New York’s Throne of Blood duo speak exclusively to DMCWORLD
Max, Andrew welcome to DMC towers. You have remixed Timothy’ J Fairplay’s ‘Xylophone’ for the excellent new Astro Lab Recordings ‘Treasure Hunting’ compilation. Tell us about your re-work…
Max: “We used that great little melody from the original and pretty much built a track around it with our analog synths. We used a Juno 106, an ARP 2600, an Oberheim SEM, a Minimoog Model D, a Yamaha DX7 and some analog pedals. It was a fun remix to make.”
Andrew: “It was a nice change of pace from the dark side of things. We were going for something that could be played in the summer.”
This cool Parisian/Hamburg label has been putting out new and confirmed artists over different spectrums of music for over 6 years now, what have been some of your highlights over the years…
Andrew: “They have been putting out really nice records. We are honoured to be in such great company on this comp.”
Max : “It’s a solid label all around. We’re very happy to be on Treasure Hunting, the track list is quite spectacular!So let’s go back to the beginning. 2003 saw you meet for the first time whilst DJing together in a loft party in Brooklyn. What were your initial thoughts on each other? Max: I remember Andrew plaid several 90’s Chicago House records that were major for me too back then. His set that night could totally have been one of mine. I also realized we had a similar sense of humour…”
Andrew: “It was definitely a fateful outing. I remember Max being a great DJ and he had a rad attitude.”
Andrew: “Both places were amazing because we could get away with playing whatever we wanted. Galaxie went really late (or early?) so you would hear more music that fit the early morning hours. A track that I would like to play would be something like the Carl Craig remix of “Falling Up” by Theo Parrish.”
Max: “Galaxie was a free for all space, and the music reflected that, although it was definitely “dance music” oriented. 205 was a lot of classic disco and house, with some more recent jams thrown in. A track i plaid a lot back then was “Gazebo” by Fairmont.Who were your early producer / DJs you were giving high fives to back then?Max : Jeff Mills had a major impact on me. This french DJ called Manu le Malin was the king of hardcore, and Laurent Garnier of course. Sneak, Terrence Parker, Paul Johnson, Dave Clarke, Hell…there’s too many!”
Andrew: “I was super into people like DJ Garth and DJ Sneak I was young, I loved some of the NYC DJs in the early 90s like Frankie Ryde too. Like most of us I was really into Chicago and Detroit stuff, but I think I was most influenced by the West Coast stuff like the Wicked Crew.”
You lived with each other for a while – what was each other’s worst habits?
Max : “We’re both not very good at keeping things tidy and we both had a bad habit of hosting after hours. It was a tad messy.”
Andrew: “Yeah, it wasn’t a Martha Stewart experience.”
What is the current top ten you are spinning?
Max: “I always play Throne of Blood / Let’s Play House stuff, I love Jam City’s album “Classical Curves” and Turing Machine “What Is The Meaning Of What?” is already one of my favorites of 2012. CSMNT61 “The Truth” is an absolute banger and the Idjut Boys “One for Kenny” is a perfect track in my opinion.”
Andrew: “Fantastic Man and Toby Tobias EPs on LPH are great. The new Juju and Jordash on Golf Channel and the new Young Marco on ESP are both stellar. I love the stuff from all these labels.”
Andrew, what came first for you, a love of music or a love of art?
“I think they have been hand in hand from an early age. I was in a Metallica cover band in grade school called “Ride the Lightning” and was drawing a lot at the time. In the 90s as a teen, I got big into DJing house and techno and went to art college after High School.”
And Max, how old were you when you first started to develop a love for electronic music, who were the artists that inspired you to pursue a career in music?
Max : “I was about 14, thanks to two Paris radio station called FG 98.2. and NOVA 101.5 who were the first to play house and techno in France, but my first musical revelations came from Heavy Metal bands.What is the club scene like in New York, where do you hang out?Max : I hang where my friends are or play. Most NY clubs are now cheesy bottle service places that play terrible music. You gotta find the hidden parties that don’t happen in clubs to find the real fun, hint : it’s usually somewhere in Brooklyn these days…”
Andrew: “Yeah most of the fun nights are roving kind of things. The Let’s Play House and No Ordinary Monkey parties are my long standing favourites.”
Why do you think it took over a decade for you to join forces and form Populette?
Max : “We’re slow.”
Andrew: “Yeah I have no idea how it took so long. At a certain point we just decided to give it a go. We had a done a few experiments when we lived together that were kind of jokes or things we did just for fun. Eventually we put our big boy pants on…”
What is coming out next from the Populette studio?
Max : “Our track “Hells Pass” is out in July on a great comp called Variables on Items & Things. A new 12″ on Throne of Blood in the fall, as well as collaboration 12″ with Remain called “Discomfort” coming out on Meant in November. We also recently completed remixes fro Black Strobe and Lou Teti.”
Who brings what to the studio, who excels where?
Max : “I used to work as a sound engineer, so i’m more the computer / mix guy, but we’re both pretty hands on.”
Andrew: “Max is a great engineer, so I’ve been playing catch up for years now. We both strive to be versatile.”
What have been some of the most memorable gigs of this year?
Max : “Fabric was a lot of fun, le Bain in NY is always a good time.”
Andrew: “I really enjoyed the kick off Été d’Amour at Le Bain.”
Best album ever made?
Max : “Most impossible question to answer ever.”
Andrew: “Ouch that is really impossible. I guess I can name a few I always listen to to…”Speaking In Tongues” by Talking Heads, “Anything You Sow” by William Onyeabor and “Calling out of Context” by Arthur Russell.”
You always try and get your friends in the studio and do something when they come through town. Who was the latest pal who drifted through NY…
Max : “Remain came through, Cosmo Vitelli was over not so long ago, Doug Lee, our buddy Sean Dack aka Pixelife. My dad also visited last week!”
Andrew: Lot’s of Frenchmen thanks to Maxxy. Joakim was by not too long ago which was cool. We’ve had a couple friends sharing the space with us as of late who have been awesome. Kim Ann Foxman and our buddy Brian Hersey have both brought a ton of good vibes and range of talents to the studio on the regular.”
Where is your favourite club in the UK to spin?
Max : “I really enjoyed the Sub Club in Glasgow. Fabric was a treat too.”
Andrew: “Fabric was tops.”
And finally, it may not be good for our image, but Populette really love…
“We love beer.”
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