One of Canda’s finest producers brings us his Music, Machines and Life
Welcome to DMC WORLD Maher, a very large few weeks on the way for you with another trip to Miami. Your track ‘Music Machines & Life’ appears on the new Bedrock_Underground Sound Of Miami album – talk us through the tune…
“Working on this track was really special, it initially started off as something I was doing for my album, but it didn’t seem to work with what I was doing, so I basically put a hold on the record and kept moving on. When I started working with Casa (Michael Gracioppo) we started going through loops that were done and just picked this out and finished it up. It’s a very mechanical sounding record with a lot of industrial elements, but the sense of serenity with that floating pad is constantly there throughout the track. The spoken vocal just really sat well on top, supporting the mechanical elements discussing how machines would start the music…it all just felt right!”
The world was quite rightly brought to attention via your remix of Tone Depth’s ‘Rumblefish’ when the Bedrock smash sat merrily at No. 1 on Beatport’s techno chart for over two months. Did you know you had created something special straight away – can you remember where you first played it out?
“The first time I played it out was at Stereo here in Canada, but I didn’t think about how big it was going to get, so instead I had passed it to James Zabiela who had road-tested it. Then when it got into John Digweed’s hands I came across this video of him dropping it at a festival in Budapest. Instant goose bumps and right there I knew the records was going to be huge!”
What is it about the Bedrock sound you love? Why is it the perfect soundtrack for so much of clubland?
“John has really developed Bedrock to be a label that does not pigeonhole itself into one specific genre, which is why it is so appealing to clubland and I love it so much. It’s the perfect blend between tech house, deep house and techno, with undertones of a classic Bedrock sound, which were the heavier progressive days.”
What was your first break into this industry?
“Well, I was releasing records on various small labels at the time but it wasn’t really until I wrote “Itajai Vibes” with Sultan and Ned Shepard that I really put my name out there, from there it just grew. I was getting a lot techier and labels such as Get Physical were really influencing me. That’s when everything really took-off with my release on Get Physical, followed by the remix of “Rumblefish” and so on and so on…”
Who were the artists you were listening to growing up that sent you dance music’s way?
“No one really! Haha! I was a full on punk rocker and all I believed in was punk and ska! It was not until my older brother made me listen to John’s “Global Underground: Sydney” that I really started getting into dance music.”
Who were your early DJ heroes?
John Digweed, Sasha, Francois K, Deep Dish, Danny Tenaglia, Carl Craig, Derek May… the list can go on…
What is the current top 10 you are spinning right now?
Aha! If I told you that I would have to come after you guys… But on a serious note M.A.N.D.Y’s remix of Sasha and James Teej, Tigerstripes – Crossroads on MFR, Maceo Plex – Deeznutz, Maher Daniel – I’m All Alone, Maher Daniel and Casa – Malgra , Subb-an – Take You Back, Den Ishu – Your Experience, Red Shape – On da Floor, Burnski and Manik – You know What Its Like…
For those unlucky enough not to have been, why is Canada’s Stereo Afterhours such a seminal club. You have had some amazing nights there with the likes of Sasha and Richie Hawtin?
“Ahh… the ultimate question… its really hard to say, but it comes down to the vibe and the sound-system in that room, the club is just an institution and the people behind it really put their heart and love into that space to make it what it is. There is an aura in there that you really can’t compare to anywhere else in the world.”
What is the current state of the Canada club scene?
“It’s great! I mean I really can’t speak for any of the other cities, but Toronto and Montreal are really doing it right and keeping dance music alive. There is so much talent coming out of Canada that is also a big part of that. You have the Toronto crew with MFR, Art Department, Nitin, James Teej, to Montreal with players like Michael Gracioppo, Tazz, Tone Depth, not forgetting the event organizers that push it like Mutek and Piknic Electronik.”
You have travelled all over the world DJing, where has stood out in recent months?
“In the recent months, Boston would have to be my pick for a city which used to have a solid EDM scene back in the day and its really picked up again and something special is happening down there.”
This will be your 8th trip to Miami Conference week – where will you be spinning?
“I will be performing at Set on Wednesday night for the REJECTED EVENT: Joris Voorn & Friends, which includes myself, Daniel Dubb Maceo Plex, Edwin Oosterwal, Solomun and Deetron. And then, the following day, I will be playing at Awarehouse Downtown for Souvenir Meets Moon Harbour, alongside Tiefshcwarz, Re.you, Matthias Tanzman, Arado, Boris Werner, Daniel Wilde, Martinez, Kabal Und Leib and Andrei Olivia.”
We know that the WMC is more about profile and the party rather than business deals, is it the most important date on the dance calendar still?
“I feel like it is an important date, maybe not for business, but really for a place where everyone in the industry can meet and enjoy each other’s company for a week. With all the busy schedules for all the artists there really isn’t anywhere they can do this, so it’s great to have that. Yes, it’s a shame it’s not the same as it used to be, but I still find it important.”
Have you had to change your musical direction in the last year?
“In some way yes, I have gone a lot deeper, but I’ll be honest with you I’m not a typecast or genre-cast producer. When I sit in the studio I just produce what comes to me naturally, be it deep house / house / tech house or techno, if it sounds good and sounds right I just do it!
Is Miami losing its trademark cool and sexy house music vibe?
“During the year, outside of conference, it still has that vibe, during Conference, I think you can say it has in some way lost that vibe, but there are many people trying to bring it back to what it used to be. Which is always a positive!”
What are your thoughts on the Dennis Ferrer ‘Mansion’ Miami club story – he was basically kicked off the decks for not playing commercial enough…
“Absolutely disgraceful. When an organization is booking an artist they should be booking him with the knowledge of what he plays. To do something like to someone like Dennis is just downright disgusting.”
With clubs and charts being dominated by dance music worldwide, shouldn’t we be rejoicing it’s success rather than being bitter with crossover?
“Absolutely, it’s only going to allow people to explore different sounds within dance music, making it better for everybody and opening up new markets because of that.”
What are your Buzz tracks for WMC 2012?
“Ooff… so many I really can’t name them all… can’t even pinpoint one cuz they are just all that good.”
Have you noticed a big dip in industry folk not attending these last couple of years?
“Not really, a lot of the industry peeps still make it out to for Miami, it’s a great way to showcase some of their up and coming artists on their labels or agencies to the public.”
What are your thoughts on the IMS in Ibiza?
“I think the IMS is super important as it allows open discussion about the future of the scene.”
What is the finest record you have ever played to a dancefloor?
“Would it be silly if I said: Pretty Poison – Catch Me I’m Falling…”
And finally, what’s next from the studio release wise?
“We recently just saw the release of my collaborations with Michael Gracioppo on 8bit and under his Casa moniker “Malgra” on Circus Recordings. I have a new EP on Rejected, which should be dropping in May and, of course, we have the Bedrock: Underground Sound Of Miami album release coming out this week. Plus a few things I’m just not allowed to disclose yet, but its pretty busy and we’re going full steam ahead!”
VARIOUS ARTISTS
BEDROCK_UNDERGROUND SOUND OF MIAMI
(Bedrock) BEDMIAMICD1
Release: 19.03.12
CD & Digital
01.Sirenize – Everybody
02.Stelios Vassiloudis – West
03.Robert Babicz – Echo From The Past
04.Sasse & Stelios Vassiloudis – Benedict
05.Guy J – Nightstalker
06.Maher Daniel & Casa (aka Mike Casa) – Music, Machines & Life
07.Wehbba – Motone
08.Pig&Dan, Mark Reeve and Dean Demanuele – Machines
09.Electric Rescue & Timid Boy – All Access
10.Dosem – How Do You Do It
Pre-Order Your Copy Here: http://bedrockmusic.bigcartel.com/product/underground-sound-of-miami-cd-pre-order-for-release-march-19th
LISTEN TO A SELECTION OF ALBUM TRACKS HERE:
http://soundcloud.com/bedrock_rec
JOHN DIGWEED MINI-MIX featuring tracks from the album here:
http://www.mixcloud.com/johndigweed/bedrock_underground-sound-of-miami/
