With a knack for creating wild, deep, percussive, tech cuts, this multi-instrumentalist electrical engineer is one of North America’s most promising forces. His recent debut ‘Universal Groove’ album dropped to much acclaim on his own Percomaniacs imprint following four years of essential cuts on Dirtybird, Gruuv, Repopulate Mars and Desert Hearts to name just a few. DMCWORLD checks in as he makes his debut on Melé’s Club Bad label…https://lubelski.lnk.to/WindPipe
Jake a huge welcome to DMCWORLD…where can we find you in world Covid LockDown?
Thanks! Yeah just been going to the studio and isolating at home with my girlfriend. Keeping my mind busy so I don’t go crazy and run down these empty streets naked.
Away from the studio, how else have you been filling your days and nights as the virus ravages the planet?
It’s pretty wild, huh? I’ve been keeping up on the news, watching TV, and catching up on some reading.
So let’s get into the music and your brand new Wind Pipe EP dropping on Melé’s label Club Bad this month. Please talk us through this two tracker…
Well it’s definitely got a world music feel to it. Wind Pipe features this intense Tulvan throat singing sample that really just cuts through. I sort of wanted to arrange it as a track that would mess with your head on the dance floor. The B-Side ‘Bermuda’ is more of a deep bouncing cut with that quick walking bass line and some of those similar throat singing vocals as Wind Pipe to keep the EP cohesive.
Buy/stream here… https://lubelski.lnk.to/WindPipe
Why was Club Bad the perfect home for the release and how did you hook up with Melé?
I’ve been a fan of Melé’s music for years, so when he told me he had been playing some of my tracks out and wanted something for his label, I was pretty excited. I basically cooked up both tracks specifically for him. Apparently they had been working really well for him at gigs before the shutdown!
The EP is fresh on the heels of your album The Universal Groove LP which was released through your own imprint Percomaniacs. Now that the dust has settled, have you been happy with the reaction?
I’ve been very happy with the way things went with the release of my album. It was almost a blessing in disguise that it dropped during the start of the pandemic, because I think it put a lot more ears and eyes on it. Hopefully it offered some sort of solace to people who need a little musical escape during these times. I’ve also been working on this particular body of tracks for a couple of years, so it was satisfying to meet that accomplishment and put something cohesive out into the world that has its own arc. I am super proud of it and it was a great way to kick the year off leading into a bunch of other releases.
Okay let’s rewind for a moment and a cool as fuck story involving how you first got into electronic music. A lot of people found their way to the dancefloor thanks to an older brother or sister…you though sir discovered the joys of dance music thanks to your grandma! Tell us the story…
I was maybe 7 or 8 years old, when I had gotten my first portable CD player. My grandma bought it for me along with Moby’s album Play, Fatboy Slim’s album You’ve Come A Long Way, Baby, and Gorillaz’ debut album. It was my first introduction to dance music.
How did the actual ‘making music’ journey begin for you?
My dad got me an acoustic guitar when I was 7 because I wanted to be a drummer. So I began learning songs by Led Zeppelin, Neil Young, Bob Dylan, etc. I graduated on to electric guitar and bass and played in some bands in middle school and high school. By high school, my friends and I were teaching ourselves how to record our own music and started dabbling in electronic music genres. Most of my friends began making dubstep, so I decided to start making house music since it was what I was most familiar with.
Early musical inspirations?
Moby, Gorillaz, Led Zeppelin, Linkin Park, AC/DC, Michael Jackson.
A big quote from you, “I love the old school stuff because it was never really about the massive manufactured buildups. It’s all got to be groove-driven. If the groove isn’t there it’s not a good track.” Discuss…
I still feel this way! I don’t mean it to be negative, but I am a bit of an elitist when it comes to music that feels more substantive in general. To me, if music seems too formulaic it just feels robotic with no soul. The earlier house music didn’t have these massive snare rolls or over produced rising synths. That’s not to say there aren’t ways to make that tastefully, but you really need to craft something unique in that regard to standout and impress people who dig deeper with their taste.
Three big tunes in your box this weekend, a sentence on each please…
– Bissao (Pilooski Edit) – Francis Bebey
I love Francis Bebey’s music. It’s raw psychedelic fun. Pilooski’s flip of this is amazing.
– Don’t Take It (Thomas Edit) – Armando, Sharvette
Another incredibly raw track. Stripped back acid, disco vibes. The minimalism and attention to sound design is very cool on this one.
– Idris – Dauwd
I love the drums and bass line of this song.
What is the last AMAZING…
Film you saw?
I really liked Jojo Rabbit!
Album you checked?
Amtrac’s new album is really inspiring. Big ups Caleb!
New producer you discovered?
I guess this isn’t a totally new producer I discovered but someone who I have seen really start to find his sound is Sly Turner.
And finally, what is coming next from the Lubelski studio?
Gearing up to do some live streams from my studio to talk about my processes, do beat challenges, and shoot the shit with fans. I’ve got plenty of music scheduled for this year on labels like Elrow, Deeperfect, Gruuv, Desert Hearts, Superfreq and my label Percomaniacs.
