The superb Ukrainian DJ and Producer continues to keep the dancefloor rocking. DMCWORLD checks in…
You recently released ‘Elements’ via your imprint Codex – talk us through the inspiration behind this one.
Hey everyone! That’s right. Just recently, a digital version came out of our joint release with Alan Wools called Elements. I’ve been looking forward for this release for a long time. In early September the release came out on vinyl and now, finally, its digital version saw life. Indeed, that was a very interesting collaboration. It’s always interesting to work alongside real professionals like Alan. He’s the guy with whom it’s inspiring to work with because, first of all, he’s a great sound producer in terms of the quality of his sound. A really talented guy right there. So working on tracks together was an easy job for me. It all started with a certain idea of mine which I pitched to him and he went on to work on it more. It was like a ball game where I would pass the ball to him and then he would pass it back via Dropbox. We were on the phone constantly and at the end of the day the release came out. As far as I remember the first time I tested the tracks were early this summer. Those were big festivals in Germany and Spain. That was an opportunity for me to see that the tracks were working well and getting a great response. So I was confident then that I could send them for distribution on vinyl. As for my inspiration, I can say that many things inspire me – that’s my touring, my family, all my traveling across the world, as well as my craving to get to my new highs.
What was it like working with Alan Wools? Do you have any other future collaborations with him in the pipeline?
As I said, it was an interesting collaboration, an easy job for me. It all went smooth from the very start. I believe we will surely release more great tracks together. Talking about future releases, from what I already know is that he will soon release a remix on my Codex label which he wrote for an Italian producer Matthew J. A quite famous sound producer DJ Jock will also feature in this release. Plenty of top techno artists play his tracks. Carl Cox, Adam Bayer and Alan Fitzpatrick are among them. So I think some really great people have teamed up for this new release on Codex label. Besides, Alan Wools will have another EP released on another label of mine, which is called IAMT. This is also a really cool EP, it’s called No Sleep. I also played its main track, called No Sleep, at all festivals this summer. This was kind of my secret weapon, the track in which I was 100% confident. I am sure that this release will work out great. I can’t wait to finally see it. From what we see from the feedback, this track is really popular. So this release will surely be a blast.
Could you talk us through a couple of production tips used on the main track ‘Elements’?
It’s a really great thing to share the advice and some production secrets because every musician has their own technique, their own little secrets. And I even fell shy sometimes because I think that they may appear a bit too brutal or totally out of here for some artists who are engaged in some super strict production… In this track, our major tip is that we’ve used a lot of distortion and overdrive. We hooked it on hi hats, and that was a really great instrument to make that fat sound and all those dynamics, you know. Another thing there is that we worked a lot with loops and samples in Elements. It may sound as almost a felony to some but sometimes it’s a sort of going back to the roots, an attempt to find a kind of a mining thing when you are searching for some particular kind of sound in those huge piles socked up in your library to fit in your track in a perfect way. But I see that an outcome of our efforts came out just great.
You also released ‘No Bullets Please’ via Christian Smith’s Tronic imprint this year – how did this release come about and how long did it take to put these tracks together?
We’ve been working on this release for about four months collecting various tracks. I’ve been sending tonnes of demos to Christian and we kept on selecting the right ones. Primarily, he liked No Bullets Please a lot… Then we added other tracks. I can say one thing. Christian is a real professional. He pays a lot attention to the tracks he releases. He gave me a lot of recommendations, asked me to add certain stuff or make changes to my tracks, and we finally came out to have a release on a legendary label. These tracks worked well and received awesome feedback from top artists and stayed for a long time in a Beatport techno chart, and other artists also supported it greatly in other charts. So I am very happy about working with Tronic label and Christian Smith personally.
What’s in store for your Codex imprint this year? Do you have any artists in particular you can tell us about that will be releasing on the label?
Indeed, Codex continues developing and growing. A lot of my friends continue releasing their tracks there. We are now waiting for another release to come out. This will be a release by an Italian producer Matthew J, called Cancer EP. It will include remixes by DJ Jock and Alan Wools, the guy whom we’ve already talked about. Then there will be another great release by the good friends of mine from Madrid, The Yellowheads, with my remix. Then there will be our joint release with Skober called Play It Loud with a remix by an Italian legend Sasha Carassi. Then we’ll see a release by the guys from Hungary, Steam Shape. The 17th release will be my track called Floppy Headache with remixes by Boris. We are now working on more remixes by some other artists. They are 99% agreed but, as they say, I don’t want to run ahead of history and spoil you with teasers until I don’t have it all 100% confirmed. These are some great names, too. In general, the label is going on well and I’m very pleased with the results I see.
You’ve toured at some major events over the summer including Aquasella and Dreambeach – what was your summer highlight?
Indeed, the festivals you’ve mentioned, Aquasella and Dreambeach were the biggest festivals I’ve played at this summer, real major events. They have really gone at a great level. But again, I would like to note that the whole summer did not revolve solely around those two festivals. I also had a great performance at Summer Vision festival held in Germany’s Freudenstadt. Then there was a really great event called Amazing Summer Festival in Ciudad Real. I should note Sonar in Barcelona where we held a really great party by Tronic label together with an event called Happy Techno which is also held in Barcelona. A really blasting night that was. I should also recall two Codex rooftop parties we held. It was a Codex showcase by my label held on two different rooftops in Kyiv, Ukraine. We’ve collected a mega great feedback. Those were rather interesting and unusual events for Kyiv. We closed this summer by placing a techno stage at a Belye Nochi Festival in Kyiv, also by Codex Showcase. I had a great trip to Canada this summer and also had an awesome gig at Soundwaves festival in Porto. There have been plenty of great locations and great festivals this summer. It has probably been one of the greatest summers throughout my whole career and everything keeps developing at a nice pace for me. I believe that the next summer will even be better. We are working hard together with my agency and my whole team.
In terms of shows for the rest of the year what’s in store? Any hotly anticipated events you are looking forward to the most?
I have many interesting events ahead of me until the end of this year. In late October we are expecting a very powerful Halloween period. I have three dates booked in Germany. I will play in Wiesbaden, Eisfeld, and Dusseldorf. On October 31 I will fly to Bilbao where I’ll be playing outside Bilbao at a club called Goas, which is in Bergara, to be more precise. It’s a huge club. Last year I also played there on Halloween and I remember that great atmosphere there. A great location in terms of the size of the crows and its quality, too So I’m really looking forward to play there again. In November I will play at an event called Deep at Headon club in Zwolle, The Netherlands. It’s also a milestone event for me because I haven’t played in The Netherlands this year yet. So I’m heading back to the tulip land and I realize that it’ a very promising market, too, where I need to be represented. In November there will also be a Code part in Madrid, at a club called Fabrique, and I’m really glad that I now have an opportunity to play at this legendary club at least twice a year and take part at those great parties, December will see me touring Germany, Spain a lot, too. Then there will be Switzerland, and there will be Sofia, Wonderpool Arena. I really love Bulgaria and its capital. I always return there with great interest and great joy because Bulgarian audience is one of the best ones across the whole Europe. As you see, my schedule for this autumn and winter is really tight. I will have no free weekends but it only means that we’re doing everything right. I believe that not only these parties will go down great but I will also have an opportunity to record some great mixes and live sets, collecting some great material for my live followers.
Do you have any more solo releases set in stone for the rest of the year?
From what has been confirmed there will be a release on Riot Recordings by a great Italian sound producer Frankie Effe. That will probably be it because now I try to focus either on my own labels, Codex and IAMT, or on some major labels but once again, I try to be very careful with my releases. Of course, there are plenty of demos, my production is a boiling pot and I think there will be more announcements to come soon. I don’t just write new demos, I also pitch them to various labels. So I’m sure we will have confirmations soon on some interesting imprints. You will be able to read all the news on my social platforms – on Facebook, Instagram…But that’s it for now. And thank you all for your interesting questions, I had a great time answering them. And, of course, see you on the dancefloors! Bye!
https://www.facebook.com/spartaquelive/
