A huge welcome to DMCWORLD…how has the year been treating you so far?
Thank you for having me! The young year treated me really well so far because since the beginning of January till the end of February I`m touring Asia and Australia. Right now I`m in Melbourne and enjoying the summer and looking forward to my weekend gigs.
Your latest single is on Poker Flat…tell us about your relationship with the label?
I really like the label because they released so many classics and everybody has their own faves from the back catalog. My first contact came when I released my album “Behind” on ORNAMENTS and Steve Bug posted on my facebook wall that he really loves the album and wished I had released it on Poker Flat. That was such a big pleasure for me and the starting point to work with the guys.
Do you ever test out your productions with other artists, or friends before you release them? Or can having too many opinions about your work make things even more difficult?
I always try to play my unreleased stuff in a club to see how it works and if I have to fix something on the mixdown or arrangement. It could help a lot because a big soundsystem is different and especially the bass area could make problems if you are not careful in the production process.
Was there any specific inspiration behind Pattern of Greed? Is it in any way a social comment?
Yes, it’s a social comment because in our society and often in the western world of capitalism it’s all about money. Many people are so greedy to become rich that they forget how beautiful life can be with moments that are for free. When I showed the instrumental sketch to the vocal artist Ingrid Arthur and told her my thoughts about “Pattern Of Greed” she really liked the idea and said that we should catch the message and make something beautiful out of it. Hope you like the result.
Do you think that this is a pattern you see in the music industry as well? And how do you think it has affected it if so?
You can find the pattern of greed in all fields of life and also in the music industry. There are lots of egos and elbows of people who want to be a DJ for the wrong reasons like money, fame or a crazy tour life with endless parties and groupies. I think the main intention should be passion and the love of music!
You’ve released on an incredible array of labels… what for you makes the artist/label relationship work?
It’s really important to me that the label works professional and integrate me as an artist in the essential decisions like the artwork, who will do the remix, what should we do to promote it and so on. It’s also nice if you see a statement from time to time and that the label pays your part of the sales without big delays. That’s really basic stuff and you should expect it from every label but I know the reality is sometimes different.
So it seems as if you’re very much in the group of people that believe labels still have an important part to play in championing artists’ careers…what changes in this relationship have you seen over the years? And how would you like it to evolve in the future?
Today you don’t really need a label to release your music. It’s so easy with many useful websites like Bandcamp to sell your music directly to your fans. There are also some promising visions how blockchain technology will change the whole music industry and bring back more power and money to the artists. On the other hand you are totally right that it could help a lot to sign your music to a big label with a well-known brand. A professional team with lots of experience is always good because they know how to place your songs on the market in the best possible way. And it’s also a blessing if legends like Steve Bug or Sven Väth trust you and sign your music to their labels.
Are there any labels remaining that are on your hit list to work with?
I´m really happy with the guys I work at the moment.
You recorded an album as Dubsuite back in 2016… for those who aren’t familiar, how does this differ from youANDme?
Dubsuite is an old project of Holger Flinsch and me. We recorded the album “Eigenleben” in 2004/2005 and it was released via the netlabel Stadtgruen in 2006. It’s a really dubby and smooth trip of ambient music far away from the dancefloor. During the years there were more and more requests for a re-release on vinyl and luckily after 10 years of the original release ORNAMENTS published it on a special 12-inch edition.
Do you have any plans to release more music under that moniker, or any others?
At the moment there are no plans for new Dubsuite material but you never know. Holger is still a good friend of mine and maybe one day we will find inspiration and time to continue our project. I also do lots of other music which not really fits to the youANDme brand. It’s more raw techno, acid, dub, ambient and modular stuff and I release it as secret anonymous projects like in the good old days of our techno scene. They’re vinyl-only releases with no artwork and just a stamp, no promotion and no social media. That’s so much fun because it’s all about the music and nothing else!
What should we be looking out for from you over the coming year?
If I’m back in Berlin in March I will work on my upcoming album which will be released on Poker Flat. Steve offered me the chance and it’s still a lot of work to finish it. In April I will release my next record on Gruuv Records with a great remix by Audiojack. I have another nice project with André Galuzzi. He has an amazing knowledge and a great taste in music and it’s always fun to work with him in my studio. There will be also a new release on Sven Väth’s Cocoon Recordings and another release with an amazing remix of Kenny Larkin.
Anything else you’d like to tell us about…?
If you look at the political situations in the world you can only be mad. I know it’s unrealistic and maybe I’m a dreamer but I really hope that all armed conflicts will stop and humans manage to use technology only in a good and peaceful way.
youANDme – Pattern of Greed is out now on Poker Flat
https://pokerflat.lnk.to/pfr197
