It’s been a busy few years for Silent Revolt, real name Emilo Hernandez. Whilst he’s been active as a DJ since the eighties, 2019 saw him release his debut single, Who I Am, on Audiophile Deep, alongside co-launching the rapidly rising Moteur Ville Musique record label. Adding to this, this October sees him release his new single Dogmatik on Eyedyllic Music, featuring remixes from Basti Grub and Demarkus Lewis. With all this in mind now is a great time to have a word with the man himself…
Emilo, thanks for speaking with us today, it is great to have you with us! First off, how are you doing? How has the year been for you so far?
Thanks for having me! Doing great considering the circumstances we are all currently facing. This year has been interesting to say the least. Having to adjust to the current situation has been a challenge. Not being able to socialize, play any shows, travel, or doing the very things I took for granted has been a test of will. But not all has been negative. The pandemic has given me more than sufficient time to accomplish many things when it comes to my music, our label Moteur Ville Musique, and in my personal life.
So last year marked the release of your first single, and one that we very much enjoyed! Having been active as a DJ since the 80’s, what inspired you to now start sharing some of your music with the world?
Thanks for the kind words! And yes, wow, the 80’s, that’s a long time ago! I was always more consumed with DJing and playing gigs that I never quite jumped into the production side. I took a long break from music/DJing in 2009 to explore other career options at the time.
Soon thereafter my wife and I made the move to Michigan. In 2010 I began to assist her with her medical marijuana business (during which I perfected the art of growing cannabis and advocated for its legalization in 2018). It was also during this time that I became more of a fan of the scene going to local events in Detroit. I quickly developed a love for the music and the scene that I truly had not felt in a very long time. The music, the people, the love in Detroit is like no other. That is what inspired me the most to begin where I had left off, get back to DJing and pursue production. Having the extra time on my hands has truly helped realize this goal!
We want to say congrats on your upcoming release on Eyedyllic Music! The track features words from your friend Ari Carlini; can you tell us a bit about how the track came together and how it found its home on the label?
Thank you, again! One morning Ari Carlini and I were having a conversation on video chat where we discussed current events, politics, and the covid pandemic at which point Ari started getting really deep. Ive known Ari for over 25 years and have always had a high level of respect for his views and intellect. So listening to him I feel is educational at times. Soon after having our conversation, I decided to pull snippets from our convo and kept listening to them over and over again. We all have an ego that we battle on a daily basis and it’s important to keep an open mind. Currently we are living in a world where things are constantly changing. It’s important to keep educating ourselves, learn new things, and to be open to different points of view. I quickly decided this message would be amazing for a track. Given our current times, I feel like the message is spot on. When the project was completed, I sent the track over to Kev at Eyedyllic Music for his thoughts. He replied soon thereafter expressing interest in signing it to the label. Kev and Eyedllic do great work so I was very happy to sign it over.
Buy link – http://snd.click/EYE013
Basti Grub and Demarkus Lewis provided two awesome remixes to compliment your original. What were your thoughts when you first heard their remixes?
I want to begin by saying having Basti and Demarkus onboard this release is truly exciting and a huge honor. I have been a fan of both for many years and have the utmost respect for them. You can only imagine how I felt when I found out they were tapped for the remixes. When I first heard their versions I was excited to be honest. Basti’s hypnotic deep version is super fresh. Serious underground heat. Demarkus stayed true to his signature deep house sound and made this his own with his infectious groove. They both brought great balance to the release!
Can you share a bit about your studio set-up with our readers?
Unfortunately, due to an accident early this year, I lost my studio and all my equipment was damaged. I plan on rebuilding it slowly in time, though. For the time being, I have been utilizing Noam Rubinstein and John Creamer’s studio in Brooklyn NY. Lots of video sessions and the guys have been great in assisting me with engineering since I cannot be there personally because of the pandemic. However here is a list of the some of the gear in their studio :
Hardware :
Apogee Ensemble
Fender Squire Stratocaster Moog Slim Phatty
Waldorf Blofeld
Novation Ultranova
Software :
Ableton Live Suite 10
Slate Digital All-access
Native Instruments Komplete Collectors Edition 12 Fabfilter
You recently co-launched Moteur Ville Musique which has been going from strength to strength since. How has life been since starting out on this journey and what has the experience been like so far?
Launching Moteur Ville Musique with my good friend Ken has been a ride. We have had the opportunity and pleasure to work with some amazing talent. Some of which have been my favorites for many years. We made a vow to always stay true to the music, the artists, and everything else Detroit represents and I think our releases reflect that mission statement.
The experience has been exciting and thrilling at times. Having the opportunity to curate some of these releases has been an honor. It has also given me the opportunity to learn a different aspect of the business which was unknown to me. Kudos to Kev Obrien from Diggn Deepr for guiding us through our infancy and helping us make all the right moves to help establish ourselves!
With nightlife culture under threat right now given the covid restrictions globally we’d like to draw some attention to why the scene is so important to protect. As a DJ of so many years, what does nightlife culture and the music scene mean to you?
It’s very unfortunate what we are seeing at the moment. It’s unprecedented for sure. The scene, nightlife culture is a “safe space’ for many. A place where people can either be themselves or break away and be someone else; where all are welcomed regardless of race, gender, political affiliation. It is a place where we become one. In a society where partisan divide fuels the headlines, our scene is what brings the entire world together. Peace, Unity, Love, Respect was our motto back in the day. The world needs more of that these days.
Furthermore, it’s extremely sad and disappointing to see the way our leaders are treating our industry. Some have gone as far as calling for entertainers to retrain in other fields. This is a slap in the face considering the millions and billions of dollars politicians have been giving to corporations and their cronies. Our scene is just as important as any other business, and we deserve to have it preserved, not abandoned. Without music and art, life would be very dark. #SaveOurScene
Thank you again for speaking with us today! To round things off, is there anything else you’d like to share with us? Can we expect to hear more music from yourself in the not-too-distant future?
FIrst off, I want to say thank you very much to DMC for taking interest in hearing some of my thoughts, cheers! Definitely expect more music from me soon. I have a release planned for 2021 on our own Moteur Ville Musique which will feature some superb remixes by my homies Noam Rubinstein and John Creamer [UpAllNight] (who most recently received consideration for a couple Grammy nominations), and a fine deep minimal rendition by none other than SIS.
Lastly, I want to remind everyone out in musicland to stay positive. Be kind to one another, express love and gratitude. Remember that we have more in common between us than we do differences, so let’s focus on that!
Peace!