The mighty Sister Bliss returns with her huge new single ‘Dancing Home’ through her own label Junkdog Records
Interview : Dan Prince
Bliss welcome back to DMCWORLD, where in the world are you today?
“Hi Dan, today I am at home in my studio working on a remix for Junkdog’s next badass release from “I Said No”.”
You are back in the news with the announcement of your brand new single ‘Dancing Home’ ft. Janne Schra that’s coming out on your own label Junkdog on June 16th. We first sat up and took notice of Janne back in 2006 when she released ‘Six White Russians and a Pink Pussycat’ with her first band Room Eleven! How did your two paths cross?
“She did a vocal on a lovely track with Kraak and Smaak – the very talented Dutch act (who also happened to support Faithless on tour in the Netherlands a few years ago) and I loved the sound of her voice plus the fact she was a bona fide artist in her own right. So I emailed her and she sent over some vocals!”
Talk us through the sound of ‘Dancing Home’…
“It’s warm, swirling and hypnotic house with maybe a nod to the sound of Lindstrom (who I’m a big fan of) with this very catchy, quite naive almost folky female vocal from Janne Schra gliding over the top.”
True or false : Your first home studio was on your mum’s dressing table and then later on a ping pong table?
“Haha!! I can’t believe you found that information in the murky depths of the internet- but yes – all true! The ping pong table was crap though – the legs buckled under the weight of my old Atari computer…”
Three remixes swing our way on the new tune, your very own ‘Dancing Home To Bass’ stripped down remix and also two reworks from Tuff City Kids and Junkdog signing Yoon. Why were these two artists chosen specifically for the track?
“Well I loved a mix Tuff City Kids did recently for Dinky on Visionquest and also had the pleasure of seeing Gerd from TCK play at Panorama bar in Berlin – so I knew he wasn’t afraid of melody. I also found out he’s a fan of the author Philip Roth as I am…so the stars aligned! Yoon are Victor & Ionut – young artists from Bucharest who are very talented and signed to my label who I have high hopes for – they write, produce, play live and has also graduated from art & design school so they have a very strong visual sense too – Ionut has a lovely haunting voice so they really have the full package! I am hoping to release their new EP of original material to introduce them to the world in the Autumn. They also did a great remix recently for Faithless “Feel Me Now” on Junkdog which helped to showcase their talents.”
Since the label’s launch in 2013 you have introduced us to some really exciting artists including letthemusicplay, I Said No and Yoon. What was the whole idea of the label before you began and has it been a smooth ride?
“Well thank you! I feel it is my job to introduce people to music and new artists I love – whether it’s through the selection for my DJ sets in clubs, songs I play on my radio show or choosing support acts for Faithless to break them to a wider audience (including the likes of Mylo, Calvin Harris, Kosheen and Hot Chip over the years). I have always liked playing music very loud to anyone that would listen, wanting them to love it just as much as I do – and the record label is an extension of that feeling really. I think the plethora of labels around and sheer volume of dance music out there (a lot of it pretty good) makes running a label fairly tough – you can’t bung just anything out and hope for the best – you have to really be behind each release to help it achieve its potential. As my label becomes more established I hope it will be perceived a stamp of quality – and with quality music the cream will rise to the top in the end.”
What is the current top 10 you are spinning?
Pushing On – Oliver $ and Jimi Jules
Gus Gus – Crossfade (Maceo Plex Remix)
LXURY- Playground
Miguel Verdolva – O superman
How We Gonna Stop TheTime – Kraak & Smaak
The New Sins – Lights Down
Alex Metric & Oliver – Hope
Little Dragon – Paris ( TEED remix)
Marc Romboy & Blake Baxter – Freakin’
Odesza- Sun Models ft Madelyn Grant
True or False : At your first Faithless live gig at The Jazz Café in London, you had to throw two tickets out of the dressing room window to Sasha and Paul Oakenfold so they could get in?
“Totally true! It was beyond shambolic – which actually, most of Faithless’ early career was…”
Your Ministry of Sound radio show is broadcast every Friday evening to some 35 countries. When you began your journey into this dance music world, did you ever think our sounds would have the global presence it has in 2014…some really far flung places are starting to get involved?
“It is quite extraordinary how dance music has become this global currency – especially in places which didn’t have any history of synth pop, disco or hip hop leading up to the explosion. In Europe where beats/ synth based songs were perhaps more part of the musical landscape and maybe not quite so alien sounding, you could predict it would have more of a hold. But to rock up for example in China to DJ (as I have many times), where recently there were barely any Western artists performing live or on the radio – or even dancing allowed (remember Wham’s gig?) only 20 or so years ago, it is insane to think how things have changed.”
Calvin Harris earning over $1m a set in Vegas, events selling out in seconds thanks to Facebook, private jets everywhere, EDM sweeping the States. Are we in danger of dance burn out or is this the way we are ‘progressing’?
“Well like everything in life there are different perspectives! I think people will become bored with the stock crude generic sounds of EDM and the artists themselves may be somewhat musically bankrupt (David Guetta even admitted as such in a recent interview) as there is only so much touring you can do before it impacts on studio time and having space to think creatively – but, I don’t think people will ever be bored of dancing, or partying and seeking a communal joyous feeling – wherever that may take them. And it’s clear people at the likes of mega events such as EDC, Ultra etc. are having an absolute blast to DJs they clearly adore – they are passionate about what they see as their scene – so as long as they’re digging that experience it will probably last for a while, even if it mutates along the way. It’s easy to slag off EDM…elements of it are pretty crass – from some of the music to the “whose got the biggest jet” beef some DJ’s have. To me it is just the antithesis of what dance music means in my life – it’s got nothing to do with art or consciousness – or coming away from a party feeling that you’re life has changed and you have been moved by the music. But I also understand, as a touring artist on a practical level, if you’re in demand at loads of festivals with a load of production and crew to transport to site, the travel can be impossible without one – so if the fees cover it, that’s why it ends up being a popular choice for the most in demand DJs. It’s the mythologising of private jets and fetishising DJs that is not progressive – it just creates a bunch of out of control egos who are no longer in it for the music. Packaging EDM with all the jets, Vegas etc. as being an aspirational culture is hardly a surprise though – it is the American Dream in action, and now a generation of kids have been switched onto that. For some, the goldrush for EDM in the US could be seen as progressive – as it uplifts our industry as a whole, it’s an entry point into dance music, so that genres like techno and deep house and the proponents of those more underground scenes start to get a look in as it creates a space where EDM fans can start to dig a little deeper. Also I always think the underground scene has always been strengthened by the lack of imagination in the mainstream – it makes us determined to produce more meaningful, more funky music, and create a scene that is driven by passion, ideas and creativity.”
Brilliant answer. Well, Faithless began with your own visits to Pure Grooves Records in London where your pal Ben said that he had a producer friend of his that he thought you should meet, a certain Rollo. Social media will never match that feeling for a DJ of chasing down rare records, being handed an unknown tune by a guy over the counter that they thought you’d like or the euphoria of slicing off the cellophane on a new import and placing it onto a slipmat for the first time. Has this recent resurgence in vinyl excited you?
“Ah bringing back great memories!!! Yes – it’s great that a new generation has rediscovered vinyl – how great it sounds – and how tactile it is, the communal pleasure of sifting through piles of vinyl along with like minded others at the counter in a weekly pilgrimage to the record shop. Record shops can be a place where connections (sometimes for a lifetime) are made, and that you just can’t do when buying music digitally. Also loads of people are coming to great nights like Despacio – James Murphy & 2 ManyDJ’s Balearic vinyl only night – which have a lovely wonkiness and warmth that you don’t get with perfectly beat matched digital formats, and brutal crunchy Funktion1 soundsystems. I think people tend to react against sterility eventually – even though technology has made our lives easier in so many ways, we are still primitive creatures, with analogue brains! I read a great book – “Perfecting Sound Forever” by Greg Milner – in which a psychologist had argued that digital music (created from binary code) actually makes us physically and emotionally sick – perhaps the warmth of vinyl (which is actually distortion) could be the panacea to all our ills! I should say, I’m also very glad for all my mates in the vinyl mastering industry who are no longer out of work!”
True or False : You received Felix’s ‘Don’t You Want Me’ through the post and sent it back to the record company because you thought it was crap. It was Rollo’s first piece of production…
“This is true – the boys at Pure Groove convinced me that it was worth holding onto – I just hadn’t turned it up loud and appreciated it’s devastating effect on the dancefloor – lesson learned! But I was quite rude to Rollo when I met him, and told him I had thought the record was a little remedial…until I’d actually spun it in a club – luckily he appreciated my honesty – and this honesty I think formed the basis of our long and fruitful working relationship. I don’t think we could have been on this unique musical journey without being the extremely opinionated people we are – and it was fortuitous to discover that early on.
What is coming out next from you studio wise?
“Junkdog will be releasing new material from “I Said No’ which is fabulously summery and lush – and I’m just in the process of doing a remix for them today!”
What is the record that…
…always reminds you of your childhood?
“ABBA – Knowing Me, Knowing You.”
…reminds you of having your heart broken?
“Sisters of Mercy – Marian”
…will ALWAYS gets you dancing?
“Gat Décor – Passion.”
…you wish you had made yourself?
“…probably Gat Décor – Passion as well!”
A recent quote from a certain superstar DJ…“I believe true DJing is actually an art, but it’s a dying art, as everyone is pushing the sync button…it’s a real shame when you see a ‘DJ’ plug his laptop in and call this DJing. Music will always evolve but sometimes not in the best way.” What are your thoughts on that?
“I don’ t think it’s a dying art – when you have the likes of Greg Wilson lugging his reel to reel tape machine across a muddy field, you know that there are DJ’s keeping the vibe well and truly alive! There are still plenty of DJs who put real thought into their sets to keep them musically adventurous, and with some emotional sense to them. I don’t the medium you use is particularly important – most people on the dancefloor don’t care if its vinyl, CDJs, Reel to Reel, Serato or Traktor – it’s the choice of music, flow and feeling – and enthusiasm- that the DJs put it all together with – that’s important. Those sync buttons are horrible though.”
And finally, rumours concerning bands who have split up will always circulate. A couple of weeks ago there was a mighty big suggestion that Faithless may be getting back together for some huge live shows in 2015. A load of old cobblers or what?
“Well you’ll just have to watch this space……………”
**
BLISS
‘DANCING HOME’ FT JANNE SCHRA
JUNKDOG RECORDS
RELEASED 16 JUNE
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