A crazily talented musician and an equally fine DJ to boot
Interview by Ian Fleming
Doctor Dru is part of a new wave of German DJs and producers earning respect worldwide thanks to their contemporary, raucous sounds. Ahead of his latest release on JEUDI and a showcase at Sonar in Barcelona, we decided to drop him a line…
What was growing up in Germany like? Was it a great place for electronic music?
Of course! Germany has a long tradition of electronic music. If you go back to the German roots of electronic music you can go back to the 50s, guys like Stockhausen even. But in my age the first names referred to electronic music were names such as Kraftwerk, D.A.F., Westbam and Dr. Motte. Papa Sven Väth is another person who really inspired me. The voice of electronic music can be found in so many different areas today. I think Germany is still growing in its music tastings and that makes it a great place to implement ideas – as an artist and a music listener.
Can you tell a bit about your unusual alias?
The “Doctor” is a relation to my natural nerdism and the “Dru” is in relationton my past as a drummer. Doctor Drum would have sound dazzling, so I took the M off. Hence, Doctor Dru…
So did you study music in college then? Or when did you first start to experiment with it?
I started playing the drums at an early age. I was about 12 years old. That’s what I’ve done quite intensively over the years. Playing in the studio, touring with different artists, practicing hours and hours in dark and humid bunkers. Earlier in Kindergarten even, I started playing guitar. After getting lessons by dull teachers I was a bit bored so I stopped doing that. Later on I picked up piano lessons, which also helped me to experience doing music.
Do you remember the first time you heard electronic music? Did you like it immediately?
It wasn’t a conscious thing that happened. I was never like, “Oh I’m listening to electronic music now”. I just liked certain artists like Depeche Mode or Human League and I was fascinated by the sound world. That’s how it started. Of course, visiting raves helped me fall in love with this kind of art form.
And when did you release your first EP? How do you feel you’ve progressed since then?
My first release as Doctor Dru was the “Oh Gosh” EP on my label, JEUDI records. I’ve done a few remixes and stuff under other aliases before. Of course, my sound now is a bit different from back then. It was quite a journey and I’ve learned a lot since then. You know also “The Voice Of Dru” seems to be quite far away from my latest release sound wise. But I just couldn’t keep with the same sort of stuff. It’s a constant development. I was always fascinated by the minimalism of techno. But also, I dig groovy funk sounds, which I played a lot when being a drummer. I like to experiment and to cross genres. Also, when I do DJ sets it’s always exciting and I can play all my different stuff in one set.
‘The Voice of Dru’ has a very famous sample. Can you talk us through how you handled the original a bit?
This edit was more or less done in one day. It’s very simple and has a ‘to the point arrangement’. It all came naturally. Musically, I chopped up the parts and tried to put it in a more modern way.
And with your latest EP – is there a story behind that one at all?
“The Grain” has a dark, cinematic atmosphere. I played around on my moog and had this simple dronish bass riff, added the high arpeggio and built on that. It took me a lot of energy to find out the sound way I wanted to achieve on this one. I mix and produce everything by myself and sometimes that’s a real pain. But it sounds super fat now in the club and the build up works very well. “The Pattern” is like a starting train and when it runs it could run forever and ever. I’ve had some good moments with this tune and really like playing it.
So are you a quick or slow producer?
It depends on what I am working. Sometimes a beat comes to my mind and I know I will finish this within a day. But then another beat takes me weeks. The thing is that I´m constantly very picky with my music and very critical. Being nerdy on sound aesthetics, makes the production processes very complicated somehow. At the end I always remind myself how lucky I am to express myself through beats and that my work needs to be fun. This is my motivation to produce and not to push myself on quick productions.
Every artist at every genre knows what I´m talking about here when it comes to time vs. creativity vs. expectations vs. expressions vs. blockades vs. happiness and so on. And it has also something to do with letting go of the babies you are working on.
Is each track you produce different in that regard?
Yes, you never know where the journey goes when starting a new track. That’s the exciting thing about making music. You work from scratch and suddenly there’s a ready piece of music. And what now? Hang in there or leave it undone for a while? You need to have respect for every piece you produce and handle it differently.
And what came first, the DJing or the producing? How do you think they benefit one another?
It kind of developed at the same time. I was DJing with vinyl back then, playing funk music and disco. That’s when I also started experimenting with samplers and synths and got into music production. When you produce you benefit a lot when you also DJ. There’s nothing better than being able to test your stuff with a crowd. Later in the club you realize that less and direct has a much better power.
What’s the toughest ever gig you’ve played and why? And what’s the one track you use to rescue the dancefloor in that time?
One of the toughest trips was maybe on my Brazil tour last year. Having a tight schedule with almost no sleep the whole time was a tough one. And then I’d two gigs at one day! I still can´t believe how I made it through all the flight cancellations, horrible traffic, no sleep, double gigs and at least an 8 hour zippy car ride. But yeah, I made it right at the time to my final set of the tour. The crowd and the ice cold beer was my rescue and when you play suddenly all is forgotten. I kind of loved that moment.
Will you be playing any cool gigs this summer? How does the weather and your mood affect how you make music? Or does it?
I’m always looking forward to the summer and playing open airs here and there. Of course it affects your sound. You can play a total different sound when people are in the summer mood.
And aside from music, what sort of other stuff do you get up to in your day-to-day life?
Music is more or less 24/7. There is no on-off-button for the feel. But of course I fill my life with beautiful stuff: spending time with my girl, my family, enjoying good food, go to the gym, taking walks in outdoors, just breathe in, breathe out.
So are you involved in music aside from your DJing and productions?
Yes, as a producer and label owner. Drumming is a bit of an aside in the moment. My focus right now is to be the best Doctor Dru I can.
And what’s your involvement like with Jeudi? Are you involved in their parties etc?
JEUDI is a record label I run with my pals Davidé and Take It Easy. Besides releasing beautiful music we also organize parties. This branch is improving a lot in recent times. We’ve had appearances in different cities thoughout Europe also at Sonar and ADE this and last year. Next stop will be Barcelona joining the Sonar Off week once more. Recently we redesigned our CI and will release some exciting new merch stuff. It’s a nicely growing label and it’s great to see how our input and energy we are putting in bears fruit.
How beneficial has the backing of big labels such as Jeudi and Exploited been on your career do you think?
Being backed up by a label helps you to become inquired in this industry. There’s a lot stuff coming out never been heard. With a label such as JEUDI or Exploited the push into the right direction can be much easier. A label is a facilitator in a sense. Either if big or small – the most important thing is to give away your sound babies to somewhere where it belongs. Everyone has to define his own benefits. As far as I´m concerned I want to be expressive of my talent so JEUDI or Exploited have had support me with their professional platform.
Who was the last DJ to really impress you?
I’m impressed by guys like Kid Koala. Really fascinating. I also dig Moodymann a lot.
What else have you got coming up that’s really exciting for you recently?
Besides my EP on the 1st of June, I’m looking forward to Sonar in Barcelona. I will be playing for Exploited, my agency Jackmode and my label JEUDI is celebrating its second appearance with a sleek pool party during the Sonar off madness. Then there’s my Romanthony remix coming on Glasgow. And all these other tracks lying on my desk waiting for a finishing paint and speedy release.
Doctor Dru’s The Grain is out now on JEUDI Records
Check out JEUDI RECORDS rooftop and poolside during OFF Week in Barcelona…http://www.residentadvisor.net/event.aspx?714366
