanted them to sound. Eventually I flicked two fingers at myself and migrated towards hardware. I wanted to go back to primitive basics — not just with equipment, but also musically and psychologically. I had also begun harboring negative attitudes towards certain aspects of sound art. It was the right time to delve into club music as it was a much needed antidote to help fix my psychic ills.

Do you use computers at all or is it a strictly a hardware deal?

All the music is made with hardware, but I do use computers either to bounce finished pre-masters from quarter-inch tape or for WAV-editing large audio segments. In fact I was just saying on Twitter how even though I produce 98 percent on hardware I get to that remaining two percent, and computer says, “No!”

What machine forms the backbone of your productions?

My Akai MPC2500, quarter-inch tape recorder, and my first analog synth, the mighty Korg MS-20. I bought it from a military dude who used it in the army’s theatrical department! I also have a Juno-6, an 8-bit Eprom drum machine. I’m still trying to wrap my head round analog instruments. Recently I’ve have been having a stab at making music without MIDI (wait, is that Ekoplekz I can hear cackling in the background?). Ignorant techno confusion seems to be how I work, I’m always trying out new methods. It helps me avoid being creatively stifled.

Is it the raw and sometimes unexpected sounds you get from the machines that you prefer, or is it the physicality of how you use hardware that appeals?

There’s this horrible quote from me which says, “I abandoned computer music because its like working with cheap-quality paper.” This “cheap-quality paper” thought transpired through my own inadequacies in producing music with computers. I find there are psychological benefits to using outboard. I get excited when I see a setup that looks like the interior of a TIE fighter. Put me in front of a Logic screenshot and I’m going to puke. I think I suffer from synergy issues.

You’ve had three Nochexxx releases to date plus your free download album, but searching through YouTube, Vimeo, and your website, it looks like there are a bunch of unreleased Nochexxx tracks out there. Any plans to release any of them?

Recently I spent a few days going over my work, which roughly amounts to four hard drives, two bags of unmarked CD-Rs, some MiniDiscs/cassettes, and DATs. There’s even some bloody ADATs. Lots of truly awful stuff. I’ve finished compiling an album for Ramp, which should be out this year and there’s a whole bunch of stuff that I think is not good enough for the more expensive formats, but I’m thinking perhaps some tape releases would be cool.

Can you tell us about some of the videos for these tracks, particularly “Polterhost” and “Sandspur”?

I used some YouTube clips and crudely arranged them with Movie Maker. Generally, people are more likely to listen if there’s a visual accompaniment, besides its always worth working off total naiveté.

You grew up in various places around the world but are living again in the country of your birth, England. Are you still based in Cambridge?

Yep.

Cambridge doesn’t seem the most obvious association for your music. Can you tell us a bit about the local music scene there and about your Bad Timing nights too?

I’d be making the same music regardless of where I was living, but that’s not to say there haven’t been a number of artists that have made their indelible mark on me! In the mid 90s you had Bovinyl Records (Animals on Wheels, Vert, et al.) who were making some really cutting edge electronic music. AOW really gave weight to that whole drill n’ bass scene. He later signed to Ninja Tune and Thrill Jockey. Vert eventually went over to [Mouse On Mars]‘s label Sonig. Man From Uranus, Pete Um, and The Doozer are also local heroes producing great stuff — in fact, we’re working on a compilation for Felix Kubin’s Gagarin label. Cambridge has always seemed like a difficult place to get anything rolling, however this is changing for the better. Bad Timing (which I am no longer a part of) has always worked hard to bring in national/international acts to Cambridge. Recent BT events colluding with Aid and Abet have been immensely positive. There’s a morphic sense an arts network is building and genuinely moving towards something positive. Bloody great! I never understood why the gap between art and music establishments are so often widely separated, when they really are two sides of the same coin.

I understand Pete Um is a friend and collaborator of sorts. Can you tell us a bit about him and your musical friendship?

A true experimenter, who has been home recording since the early 90s. I recently compiled his new record, which could have been the greatest record of 2011, but has moved to number four as he cut the release down to 10 inches. He produces thousands of these amazing one-to two-minute audio miniatures, and lots of crap tape and drone work. [laughs]

How did you come to work with Sensational for your 12″ on Werk?

The golden age of Myspace. [laughs]

Did you write the beat using an MC in mind?

Yes.

Do you play live or are you strictly studio based at this stage?

I press my own dubplates, occasionally DJ, but I’ve never enjoyed it enough to pursue it. I have complexes about live performances and my own music, so I’m not sure how to break through and do something that would be ultimately satisfying. I think part of the problem is I don’t like the way venues are set up. I’m very much in favor of the musique concrète approach, until then count me out! [laughs]

What can you tell us about the mix you’ve put together for us?

I’ve been semi-comatose with Alpine man-flu, so I wasn’t in the mood to belt out thumpers. Naturally, I made a mix that soundtracked my fevered mind. Please don’t listen over your lunch break, take time out of your busy lifestyle, arrange necessary precautions, and enjoy the music for what it really is.

What can we expect from Nochexxx in 2012?

There will be an LP for Ramp. A few tracks will surface on Felix Kubin’s Gagarin label compilation, and my redux version of the Greatest Record should see a physical release. More news to come!

In a departure from the regular format of LWE’s Curator’s Cuts series, the 21st edition features some of LWE’s writing staff discussing five of electronic music’s prevailing trends in 2011, noting some of our favorite underrated tracks, and opining on what 2012 might have in store for us. Editor-in-chief, Steve Mizek, served as the moderator of a conversation between Per Bojsen-Moller, Steve Kerr, Chris Miller, Jordan Rothlein, and Andrew Ryce.

Curator’s Cuts 21: LWE Staff (67:34)

Some complain that the media (music related or not) focuses too much on constructed narratives, and in dance music one of the most compelling recent narratives has been the vital New York house scene. While many of the producers involved, from Levon Vincent to Nina Kraviz, have all gone off to do their own thing, they all share the same back story: they all came through Jus-Ed. The lynchpin of Northeastern deep house has jump-started many a career, as well as having a very impressive one himself. Unfortunately, not even dance music can escape the troubles of a struggling economy — one reason Ed recently brought Underground Quality into self-distribution. We got in touch with Ed to talk about the move, as well as the closing of Tape in Berlin, a club that has deep ties with the Underground Quality family. He also provided us with our 110th podcast: a special mix of his tracks (with some guest cameos) dedicated to the closing of the club.

LWE Podcast 110: DJ Jus-Ed (62:20)

Tracklist

01. Ed & Fred, “Ed & Fred P. Project” [Underground Quality]
02. DJ Jus-Ed, “Joey A. Bass Revise” [Underground Quality]
03. DJ Jus-Ed, “Confussed Passion” [Underground Quality]
04. DJ Jus-Ed, “Trip To Hamburg” [Underground Quality]
05. DJ Jus-Ed, “Lost In Berlin” [Underground Quality]
06. DJ Jus-Ed, “Mr. Pete’s Crib” [Underground Quality]
07. DJ Jus-Ed, “Immortal Tape 2011″ [Underground Quality]
08. DJ Jus-Ed, “Ed In The House 2″ [Underground Quality]
09. DJ Qu, “Movements” [Underground Quality]

Underground Quality recently made the move to self-distribution. Why?

Edward McKeithen: Let’s see if I can put it in a nutshell. Okay, the way I’ve always operated is I’ve always pressed the records based on how strong I felt the record was; it would vary from 500 to 2,000 copies on the first run. Then I would write the individual distributors and see who’s interested. One distribution company had felt that they could sell whatever I pressed. So we had a mutual business agreement where they took whatever I pressed. I would never sign any contract to be solely distributed by one company, but since the company took the complete run, then technically they have exclusivity, you know? It just wasn’t in writing. It worked out well, but then there was a chink in the system, and there was a miscommunication and understaffing. On my end, I had three records ready to ship, and we couldn’t get together, and it was tax season, and I had a large amount of money that I had vested in pressing the vinyl, as well as a large amount of bills. They were unable to take all the records, which left me in a financial bind.

It needs to be stressed that there was no malice — it just was business. Something came up, and I didn’t have a backup plan or a cushion to fall on. So that left me with no choice but to hustle the records out, and I decided that I would just sell direct from now on to whoever could buy and ship the records. This way I’ll always have some income, as opposed to waiting on one person. My income was based on one company, and I couldn’t do that anymore. I have small children, and I have a lot of debt, financial debt, on me and I need to have money coming in. So that seemed like the best plan. I told them what I was going to do; it wasn’t like I took my toys and ran. I said, “Look, I’ve got to do this. I have to sell these records. I have to open the door up so that I can keep food on the table.” And they understood.

You also recently started a collaborative label with Jenifa Mayanja.

Jenifa is a much better producer than I am — you know, she actually makes “music.” My music is beats and grooves and they have some melodies and some vibes, not putting myself down, but there’s still so much that I need to learn. Unfortunately her name is not as strong or popular as mine. I reached a point in a career where I could put [out] a track that I would deem okay, but because it said “Jus-Ed” on it, the venues will stock it because I’ve had good reputation and good sales under DJ Jus-Ed or Underground Quality. The label has a such a strong reputation for quality music that a lot of customers take the records without even listening to them. And I remember I used to be like that with, like, Masters At Work and Ibadan. With Kerri Chandler, you knew that it was going to be the shit. This is what I’ve worked hard for since day one: to have a reputation like that.

Jen is — well, we’re not legally married yet, but this is common law; we say we’re husband and wife. She’s my wife, she’s my partner, she’s the mother of my kids, and she deserves a fair shake just like anybody else. But the industry is tough on women. And the women that are up front — they had to hustle. It can be difficult when you have two creative people and they want to stand on their own. You don’t want to be perceived as riding on someone else’s coattails. Like when Omar-S put out my first track on his label, he told me to wait until that run sold to put my record out. I had it pressed, but I didn’t want people to think that I was riding on his success or that I was claiming to be from somewhere I’m not. That’s why I’ve always put the emphasis on it: “I’m not from New York; I’m from Bridgeport, Connecticut.” This is who I am — this is where I live, this is where I make my music, this is where the music is from: Bridgeport, Connecticut. I’m very proud from where I come from.

You could put on all the artwork [and] packaging you want — that does count for some sales — but what really sells the music is the music. If the music isn’t good, it’s not going to sell. For Jen, she’s my wife. I mean, you would expect her to take liberties, which she hasn’t since we’ve been together. But financially, first of all, it makes sense. We should work together. That money is at home; it’s in our house. If one end is not hitting or being successful or whatever, then we should be helping so that the other end does continue to be successful. It’s the only way we’re going to make it in Connecticut, in this time, and in this economy. When you’re with a creative person with your partner, there’s a thin line that you do not cross. You have to wait and leave things alone until your partner is ready to make a move or work together. When you come together organically and the terms are met evenly, then it flows. It jumped off nicely with our first record, EDJ-001. We did a limited pressing. We knew that to a certain degree, that there would be X amount of copies sold right away just for the simple fact — for the novelty fact, that it’s a husband and wife thing. Oliverwho [Factory], I believe, is the other husband and wife team, right?

Right.

But it’s inevitable is that Jen will get the same platform — I mean I’ve done it for so many other artists. Starting out artists, introducing them — lending my audience to a new artist to broaden their horizons and stuff like that. You know, I’m here in the house, and I can hear these beats and these melodies coming out of the room. I’m like, “Jen, What is that? That’s you? Jesus Christ.’” I mean I’m good at what I do, but she’s really good at what she does. Producers always look at each other and we admire certain techniques or skills that make the producer special. What’s always the ongoing struggle with most producers is getting what’s in your head out. See, if we could get exactly what’s in our heads out, all of us would be paid, you know what I mean? It’s in our heads, but getting it out is a feat by itself. You know, producers like Charles Webster, Pépé Bradock, and Kaito — it seems like they were able to get in their head out based on the production, the way they told the story in the music. This is what makes it special.

How has the self-distribution thing affected the label? Do you think it’s a been a success so far?

As far as actually making money, yeah. As a result of this, it’s helped the label become more affordable to the retailer and the customer. When stores or wholesalers buy direct from the label, they are only paying the VAT and shipping fee. In Europe, the retail price was €11 to €14. But now, selling direct, my album is €16 (for the double). A year ago it would’ve been €20 and up.

Are you finding that you can get your stuff into the shops you want without distribution?

There are still shops that are unable to do shipping so they stay with distribution. I still sell to the distributors because with some record stores, that’s the only way the can get it. But now the distributor is no longer exclusively cornering the market on the records, so they have to make their prices more competitive because five or six other outlets have the record. So there’s no price gouging now, because of competition. It keeps the price right for the consumer. The more reasonably priced the record, the more it will sell.

It’s kind of tricky because the distribution doubles — some distribution companies double what they actually bought it for from the manufacturer. My records were so high coming from the distributor that the record store could only sell it for 11 euros, and after taxes and shipping, they were only making a euro on the record. So let’s say a record store has 500 euros a week as a budget. Even though this record that just came out from Underground Quality is the best thing out right now and everybody’s going to want it, I can’t risk buying 10 records and paying 70 euros when I could get 20 records for 70 euros. When I go shopping, if a record doesn’t possess at least three good tracks on it, I’m not paying 11 euros for it.

Yeah, of course.

Here in the States, I’ve bought imports for 18 or 20 dollars — two-siders. But they were absolutely brilliant. And I also knew that the masses are not going to buy it because it’s too expensive. But whoever made those records didn’t sell a lot. So there are a bunch of different variables, but I chose to educate myself on the street level. So every time I’ve traveled I always try to make it to the record stores, say hello, say thank you, ask them how much are they paying for the records, are they selling good here, [ask them] “What would make it a better sell for you?” And it’s always, “If the price was lower.” I say to myself, “Look, Ed, if you want people to keep buying records, you have to work out way so that the record store actually can make some money: sell direct.”

It looks like it’s working out pretty well. But again, it’s a hard push. Jen’s album, I think, for me personally, is way better than my album. Of course, I’m in a different genre of house music; they don’t compete with each other. But my album is for Jus-Ed heads, you know, Underground Quality heads that love the Jus-Ed sound. But hers is a proper album. Vocals, melody, there’s songs: this is traditionally what an album is supposed to be about.

You’ve done a couple parties at Tape, and you have one coming up January 27. These parties have always been a big deal for you. What’s your history with the club?

I got introduced to those guys through Ike Mueller. She is the one that booked me for Tape. She is a beautiful woman, and she is down with the underground sound 100 percent, and she’s booked a lot of underground talent at Tape. Then she moved on; she left Tape to pursue another promotional career somewhere — at another club. But I fell in love with the club, and the owner, Yoni [Margulies], and Tommy. Tommy is silent; his words are very, very expensive. He doesn’t have much to say, but he sees and hears everything. I love that dude. When you say “silent partner,” he would be the epitome of that. And Yoni is a die-hard house head and sound freak, you know, and all-out sweetheart. We hit it off, him and Uli. I said, ‘I want to come back here.’ In fact, this is — this is the perfect house club. This is the club that should be devoted for underground house music. Have you been?

No, I haven’t.

You really need to see that spot once before they tear it down. It’s like an oversized loft with a dope bar and a sound system that’s like headphones. Analog. So I said, “Yo, I would really like to do a label night here,” and we did. Me, [DJ] Qu, and Fred [P]. That was the first official UQ label night party — you know, a really life-changing experience. It was dope, we had a little over 400 people that showed up, and we killed it. I said in 2001 to Jen, “One day I’m going to be overseas, and I’m going to have my boys over there, and I’m going to be doing a party.”

In 2009 we did the big one. It was draining. Physically, emotionally, it was draining. Nobody actually believed in what I wanted to do. Lerato supported me, but she’s a promoter, and she has to deal with stuff that’s proven. So there’s a certain shadow of a doubt. The spirit was always there, and the support. Now, Yoni and his crew from a club owner’s sense, there’s always that mechanism of “It may not work.”

The club, rightfully, I mean they’re the ones providing sound systems, liquor, environment, security, and they need to make money to stay in existence, and what I was happy with was the fact that I was given an opportunity to take control of a club from the artistic standpoint. With six DJs it was tough, especially because it opens at midnight and, tentatively, it closes at six. You’re like, “How are you going to do that? I need a DJ playlist, I need a list of what order DJs are going to play in.” [I said] “There is none.” These parties are thrown based on the fact that it’s an Underground Quality event. It’s not artist based, and it’s the same formula — similar formula — that Berghain [and] Panorama [Bar] uses. It doesn’t matter what artist is going to be fuckin’ playing at that place. They didn’t build that club on the name of artists. They built that club on the name of the club. So the club will always exist because it’s known for having dope parties. The first thing that people say is, “Are you going to Berghain or Panorama?” And then the next question is, “Well, who’s going to be playing?” And some people may know and some people may not know; they just know that that place is the shit.

We started Underground Quality just for that purpose: so that when they saw the UQ label, they knew that it was going to be a good party. It didn’t matter what artists were going to be there or not. The other reason is that I also need to promote the new artists that come in — they need to have their platform. I’m able to introduce the artists as DJs. Therefore, the artists are — in maybe not so nice terms — they’re expected to give and play for the label. Not for themselves, not to make a name for themselves. This was the discussion that I had with the first round, with first six: Anton [Zap], Nina [Kraviz], Levon [Vincent], Qu, Fred, and myself.

I wanted to give to people who were earnestly supporting the scene — being a house head is a way of life. It’s a culture. There’s an underground house lifestyle that is being lived every day. And it’s not a fad — it only becomes a fad when the mass media decides, “Oh, we like it and we can make money off of this.” But after the hype blows off and all the posers disappear, there’s still that underlayment of people that actually live that way. Those are the people that you run into, like, you came to my house, and you’re like, “Yo, this looks like my friends house — ” because I got the turntables, I got the records everywhere, I got the CDs, I’m trying to show you the new music, this and that. We chill, we relax, and we eat. It’s the same kind of culture, no matter what country. Like Japan or Russia — you go to these people’s houses [and] they have their turntables, they have their records, they have their mixers, they have their CDs — it’s a culture. I’m like, “I want these people to come, that have been tossed about and abused and taken advantage of through the industry or marketing or just club-ism. I want them to come see me cause I understand, and I got what you need.”

Yoni and the staff are all house heads. So to get in bed with somebody who has the same ideology as far as what the experience should be, but is business orientated, it’s like, you know, you want to call your mom or your dad and say, “I found the perfect girl!” [laughs] My thing was that even if the event flopped, if nobody came, the press alone covering this at that time was so huge for the club that it helped establish them on the map. What else is brilliant is that a U.S. DJ/producer is going to throw a party in Berlin, where he can’t even get a residency in New York, in his own country. “Yo, this guy doesn’t even have a residency in the City, but he’s going to throw a label party in Berlin? What the fuck? Wait a minute, what is this label?” See? Curiosity. Got ‘em! Now it’s poppin’. [laughs]

The other thing is is that the artists — I said, “If you give your best to this night for the label, you show your gratitude for that, everybody here tonight will be elevated.” And they will tell you straight off the cuff, “I didn’t believe half of the shit Ed was saying.” Levon will be perfectly clear about that. The first year we traveled the circuit together, we were in Fabric, and he said, “I don’t fuckin’ believe this. You know everybody. And they really like you! You weren’t lying; this is like your living room.” This is not by luck. It’s an honor, it’s a blessing. It is bragging rights, but it is something that’s cultivated. You can’t fake shit like that, when you reach out to people and you be genuine. People want to be around real people. They really do, you know?

So how did the party go, then?

You’ve known me long enough to know that I don’t bullshit or over-exaggerate shit — when I tell you there were tears, grown men with tears in their eyes because they were moved. I had tears in my eyes. I started the night on a 20-minute rotation. I played, and then so-and-so came, [and I said] “Okay, you’re up next. Go in, play. Okay, so-and-so, go in, you’re up next.” And so everybody played with everybody. We rotated that for, like, two — two or three hours. Everybody got to play. As the place was filling up, we were rotating. [People said] “Oh, when is so-and-so playing?’ Did I miss such-and-such?” “Yes, you did, but they are coming back on. The main thing is is that you’re here now! Next time get here on time so that you don’t miss anything.” That’s the way I always go to a party. I go to the party as soon as the door is available for me to enter, because I don’t want to miss shit.

So I was mixing DJs. I was mixing the artists. I let them do what they came to do, and then I would put on another artist. But when Fred came on, that was Fred’s breakout moment, at that particular Underground label party. Me and Qu were standing on the dance floor, and Fred came on and it just — I could see in Fred’s face — I was looking at Fred’s face, and he had such a calm, intense look. He played out all that shit that came out last year on his label at the party. Kerstin [Tama Sumo] was behind me, and her cheeks were red, and Achim [Prosumer] was at the bar, and then Fred just went into this zone that just fucking killed it. That’s when I dubbed him the Jimi Hendrix of minimal house. I remember I was politely rude to somebody, and I told them, “Please do not disturb me at this time.” I just wanted to enjoy what was going on right there. Everybody was so excellent. I sucked, actually. I came on at the end. There was nothing else to be said, musically. I was just so happy and elated that I was able to have a dream come true, and we were successful.

Can you talk about the mix a little bit?

First of all, I want to say thank you, once again, to you and Little White Earbuds for supporting the underground scene like you do. And for being accurate, you know? Whoever wrote that “two mules” line — it just totally tickled me. That was a classy, classy line. [laughs] The mix is an introduction to the Endurance CD, UQ-044. It’s dedicated to the closing of Tape. Some of the tracks — ‘Immortal Tape,’ ‘Lost In Berlin,’ and ‘Confused Passion,’ those I made, actually, in the club. I have keys to the club. That’s the level of the relationship between Yoni and I. When I found out they were going to have to close because of the city making moves, the best way for me to make an impact was just to give my talent. I thought it would be nice to have a commemorative disc out that also represents the last UQ label night.

So what’s coming up for UQ?

This year, you’re going to get a lot of Jus-Ed tracks, a lot of Jus-Ed records. Because last year, I didn’t put out a lot of EPs. I did the album, and I did collaborations and stuff. On the joint label between me and Jen, which is called EDJ, we have EDJ-003 that’s going to be coming out.

And that’s another split 12″?

Yep, and it’s better than the first one. You know, we keep trying to make them stronger or better as we go along. I’m also going to put out this year unreleased remixes that I’ve done, you know, like Jus-Ed edits. Also, I’m supposed to play the Boiler Room on Wednesday, January 25th. Then I’m doing my regular radio show (Underground Quality Radio Show) at one o’ clock in Berlin (7PM EST) from club Tape.

Glued to our smartphones and reliant on all manner of high-tech gadgetry, the line between human and machine has never been harder to discern. For Brandt Brauer Frick, this porous boundary is a source of great inspiration to their music and ethos. Since 2008, Daniel Brandt, Jan Brauer and Paul Frick have pushed themselves to this edge in pursuit of classically rooted, organically sourced techno that demands precision in recordings and during live performances. The last two years have seen them form the Brandt Brauer Frick Ensemble, whose horns, strings and percussion add depth to an already intensely detailed sound, especially live. Their recently released second album, Mr Machine dazzles as it offers new interpretations of previous highlights and their expansive revamps of songs by Emika, Agnes Obel, and Scott (Brandt and Brauer’s first project). Having last spoken to Paul Frick in early 2008, LWE caught up with Daniel Brandt about the creativity hatched by the Ensemble, working with Rashad Becker, and how UK bass music is inspiring their new material. They also created LWE’s 109th exclusive podcast, a genre-promiscuous mix placing many of their favorite 2011 releases between classic techno sides and seminal classical music.

LWE Podcast 109: Brandt Brauer Frick (61:18)

Tracklist:

01. Gustav Mahler (played by Claudio Abbado with Berlin Philharmonic), “Andante Commodo” [Deutsche Grammophon]
02. Luc Ferrari, “The Dress Rehearsal Performed Before Brunhild On 24.10.08″ [Sub Rosa]
03. John Cage (played by Klára Kormendi), “Sonatas And Interludes V” [Hungaroton]
04. Helmut Lachenmann (played by Herbert Schuch), “Guero” [Oehms Classics]
05. Steve Reich (played by Amadinda Percussion Group), “Piano Phase” [Hungaroton]
06. Roman, “Goodbye Bunny” (Brandt Brauer Frick Reinterpretation) [Kalk Pets]
07. Jeff Mills, “Revolt” [Tresor]
08. LCD Soundsystem, “45:33″ (Theo Parrish’s Space Cadet Remix) [DFA]
09. G.H., “Ground” [Modern Love]
10. James Blake, “Give A Man A Rod” (Second Version) [Hessle Audio]
11. Robert Hood, “Resurrection” [M-Plant]
12. Bodo Elsel, “Fantasie Mädchen” [Playhouse]
13. Pearson Sound, “Untitled” [Night Slugs]
14. SBTRKT, “Ready Set Loop” [SBTRKT]
15. Wax, “No. 20002″ [Wax]
16. Emika, “Pretend” (Brandt Brauer Frick Rework) [Ninja Tune]
17. Crazy P, “Make Me Wanna” [20:20 Vision]
18. Mr. K Alexi, “Don’t You Know” (Ron Hardy Muzic Box Classic)
[Partehardy Records]
19. Amon Tobin, “Lost & Found” (Brandt Brauer Frick Skiffle It Up Dub)
[Ninja Tune]

I know your live set provides opportunities for you to change it from set to set, but as a three piece you’ve been playing mostly the same set for a long time. What keeps it interesting for you?

Daniel Brandt: Our three-piece live set is based mostly on improvisation between the three of us, so while we sometimes add new tracks — it’s always improv-based. Even though we often play the same songs, it’s a different set each time, which keeps it interesting.

Along the same lines, it seems songs like “Bop” are going to stay with you forever. Do you want to keep playing and updating them or are you ready to retire them for new material?

With a song like “Bop,” it’s true that we have been updating and refining it since we’ve first started playing it, and we probably won’t be getting rid of it any time soon. But we’re now at a point where we’d like to do completely new things, and get rid of the older material to a degree. Of course we’ll keep some of the older material in our live sets, but we aren’t going to do any new versions of updates of “Bop.”

Working with the Ensemble means there are obviously a lot more moving parts — human ones at that — which you have to coordinate and rehearse, etc. Is the Ensemble something of a handbreak on your compositional creativity? It’s definitely an added challenge on top of your musical goals. How do you plan to challenge yourselves next?

The Ensemble isn’t a handbrake on our creativity, because the opportunity to work with new people brings a new set of perspectives; and the members of the Ensemble bring their own ideas to the project, which is a good thing. Now our new challenge will be do something different with the Ensemble, maybe something that is more rocking, more for the dance floor. We don’t really want to stick with the same concept with the Ensemble that we used on Mr. Machine; we’d like to be always trying new things with them. Right now we’re in a period just before starting to record new material, which will lead to us deciding how we’d like to present it live. Even with the three-piece, we’re looking at adding a live drummer and changing the way we perform. It’s all very open. The members of the Ensemble will definitely have input on the composition of the new material. Different members will be coming to the studio as we’re composing, and we would like for the composition process to be spontaneous.

In the classical world, groups are always playing other composers’ work. Do you see any connection to that in the reinterpretations BBF does of songs by Emika and Agnes Obel, which ended up on Mr. Machine?

There is some connection to that tradition, but at the same time, with the material that we covered on Mr. Machine, in a lot of cases we weren’t adhering so strictly to arrangement or even composition of the original. For example on the Emika track, we first made a remix (as a trio) using just the vocal from her original track. We made completely new music for the remix to place under her vocal. Then the version that appears on Mr. Machine is a new interpretation of that remix with the Ensemble. So it’s not quite the same as taking another composers work and playing it faithfully. Even on something like “606 ‘n’ Rock ‘n’ Roll,” where there aren’t vocals, we kept the rhythm and lead lines intact, but added more dynamics, the way the track slowly builds from the beginning to the end, whereas the original version was basically rocking from the first second.

Do you feel the versions of You Make Me Real songs on Mr. Machine are fuller interpretations of what you would have wanted to do on the first album, or just the adaptations for the full ensemble for playing live?

The new album isn’t what we wanted to do with You Make Me Real, we actually did everything for that album the way we wanted to do it in the first place. The Ensemble arrangements were made specifically for performing live, and we decided we would like to record them because they sounded quite different from the originals. We were quite happy with the results.

I’ve read you recorded the album with Rashad Becker. What was that experience like? Obviously his name is more often associated with mastering; was he mostly engineering?

Yes, we recorded with Rashad, and Axel [Reinemer] from Jazzanova. Rashad was mostly engineering, and also placing the microphones together with Axel. We also did a really long mixing session with Rashad, and he really knows what we wanted, but also has his own ideas about the music we play. So we generally came up with something between what we wanted and what he wanted, which made for the best results. We were sort of approaching things from a techno perspective, whereas he was looking at it from more of a modern classical perspective, and it was to the benefit of the album to have these different ideas and even some arguments. We get along very well, and it helped to have different perspectives. And of course his mastering and engineering expertise played a part as well.

Who did the artwork for this album? Was there anything you were trying to convey with it?

Mr. Machine is maybe the first half human/half robot on the planet, and we have all these body parts and are just putting them together, and they still work if you attach a battery. It’s about the line between real and technical, and Mr. Machine is all that at once. The idea came from a sign for an electrical supply shop or hardware store, which featured a hand with a light bulb as one finger, which served as the basis for the idea. A friend of ours, who also worked with us on the “Pretend” video, helped us construct the objects.

Whose idea was it to put 16 minutes of silence at the end of “606 ‘n’ Rock ‘n’ Roll”? Have you always been fans of Easter eggs/surprises on albums?

Yes, we have always been a fan of that sort of thing. Of course, it works better if you’re listening to the CD as a whole. We actually got an email from someone who had bought the album on iTunes, and thought something was wrong. But the idea that you could put the record on, and then you forget about it, and the music comes back again when you’re not expecting it is something that we liked. I don’t remember whose idea it was to begin with, though.

You personally have made several mentions of UK bass music and drum n’ bass as inspirational music. Those influences have seeped into a couple works, like your remix of Roman’s track. Is this something you look to incorporate more in the future?

Definitely. At the moment we are really inspired by these sorts of beats, and are working at recording drums and percussion that go in this direction. We even took certain tracks that we really liked and tried re-playing them, to get a feel for potential arrangements, and how to get the same power of some of the UK bass music we like. The next music that comes out from Brandt Brauer Frick will likely be influenced by that kind of music.

Where are you looking to take the BBF sound in the coming months? How much will you be utilizing the Ensemble in 2012?

We’ll keep on going with the Ensemble, and will continue to incorporate new music with them as well. The most recent show we had with them in Berlin was very encouraging, and we’re definitely excited to continue to work with them. But the first priority right now is changing the three-piece live act and maybe incorporating a visual element. I’ve been speaking with some artists who are interested in contributing on a visual level, so we have some exciting options there.

Tell us about the podcast you made.

The podcast is basically comprised of the music we’ve been listening to and inspired by over the last year. Half of it we recorded with vinyl, and half of it we put together in Ableton. We started it in Berlin, and actually worked on it on tour, especially one day in Austin. We had a day off, and worked on it on our computers in the hotel. Many of these tracks are our favorites from the last year.

New York has a long and storied history when it comes to dance music, but nowadays, with so much focus in the scene being allocated to Berlin and London, New York’s club scene has a bit of a “second [club] city” complex. And while many of the city’s big clubs leave much to be desired, digging a little deeper in the outer boroughs reveals a handful of world-class parties that stand up with the halcyon days of New York’s renowned tenure as dance music’s capital. Mister Saturday Night, helmed by Justin Carter and Eamon Harkin, is one of those parties. In only a couple years, Carter and Harkin have organized some of the very best loft parties in New York: bringing in extraordinary guests as well as becoming very accomplished DJs in their own right. In addition, the Mister Sunday (formerly Sunday Best) parties have become a summer institution — a day party beside the infamous Gowanus Canal where New Yorkers let their hair down while consuming delicious tacos and local brews. LWE caught up with Eamon and Justin at the start of 2012 to discuss the year that was, their ethos for the party, and Twitter beefs. They also provided us with our 108th podcast in advance of their January 14th appearance at Chicago’s Smart Bar: a distillation of the party’s sound into an hour and a half of house and techno both new and old.

LWE Podcast 108: Mister Saturday Night (88:20)

Tracklist:

01. Floating Points, “Myrtle Ave” [Eglo]
02. Jazzanova, “Let Me Show Ya” (Henrik Schwarz Remix) [Verve Records]
03. Jacob Korn, “Selene” [Running Back]
04. P. Éladan, “Monochordium I” [Muting The Noise]
05. The Opus, “Live 2″ (Instrumental) [Ozone Music]
06. Kode9, “Black Sun” [Hyperdub]
07. Alice Russell, “Take Your Time, Change Your Mind” [Tru Thoughts]
08. DJ Duke, “Tribal Journey” (Sun Mix) [Earth, Moon & Sun]
09. Wax/Sun Ra, “No. 30003″/”Space Is The Space” [Wax/Blue Thumb Records]
10. Black Science Orchestra, “Where Were You?” (Original Dope Demo)
[Junior Boy's Own]
11. Soul Center, “Psycho Set” [WvB Enterprises]
12. Eamon Harkin, “Rigor Music” (Roman Flügel Remix) [Throne of Blood]
13. Alfabet, “Lap The Music” [Rush Hour Recordings]
14. Club Ice, “Manhasset” (Space Mix) [Black Market Records]
15. Tazz, “Lost” [Underground Quality]
16. Underground Resistance, “Transition” [Underground Resistance]
17. Ramsey Lewis, “Party Time” [Cadet Records]

2011 seemed like a really big year for you guys.

Eamon Harkin: Yeah, it was a big year for us. I think a big part of that is the fact that we returned to this spot in Gowanus [Grove] for our outdoor party. And we had a really great run of 16 parties. Well, maybe 13 or 14 because we lost a few with rain. And that was great; we got a lot of momentum from that. A lot of people really loved that party and came out. One of the big themes for us this year was doing parties by ourselves and not having guest DJs. That was a purposeful strategy because that’s how we want to grow and develop the party, but also ourselves as DJs. That’s where we want to take the party. And it really worked.

Justin Carter: Yeah, because parties that are all about a guest are often really just vehicles for a guest. And of course we appreciate all the people who come and play with us, and we still bring in guests, and were not going to stop doing that — at least any time soon. When a party has a guest every single time, though, it can become a stage for someone else. And the whole reason we started the party in the first place was because we’re DJs, and we wanted to play records. And so we saw that there was an appreciation for us as DJs when we were playing alongside guests, and we also saw that we needed to start using this thing that we developed as a stage. We had this mission to really make the party into a party. Something that had it’s own identity, instead of having the identity of the guest. Mister Saturday Night has become this thing that has an identity in and of itself and isn’t about who’s playing — it isn’t even necessarily about Eamon or me. It’s just this thing that happens, that now it has a life of it’s own.

EH: And that’s the goal of the party: for it to be a party, to be a community. To be a thing in itself, to have a life of it’s own. So if there’s a guest there, the guest is a guest, rather than a headliner. He, or she, adds musical variety. There are some parties across the globe that do that well, and I think we achieved something similar this year. That’s been the most satisfying thing.

Is there any party in particular that stood out to you?

JC: You know, it’s funny because it was probably the least-attended party of the whole year. There was a string of crazy rain that happened in August, and there was one day where the party got cancelled because it looked like it was going to be torrential. And then it wasn’t torrential. So we were sitting at home looking outside at a beautiful sky, and then the next Sunday we were like, “We’ve got to do the party no matter what.” The weather forecast was awful, and ended up being awful just like it said it was going to be. I think maybe 150 to 200 people came. That was one of those moments where we realized that there are still people that will come out to see us in a crazy downpour and have an amazing time. It was an incredible party.

The party has taken place in a handful of venues. What do you look for in potential spaces?

EH: First and foremost we look for something that’s comfortable. The commonality among all the spaces is that they all have wooden floors. That’s really important for a dance floor, for us. We want it to feel warm, we don’t want it to feel like a reverberating warehouse. We want it to be a kind of place where you would want to hang out. And you can be social, but you can also just get on the dance floor and get on with it. 12-turn-13 definitely has that; it’s almost a legendary venue in New York at this point. House of Yes definitely has it, and the place on Scholes Street had it as well, to a certain degree.

JC: I think another thing that we look for is a positive relationship with whoever is in charge of a space. We continue to have a very good relationship with all three of those places. The people who run those spaces are reasonable, smart, creative people who are not trying to angle on you at all. They’re just really good people to work with.

EH: Which kind of comes back to what we’re all about in the first place, which is an experience, you know? And a community-based experience that is about people interacting and music. You don’t get that unless every person involved is in line with that vision, and unless you’re in a space that facilitates that.

What parties in the past have influenced the way you approach the Mister Saturday Night parties?

JC: Well, the first party that I went to in New York, period — before I knew anything about parties or DJs at all — was Body and Soul. I just went there because a guy on the hall in my dorm, he had an older boyfriend who was part of this old-time club scene, so literally the first Sunday that I was in New York City I went to Body and Soul. The elements that made that party so good were, of course, the music and the sound system, but really there was this great cross section of people. It felt like a real community, so that’s definitely an influence. It’s not like every time we think about our party we’re thinking about how we can make it more like Body and Soul or whatever Eamon’s influences are. That’s just what my original experience of a party was, and what a great experience for that to be. I don’t really have any nostalgia for raves or that side of dance music. I don’t really have any nostalgia at all. The only thing that I really knew in the beginning was Body and Soul, and so I think that probably just naturally has an influence on me.

EH: Years ago I was living in London, and my entry point into DJ culture was through post punk and indie music, basically. I think that the initial influences on me, and really what turned me on to DJs, were people like Optimo and Erol Alkan, when he was doing his Trash party in London. My sister was living in Glasgow at the time, so I’d go and see her and go to Optimo, and then when I was student I’d go to Trash. And those, for me, were great because it was the kind of music that I was more accustomed to at the time, and they were also communities — that’s the thing I’ll always come back to. It’s kind of rising above and beyond just the music or the club.

JC: Was Trash heavily focused on guests?

EH: No. Well, they were parties. That’s the thing: a party can’t become a party if it’s always about guests. Because you have no continuity. Right? And so the continuity comes from people pushing their vision on a continual basis. At Trash you’d hear Erol Alkan play great obscure indie records at the time. I’ve become slightly disillusioned with where Erol Alkan’s taken his aesthetic since then, but I really respect where he came from and what he did. And similarly for Optimo, and Optimo continued to be a huge influence. We’re going to play there at the end of the month in Glasgow. And we played last year, and that was just a really exciting moment, to be asked to go out there and play. So I wasn’t, like, in the rave scene in the UK or Ireland, so the influences from a party perspective kind of finish there, to be honest.

How did you guys get into house music and start DJing?

EH: Well, for me it was one of my oldest friends at college; we were in London, right? There are lots and lots of record stores, lots of parties, just lots of music going on. We were living together, so we just started buying tons of records. We used to play these fairly small little hip-hop parties; we just kind of fueled our love of music doing that. And that was around the same time I was going up to Glasgow and going to Trash and all that — I was still kind of an indie guy. Then I moved to New York. Do you remember a party called Motherfucker?

No

EH: So there was lots of parties downtown in New York which were based around rock and roll, and Justine D was a big figure. I was operating in those circles, and I got — Motherfucker was actually would another party that would be some sort of inspiration. What attracted me to that was the fact that it was downtown New York. I was besotted with the history of downtown New York, and I wanted to follow it, whatever the current version of it was. It was a really interesting party. They had Hot Chip play there, they had ESG play there, they had The Cramps and the New York Dolls play there. I got to play Motherfucker three times, which was pretty amazing as the party was huge and a true New York melting point of different types of people. But you know, I started to get bored of hearing guitar music at these parties, and wanted to hear more beat-driven stuff, so I started to seek out house and techno parties. Justine D, who was running those parties, became the musical director at Studio B and brought me on board as a resident, and we were doing parties there that were quite wide ranging in music. That was around the time that Justin and I met for the first time and started working together.

JC: For me, I just grew up with a dad who was really into music. He was a musician, he continues to be a musician, he plays the guitar, he’s been playing guitar for, I don’t know, 45 years or something like that at this point. And he also had a big record collection. So I spent a lot of time in the car with him, growing up. He had a big tape collection as well, and so we’d just listen to music all the time. It was just a natural progression for me to grow a record collection (it was a CD collection at first). I also was playing music a lot. I was a guitar player and a singer and a songwriter through junior high school and high school and into college. And after college, I kind of stopped playing music as much and writing my own music as much. Around the same time I found myself saying something along the lines of “There’s no good new music,” and as I said it I knew that it wasn’t true. I decided that I would start to go to Other Music and a few other stores in the city and just educate myself, or let the record store clerks educate me because I knew that there was a ton of music out there that I didn’t know anything about. So I just started buying records, and I just bough my own turntables and played records in my bedroom for six months. It wasn’t long before I started DJing out.

How did you two start working together?

JC: Eamon just sent me an email, because Eamon’s very proactive, and he was like, “Hey, we should meet.” And we went and met for a donut at Peter Pan up in Greenpoint, and we just became friends through that — fast-forward a little while and we were doing Sunday Best together. And… well — actually, you tell the story about APT.

EH: So Justin was organizing a residency for Afrika Bambaataa. So he asked me and Lindsey Caldwell to be the other DJs. So we did this weekly party with Bambaataa where I would open, Bambaataa would arrive with is entourage, and I would quickly get out of the DJ booth before Bambaataa came in because APT had this tiny little DJ booth, and if Bambaataa came in, there’s no way you were getting out — he was a big man. The party didn’t last very long because Bambaataa had a touring schedule, and –

JC: Honestly, it just wasn’t that successful; it was on a Tuesday night, and nobody in New York can draw every Tuesday night.

EH: But it was fun, you know? It was pretty awesome to be playing with Bambaataa. Around the same time we started Sunday Best, which was kind of the original incarnation of what Mister Sunday was this summer.

JC: I realized in working with Eamon that there was somebody who took it as seriously as I did. Like, Eamon would respond to emails and respond to phone calls, and he treated the business of throwing parties seriously. And not to say that you’ve got to be all spreadsheet about it, but I feel like nightlife in general is something that a lot of people are drawn to because it’s so loose. But I think it’s really important when you’re running a party to be serious about presenting people with a good experience. That’s something that I saw that Eamon was committed to, so it was a very natural draw to each other once we actually started working together.

How did Mister Saturday Night start?

EH: Well, Santos Party House had opened downtown, and I think there was a genuine excitement about this club because it was a good club to begin with, and it had creative, interesting people behind it, and it portrayed itself as alternative and different. We ended up signing a deal with Santos to program every Saturday night, both floors. Justin and I would program it and run it and be residents, and then we’d also have James Friedman as a resident and Twilite Tone, who Justin had been DJing with as well. Justin came up with the name “Mister Saturday Night,” and that’s how we started.

JC: Which Eamon wasn’t so excited about in the beginning.

EH: No, I felt it was a little too jazz hands. But so we did it from January to May. However, our dreams of having this really great relationship with the people at Santos were dashed, to be honest. And at the point, you know, I’d worked at Studio B, I’d worked at Love, Justin had worked at APT, we’d worked at Santos, Water Taxi Beach. We’d all kind of had these experiences of having to work with people who didn’t share our vision. And frankly, to be honest, didn’t really have any vision for nightlife — who just seemed to be business people who were in a business that they didn’t understand. Which to me — it’s kind of like opening a restaurant and not having any vision for what you’re putting on the menu.

JC: Or not having any real passion for it at all. I would like to say, though, that there are so many people involved in Santos that I don’t want it to seem to anybody that we’re bashing all the people that are involved in Santos. There are some really, really great people that are still involved with that place as owners, as partners, and they still have a good vision for that place. But there are forces that are larger than the ambitions of a few creative people in a big organization that made that place untenable for us to do parties.

EH: So we had to leave. Oh no, to be fair, they kicked us out.

JC: Because we weren’t drawing more than 800 people a night.

EH: They needed substantial crowds to pay rent. After that we just wanted to take the entire operation experience into our own hands and start afresh, and that was really the beginnings of the party as we know it now.

JC: We really said, “Alright, enough with clubs, enough with these places that don’t have the same vision that we have. We need to go to other kinds of places.” And around that time, we found out that Todd P at Market Hotel was willing to host dance parties and appeared to appreciate what we did. So we started to do Mister Saturday Night there. And that was really the beginning of Mister Saturday Night as it exists now.

How has it changed since then?

EH: We’ve developed a community. You see the same faces coming through, you see those faces interacting with each other, as a result of being at the party, and we interact with them as well. We’ve seen it grow and evolve. We’ve seen groups of people come for, like, nine months at a time and move on. We’ve all got busy lives and we’re moving around, but seeing that evolve is really satisfying.

JC: I feel like we’ve gotten a little bit tighter in our execution of things. You know, we — in the beginning when we were at Market Hotel, we did –

EH: Ugh, everything. We were bringing subwoofers upstairs at like six o’ clock before the party, and killing our backs.

You guys bought all the beer and all that?

JC: Yeah, yeah. Everything.

EH: Everything. Now we can show up at, like, 9:30, and it’s all set because we’ve got a team of people.

JC: A great sound team, a great lighting team, a great bar team. It’s all set up. This is something else that’s really satisfying — it’s not like we’ve handed these things off, and we hope that it goes well. We’ve handed these things off in a way where everything fits in with our vision. That’s a huge, huge thing to be able to say. Our sound guys are just, like, so on it. And Jeff, who does our lighting — every time we show up, it’s simple, but it’s special, and it’s warm feeling. He does such a good job. And our bar staff tells us when something needs to be changed or when something needs to be ordered.

EH: And our security guy tells everybody that walks through the door, “Welcome to Mister Saturday Night.” You know? He gets it. We’ve worked with him the entire time. It takes time to build that, but it’s quite amazing that we’ve gotten to that point in two and a half years.

Do you guys think you would ever consider going back to a club?

JC: Yes.

EH: Yeah. I still have a very soft part of my heart for, like, the clubs, you know? Like, there are the places that are the kind of “cathedrals” in the world where people go to. It pains me that New York has lost those. It really does.

JC: It’s not that a good club can’t exist. We’re going to play at Plastic People at the end of this month, and that is a club that totally gets it right. They have great security people at the door. I was talking to somebody Plastic People the other day, and they said to me, “You know, the first time I was there, I paid too much money at the bar, and I walked away and I didn’t know it, and a couple of minutes later, one of the bartenders had walked through the crowd over to me and tapped me on the shoulder to hand me my change.” Which amounted to, like, two pounds or something like that. It wasn’t a big thing, but they care so much. The people who run the place care, and the sound system is good — not because they want to be show-off-y about it, but because they actually care about how good it sounds. If somebody opened a place like that in New York, we would be there in a second because there are a lot of things that are a real pain about doing what we do in the way that we do. So if we could move it into a regular club, no doubt about it, we would do it.

EH: I admire Berghain, I admire Panorama Bar, I admire Fabric. I admire those clubs that have a vision from the top down, and then everything else is just putting the components in place to make it happen. That’s not what I’ve ever experienced in New York. The people that own the clubs, the people that are signing the checks are people that don’t know anything about music.

JC: And there are exceptions to that. I mean Cielo was started by Nicolas Matar, who’s a DJ, and there’s still good stuff that happens there. The tragic thing about that place is that it’s in the meatpacking district.

EH: That kind of proves my point: the reason it’s been successful is it had that consistent vision the entire time. Not a guy that’s sitting there that doesn’t understand what’s happening in his club, beating people up because they’re not bringing people in.

Eamon, tell me a little bit about your productions.

EH: Well, Steve [Raney] and I started working together about — I’d say about two years ago. Up until that point, I’d done some edits, and I released a 12″ on Wurst, just when they were an edit label. We started sending stuff to James [Friedman] because he was an old friend, as James was kind of reinvigorating Throne of Blood. And it kind of went from there. The nice reaction we got was just really satisfying. The process of writing something yourself from scratch and putting it out there is actually quite frightening, because you live with it and you have no idea whether it’s good or bad. I mean you have an inkling, but even, like, playing those tracks was kind of a bit of a leap of faith. But to be able to dip into your bag and pull out a record that you’ve made, just as natural as your pulling out another record because you’ve built that confidence, was really satisfying this year.

Or to see Levon Vincent pull it.

EH: Yes. Yeah. That was pretty awesome it’s well. I really want to spend more on it — I’ve got an EP coming out in a month on Throne of Blood as well. Justin and I are starting a label this year. We’ve got our first 12″ signed, possibly our second.

JC: Not “signed,” but we just got an email last night from this guy, who sent us a really, really nice track.

EH: So we’re working on a remix for the first 12″ together, a Mister Saturday Night remix. And I have about half a dozen tracks that I just need to get mixed and get out there. So yeah, it’s a completely different thing trying to create music. We’re really keen to get the label up and running this year as well and see where that goes. We want to get more into production and putting music out and contributing something to the musical landscape above and beyond events.

JC: I think it’s a natural progression from us throwing parties, to release music. Eamon is fully immersed in producing music. I am not a producer, but I write music, and it’s a really important thing to me. I think both of us kind of want a potential vehicle for ourselves and a potential vehicle for the people that we have relationships with, whether that’s the people who are coming to the party, who are sending us music because they like the party and what it’s about, or if it’s people who are coming to DJ the party. We haven’t decided exactly what it’s going to look like — all we know at this point is that we’ve got two people who are sending us music that we are really excited about, who haven’t sent music to anybody else that we know of, and we’ll see where it goes after that.

Justin, you alluded to your own productions. How is that going?

JC: Yeah, so I co-wrote and sang on a Great Weekend track that was released on Wurst. But other than that, I grew up writing music, like I said before, and it’s funny: as I started to DJ, I stopped writing and stopped playing my guitar and singing as much. I always kind of assumed that at some point there would be this bolt of lightning that would strike, and it would inspire me to write that album’s worth of material that I always wanted to write. About a year and a half ago that I realized that that wasn’t going to happen, that I just needed to sit down and work, and create a schedule for myself that says, “You will write music five times a week for an hour a day.” That’s what I’m doing right now. I just sat down two days ago and wrote down my goals for 2012, and one of those goals is to finish writing and record a full album’s worth of material that may be released this year, but will definitely be released by next year. Cross your fingers that I can realize that, but it’s a real ambition of mine.

Where do you guys diverge as DJs?

JC: Let’s do it like this: I will tell you what I think Eamon’s style is, and I’ll let Eamon tell you what he thinks my style is. I think Eamon is very informed by where he grew up and where his formative years learning about music were spent. There is a much more austere quality to the dance music that took hold in Europe. You know, when I think of the origins of dance music in Europe, I think of bands like New Order, I think of clubs like Ministry of Sound. I think of, like, a dance music that’s less rooted in the black American experience. Even if it was inspired by that in one way or another, it’s certainly less influenced by that. When I hear Eamon play, it’s much more beat-driven music than the music that I feel like I play. I don’t know, what do you think? Feel free to disagree with me too.

EH: Ha! I think I probably would disagree. I think there’s a lot of overlap because we’ve been doing parties together for so long. I mean you’ll often find a lot of the same records in both our bags. I think where you kind of see differences is at the fringes of the party. Like, at the start of the night, Justin will often play a lot slower and play hip-hop. I love hip-hop, but I just never really choose to play it. I’d like to play, like, Philip Glass or Steve Reich — I guess that’s that austere sort of element that Justin mentioned. I definitely like things a little darker sometimes. So maybe that’s part of it. But Justin will play his dark, moody techno set often at the end of the night, you know? I think we were further apart when we started the party, and we’ve come closer together as a result.

JC: Yeah, I don’t think Eamon would have ever played, like, vocal versions of some of the house tracks that he has, but he definitely plays the vocal versions now, which is great.

EH: Yeah, possibly. I’d have played the dub or just played techno. But that’s the benefit of having a partner, and that fact that you can both grow musically by being exposed to each other’s tastes is great.

JC: How you would describe the way I play?

EH: Well, I think that you’ll sometimes play a particularly dark, moody set. Like, he was playing Tin Man records this year. I don’t even know if I would go that dark. But then he’ll play a particular type of disco that I wouldn’t necessarily reach for. It’s not like I don’t have that part of my spectrum, but there’s a happiness that sometimes comes through Justin’s set and I don’t go to that emotional part of the spectrum. I think that’s how I would best describe the difference in our styles – we both reach for certain moods which are unique to ourselves. Maybe I’m a slightly darker personality. Maybe it’s the Irish or something, I don’t know.

How do you guys keep playing together exciting?

EH: Well, Justin keeps buying all my records!!

JC: Yeah, I make Eamon have to work extra hard because I buy all of his records. It was funny — earlier this year I sent him an email, and I was like, “Dude, what was that record that you played that was black and white?” He sent me back an email saying, “I think we need to go on our own musical journeys.”

EH: I think that what’s great about a partnership where you respect each other’s musical taste is that you can learn from each other and you can challenge each other. I’ve learned a lot over the last three years because of the types of music that Justin has exposed me to, as well as the bookings. Booking is another kind of curatorial thing where I’ll bring an idea and Justin’s like, “Well, I’ve never heard of him, but let me have a look,” and vice versa. Justin was totally on the Floating Points tip way before me, and I was pretty gung-ho about bringing Rolando in. You’re on your own journeys, and you rub off on each other, so you absorb more as a partnership.

JC: Eamon is really good about how to make tracks work together; how to build a particular energy in the room. I still feel like I’m learning how to do that. That’s one way where I feel he’s influenced me in a really positive way — to think about how to build energy and not just play a good song and then another good song and then another good song. I mean I’ve always known that that was an important thing as a DJ, but hearing Eamon do that has been a real learning experience for me.

Is the fact that you guys play almost all vinyl at the party important?

JC: You know, was I thinking about this a couple of days ago. I try to be responsible about the choices that I make in general. I’m mostly a vegetarian, I try to buy things that are made in the States, for the most part, but vinyl is one way where I feel like my choices could totally be irresponsible. Because there’s a much less polluting way to do it. Vinyl is pretty toxic, and it’s creating these big plastic discs that are going to be around well beyond myself. So I was thinking the other day, “Is this the most responsible thing?” Vinyl is important for me because I have these big, physical things that I can turn around and look through. They’re like visual cues that remind me of a feeling or of what that song sounds like. That makes it easy for me to pick what my next record is going to be in a very basic way.

EH: The whole thing’s such a tactile process, and I’ve been buying records for so long that it’s just — I’ve tried Serato, I’ve tried more CDs, and it just doesn’t feel right. We don’t do it as any big statement, as part of the party. We don’t try to make a big deal out of the fact that we play vinyl; that’s just the way we started doing it. It’s a pain in the ass. Every single venue we’ve been at we’ve had to hang the DJ booth from the ceiling, and that’s a pain. But I think we’re better DJs as a result of it.

JC: Yeah, it’s just what we started with and what we continue to do. There’s definitely this nerdy kind of club that you get to be in when you play vinyl. You get to go to record stores, you get to talk to the other people who collect vinyl, and talk about how much better vinyl sounds than everything else. There’s something that’s really, really fun about that. And you know, it’s not like we are calling our party “Mister Saturday Night Plays Vinyl,” but we mention it. It’s part of what we do.

EH: I try not to be so prejudiced about it because I also try to look forward. We want to do things differently, and there is an element of vinyl culture that’s just a little bit nostalgic. I don’t want to be that. We don’t have any rule about guests not having laptops or whatever, but I think we’ve only had, like, three laptops in the booth the entire time. The guests we book tend to roll up with records. There’s a certain sensibility there.

How do you guys approach the booking?

JC: In the same way that we approach buying records. It’s purely based on who we’re excited about at a moment in time, whose music we’re playing a lot at the party. That’s really it.

EH: For the Sundays, where we book everybody in advance and we look at it as a 15-week thing, we want the entire summer to have a flow and momentum of its own.

JC: It’s kind of like programming a DJ set, in a way.

Are there any defining records of your party? Records that either always seem to find themselves getting played, or records that maybe only got played once, but produced a particularly special moment?

EH: Well, there’s a record that will be on the podcast because it was a big record for us this year. It’s “Lap The Music” by Alfabet, which is by Tom Trago [and Awanto 3]. I swear to god, every time our crowd just keels over for it. They absolutely love it.

JC: Yeah. That’s one that Eamon bought, and I was like, “What is that?” And next party I was like, “Check this record out!”

EH: Next party I’m at the bar, and there it goes, and Justin’s hands in air — “Look at my new record.” Another one is the third one of the Oni Ayhun, which is a big record for me. We played that the first Mister Sunday this year, right at the very end, and it just went bananas.

JC: Well, it kind of goes in cycles. At any given moment there could be one record that means a lot. But I’d say in 2011, for me, this Cece Peniston, with a Steve “Silk” Hurley remix on the back that I play all the time. And there’s one that I play a lot by San Soda called “Doorsnee.” It’s a little bit on that UK bass music tip. It’s got these big, crazy sub-bass melodies in it.

EH: You also played — I don’t know who did it, but it was on Philpot.

JC: Oh, that Arttu record? He released three records this year, and all of them were outstanding. Yeah, and I would play that first one every single set. Every, every single set. It’s very, like, very, very raw. Very Detroit-sounding. Very Detroit- [or] Chicago-sounding, like, you know, kind of big analog drums, very, like, spacious in its production. I don’t know.

EH: I mean there’s other ones that come to mind, like there’s a Martin Buttrich Carl Craig remix, anything by Roman Flügel, like “How To Spread Lies.” Cobblestone Jazz’s “Dump Truck,” Levon Vincent’s “Solemn Days,” the Frankie Knuckles remix of Chaka Khan’s “Ain’t Nobody,” quite a few Junior Boy’s Own records. And then there’s always a lot of Omar-S knocking around as well.

JC: Not to be forgotten: Floating Points. Every single time he comes out with a record, it gets put on regular rotation at the party. I’ve been playing “Myrtle Avenue” like crazy. When we were in London last year playing with him, after the party was over we went back to Sam [Shepherd]‘s house. We were just listening to music, and he was like, “Hey, check this out; it’s called ‘Myrtle Avenue.’ You know, like Market Hotel,” where he came and played the first gig with us. It’s such a good record.

What’s coming up in 2012?

EH: More parties — maintain the schedule. Two Mister Saturday Night’s a month. One with a guest, one without, roughly. Hopefully Mister Sunday again. There’s always — there’s probably a lot more heartache that goes in to producing Mister Sunday than most people would know, in terms of permitting and politics.

EH: That’s New York, you know? So that, and we’ll be in Chicago, London, Glasgow, Stuttgart, and Berlin. I think we’ll be out and about more this year. Also the label — just contributing to the musical landscape beyond doing events is definitely the next goal, and I think we do that through our own musical endeavors and the label.

What do you think about New York as a party-throwing city? It’s got such a history, and yet nowadays so many people have this sort of love/hate relationship with it.

JC: I love New York. I think that New York is a place where, when a party goes off, it goes off better than anywhere else that I’ve ever been. You know, people like to talk about Berlin as this dance music Mecca, but I was there for three months, and I feel like I got a pretty good lay of the land. I heard a lot of really great producers and DJs at very important venues, and I never enjoyed them as much as I have when I’ve heard them in New York. In Berlin things never close — parties can just kind of go on indefinitely. There is no beginning and no end. Michael Mayer came and played with us last year at the beginning of the Sunday series, and he said something that I think is so important: “I really love to play your party because there’s an end to it, and that’s really, really nice.” On Sundays, we’ve got a hard cut at nine o’ clock. That’s such an important part of that party. A lot of people stay, and the energy is so amazing because people know that in one hour this party is going to be done. People don’t stay even till the end on our Saturday night parties, at least not a huge group of people. We’ve got a crew — a good, like, 50 to 75 people, and it’s got it’s own specialness about it. But on Sundays it’s really amazing because people who might leave a party before it was done won’t leave because they know there’s only an hour left. You get a full-on dance floor at nine o’ clock at night, and you get to play those end-of-the-night songs to a super receptive and excited crowd.

Even though we go until six o’ clock in the morning on Saturdays, it’s different than in Berlin where you could just go on forever and ever and ever. Even if it’s just 50 to 75 people there, it still feels like, “Oh, it’s ending so there’s something special about this. We better squeeze every bit that we can out of this moment because it’s going to be done soon.” It’s kind of like when people talk about how they hate the weather in New York if they live in Florida, but the people who live in New York and have been here for a long time, will always say, “Well, I really like the seasons. I really like the fact that you get to see the seasons.” And I feel like that’s kind of what makes parties good in New York: you know that there’s something that’s finite about it. You know that it’s not always this good. You know it’s not always going to be this warm, or it’s not always going to be this cold. You know it’s not always going to be like this so you try to draw as much as you can from that particular moment because it’s going to change at some point. There are a ton of bad clubs here, and you’ve been to those bad clubs before so when you go to a good party, and it’s really, really awesome, it becomes even more awesome because in New York it doesn’t happen all the time.

EH: I mean, I’ve got a European passport; I don’t have to be here. I choose to be here because it’s rewarding. What we’ve created is really rewarding, and I really believe in it, and that’s because of what New York gives back to us. It really bums me out when I hear people talk disparagingly about the scene in New York. I actually read an interview with Juan MacLean, which angered me because he was just talking really adamantly about how bad the parties were in New York. And it was coming from a limited perspective. I don’t know what his experience is, but I know he hasn’t been to some of the parties that are great in New York. And I love Kieran Hebden to bits, and we’re friends through having booked him and stuff, but there’s this little Twitter thing that was going on this summer, and I actually kind of challenged him back. “Alright, so you had one bad gig at Public Assembly because you were booked by somebody who doesn’t give a shit about sound systems. That doesn’t mean there’s nothing good in New York.” To be fair to him, he said nice things about us, but there’s that limited perspective thing again.

JC: Well, but I think Kieran had a point. I thought what he was saying was, “Until Brooklyn gets a proper venue that can support the people who are doing the things that are vital in the community, it’s going to be an uphill battle.”

EH: I think that the people of New York who come out to the parties, really, really make the parties. I had a little bit of a residency at a place called Tape in Berlin, and I had some great gigs there, but none of them compared to the best gigs I’ve had in New York. And having lived in Europe and gone to Fabric a lot as well, there’s a real sort of dilution of energy that comes from being popular. It’s a little bit like New Year’s Eve.

JC: Yeah, that’s it, man.

EH: We benefit a little from being a bit removed from that and not having that club. It just makes for good vibes. The one thing I actually think about New York is that it’s a little fragmented sometimes. I sometimes wish there was a greater sense of community between some of the parties, but I don’t know if that’s just being too hippie of me, or whatever.

JC: You’re not going to get me complaining about people coming together and loving one another.

Tells us a bit about who you are and what you do for Smallville Records on a day-to-day basis.

Smallville is run by Julius Steinhoff and Just von Ahlefeld, also known as Smallpeople, and Pete Kersten, also known as Lawrence. Basically the Smallpeople run the everyday life at the Smallville record store: we sit in the shop to sell records, do the orders at the distributors, plan our parties and label projects from the store and pack orders from our online store. The shop is a place to hang out and meet people, to listen to and talk about music or start a track. But around Smallville is also a great gang of people who are part of it, working and helping out. It’s really a good bunch of people, like Stefan Marx, who is responsible for the complete visual side of Smallville; Jacques from Smallville Paris, who lives in Hamburg for some years now; Richard aka RVDS, who is running It’s and releasing good music, recently on Laid; Wiebke (aka Elin), who runs the party series Dear in Hamburg, Christian (aka Blessing) works in the store with us plus does the artwork for Laid; Helena Hauff is also working sometimes and is a great DJ. It also includes people like Christopher Rau and Tilman tausendfreund, who are friends and also help out if needed; and last but not least Stella, who lives in Berlin now but opened the store with us in 2005 and is a initiator and member since the very first thought about the store.

How did the Smallville record shop come about? When did you branch out with the Paris shop? And what spurred you to start releasing records?

Actually we just wanted a good spot in Hamburg, a shop and hangout. We didn’t really think about whether it would work or not, more just did it. And it worked, we’re doing good — actually better then ever before now. After six years of doing the shop, we know a bit more how everything works. We cannot offer every record that is out there and we don’t want to. We would rather take a large number of one record that we believe in to offer it in the store for a long time. We just made two people really happy a minute ago, because we still had Workshop 9.2 on stock. I guess it’s very good for the store to have a certain sound that we stand for and offer. It’s always the music we love the most, that we sell the most, even if it’s a wide range between deepest house and techno. But that is a good thing and a very important point for our good feeling in the store. The plan to release records and do a label, too, was there from the beginning — it just took a while to set up everything.

The Smallville shop in paris is run by Jacques who lives in Hamburg, but he’s doing the orders from here and visits Paris regularly. The Smallville shop there was originally initiated by Pantha Du Prince, who just stocked a lot of Dial stuff and some good records in a shop for clothes; and he found Jacques to help him out with the daily work in the shop. But meanwhile Smallville paris is integrated in another record store called ground Zero, which is cool. If you are in Paris, you should check it out at 23 Rue Sainte-Marthe, 75010 Paris — it’s nice and cosy.

For a while the label was very closely affiliated with Dial, to the point De:Bug felt it necessary to say “Smallville nicht Dial ist.” Was it difficult to establish the label as its own entity?

Well, actually not. Dial and Smallville are close together due to Pete, who co-owns both imprints, but Dial is 11 years old and smallville only six. The Smallville record store is kind of a Dial shop now, too, as we have the Dial/Laid warehouse in here. Maybe Dial and Smallville are like brother and sister in a way, but in the end still two different labels run by different people. We were not looking to divide it music-wise — this comes naturally — and it’s also natural that it’s still close together, working well with each other. But yeah, there are things in common — artists, sounds and everything — but mostly also the way we look at running a label: without any need to be functional or to fullfil any commercial purposes.

Smallville’s records are synonymous with the artwork of Stefan Marx. How was he first involved with the label and why was he chosen to visually represent the label?

Stefan is a fixed part of the Smallville family and a long-term friend of ours. He was working for Smallville since the very beginning — his first work was our small village logo and text. He’s responsible for every part of our visual body — record covers, party posters and the windows of our record store. Stella actually introduced us to Stefan before we opened the store and we were amazed by his stuff. Stefan also likes the freedom he has to do things. He also released on Smallville; Smallville 25 is from him, it’s called The Dead Sea, a three poster collection in a gatefold record sleeve. All in all, we believe it’s the best thing that could have happened to Smallville. we are very thankful to have him.

What is your A&R policy like these days? Are you mainly seeking out music from people close to you or are you open to demos? How did the Melchior & Pronsato record about?

The Melchior & Pronsato record actually just happened. We knew Bruno and Thomas before and Bruno once just told me they had two unreleased tracks and if I’d be interested to listen, as they like Smallville. Of course I was interested. We all liked the tracks, so we released them — it’s not a long story. But besides, that we must admit, we are not really listening to a lot of demos. There are just too many and unfortunately a lot of bad music that doesn’t fit at all. We got to listen to so much music every day and during the week, so we find it hard sometimes. Most of the Smallville releases came naturally through friendship and people around we knew and like or find interesting. For us it’s important to have a good feeling with the artist, too, and to be on the same wave length, doing it from the heart.

The label’s releases can generally be described as deep house music, but there have been some outliers — perhaps most notably STL’s “Silent State.” Are you looking for specific aesthetic choices to align with the Smallville sound or is it more a certain vibe you’re aiming for? Is there anything specific you won’t put out?

There is no certain aestethic we are looking for, or at least nothing that is verbalised. It’s really more the vibe, the feeling. If something fits Smallville, we will realize it quite fast.

Smallville has been around since 2006, and obviously the musical climate in house has changed a lot since then. How much do you feel the need — or even pressure — to respond to what’s popular at the moment or that year?

We don’t feel the need to respond to anything. I guess that’s important. Of course we are influenced in a way by what is around because we go to parties, clubs, places and cities, and play a lot, so that’s an influence. But not in a way to react on something “popular.”

How much input does the artists themselves have in the final product?

You mean the artwork? It is always an important step to visit Stefan Marx in his studio and to have a look at his works. After that the process comes naturally as there is a lot of inspiring stuff at Stefan’s studio. So artists can definitely take part in the process as long as they don’t want a surprise.

What is one of your favorite releases on Smallville? Why?

It’s a good feeling that we are still feeling all the releases, from the beginning until now. Standouts in terms of the label might have been the album by Move D & Benjamin Brunn, as it was out first album on Smallville. It’s really a timeless piece of music and we got a lot of so nice feedback from around the world. That was amazing to realize and it still makes us happy to see it on Smallville. We won’t forget when we first listened to it in the store. And the same with the “Silent State” track. This also got so much love from so many different camps. I still carrying it in my case wherever I play.

What are some labels, past and present, that have influenced how Smallville is run, and why?

Dial, Emphasis Recordings and FXHE! The first Omar-S records on FXHE were just coming out when we opened the record shop. We loved them a lot and also invited Omar-S to play in Hamburg a short while after. There are a lot of timeless tracks on these labels. Emphasis is the label from Steven Tang. Every record is great and these are always a good hint for people digging for records in the store. We bought a lot of these, so we can offer them as long as possible. Steven was also guest at our Smallville party series and it was great to finally meet him.

Is there anyone Smallville wants to release who it has not yet released? What are your plans for 2012?

The release of a Steven Tang record would be something truly great for Smallville. We are big fans. As for 2012, we are working on a Smallpeople album, hopefully for the first half of 2012. There is some really good stuff in the pipeline for the Smallville label.

Talking Shopcast 14: Smallpeople (67:17)

Tracklist:

01. STL, “Birdart” [Something]
02. Herbert & Dani Siciliano, “I Hadn’t Known (I Only Heard)” [Phonography]
03. Sun Glitters, “Beside Me” (Essáy’s Calm Interpretation) [Kann Records]
04. Ben Westbeech, “Hang Around” (Karizma’s Kaytronic Dub Mix)
[Brownswood Recordings]
05. Juniper, “Jovian Planet” [Ominira]
06. Smallpeople, “untitled” [white*]
07. Smallpeople, “Black Ice” [Smallville Records]
08. Capracara, “Flashback 86″ [Soul Jazz Records]
09. Tang, “Horizons” [Emphasis Recordings]
10. Glenn Underground, “Vision” (GU’s Original Instrumental)
[Strictly Jaz Unit Muzic]
11. Inner Sense, “Vibin” [9Ts Records]
12. Second Life, “Inner Love (Give It Up)” (Black Keys Rework) [Running Back]
13. Omar-S, “Phazed” [FXHE]
* denotes tracks which, as of the time of publishing, are unreleased

LWE’s 107th and final podcast of 2011 comes from the hilariously named 2toomanygays of London, the duo of Michael Oswell and Samuel Ashton who have been DJing around the city together for a few years. Their house-flavored mix is imbued with all the depth and grace of two scene veterans, melding rare classics and recent favorites in a manner which left each selection feeling simultaneously fresh and timeless. Theirs was easily the most ambitious mix we received, sliding through 17 tracks in just over 48 minutes while maintaining a naturally entertaining pace. Don’t be surprised if you find yourself putting this on during your New Year’s Eve celebrations, as it will sound as good this year as it will a decade from now. Many thanks to the guys for their mix; make sure to catch them in action if you’re around London.

LWE Podcast 107: 2toomanygays (48:16)

Tracklist

01. Bernard Badie, “Party Jacktrack” (Oracy’s House Call Edit) [Mojuba]
02. OCH, “Bombay Bedbath” [PAL SL]
03. XDB, “Recago” [Dolly]
04. STL, “That Mnml Track” [Perlon]
05. Vulva String Quartet, “It’s Out of Sight” (Farben Says: It’s Out of Sight Mix)
[Combination Records]
06. Daniel Bell, “Warped” [Elevate]
07. Makam, “New York Hustler” (Losoul Remix) [Sushitech Purple]
08. Groove Chronicles, “Your Powers Taking Over” [Groove Chronicles]
09. Terrence Parker & Claude Young, “Untitled B1″ [Dow Records]
10. Trankilou, “Bill Collector” [BPM Records]
11. Melchior Productions Ltd., “The Later The Evening…” [Perlon]
12. Kotai+Mo, “Music for Ranches” [Elektro Music Department]
13. STABLO, “No. 9996-A” [STABLO]
14. Cooly G, “It’s Serious” [Hyperdub]
15. DJ Qu, “Sliding Thru” [Strength Music Recordings]
16. Mr. James Barth & A.D., “Inner City Lullaby” [Svek]
17. Social Material, “Class” [Comatonse Recordings]

If you haven’t knowingly heard a Legowelt record then there’s every chances you’ve heard from him under one of his numerous guises. Boasting more aliases than Frank Abagnale, Danny Wolfers first started making music in the early 90s, inspired by the likes of early Detroit and Chicago techno luminaries and his home-town heroes Unit Moebius. Known for his gritty, machine-driven techno and electro, his impressive discography is also noted for forays into ambient soundscapes, self-designed sleeves and some of the best album and track names you’re likely to find across any genre. His unique website, beamed directly from somewhere in the vicinity of 1995, is a mixture of information, music-gear adoration and banality that touches all the right nodes of any discerning music lover. LWE opened the lines of communication with Mr. Wolfers to find out more about his favorite bits of kit, why we won’t be hearing a concept album from him any time soon and what his favorite airplane is. He also mixed our 106th exclusive podcast, a blistering collage of techno, house and electro peppered with his own productions and divine obscurities.

LWE Podcast 106: Legowelt (77:09)

Tracklist:

01. BNJMN, “Open The Flood Gates” [Rush Hour Recordings]
02. The Abstract Eye, “Cool Warm Divine” [Valentine Connexion Records]
03. Trackman Lafonte & Bonquiqui, “Fortunes of the Lord” [white*]
04. The Abstract Eye, “Nobody Else” [Valentine Connexion Records]
05. Unknown artist, “Tristate Cruising” [white*]
06. Jon DaSilva ft Donald Waugh, “Love Is All We Need”
[Hour House Is Your Rush]
07. Hieroglyphic Being, “So Much Noise To Be Heard” [Mathematics Recordings]
08. Xosar, “Zephyr” [white]
09. Omar-S, “Nites Over Compton” [FXHE]
10. Legowelt, “Days of Persistance” [white]
11. Big Strick, “Fear No Fear” [7 Days Ent.]
12. Unknown artist, “Leeward Islands” [white*]
13. Recloose, “Tecumseh” [Rush Hour Recordings]
14. Trackman Lafonte & Bonquiqui, “The Feeling, The Force” [white*]
15. Unknown artist, “Voice of Triumph” [white*]
16. Unknown artist, “San Diego Marine Biology Center” [white*]
17. Hell Interface, “Trapped” [Skam/Musik Aus Strom]
18. Armando, “151″ (Terrace Mixx) [Djax-Up-Beats]
19. Aphex Twin, “Untitled” [unknown]
20. Exit, “Detroit Leaning” [Superior Elevation Records]
21. Danny Wolfers, “Microkorg string outro” [white*]
* denotes tracks which, as of the time of publishing, are unreleased

You’re famously in possession of one of the most saliva-inducing array of analogue music equipment known to mankind. Can you remember the first piece you ever bought?

Danny Wolfers: Well there are a lot of people and studios that have way more stuff, I just have a bunch of synthesizers and I really don’t care if it’s analogue or digital. You know, people call everything that has a knob or slider analogue these days or probably even if it’s just hardware. Last week this guy told me he heard someone praising the great, real analogue sound of the AKAI MPC! The first piece I got was a Commodore AMIGA computer; that thing has been more important than any synthesizer I bought. With a copy of the OCTAMED sequencer and a sampler cartridge you basically had a pretty good sampler sequencer workstation. A lot of my stuff, like from The Nomium Syndrome EP to Beyond the Congo, under the names Gladio and Polarius, that’s all made on an Amiga 1200.

Are there pieces you particularly favor over others, that will more often end up being used on your tracks?

Sure, the Roland Alpha Juno 2 synthesizer’s a real workhorse and the Yamaha RM1X sequencer, a cheap synthesizer/drum-machine/sequencer box but one of the best hardware sequencers ever made.

Did you always have a fascination with technology, or did this gear-fetish come to you once you started making music?

I guess boys always like technological stuff, right?

Do any of the newer retro styled synths interest you, for the ease of not having to keep them serviced regularly?

Yeah, they are way more interesting than old ones because most of the time they can do a lot more and are way cheaper, too. Like those Microkorgs, I’ve got three of those. They are pretty battered and falling apart from all the live gigging but they can stand their ground against something like a Jupiter 8, exotic sound-wise.

Your Astro Unicorn Radio show ran for a good four years, though you stopped doing that this year. Why did you choose to stop doing the show?

It just took too much time to do it every week. I spent two or 3three days a week on a show and after doing it for a couple of years I just got fed up with it and wanted to do something fresh and new.

You had some great specials on the show over the years. What were some of your personal highlights?

I think the documentary type shows were the most interesting, I guess. With the background atmosphere sounds, the Lomax-esque This American Life-style docos on FrequeNC Records, when we went into the forests of the deep south, or the one with Ron Morelli when we are eating pastries in a Mexican restaurant in Queens while you hear the rain outside, stuff like that.

I’m interested in your Unreleased America 1976-1992 compilation. How did you come across these tracks and was it hard to track down the artists to get them to license them?

I basically had nothing to do with it, it was all the work of Will Burnett aka DJ Speculator. He found all those guys and licensed it, I just released it. That guy could be like a detective librarian or something.

Also I’m interested in how the video for “Equestrian 707″ came about. The Weta people are very high-profile and I’m assuming not very cheap.

There was this guy Adam Larkin from New Zealand and he was doing some movie stuff in Holland and wanted to do a video for me. I said sure and I made the “Equestrian 707 trac”k for the video especially. So like one or two years later I was touring in New Zealand and the video was finished and he showed it to me at the Weta HQ. I didn’t have to pay anything for it because he did it for fun. It’s a crazy video with green pastures, horses, paranormal investigation centers, demonic creatures, etc. Pretty cool. There are two versions, one more explicit and the TV version. I think the one on Youtube is the TV version. I think they showed it on the New Zealand news after an item about Dolphin Trainers if I remember correctly.

Trawling through your discography and website I gather that apart from an obvious predilection for nature and animals you have some love also for aircraft. Any favorites you’d like to share with us, and have you ever flown on some more exotic craft than your stock standard air-planes?

Yeah, my favorite plane is the Dehavilland DHC-6 Twin otter. I also like Russian air planes like the Tupolevs and Illushins. I know Tupolevs always crash but they just look so cool. Actually for that matter the Illushin IL86 and IL96 are considered the safest planes in the world and didn’t crash once.

You’ve been making music for quite a while now but even so, the sheer amount that you have released is incredibly impressive. How often are you in the studio?

Every day from early in the morning ’till late in the evening.

How do you generally go about writing your albums? Are they concept based or loosely based around a series of studio sessions?

Well I just make tracks, basically. I really hate the word concept album, that sounds so fucking cheesey and toe-bending prog rock style. I would rather call them exploitation albums, like “The Rise and Fall of Manual Noriega” or “Phalangius,” etc. There was just this story or movie in my head and those albums were made in a couple of days in one flow. Nowadays the albums are just a collection of tracks I guess.. I don’t know, man.

What sort of music do you like to listen to in your spare time?

I guess mostly old soul music and African stuff, Detroit house too, 90s ambient stuff like Mixmaster Morris and The Orb.

The press release you wrote to accompany your The TEAC Life album was not just brilliantly original but also refreshingly funny. Ever considered a side career writing press releases or reviews?

Sure, hit me up.

What was your decision behind giving the album away for free/donation?

From the moment I started making those tracks I knew I had to give it away for free. I dunno exactly why or what but I didn’t want the music to be imprisoned on a piece of vinyl, these tracks needed to be free in cyberspace.

Have the donations actually financed you buying some more crap synthesizers or fixing your Juno 106?

Yes, the people have been quite generous, thank you very much for that again. The Juno has been fixed and I bought some crap keyboards from the rest of the money like a Casio MT520 and MT540 and MT640 which I already did a few projects with. They are like really ghetto house machines, like the drums are even cheaper versions of the RZ1 (Steve Pointdexter’s “Work That MF” drums) and they have really lo-fi house organs and strings and stuff.

What can we expect from Danny Wolfers and his many aliases in the next year?

I really don’t know, I hope to further advance my music with something fresh and new. I am working on some new material that pushes it a little bit further. Also, I started a software company called Pacific Micro International, it will release mainly audio applications and paranormal software. One of the products is called PACIFIC TAPE STATION and this will simulate the artifacts of cassette tape on your tracks, you can really push it far and make it sound all fucked up and saturated like half of your track has been disintegrated from the tape. You can also do E.V.P Electronic Voice Phenomena stuff with it because its emulates Germanium crystal diodes. Another product will be the PACIFIC LAGOON SYNTHESIZER which will be an easy to use VST plug-in synthesizer which can emulate very raw and organic analogue synthesis.

In these days of near-weightless laptops and tiny iPhone production studios, the lure of vintage sounds, unwieldy analogue gear and physical media is hardly a surprise. The Hague-based Crème Organization embodies these tenants fully, issuing 12″ after 12″ of classicist house and boggy modular synthscapes. Born out of the 90s West Coast scene in the Netherlands, Crème’s embrace of Midwest acid-house has at once kept true to the genre’s origin while operating according to its own idiosyncratic rulebook. The label has gotten better (and weirder) with each year, and 2011 saw loads of top shelf jackers from names like Myriadd, Willie Burns and Legowelt’s Chicago Shags project released bearing Crème catalog numbers. With a very solid decade under its belt, Crème is heading into it’s next ten years strong, so LWE figured it was about time we got to know a little more about this South Holland institution. Label head Jeroen, aka DJ TLR, shed a bit of light on the label and in the process provided our 13th Talking Shopcast — one heavy in unreleased Crème-y goodness.

Let’s start at the beginning: how did Crème Organization start?

DJ TLR: Honestly? I don’t really remember. I have hazy memories of being at the old Bunker house, where a round cheese with a salami swastika embedded in it was sitting in the freezer that DJ Gitano made, I remember that. [laughs] I was with Guy [Tavares] from Unit Moebius and Danny Legowelt and talking about it, but that’s about it. I made some tracks with Danny, got some demos, pressed some records on the Acid Planet account at the plant, backdoored my way into distribution and that was it. Within a week I had to repress, so I thought that was normal. [laughs] Little did I know…

What was your original intention with Crème, and how has that evolved over the years?

Nothing, I just like doing things and making something that’s my own. Plus I was around a bunch of talented people, really — frighteningly talented — and at that time we were right in the action. It seemed logical or something, like riding a wave. But there never was any mission statement and if it evolved it is along the lines of my own taste and that of the people I’m interested in.

What was the relationship between Crème and Bunker records?

I’ve known Guy since the late 80s more or less. We come from the same shit towns/scenes. Back in those days the alternative scene around the west coast was really small and he was a character, so we’d hang around the same venues and squats and stuff. Later on I started doing Internet things and throwing some parties, right around the time Bunker started again with the 3000 series and I was working on some websites like Global Darkness which got quite big at the time. We decided to sham ourselves into a world tour by just anouncing it on the Internet and to our surprise it actually started happening and people wanted to book dates and stuff. [laughs] Wweet!

It seems like the Netherlands have always fully embraced distinctly American sounds (notably Chicago house and Detroit electro), while adding their own twist and really making these sounds their own. What do you think is at the heart of the relationship between the Netherlands and Chicago/Detroit?

Chicago and Detroit are the cradle of house and techno, really some of the last major musical paradigm shifts. It’s hard to imagine how alien and crazy and flat-out exciting that sounded some 20 years ago but it had a huge impact all over the western world. I mean, look at the Germans, they’re still not over it. A lot of it snuck in here through the UK back in the day. It probably sounded so distinct because the people copying it didn’t know what they were doing yet and acted more on their own romantic ideas about the music than anything else. The world held more mysteries back then and your own imagination was more important. A lot of music was more distinctly regional back then. It had to be. You couldn’t just type “Chicago House” in Google and get more info than you can process.

What is the scene like in the west coast of the Netherlands?

Depends on what you’re looking for. But if you mean the club scene I don’t know, I only go to clubs if they pay me. But there is enough cool shit going on here to make life pretty comfortable.

Crème has a very strong visual identity. Who does your designs?

Godspill pretty much. He does about 75 percent, unless the artist demands he doesn’t and comes up with something cool themselves. Sometimes I do it myself when the mood grabs me. But mostly Godspill is part of the package deal.

Do you think it’s important for a label to have such a strong visual side?

It helps, but the music wins in the end. I mean, I have skipped god knows how many records with cool sleeves because the music sucked, you know, and the other way around, too, so I have a lot of shit sleeves in my collection. But yeah, when you have a cool record with a nice sleeve, what can beat that? Also, on a more boring level, a consistent graphic image helps with the branding — it comes across stronger and its good for the recognizability. Anyway, that’s all peasant economics.

Crème often issues very pretty colored vinyl. How much importance do you place on the physical piece of vinyl as an object?

The artifact is important to me. I collect myself and it’s great when records are nice. You can drag them into your cave and look at them and stuff, touch them, smell them, project onto them all the things you lack in normal life. It’s better then a girlfriend, ’cause when she shouts at you it sounds like music in your ears. So what are you waiting for, boys!

How have you adapted to the shifting vinyl market over the past decade?

Digitally. And by making records less about the DJ market and more about the vinyl freak market — it has to be worth buying. The days of the throwaway DJ tool are definitely over.

What’s a typical day like running the label?

Like being a mid-level floor manager at a Walmart: paperwork, politics, manipulation, calculation, scamming, and hanging out with/talking to/charming/swearing at people, people, people, and even more people. If you’re really lucky you get some music stuff to do but even then it’s mostly drowning in mid-priced bargain bin quality reissues of the electronic equivalent of Barry Manilow paddling a beige canoe over a sea of mediocrity.

What are a couple of releases that really stand out to you in the label’s back catalog?

That’s like a trap, man. They’re all special to me in some way or other!

What’s coming up for Crème?

Lately I’ve really been into doing videos for our globalXdarkness YouTube channel — plug, plug. For the rest I’m really excited by the upcoming releases, they’re crazy: Orgue Electronique, Robert Owens, Parking Attendant, John Heckle, Tevo Howard, Legowelt, Trackman Lafonte, D’Marc Cantu. These are but a few of the names I drop into your collective laps, or mouse clickers. Also some cool parties and stuff coming up; seriously, I’m very excited about it all.

What can you tell me about the mix? How does it represent Crème as a label?

It’s upcoming Creme stuff, mixed with some things from people and labels I like these days, like WT Records, L.I.E.S., M>O>S, stuff like that. They’re all connected artists in some way or other, even if only musically. Most of it’s unreleased I think, at least at the time I got it.

Talking Shopcast 13: DJ TLR (62:47)

Tracklist:

01. Xosar, “2012″ [white]
02. John Heckle, “Last Magic Maker” [Crème Organization*]
03. Alex Israel, “Welcome To Guntersville” [WT Records]
04. Trackman Lafonte & Bonquiqui, “More Then A Cat Has Ever Seen”
[Crème Organization*]
05. The Actor, Picture 210 [Trumpett]
06. Marco Passerani, “White Dwarf” [Running Back]
07. D’Marc Cantu, “10x As Strong” [Lux Records]
08. Steve Summers, “Different Paths” [L.I.E.S.]
09. Trackman Lafonte & Bonquiqui, “The Feeling” [Crème Organization*]
10. Willie Burns, “unreleased remix” [Crème Organization*]
11. Chicago Skyway,” Marie” (Aroy Dee Edit) [M>O>S Recordings*]
12. Argy, “Daze To Come” [Versatile Records]
13. Orgue Electronique ft. Robert Owens, “Our House” (KiNK & Neville Watson Ruff Kut1) [Crème Organization*]
14. Xosar, “Bangladeshi Pagan House” [white]
15. Larry Heard, “Winterflower” [Rebirth]
16. John Heckle, “On the Fields” [Crème Organization*]
17. Trackman Lafonte & Bonquiqui,” Trackman Lafonte” [Crème Organization*]
18. DJ Overdose, “Fabriek” [Crème Organization*]
* denotes tracks which, as of the time of publishing, are unreleased

It takes guts to name your house music project after one of the genre’s most revered records of all time. Jozef Lemmens and Pierre van der Leeuw, the Dutch duo who produce as Morning Factory, have more than intestinal fortitude — they have serious talent. After cultivating their musical tastes as record shop clerks and DJs across the span of two decades, the pair tried their hand at making the stuff in the mid-aughts. In 2010 their investments finally paid off when Yore Records and 20:20 Vision signed their first records, revealing a tech-edged house sound that has continued to evolve and take on new dimensions in their 2011 releases for Royal Oak, Fina Records and Pets Recordings. As one of house music’s most compelling new prospects, LWE tracked down Morning Factory to discuss their division of labor, their take on the Dutch dance scene, and the advice they would give young producers. They also provided us with our 105th exclusive podcast, a blistering 80 minutes of high quality house laced with vintage favorites and potential classics.

LWE Podcast 105: Morning Factory (79:48)

Tracklist:

01. Roc & Kato, “Jungle Kisses” (Club Kisses Mix) [E Legal]
02. Matthew Styles, “We Said Nothing”[Diamonds & Pearls Music]
03. Cassius vs Prince, “Untitled” [white]
04. The Mole, “Nervous Disid” [New Kanada]
05. Brotherhood, “Memorial Smith” (Daniel Stefanik’s Buki Good Remix)
[Kann Records]
06. Dimitri & Jaimy, “Waitress Of An Open Mind” [Outland Records]
07. Rob Mello, “No Ears Dub Debut” [Sublevel]
08. Russ Gabriel, “Back In Charge” [Soul On Wax]
09. Tan Ru, “Assembly” [Trelik]
10. James Duncan, “Yes I Can” [Real Soon]
11. Prassay, “One I Saw J.C” [Basenotic Records]
12. Kenny Dixon Jr., Winter Breeze” [Soul City]
13. J.T. Donaldson, “Make You Higher” [Pacific House Brand]
14. Jovonn, “Back To House” (Ian’s New Dub) [Underground Solution]
15. WK 7, “The Avalanche” [Power House]
16. Kramer, “Untitled” [white]
17. DJ Marcello Presents Barrington, “Generate Love” (Original IQ Mix)
[Secret Love Records]
18. Justin Vandervolgen, “Sheebooyah” [Golf Channel Recordings]
19. Egoexpress, “Weiter” (Antonelli Electr. Remix) [Ladomat 2000]

How did you two meet and begin producing together?

This must have been in the early 90s when we met as young kids in a record shop. Soon we became colleagues in that same record shop and worked there for many years. During this period, 1994 to late 2006 (when the shop went bankrupt ), we were part of a collective of like-minded souls and co-hosted numerous parties. Carl Craig, I-F, Erol Alkan, The Glimmers, Freddy Fresh, Charles Webster and the DMX Krew were just a few names on the long list of great artists we as part of this collective had the pleasure to invite and DJ with.

Anecdote: It seems that Francesco Tristano met Carl Craig for the first time at one of our parties. Francesco and a friend of his were there (we never met them though), which is quite funny in retrospect because this must have been one of the last parties we organized, in autumn 2005. Carl played an excellent set (still with vinyl in those years) and showed not only to be a pro but also a very warm and friendly person.

Actually, we never really had the urge to produce and we were quite happy working in the record shop, being part of this party collective and DJing ourselves all those years. But after the shop went bankrupt the crew slowly but surely fell apart with people choosing different paths in life. We got together and soon came to the conclusion that we could never live without electronic music and decided we were ready and up for a next challenge, and so a new chapter began.

Do either of you make solo productions as well?

Yes, although not for official output. Maybe someday we might, who knows? And if so, we will always hook up and ask each other for an opinion or advise. However all this is not a serious topic for us as our main focus is Morning Factory.

Is there a division of labor between you two in the studio? What does each of you bring to Morning Factory?

Joep is more the technical guy and makes the first sketches and we take it from there. JP gives the input to compliment the production process. From there we work on the tracks until we have a piece of music that we feel comfortable with, as we agreed not to release music which is not up to our own satisfaction.

Morning Factory is by all accounts a reference to the Ron Trent/Chez Damier track of the same name. How did that end up as the name for your project?

In our opinion Ron and Chez are among those few who truly can call themselves legends. Simply because they created honest and original music, not a style, not a genre, no hypes, no trends. You still feel that today. Their track “Morning Factory” was and still is a firm favorite of ours; that is why we choose the name. Mind, we don’t compare ourselves with Ron and Chez, neither do we want to copy their sound, which would be impossible anyway. What we do is follow our heart, try to aim for the best we can possibly be, listen, learn, love and enjoy all this great music which is still around, old and new.

Earlier this year you posted a photo of your studio which was quite crowded with gear. With all that gear and only two years of releases, how long have you been producing?

Oh yes, that one! Haha, we have to be honest here, it’s not ours! Both the picture and the gear belong to Jean-Michel Jarre (another legend). Our studio is not like that. We use software technology which can be at your fingertips nowadays as a substitute to all that great vintage equipment, which we still love.

How much sampling do you guys do?

Every now and than we sample some things out of old records, not too much though.

How did you first get connected with Yore and 20:20 Vision? What about Clone?

Yore began by sending a friendly e-mail through Myspace to Gerd Janson from Running Back, which is a favorite label of ours. He almost immediately responded and said there wasn’t any room for us at RB (as we expected) but that we should try Yore. So we did, rest is history.

20:20 Vision is a label we started to follow from day one. We did send them some tracks after we noticed Ralph Lawson charted our first EP (Forgotten Moments on Yore). Ralph Lawson and Andy Whittaker personally replied within 24 hours. Together we compiled the Dazin’ EP, a double pack. Ralph and the whole 20:20/FINA crew are great people, they don’t push us or tell us what to do. Music-wise we are free to do what we feel. Hope we can give them some fresh music soon.

Serge from Clone, a man we didn’t knew in person but respected deeply for his Clone achievements, sent us an e-mail to congratulate us on the aforementioned Dazin’ EP. We were quite surprised as we never dared to send our music to Clone, thinking it wasn’t good enough for the label quality-wise. So when we had some new tracks we were bold and just sent them to Serge and that’s how the edit for Reggie Dokes’ “Once Again” and Fantasy Check on Clone/Royal Oak came about. It speaks for itself that we are very proud to be a little part of that big Clone history. We would love to stick around Clone.

The Dutch house/techno scene of which you are a part has been particularly strong over the last few years. Why do you think it’s been fertile ground for so much good dance music? What are your favorite parts of the scene?

True, the Dutch house/techno scene seems to be blossoming. In a way it always has, from the late 80s up to now, but not always in a true and cutting edge way. It was either very clubby or gabber, nothing in-between. Now people take notice of producers who have been ignored for many years. However, as strange as it may sound, we don’t consider us a part of this so this called Dutch scene. We both live in a small town all the way down the south of Holland, tucked in between Belgium and German borders, which are both literally a 10-minute car drive from our homes. Of course we did and still follow what is happening “up there.” Clone, Rush Hour and Delsin are true innovators, but when it comes to influences we have say that they came and for the bigger part still come from Germany, Belgium, France and the UK rather than Holland. Besides that, foreign countries were picking us up from almost scratch and up. Until now, Serge was the only one in Holland who was giving us faith and props.

Who are some some of your production contemporaries you admire and why?

Always tricky to namedrop because you always forget the ones who deserve a big shout out, respect and love too. In Holland we really dig I-F, Duplex, Newworldaquarium, Alden Tyrell, Conforce, Delta Funktionen, Gerd, Tom Trago and Dexter. Outside our country the list is almost endless: Cosmin TRG, Lone, Kassem Mosse, Jacob Korn, Omar-S, Benjamin Brunn, Vakula, Ripperton, Gavin Russom, Space Diminsion Controller, Wbeeza, Actress, Linkwood, Untold…

What is the best advice you’ve received with regards to making music? What advice of your would you give to up-and-coming producers?

Simply that there are no rules in making music, just do as you feel like, make mistakes and don’t be scared making them. Music was never meant to be perfect or sound like this or that. Go with whatever happens in making a track — it’s a small journey, enjoy it! When you are too focused on a certain sound or goal on what the track should sound like you can miss all the nice and spontaneous things that happen in a production process. We noticed all the times that we want to create a smooth track it can turn out raw and nasty. So, we just go with the flow and things can just fall into place. We try to keep an open mind about the whole process.

What’s coming up from you two over the next 12 months?

We just finished a remix for Gerd’s 4 Lux label and really looking forward to continue our work with Clone/Royal Oak. The rest is open and we’ll see what the future has in store, no master plan here.

When you’re away from the gear and turntables, what do you do for fun?

We love to cook and eat, catch some movies with a preference for the lesser known and more obscure, read a good book, wine tasting (not connoisseurs though), going on a bike ride or a run in the hilly countryside, architecture, and browsing Discogs