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It's been a long time coming and it is finally here!
Sorry for the delay but I have been relocating cross country.
Expect Interviews with Chris Finke, Ben Sims, Paul Mac, Dirty Bass, and any requests or contirbutions please Pm me and we will definitely get things sorted!
Antonio:
You ready?
Dirty Bass:
Yep
Antonio:
You've definitely made your mark in the realm of techno this year, and left a lasting impression on people. How about an introduction as to who you are and what you are about?
Dirty Bass:
Erm. Well, I’m a guy who has had music at the heart of my life for all my life. Making it and listening to it is as essential to me as water. And what am I about. I guess I want to make music that reaches peoples emotions and gives them something. I also want to make people dance. In the process I would like to work with, and be surrounded by creative, good hearted, like-minded people
Antonio:
So you view music as something a bit deeper than just a dj tool or a "track" rather?
Dirty Bass:
Oh definitely. I was a musician long before I learned to DJ, or even knew what DJ-ing was about. I don’t have anything against DJ tools as such, but I put so much of myself into a track, I can’t really deal with making music as disposable as a DJ tool. There’s not enough emotional impact for me to put my heart into it. And I’m an all or nothing kind of guy really.
Antonio:
What kind of music were you into that you became a musician?
Dirty Bass:
I was into electronic music from an early age. Started off listen to Harold falter Meyer, jean Michele jarr, and vangelis when I was young. Anything electronic. Moved through break dance and electro, got into a metal band, then played in 2 industrial bands.
And I guess
That the industrial thing. The hard edge, samplers, and the club environment, slowly got me into dance music.
I suppose the thing that got me into becoming a musician, was playing with my sisters synths as a youngster.
And she was in a new wave band, depeche mode, propagander etc
that kind of music got me from a very early age
Antonio:
Interesting indeed, would you say that these genres and bands influenced your production style or methods of producing?
Dirty Bass :
I suppose so. Everything you come into contact with has an influence on you. But it wasn’t any one style that influenced me. More the fact that music could make such an emotional impact on you. So anything that evokes an emotional response from me musically, influenced me.
Antonio:
Sounds genuine indeed. Lets start about your Djing background, as many people know you ran rigs and such about in London?
Dirty Bass:
well yeah. I got dragged to a squat party one day, after a psytrance party. And I was blown away by the music. Just blown away. I became a regular at these parties in London.
Antonio:
What were you playing in your early beginnings?
Dirty Bass:
I then began to make music influenced by the parties, eventually someone got some of my music to a rig owner
Dirty Bass:
Hang on me dads on the phone
Antonio:
Lol Can I post that!
Dirty Bass:
haha ok right, sorry about that, he’s just hit me up with some astromical stuff he’s been dealing with. He’s heavily into his astronomy
Dirty Bass:
Ok, well, I quickly made a live PA, and played on the Rig I was asked to play on. (I was playing acid techno). the crowd went nuts and I was asked back. Slowly and without noticing I became more and more involved, till eventually I was a full partner in the sound system, and I found myself, finding buildings and dealing with the police and stuff it was all a total accident really. I then learnt how to DJ on the rig itself, so I had a crash course.
Antonio:
Where were some of those parties located, maybe some people from the board have a familiarity with those venues?
Dirty Bass:
oh crikey, there were so many, every week for years. Some of the most memorable would be NYE 2000, Goswell Road, Tabernacle St, (all London), Waterloo, The Pentagonal building/roundabout Too many to mention really. I was part of Pendulum Sound system during the times of the United Systems Network
Antonio:
Fast forward, to you Producing techno, how did your label come about and what were your debut works?
Dirty Bass :
Well my label came about because I wanted to develop my own concept. Which was to expose the more commercial dance scene, to techno. So I started a label, with a more commercial techno crossover track on one side, and a hard and dirty release on the other side. My first release had the now quite well known Emotional Soundscape tune (with bjorks vocal) that got played everywhere by Sasha and various other stadium acts
Antonio:
How do you think that went over with your techno counterparts, being caned by Sasha of all people?
Dirty Bass:
badly
Dirty Bass:
a lot of people instantly assumed I was a big cheese producer, or a commercial producer or a sell out or something. I do not think the track was cheesy at all. Bjork’s voice is beautiful, and I wanted to do something with it. At the end of the day, I am a musician. I don’t claim to be underground or cool (although I’ve served my time on the underground), I just make music. And I make all types of music, hopefully in an original and expressive way. But it has taken some time to prove myself more than just a big room producer.
Antonio:What has been a highlight in your career, As far as being a producer?
Dirty Bass:
Well, my first ever release on my label doing so damn well, is something I’m very proud of. getting acknowledgements from producers I have respected for years to. Having Henry complement me on DB003 was nice, as the man is partly responsible for me heading into techno, as it was his productions I heard at squat parties that got me into it. Erm, also having a lot of people just recognizing me for what I do, is nice. There was a man of the year 2004 on BOA recently thing, that kind of humbled me, but was very nice.
Antonio:
What is the future include for you? Any side projects?
Dirty Bass:
Well there’s a lot on the horizon. I’m getting label commissions coming in now, for a variety of production styles, so that’s great. I’ve got a new promotional business I’m starting up, to try to aid the situation with record sales in the scene I’m doing some soundtrack work for an independent filmmaker I’ve got an industrial/techno band project on the go
As well, as taking DB records up to the next level. More frequent releases, more new talent, and more diverse music. there’s also my Voidloss project.
Dirty Bass:
Oh and playing live, he he, busy busy, time for that clone I think
Antonio:
Any Labels we should know about or is that hush?
Dirty Bass:
Well, I’ll just let them occur I think. the way that release schedules work these days you never no when things are coming out. But in the immediate future, Open Source, Ascend Recordings, Adverse Recordings, More Dirty Bass Recordings. Looking further ahead, when I get confirmation of at least the month of release, I’ll let people know.
Antonio:
Any last words, Shouts, or Comments, before we close this off and throw the discography there?
Dirty Bass:
Well. there is a deep problem within the techno scene of increasing compartmentalism and tunnel vision in terms of musical style. Diversity and variety is the key to survival I think. And to keep an eye on what goes on outside of your musical niche, both within techno and with music as a whole. Techno is a brotherhood. United we stand, divided we fall.
Antonio:
Around here this man needs no introduction, but for those who don't know the deal, what is your name, and what do you do?
GM Multimedia:
My names Glenn Wilson and I push the boundaries of Hard Voltaged Frequencies
Antonio:
What labels have you worked on the last few years?
GM Multimedia:
Apart from my own labels I have done stuff for Unknown Forces, Audio, wedafuqawi, Master traxx, Pounding Grooves, Blueline, Audio Assault, Patterns, plus many others
Antonio:
You also run quite a few right? For those who don' t know care to go down the roster?
GM Multimedia:
Well there’s actually a big shift in the structure now because iam just going to be running 3 labels now to concentrate on a nice steady flow, because in the past its been very staggered, so now all I will be running is Heroes, Punish, and my new baby Magnetics
Antonio:
What is to become of Compound, and Planet Rhythm?
GM Multimedia:
Compound will stop and Planet Rhythm will come under the umbrella of labels owned by Triple Vision Distribution in Holland
Antonio:
I see, you trust someone else with your baby? When people think Glenn Wilson they think Punish and of course Planet Rhythm, this doesn’t make you in the slightest nervous?
GM Multimedia:
Well the concept of Planet Rhythm has been going for 10 years and when I told some friends my decision to stop it they were shocked but for me the concept of Planet Rhythm has become a little tiresome and uninteresting, mainly on the graphical side, I am trying to set up pure concepts projects that can be evolved into many things even themes for parties
GM Multimedia:
I am not nervous because I see the concepts that I have for the future
Antonio:
Care to elaborate on some of those concepts? Or do you prefer the sneak attack method.
GM Multimedia:
Sneak
GM Multimedia:
Its more like some nice conceptual packaging and designs, more stuff like the Heroes b-side engravings, maybe the odd pair of edible g-strings in a Punish release, or a set of furry handcuffs for the ladies ;)
Antonio:
For all of those who definitely want to know what are your production methods, Hardware or software?
GM Multimedia:
Well I’ve just upgraded to Logic Pro7, which I run on the Mac, I have the Mackie 328 bus series mixing desk, but mainly I depend heavily on compression, I have a few compressors that come into use on almost all my tracks, just things like the Dbx, Aphex and TL Audio series, I use almost no outboard sythns now, as logic has such wicked stuff they have introduced into the new version, Stuff like sculpture And Ultrabeat Plus some of the fm synth plugins for some bass lines, also they have some very nice effects processors bundled in there
Antonio:
Ever had a serious studio catastrophe and lost work?
GM Multimedia:
Yes a virus when I was sequencing on the pc, about 6 years ago I cant remember the name of the virus but it was date triggered and it told me I had a file missing that I could get from another pc but when you boot up that activates the virus, but only for that day, so I sent 3 pc’s to the big electronic graveyard in the sky
Antonio:
Do you prefer dj'ing to Live Pa or vice versa?
GM Multimedia says:
Live definatly over djing
Antonio:
Explain.
GM Multimedia says:
I just feel that the live is more of what I am about, it has more of the elements that can be associated with me, all the stuff is my own, I know you can dj all your own stuff, but with the live you can road test to people and really keep it fresh with tunes that’s not been heard before
Antonio:
Understood. How did you become familiar with Electronic music as a whole and what were the first steps you took towards getting to where you are at now?
GM Multimedia:
Well I was really into the 1st wave of hip hop n breaking, movies like Beat Street, early Whodini tracks like Magic’s Wand, just led me to delve into that, in England in the late 80s early nineties the rise of the early acid house scene I think pulled people towards it, and I think many people of my time had the same route into Electronic music,
Antonio:
So you acknowledge house and hip hop till this day as influences?
GM Multimedia:
Yea, more hip-hop for me than house, it was all about the bass drum on those retro hip-hop tracks that did it
Antonio:
You used to own a store in Sweden I understand, tell us more about this and your transition to the Uk.
GM Multimedia:
Well I stared to work with importing records into Sweden because of the amount of poor records that made it there, for what’s come out of Sweden its amazing because the vinyl situation when I was there was so bad until I opened the shop, basically I used to sell to all the techno djs, and I used to sell at parties and various different events that went on, and also ran a national mail order service
Antonio:
So what moved you to the UK?
GM Multimedia:
I was getting messed around by pressing plants and distributors, and because both of them was in England its 10 times easier to knock on the door with problems to solve in the same county than try to work it out on the phone
Antonio:
True Story, Are you finding any difficulty with Distributors now?
GM Multimedia:
No its fine now, although I’ve had my fair share of past problems.
Antonio:
Punish has been one of the most recognizable and successful labels in recent. Care to elaborate on its beginnings and your relationship with Mike Humphries?
GM Multimedia:
Well I met mike while djing in Slovenia, he was playing on the same party, I heard some of his stuff he was doing and I ha the draft and ideas for punish laid out, I approached mike about hooking up and then it just went from there, I got us a distribution deal and we were off
Antonio:
Do you have a personal favorite off the series? A lot of people caned Mistress Diana, where did you get that vocal snip?
GM Multimedia:
Mistress Diana was the biggest selling Punish release, I really have a preference to "Doggy Style" but I guess I would say that, but also some of the Slut Peddlers stuff especially the track “Bum Tricks”. I actually got the Mistress Diana dialog from surfing some nasty web pages, I recorded the whole dialog called mike and filled his answer machine with the message, but believe it or not we had to cut so much away because it was pretty graphic, we are still repressing and selling the release, which is pretty mad almost 4 years after its release.
Antonio:
I want to ask you how do you feel about the current state of affairs in techno, as far as quality control and the material that is being released right now?
GM Multimedia:
Well I think that the current state is across the board in all genres and I think its the produce of trend and technology, the mp3 without a doubt is harming producers, and distributors not keeping a quality control has also saturated the scene where its got a very vicious circle in the sense that you need to make twice the amount to get the same return as 18 months ago, which means there's twice as much stuff getting released and creating an overkill. I personally think 2005 will be a big culling year, ive seen these dips before, but that only came around by trend and not with the mp3 technology putting the boot in too
Antonio:
You mentioned before Magnetics, care to share more?
GM Multimedia:
Well Magnetics basically will be an combined evolution of the labels i have stopped but with a more up to date graphical and concept feeling; even from the logo the concept is apparent
Antonio:
Who will be showcasing talents?
Antonio:
And any word of future live pa's with Dean Rodell?
GM Multimedia:
Well I am almost winding up the 1st release, and to be honest because of a health needed pause in 2004 I am really planning to air mainly my own releases this year on all the 3 labels
GM Multimedia:
Dean and me have been doing some gigs together but at the moment no new ones are confirmed
Antonio:
In closing is there anything you would like the readers to know or a statement to make Glenn, definitely thank you for your time man.
GM Multimedia:
A boy doesn't have to go to war to be a hero; he can say he doesn't like pie when he sees there isn't enough to go around.
Howe, Edgar Watson
1853-1937 American Journalist Author
http://www.mafiarecords.org/images/web-logo.jpg
Antonio:
This guy is one of the busiest people I know, puttin' in work isn't even the words I look for when it comes to him. Introduce yourself to Blackout.
Joseph Isaac:
I'm Joseph Isaac, the self-proclaimed Godfather of the Stateside record label, Mafia Records.
Antonio:
Let's start from the beginning, how did you get into techno?
Joseph Isaac:
Let's see, I am not one of these guys that claims to have known all there is and was about techno since the 80's or early 90's and a lot of it had to do with where I was located...The Mississippi Gulf Coast. For those of you unfamiliar with this area of the United States, it is probably one of the least progressive areas in the country being about 30 years behind "normal" areas. Therefore, music was extremely limited. I happened to stumble upon a guy named Plastikman by pure luck because the cover of his album looked like a sheet of acid. So I figured it must be somewhat cool. After that album, I picked up all other albums that came out by him. By that time, I picked up what I thought was a cool piece of gear because it was totally foreign to me, the Roland MC-505 Groove box. I mastered this within a few months and then I moved to Portland, Oregon to go to college. Here, I stumbled upon the rave scene by renting a studio space with my brother for music and I got off of work one night and there was a party like one I have never seen before: dark, pounding music, visuals, and I got in for free because I rented a room there. The djs for the night were Traxx and Twonz. We a treat and I wasn't even aware of it! From there, I started buying records from the local record store from artists that really struck a chord with me: Adam Beyer, Thomas Krome, Cari Lekebusch, Henrik B, etc. The year was 1998 and techno had found me.
Antonio:
Were you djing or more on the production end at this point?
Joseph Isaac:
I started djing in 1998 and lost the urge to produce. I originally bought the 505 to do music with other people, but when I moved to Portland, I didn't know anyone so djing quickly became the preferred musical pastime.
Antonio:
What made you come back into the realm of producing?
Joseph Isaac:
Well, after honing my skills on 3 decks and incorporating juggling, beat-doubling, and scratching, I began to get bored for bookings for techno in my area were slim to none. Plus, "the production itch" was working its way back up my spine. So I built a PC and started learning the "software method" of production.
Antonio:
What were you using?
Joseph Isaac:
For cutting samples, I was using Sound Forge (instructed by Tim Xavier). I dabbled around with Reason and Cubase and always ended up coming back to Fruity Loops...It just seemed to make sense to me.
Antonio:
Since you mentioned Xavier, how were you starting to meet other artists?
Joseph Isaac:
Tim is a weird and rather morbid, but good story...He actually used to live in Portland; his father lived in Oregon. He came out for his father's funeral and his booking agent asked if I do a show with him...in 24 hours!
Antonio:
Yikes! Did he put you on to the scene production wise or more sharing ideas?
Joseph Isaac:
I was a fan of Tim's music so I told her that I would "show him a good time in the city" and possibly work out an Internet radio gig.
Joseph Isaac:
Tim and I became good friends and from there, I started meeting people over the Internet...
Joseph Isaac:
Tim showed me a few things in Sound Forge, but he used Cubase and I used FL. So I did not learn a lot with regards to sequencing, but the Sound Forge info was priceless.
Antonio:
What made you come up with the inspiration to build a label from the ground up?
Joseph Isaac:
Well, I had starting throwing events in the Pacific Northwest with artists ranging from Juan Atkins, to Billy Nasty, to Jay Denham, and many others. However, most of these events lost money because people were not into the music style. So I decided to put my resources into something a bit more positive even if the financial return wasn't as big.
Joseph Isaac:
My grassroots approach stems from my DIY (do it yourself) philosophy on life. I pretty much do everything possible on my end to make my label what it is.
Antonio:
How did you come up with the whole Cosa Nostra concept behind it? Anyone would agree the packaging is made fantastically
Joseph Isaac:
Well, ever since I was a kid I was always intrigued by mobster movies and the characters in them. Pacino and DeNiro were my idols, not athletes.
Joseph Isaac:
Plus, I always saw the Mafia not as bad people, but bad-asses, meaning they were the cool guys.
Joseph Isaac:
So, I kind of put that concept behind the label. The first three releases are collector's editions for they all have their own custom jackets with different artwork on each one. Each image is an actual crime scene photo of a wacked mob figure. I think the music speaks for itself.
Antonio:
What trials and tribulations have you undergone not only being a label owner but one in America at that?
Joseph Isaac:
Well, where do I start! First, I must say that being an American techno label is EXTREMELY difficult. Think about it. Your real market is thousands of miles away! Only 5% of my label's sales are in North America! 5%! So, the exportation of the records is a major issue. Secondly, distribution has been a rocky road as well. Currently, Mafia is distributed through Rhythmic NYC, which is partnered up with Intergroove Germany. Intergroove is an exclusive distributor so that really limits the overall dispersal of the records. It sucks, basically. I have attempted to contact many other well-respected distributors and they all have appeared to me to be interested, but talk is cheap, and I have seen no action on any of their parts.
It is rather frustrating too. A few guys named, oh, Chris Liebing, DJ Rush, and some bloke named Patrik Skoog, have licensed 3 tracks out of the 6 releases that Mafia has put out for mixed CDs. To me, it appears that I'm doing something right with the music that is being released if these guys are supporting it. Some may argue that just because it is on a dj's mixed CD doesn't mean its good...Fair enough, but from an American's perspective, it is quite a success.
Antonio:
What are you plans for the future label wise and release wise?
Joseph Isaac:
For 2005, Mafia has releases from myself (007), due out in January, from myself vs. Markus Alan (aka Primal...008 & 010), a Dean Rodell collaborations EP w/Staffan Ehrlin and Jason Swales, and Mafia 011 is a Remix EP of one of my tracks on Mafia 007 by Reeko and Grovskopa. Also, me and Markus Alan are planning a tour by automobile across North Amercia…No expensive flights or hotels; we just want to play, so promoters take note!
As far as the future of the label as a whole, as long as running Mafia doesn't run me into the ground in debt, Mafia will be here to stay. I truly enjoy getting emails from all over the world praising the work I've done or signs of gratitude for putting out quality techno, because that's why I truly do this...Its obviously not for the financial return, because if it was, I wouldn't be bitching all the time.
Antonio:
Any parting words plugs or shouts?
Joseph Isaac:
Man, plenty of shouts. First I have to give it up to Ian Lehman for keeping me sane and showing me the way, Tim Xavier for introductions, Dustin Zahn for keeping me humble...Ups to Dean Rodell, Staffan Ehrlin, Jesse Somfay, Justin Knauer @ Refunktion.com (Beatpusher), Paddy @ Refunktion.com (Milgram Shock), Antonio Lugo, Dirty Bass, Bert Hermans in Belgium, Laura in Chicago, Droid in L.A., URB, Paul Dailey, Pauze, DSP, Reeko,Grovskopa, Henry Chow, Andrei Morant, Jason Swales, Markus Alan (partner in crime), Bryan Zentz, Glenn Wilson, Patrik Skoog, DJ Rush, Chris Liebing, Dave Clarke, Ryuji Takeuchi, Josh Tonnissen, Gunjack, Gabriel Palomo, Jesse @ Mpress-Screening.com, Luke @ Felony Ring Clothing, Sebastian @ Nike, Steven @ Adidas, Alphabet City, CL Recordings, Fine Audio, all extended members of the Cosa Nostra, and of course, Big bootees everywhere...If I left you out, you must not be important.
Antonio:
Aaaaaaaaaaaaaaight that’s gangstah B!
http://www.splitmusic.net/thepic.jpg
Antonio:
First off, let everyone here know whom you are and what it is you do!
Chris Finke:
Ok I’m Chris Finke (real name by the way, I do get asked…who would change their name to that!). I’m a DJ, promoter and producer from the UK, resident DJ at ATOMIC JAM, and co-promote the SPLIT parties and radio show with Ben Sims.
Antonio:
Quite the resume, Lets start from the beginning, how did you first venture into this genre or business?
Chris Finke:
I used to be a "rave" DJ when I was 16/17 in 1992/93. I started playing techno which was creeping into the scene with people like Dave Angel and Derrick May playing at big parties, but unless you were a big name it was difficult to get anywhere so when I changed my sound it was tough. I gave up (in true British style!) and didn’t do a great deal till 2000 when I realized I gave up the possibility of making a career of it, so I started a night called FLUX in Birmingham, before moving it to London, and the rest is even less interesting…
Antonio:
Who have you booked for these nights?
Chris Finke:
Well between FLUX and SPLIT I think we have just about covered everyone. Here’s who I can remember off the top of my head (and in no order): UNDERGROUND RESISTANCE (live), STACEY PULLEN, CLAUDE YOUNG, SLAM, OCTAVE ONE, SUBURBAN KNIGHT, DJ BONE, BEN SIMS, GARY MARTIN, RED PLANET, SPACE DJz, RADIOACTIVE MAN, PURE SCIENCE, DERRICK MAY, SURGEON, KENNY LARKIN, BLAKE BAXTER & TYREE COOPER, CHICKEN LIPS, T1000, MEMORY FOUNDATION, BRITISH MURDER BOYS, DAVE CLARKE, DJ RUSH, JAMES RUSKIN, MARK BROOM, PAUL MAC, ADE FENTON, MARSHALL JEFFERSON and loads of others I cant remember at the moment (sorry if I left you out!).
Antonio:
No doubt, if you will what were some of the highlights and downsides of promoting a party of this stature?
Chris Finke:
The downsides were the lack of decent venues, punters who wouldn’t (and still wont!) try out new venues, long hours and losing X amount of cash, and the upside was that I was able to push my name about and kick start my DJ career which was the reason I started the parties in the first place. So on one hand I was getting DJ work off the back of the FLUX nights (with some clever self promotion) and on the other I had no money. About as much fun as getting swimming lessons from Michael Barrymore. At the time I still had a full time job and all the money I made I was putting into the parties (along with my business partner Andi)
Antonio:
What style of techno were you playing at the time?
Chris Finke:
At that time I wasn’t playing much hard stuff, but a lot of Detroit and Chicago stuff mixed with stuff like sound stream, DJ Sneak, and tribal stuff so all sorts really
Antonio:
Would you say house music played a big influence on what you play now? You are affiliated with the Tribal heavyweights
Chris Finke:
I’m a huge fan of house music and it definitely has a big effect on what I do. Yeah I’m associated with the tribal heavyweights but to be honest I play very little tribal stuff at all now. I’ve really tried to distance myself from that sound a lot in the last 8 months and I think the sound I play now is pretty unique. I play everything from housey stuff, thru dark moody stuff, percussive techno, to banging shit, plus loads of old stuff as well as a lot of people wouldn’t have heard them the first time round and they are better more often than not than the stuff about at the minute!
Antonio:
What producers are out now that you are taking a liking to from a dj perspective?
Chris Finke:
I always have a real problem answering this one as I’m all over the place, but the guys I’m into at the moment in the techno scene are people like Bam Bam, Speedy J, god knows really I cant think (professional, eh!?). UK guys like Sims, Broom and Mac always do the business (but I have to say that!). There is lots of really good new talent coming through the ranks as well, like Invexis, Scott Gray, yourself, a guy called Baffa from Venezuela that Paul Mac picked up on, all sorts really. I really do play a real cross section of music in my sets so it’s so hard to pin down specifics and labels.
Antonio:
Tell me about Split?
Chris Finke:
Well SPLIT all came about when Ben contacted me about doing some parties together. Id booked him at FLUX and he'd agreed to do a remix for the label, but that was the only contact I had with him to that point. To be honest we didn’t exactly hit it off when we first had contact with each other when I approached him to book him but that’s another story...anyway we did a few parties that went well and then we took it to Turnmills where it now is. Basically the idea is to get techno back into the public eye again and get new clubbers into the scene, which is really working well so far. The radio show came about because we both were really into radio and wanted to get back into it, plus we felt there wasn’t a show that was playing the stuff we wanted to play. Ben used to DJ on pirate stations and I used to be a commercial radio DJ (hence the appalling gags that occasionally crop up on the SPLIT show).
Antonio:
The Split show has gained quite the popularity these days; do you feel because of the amount of exposure or show content itself?
Antonio:
Also elaborate on this commercial radio background of yours
Chris Finke:
Its a tough one really...we work hard at the show-it takes about 2 days to produce it which we do ourselves and we think the finished product is now getting pretty good and we are proud of it. It’s syndicated around the world via different stations and is also downloadable from our site (we get thousands every month and its getting bigger all the time which is great). I think a lot of it is word of mouth to be honest and we really don’t have a clue exactly how many "tune in" overall but as long as the downloads from the site keep increasing we'll be happy.
Chris Finke:
As for the commercial radio DJ thing, I’ve always been interested in broadcasting and performing etc and I got a job reading the news and doing sales at a station near where I live a few years ago. I then started doing voiceovers for adverts and then got the job doing the drive time show on weekdays. I had to play top 30 records, "classic hits of yesteryear" all that, and crack jokes and do the links it was really fun and didn’t seem like a job at all. Unfortunately I was taken off air after a risqué comment too many and that was the end of that. Housewives, office workers and pensioners were up in arms but what could they do…”them upstairs” (as we called them) had spoken.
Antonio:
What are your plans for the future?
Chris Finke:
This year I’m finally moving to London, knuckling down with production (again!), stepping up a gear DJ wise, getting my own TV talk show and making millions and retiring. That’s the plan anyway. Not sure about the last few but the first 2 look on track.
Antonio:
Don't you have labels in the works?
Chris Finke:
Yeah FLUX is back after a few small problems and I’m starting 2 new labels - BODYJACK for jacking Chicago style stuff and THE HOUSEWIVES CHOICE for more "technoey" stuff. FLUX has become a more accessible label for bigger tunes so I wanted a place to put out music and producers that wouldn’t work on FLUX.
Antonio:
When will be the first releases?
Chris Finke:
The long awaited ADVENTURES OF FLUX RECORDINGS vol1 is out in a couple of weeks (Chris McCormack, K Alexi, Mark Williams, Darko Esser), then the Skoog EP, then the DJ URBAN "you work it" remixes from Joey Beltram and Ben Sims, then a double EP from our new finding INVEXIS....
Antonio:
Wow, seems pretty busy to me!
Antonio:
Invexis rules by the way
Chris Finke:
Hahah yeah I got a couple of his early records and heard something in them I liked but it wasn’t quite there, so I mailed him and asked for some tracks and he said "2 weeks". In true German style exactly 14 days later I got the CD with 6 tracks and I was shocked at how good they were. I played them to a few people and got the same reaction. This EP is like old style Mills meets Beltram meets old style Advent (and those are the exact words of Colin McBean who should know!).
Antonio:
Plans for your music and for the future?
Chris Finke:
OK well this year DJ wise im hoping I’ll be busier than ever. Ive got a pretty good start to the year already, playing some high profile gigs at clubs like Tribal Sessions in Manchester, and my first Asian tour coming up in April. Its Atomic Jams 10th year anniversary this year and myself and Ade Fenton (the other other resident) are doing a mix CD and world tour, plus of course the SPLIT radio shows and parties/tour dates etc with Ben. I’m also looking at playing different clubs, some slightly more commercial places than I do at the moment and play some more acid house and house sets as the ones I’ve done recently have gone so well and have been fun.
Production wise, it’s taken so long for me to get my ass in gear but I’m now finally doing it. To be 100% honest I don’t like doing it really and its a means to an end-to get where I need to DJing I need to be producing and remixing, but its reached the point now where I actually have to do it and the more I am finding it much more fun. The stuff I’m doing is fairly sample based and ranges from house to techno. One track I finished recently called "MUD" I sent to Dave Clarke and it was in his top 10 last month which is cool, and it’ll go out as soon as I have finalized the remixes for it. So ill see what happens really but watch this space! There’s so much copy cat/shit music about at the moment (more than I’ve ever heard before as it goes) and I don’t want to add to it!
Antonio:
Parting Words Chief?
Chris Finke:
It's been emotional!
questions by nof of EDC tokyo.
answers by gunjack.
deafmosaic authorized interview mexico city, june 2005.
the rumors surrounding you as an artist and as a person are numerous.
this is true. i think these things can not be helped when one speaks or acts in public.
tell the readers how you would explain the rumors of theft of artistic property.
these rumors stem from a misprint by my old distributor a few years back. it was a various artists compilation set to be released the same time as a gunjack record. the manufacturer mistakenly placed the gunjack record's art onto the various artists record. i call my distributor and put a hold on the records until the matter is cleared... but then, to make a long story a bit shorter, the distributor proceeded to sell the records anyway, without my consent. hence, folks say i ripped off my own artists' music and presented it as my own for profit. obviously it's bullshit, i was never even paid a cent for the record and people who know the history of the distributor involved can back me up. stupid industry bullshit.
rumors of "gunjack going house"?
I have made all kinds of music since i was very little. i am finally able to release various styles of music at this point in my life. it is only now that i have the chance to present these works to the public through b-sides and releases designed with other things in mind besides hard, banging techno. deafmosaic will, of course, continue with hard techno, the gunjack collectors series will continue to issue whatever the **** i see fit to release from my own archives and, my new label with event 7 from infecta records in spain, game face, will show a more soulful side of techno. deafmosaic entertainment group will release my new underground hip hop album on CD later this year... so you can see that there is a lot of music going on at the moment, so i think instead of talking shit about "going house" the jockers should go out and look for the releases that suit them. trust me, they are out there. my body of work is growing and this year is the most diverse ever. to be considered a master one has to take control of the arts... and i intend to leave my mark.
rumors of deafmosaic and gunjack series moving?
true.
to where(which ditributor)?
we will let you know when the ink dries.
ok lets start with the beef rumors:
sure.
you have beef with adam beyer?
untrue.
richie hawtin?
to me he is a punk.
why?
that was just the experience i had with him.
next: subhead?
no beef there, just rumors.
regis?
just don't like his style that's all. all the lies and misrepresentation, pissing on his crowd and setting fire to rented equipment. respect his older work as a producer though.
james ruskin?
i only met him once, he seemed over sensitive. i was pretty drunk though. anyway that was years ago.
derrick may?
i think he is obnoxious and arrogant and should at least try to make some new music to back up his attitude.
german hip hop crew AMF (the 7th star and Kwaan)?
we used to work together, we did like two (unreleased) albums together. good music, you know? but these cats were just soft after everything went down. too lazy to get together for the video. to much into big brother like, personal dramas. we were friends but they turned out to be some no shame type of dudes. anyway i left and took my beats with me, but they tried to put out this "faster than a rabbit" beat i did. not cool, man... i made that beat on my own and invited them to rap on it, then they gonna butcher my verse out of the song and try to come up. more industry bullshit, but whatever.
rumors of a finish to the gunjack project?
to be honest i have thought of ending this for a long time. techno is **** boring nowadays. but something always happens, every time i lose my hunger, every time i start to hate techno again and want out, life just flips the script on me, puts me into inspiring and difficult situations... i begin to remember the things i can not express with other forms of music. then, usually, my next track seems to happen from nowhere and i am back on for another ride. it has been quite interesting to say the least... to answer your question directly: the project will continue for this year. ask me again in late 2006 and maybe it will be diferent but i have releases scheduled up til' feb. 2006 so far so...
rumors of you being arrested in mexico city for vandalism?
i was detained and forced to pay off the police.
for.... vandalism?
yes.
can you elaborate?
there is a guy around now, doing these graffitti stencils with the words "gun jack" on them. they seem like an anti-facist political thing or something.... i guess these cops thought that was me.
was it?
35 u.s. dollars said it wasn't.
aha, ok, next one - rumor has it you finished working with the spain based distributor, jaxx records, on bad terms.
nothing could be further from the truth. i love those guys like family and wish them all the best. gameface is exclusive with jaxx. i left my position with the distribution to persue other interests.
such as?
travel back in the west, also i felt it was time to see my family and homeland again after years roaming around.
speaking of roaming around, it has been said that you are a..... erm.......... vagdabond?
(laughs) it's true! i dont own a house or an apartment anywhere! i suppose one of these days my feet will get planted, but not soon unless i decide to find a steady job....
tokyo, madrid, detroit, mexico city, l.a., where the hell are you really from?!
born in l.a., lived in all those other places except detroit - i think some EU promotor started that rumor.
why all the travel, what are you running from?
myself i suppose. i mean i guess you could say i am greedy. greedy like a **** addict. (laughs) ... addicted to hearing and learning foreign languages, munching exotic foods and walking through the poverty of the world.
addicted to poverty???
yea i know it sounds funny, but i just mean that i like to go out on the street with everybody else. i don't really go to nightclubs unless i am playing. you can find me in night markets eating local foods, out on the street doing my a&r thing, or recording with the guys from whatever spot i am in. i like the feeling of being around musicians and artists, drinking and eating on the street and getting my hands dirty once in a while. street life, you know?
so you are a man of vices?
(laughs) the bird (ceo jaxx records) used to call me "b. vice", so i guess you could say that. i am comfortable with my humanity.
rumors saying you are a junkie?
man, i will admit to being a daily pot smoker and drinking alot of beer, but those people out there, saying i am strung out, are just looking for the new black sheep. to be honest, i couldn't ingest substances the way i used to even i wanted to!
getting old?
it feels that way sometimes.
rumors of forthcoming gunjack "schranz" releases.?
not again... this is the shit that makes me feel old. ok look i have been doing some really hard techno, along with the many other things i mentioned. recently even harder. these particular songs caught the attention of a friend who runs a german label. a release is in the works. you do the math. i can tell you this though: schranz has nothing to do with what we have been doing for more than a decade now. those schranz white labels going around at the moment are some of the worst examples of sheep gone genre mad. techno is techno.
and what is that?
pushing the boundries of intensity in audio, walking that fine line between artistic integrity and agressive sonic mayhem.
speaking of mayhem:
(interupts) oh c'mon man....
yes. should i explain for the reader?
no let me:
...this record came out just after the madrid terrorist bombing of a commuter train. it was called "mayhem in madrid" and had images of trains in the art. this was purely a coincidence and in no way an attempt to cash in on this heinous tragedy. the art was done five months before and unfortunately by the time the incident happened the record had been shipped and was about to hit stores. later on jaxx records and some artists (including myself) created a four disc, benefit compilation for the victims. i thought it was a horrible thing that happened that day. i used to live two blocks from the detonation site. what political agenda was at work... why kill immigrants, workers and students? it just never added up. somehow the socialists were swept into office as a result. strange days.
rumors of gunjack goes pop?
well... i have been making beats for hip hop and r&b artists etc. and plan to expand further into that field as well.
so how can we define your sound? your projects? what is the underlying theme? where would they put your anthology in a record shop?
the thing is, i want my shit up in all the cool sections of a record shop, my deafmo or gjs joints in the harder wax slot, a freejazz record up in that section, some dub shit or some freaky asian joint in the world music section, you know, i got to be up in the hip hop spot on cd too.... just invading all the genres and defying fools to put me in a box.
one could argue that with all these projects, you are spreading yourself very thin and run the risk of sacrificing the quality of your work, had you focused harder on one specific genre of music.
one could argue that i suppose, but then one would be wrong! this year has seen some of the best tracks i have ever done and the whole genre issue in general is a joke to me. all music is the same shit, it's either good or it is very bad and that is usually a question of taste, but more often than not it is a matter of access to information and music from all walks of life.
what is next for you?
heading back to the usa for a few months, then... i dunno.... holland...? could be anywhere really. if i can get me some of the programs and hardware i really want this year, maybe you might have to look for me in the jungle, up in cambodia or something. i get hungry for asia every few months and if i was writing music there, you might not get me to leave. but on the release tip there are so many things coming up, i will just say - keep your ears open for new releases and don't pay attention to the jockers out there spreading gossip. oh yea, and if you see me on the street or at the show, don't be afraid to come up and buy a cd from me. the resin. album is for sale wherever i am at.
anything else?
...a couple shouts out... my adopted brother arthur henry fork, thanks for all the support, inspiration and encouragement. props to tony lugo, much love. uge, juan and the bird at jaxx records, game face 2005 baby... bas and marco at triple, jeroen at audio assault, amok the supreme headbanger and last but not least i want to thank all my friends and peers back home in the americas for looking out for me on my return from globe crawlin'.
spam us! :
Gunjack - Powderburn - TBA summer 2005
RESIN. CD album on sale now in the street and through selected retailers, inquire for mail order through deafmosaic@gmail.com (shipping late july/august).
ARMS06 on sale now.
DM07 on sale now.
Gunjack Collectors Series vol. 4 COMING SOON.