There are a lot of musicians and DJ's who see Berlin as a mecca for anything that has to do with Techno or it's sub-genre's. Many have moved there over the years and are still going, in search of acceptance of their sound and style, since not every country out there is friendly to the sound. What do you see for the future of Berlin and it's role in Electronic Music culture?
Currently Berlin is going through a lot of substantial changes. While due to certain government decisions - or the absence of such decisions - Berlin could develop a club infrastrucure cities like Paris or London couldn't have, many clubs are closing (like Tresor these days) and others opening all the time. I don't know if in a couple of years from now there will be the variety of clubs which the city still offers at the moment. On the other hand almost everyone within Germany who is or decides to be a more or less professional electronic musician seems determined to be moving to Berlin at some point. Berlin is the European capital with the lowest costs for living, it has several proper record stores, clubs, bars, mastering facilities, designers and everything else you need to be in an inspiring environment for creating dance music. Oh, and there is also a constant stream of kids moving to Berlin in order to study at one of the 4 universities and they are all hungry for party. I also don't really see an alternative in Europe, except Barcelona maybe. So if Berlin can keep up it's electro-friendly infrastructure, I'm sure it will stay a big spot on the map of electronic musi
Do you, yourself, plan on staying in Berlin or are there any other destination you feel inspired to move to or explore otherwise?
Three of my best friends moved to other places and sometimes I feel like joining them. Berlin can be pretty annoying sometimes, so maybe I will try some other place in Europe for a year or two. I kind of depend on a proper infrastructure - like record stores, clubs, good flight connections and affordable rents. There ain't too many places who are really good at all of that.
Tell me more about Simitil and Barricade. Why have you seemingly retired Simitli?
Barricade is for my techno productions which I started doing recently. I felt that they are too different from what I do under my real name. Having a different, abstract name gives you a chance to develop a parallel identity, which is quite challenging. I can experiment in directions which the other labels I work with probably wouldn't accept.
As for Simitli, this was a name I came up with for Music For Freaks. Luke Solomon, who is my A&R there (he co-runs Classic, too) was trying to build a different identity for MFF and suggested that artists have a name just for this label. So Rob Mello uses "No Ears" there and I'm Simitli. I didn't stop doing stuff for MFF, but as it is all remixes, I decided to remix only under one name, and Simitli was off for a while. Actually I think about using it again for a bunch of experimental broken beat stuff I did, but I can't tell you more about it at the moment. Watch out, it's coming back.
When making your music, do you go into it with the idea that the piece will fall under one of your aliases?
Actually: yes. From the outside listening in, most of your music is very well thought out and composed, with great attention paid to both the minute details as well as the big picture. However some of your work is minimal in composition, and more about the mood the music instillls. Is your projects more concept driven and planned, or more improvisational at root?
I spend a lot of time thinking of how my music should sound, but whenever I start with a concept, it changes into something completely different. The process of work destroys any intentions. I don't know if it's improvisation, as you can change any detail a thousand times. It's rather a process of comparing which elements work best when put together.
You've worked with the gifted Jazz Vocalist Kristiina Tuomi on quite a few projects. You really sound like you were made to work with eachother. Together, you've made some of the most memorable House records of the last couple years. How did you meet?
Several years ago I was trying to get a band together and our guitarist brought in Kristiina at an early point. This band never happened, but me and Kristiina ended up listening to records all day and going to concerts and clubs. When it comes to music, she is one of the most open minded persons I ever met. She can equally enjoy a Death Metal concert, a Korean percussion performance or a Bad Company dj set.
Could you tell me a little bit more about your dynamics in the studio, creative processes and collaborations otherwise?
With our collaborations, I usually set up one or two basic grooves and had her sing phrases over it. This part was really improvised. I would give her melodic fragments and she would add ideas - afterwards it takes me about one week just to sort out the good takes and build a song. So I wouldn't say there is songwriting involved in the traditional sense of the word.
About collaborations, I'm rarely into working with other engineers. There are some people who work better in groups, but that's not really for me. Sometimes I work with Mike Daliot though (who is more known for his software works), but it's not really track-oriented. We are doing the sound research, which is an important part of the creation process, too. I'm trying a production collaboration with someone at the moment, but it's really early days now.
You've found a home with some of the world's most important and respected House record labels, such as Ovum and Classic. They are both so different in their output, yet both have proudly released records with your name on them. What would you say is the common element between them? What makes these already legendary imprints continue with such strong presence?
I think both labels are very open minded. Especially Classic have been experimenting with a plethora of artists and styles, which sometimes can be a little confusing, but that's the way to move on. Also Ovum have done everything from stuff that hardly has a kickdrum at all to banging techno and drum'n'bass. Well, regarding the presence Ovum is for about 50% a Josh Wink thing. As long as Josh continues developing his music in such a brilliant way, Ovum will be up front. And it also has other artists with a strong identity, like David Alvarado for instance. Classic has built a strong reputation with a bunch of outstanding releases, so that everyone is looking for that next Classic to happen. They have never looked back and always kept trying new things. If a label puts out 10 releases in a row that sound exactly the same, no one will remember it for a long time. Same thing is true if you are an artist. It's all about challenge.
With gear and software becoming less expensive and more accessible these days , there are a lot more young and eager producers out there, and therefore seemingly endless stacks of demo's being sent to labels all over the world. Do you have any ideas or suggestions for budding producers who want to be noticed, since the first impression may make the difference between a demo that's heard or discarded?
I'm releasing for about 4 years now, so I don't really consider myself an industry veteran full of insight knowledge. But I'll try to say something about that. I think a major problem today is that people don't take enough time to develop as an artist. Everyone who manages to put a track together in some software wants to have a release right away, which I can understand as I felt pretty much the same way some years ago. But I had more than ten years of formal training playing instruments to build on. I don't mean to say you have to be a virtuoso on a traditional instrument (which I'm not) before you will be able to program a bassline, but any music requires some level of skill and it takes a lot of time to develop that. A too early release can cut off chances for a long term involvement in music. If you get signed with something you made by accident and then can't keep up to this, labels are likely to loose interest in you very soon. It certainly requires patience and experience.
Was there anything special about the packages you have sent to some of the labels you've released with?
It was just standard CDRs and DATs. I don't think there needs to be anything special about the package. It's about what's on your demo. I'm sure Ovum receive 20 acidy 303 driven demos a week, which nobody would like to hear. Be individual, develop your own style. Surprise an A&R. If an artist's track is absolutely outstanding, it will be released. You need to target the right A&R with the right track at the right time.
What other suggestions do you have for these young artists?
Many people seem to spend all their energy on self-promo, or on "to be noticed", instead of optimizing their musical output. With an increasing quality of the music there will be less need for marketing.
What are your goals as a musician and as a producer, if they are different?
I'm finishing off my second Barricade single, as well as a new Stefan Goldmann EP. There is some remixes I have done, too. Actually there are a couple of labels that have been inspiring me for some time now and I would like to release something there - but I won't tell you names now.
Are there any little known clubs or bars that you would suggest people visit when in Germany? Places to hear impressive local DJ's play House, Techno, or anything else in between, that you feel stand out yet get little recognition under the shadows of the big clubs and world-renowned names?
Fortunately the most places I really dig get the right attention at the moment. As I was pointing out before, the club scene changes almost every week and often great clubs become insanely boring within a couple months. If you come over to Germany, make sure to get some local resident to take you to the good spots. Or simply ask the friendly personnel of a record shop or a cool bar for suggestions (if it is friendly). There are often one-offs and illegal parties which you wouldn't find announced in the local club mag.
What are 5 electronic music records that you feel everybody should own or at least listen to and why?
I don't think there is any piece of music in any style or from any culture that absolutely everybody needs to know. There is too many fantastic music around the globe and you can't even check out everything. I mean: how many masterpieces of Senegalese Griot music do we know? So I'll rather name some albums I personally feel are absolutely outstanding and unique.
1.) Jeff Mills: The Other Day Compilation (Axis CD) - A great introduction to techno as it should be: future forward, deep and insanely beautiful. There is a lot of polymetric structure developed in the tracks, that makes it more interesting than the average 4/4 techno standards.
2.) Cristian Vogel: Busca Invisibles (Tresor) - What I really love in this one is that it has so different approaches to making a track groove. It leaves the standard quantization schemes we all employ all the time and comes up with some weird shuffles - and it's so damn funky at the same time.
3.) Recloose: Cardiology (Planet E) - This album really inspired me a lot. It's pure house music to me, but the boundaries of house are stretched into totally new directions. It has these "retro" sounds without trying to superimpose any traditional clichees on a house beat or so. It's music of today with knowledge of the tradition.
4.) Jonny L: Magnetic (XL) - This is a favourite from my drum'n'bass days. The whole sound is super-dirty and full of angry distortion, but
all the grooves have a big dynamic impact and a killer streetfunk groove. It matches absolutely perfectly. I don't like a sound that's too clean, so this is a perfect example of how it should sound. Oh, and it's severely dark and darkness is something I'm always looking for in music.
5.) Praxis: 1984 (Celluloid) - I'm a big fan of Bill Laswell's work and as far as I know this is his first electronics-only album, named after the year it was produced in. He stripped Electro, which he was a protagonist of, down to the bone and made this one with just a drummachine, a shortwave radio and manipulated records (and I believe there is a Synclavier, too - one of the first samplers). Sometimes if you reduce the number of tools you are employing, you get the best results. Now this one is essential. Like what Plastikman's "Sheet One" is for Techno, "1984" is for Electro.
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