Luxembourg meets Germany in a wonderful production partnership…
Interview by Dan Prince
Matthias, Alex a huge welcome to DMCWORLD. Where in the world are you today?
Thanks for having us DMCWORLD. Well, I’m in Berlin (Matthias) and I’m in Luxembourg (Alex).
What was the first piece of music you heard this morning after rolling out bed?
Alex : A promo track.
Matthias : At The Drive In – One Armed Scissor, I was in an angry mood!
Well, a great start to 2016 with the release of your new ‘Fool EP’…which we shall come to later. But let’s rewind for a moment and find out where this magical journey began. You hail from two different countries both rich in music culture, Luxembourg and Germany. What are your earliest music memories as children?
Matthias : Queen, definitely Queen.
Alex : Opus – Live Is Life.
Do either of you come from musical families?
Alex: My father is a huge fan of classic music and my uncle is member of a marching band.
Matthias: Yes. My mother, grandmother, aunts – well almost every female member of my family are classic guitar players.
When did dance music first appear on your radars and how?
Matthias : 1993 – Prodigy – No good. I was on vacation in Poland, Kotwica, with my parents, sisters, aunt and cousin. Actually, it was a disco for children playing charts and stuff like this. Prodigy entered the charts this time and I went crazy /
Alex: My older sister made me a present: Bravo Hits Best of ’94 including tracks by Jam&Spoon, Scooter etc.
When did the idea of a career in music first start to form in your minds… and what were your first steps…
Alex : Career is the wrong word, we’re just producing music and are glad if somebody likes it. The project “Haste Midi” was set up spontaneously in 2014, we didn’t plan any career. Both of us already had made electronic music before as solo artists. Matthias started producing Hip Hop beats back in 1998, then started mixing 2 years later. I started mixing back in 2005. Whatever will follow, we take it!
Your paths crossed first at a festival in Croatia…what is the story there?
Well it was in 2012. I was there with my ex-girlfriend who was a Luxembourgish girl and actually a friend of Alex. We shared the same apartment, that´s how we met.
What were your first impressions of each other, did you share the same taste in music/influences etc.?
Alex: He’s a freak.
Matthias : Honestly, I just thought wtf – what is this guy doing here, on a DNB / Dubstep Festival – he looked sober, clean, with dressed hair and chic clothes. But yeah, we shared the same music taste and had a lot of nice discussions.
Talk us through the music of ‘Fool’…
Alex : Well more than a year after producing the track “Fool” personally I’m not getting tired of it. The 808 kick is completely destroying the place – something you would not say when hearing the track on normal speakers or headphones. After all we are in love with the rearranged vocal which perfectly joins the flow of the track.
You’ve enlisted 2 very cool remixers on the project too, Daniel Stefanik and Ruben Mandolini, are you big fans of theirs?
Alex : Daniel’s earlier stuff and his project with Matthias Kaden is really cool. “Fans” is the wrong word – we had the chance to meet Daniel, a very grounded, friendly and courteous person and we really appreciate the work he did for us! Same for Rubens work, great remix! Have to admit that we were not really up to date about his latest releases but he’s a big player in the Italian house scene.
The release is brought to us by one of the coolest new dance labels on the planet in Lauter Unfug. Tell us about the label…
Alex : “Lauter Unfug” (which means ragging with loudness) has always been an event label in order to bring the big names of the House/Techno scene to Luxembourg. After years the crew wants to bring it up to the next level. In September 2015 the switch to a music label was made with the first release LUM001. It’s a label for all kinds of house music.
Luxembourg of course has music running through it’s veins thanks to being the birthplace of Radio Luxembourg that spawned the first wave of DJs that would in their own way, change music forever. Do the kids on the Luxembourg dancefloors in 2016 have any idea of what heritage they are part of?
Alex : We don’t think that clubbers in Luxembourg are aware of this or consider it as a heritage – and to be honest, neither do we. Doing House or Techno nights in Luxembourg can be very stressful. It’s a more conservative country and there is by far not enough acceptance for long-lasting “noisy” parties – too many regulations! But this shouldn’t discourage anybody – we have a growing scene which is really nice!
Many producers, including yourselves, are diving heavily into using Analogue sounds again right now, what’s the attraction?
Matthias : First of all analogue producing has got some retro charm. Many producers are always on the lookout for some old/extravagant gear generating it’s own specific sound, and this is fun! There’s a real instrument you can touch and which has his own character. The sound comes directly out of your device, unfiltered: no compatibility problems, no VST’s, no ‘blue screen’, etc. After all you’ve got more time to spend on being creative and producing happens more intuitively.
What are the big 5 tunes in your box this weekend…
– Ninze & Okaxy – High (Dwig Remix)
Deep spheric sounds combined to a driving percussion
– Aaron Ahrends – Casiotone 401 Dave Dk edit
Wonderfull sound, just a beauty!
– Leon Vynehall – It’s Just (House of Dupree)
Let it just groove…
– Acasual – Spring Theory (Matthias Horn Remix)
More driving re-interpretation of the original
– Eduardo de la Calle – The Promise
Deep tech with a nice dirty accent
Tell us about your studio set up, who excels where…?
Alex : We always have to sit side by side when starting a new beat trying to do a maximum together before everyone has to go back to his place. Often there’s just the finishing to be done when the session is over – this can be done separately afterwards. We act intuitively to ensure a good workflow. Both of us use the drum machine, play the synths, look for interesting samples.. there is no special allocation of tasks. Although Matthias has a better technical knowledge when working with the DAW (digital audio workstation).
Who are some of the producers around the world you are giving high fives to right now?
Alex : To our local producer buddies also showing up with nice productions at the moment like Acasual, Maximillion, Riven, Cleveland. It’s important for our small scene to get some attention over here.
Two producer heads are better than one?
Both : Two producer heads are quicker than one, at least when they concur. We can immediately exchange/try each others ideas, we instantly provide feedback to the other…let’s say it’s great fun to produce together, like in a team and in the end it’s always a mix of two different views, concepts.
Do you prefer playing a full live set or Djing?
Both : DJing: you have more time to spend with the crowd on the dance floor and after all you can be more responsive to them.
You’re about to start on a tour we hear, where are you heading to?
Both : We will certainly be playing more in German clubs this year. In July the “My Favourite Freaks Concept Tour” will do a stop in Luxembourg where we will be playing live. Let’s say we are still working on our tour planning but Berlin, London, Stuttgart and Tübingen are already confirmed (apart from our gigs in Luxembourg).
What festivals are you most looking forward to this year?
Both : We probably won’t have the time to do a lot of festivals because we need to spend even more time on production. But if there is one festival we really love it’s Fusion Festival in Germany.
What is the best piece of advice you have ever been given?
Both : Take your time.
And finally, what is coming out next from you studio wise?
Both : Next release will be a track called “POW” which will be released on Konsep Records.
Haste Midi ‘Fool EP (Ft Daniel Stefanik & Ruben Mandolini Remixes) will be released on Lauter Unfug on February 29th 2016
