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fanzine april 2010
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L-EKTRICA
L-EKTRICA GAVE ME A VISION!
Tuesday
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myspace.com/lektrica
Every Tuesday • ore 23.00
AKAB Via di Monte Testaccio 69, Roma
April 2010
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L-Ektrica djs: Andrea
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ESU & fabrice
Visual: Infidel
L-Ektrica Fanzine
Graphics: Lord Z
Interviews: Matteo Quinzi
Project: L-Ektrica Family
l-ektrica.com
myspace.com/lektrica
facebook.com/lektrica
Media Partner
Web Partner
April
Saturday
10
April
myspace.com/lektrica
2manydjs
DJ SET // MYSPACE.COM/2MANYDJS
LIVE //
MYSPACE.COM/thewhipmanchester
PRESENT
MOTORIA 2.0
AUDIO/VIDEO PERFORMANCE
thebutchersproduction.com
L-EKTRICA DJS:
Andrea Esu & Fabrice
VISUAL: AIRA
INFO: L-EKTRICA.COM
PREVENDITE: GREENTICKET.IT
SPAZIO NOVECENTO
Piazza Guglielmo Marconi 26 B, ROMA
PRODUCTION:
PARTNERS:
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SOUND BY:
Tuesday
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myspace.com/r0d10n
April
myspace.com/ginowoodybianchi
SPECIAL CHARTS
Rodion Disco Chart
kano ♦ It’s a War
supertramp ♦ The Logical Song
giorgio moroder ♦ Evolution
patrick cowley ♦ Megatron Man
yellow magic orchestra ♦ Rydeen
hiroshi kawaguchi ♦ Passing Breeze (Out Run Soundtrack)
daft punk ♦ Short Circuit
francisco ♦ Moon Roller
bangkok impact ♦ Black Zoo
kerrier district ♦ Let’s Dance and Freak
Gino “Woody” Bianchi Disco Chart
todd terje ♦ Italian Stallion
rockets ♦ Space Rock (Woody Bianchi edit)
tom trago ♦ Voyage Direct/Use Me Again
kasso ♦ Key West (Jellibean Benitez remix)
cory daye ♦ Pow Wow
gary’s gang ♦ Lovedance Tonight (Danny Krivit edit)
jef k & chris carrier ♦ Morning
kc & the sunshine band ♦ I’m Your Boogie Man (Woody Bianchi edit)
munich machine ♦ Get on the Funk Train
arpadys ♦ Monkey Star
Rodion
Live!
Gino Woody
Bianchi
Special Disco Set
INFIDEL
Loves
L-Ektrica
flickr.com/ynfidel
Tuesady
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myspace.com/holyghostnyc
April
dfarecords.com
Holy Ghost!
INterview
by Matteo Quinzi
You’re in the roster of DFA, one of the most important and influent label on the new millennium.
How did you get in touch with them? What is your relationship with Tim and James?
We met James and Tim through mutual friends while playing in our old band, a rap group
called Automato, whose one and only record they produced back in 2002. After that, and
following the demise of Automato, we remained friends and they encouraged our then
formless studio experiments which eventually morphed into Holy Ghost! holy ghost
Holy Ghost!
You came from rap, with the project Automato. What memories do you have about that experience
and how (and why) have you decided to switch on disco/electronic music?
We both still love rap, have nothing but fond memories of Automato and remain close with
the other guys from the band - Andrew and Morgan, formerly of Hercules & Love Affair,
now of Jessica 6 and Midnight Magic and Ben Fries who directed our video for “I Will
Come Back.” The move away from rap was really one of necessity because part of the reason
Automato disbanded was because the rappers didn’t want to rap anymore so without rappers
we had to figure out something else to do. At the time Alex had developed the urge to sing
and the two of us had gotten more into dance music around our late teens, so the shift to
what we’re doing now was a pretty natural and easy one.
You’re from Brooklyn, that in the last 10 years appeared to be the “centre of the universe” for the
indie music. What do you think about that and if (and how) the “community” and the atmosphere
of Brooklyn has inspired you and helped to grow as musicians/producers?
Well, I would say I feel particularly attached to the DFA community of musicians which I guess
makes up a fairly large part of the greater Brooklyn music scene. “The DFA” is just another
word for our group of friends, kind of like when we were in high school and graffiti crews
had names. Juan, James, Pat, Nancy, Marcus, Jacques, Justin, Eric B., Liv, Andrew, Morgan
- those are all people we hang out with, talk about music with, drink, eat, laugh and cry with
on a daily basis. By sheer luck, they also happen to be tremendously talented people who have
made, for my money, some of the best music of the last decade and having friends with such
an expansive and impressive knowledge of music and producing music is an amazing resource. We all bounce ideas off each other and work together constantly.
Often you cited The Panthers as “brothers”, even if they have an imaginary sound far away
from yours. Why? And what other bands you considered “affiliated” or estimate musically?
I guess this gets back to my answer to the last question. The DFA is a label, of course, but it’s
also just a group of friends comprised, in part, of people who are not necessarily musicians on
the label. Jay and Justin from Panthers are two of our dearest friends and Justin in particular
is one of those people who brought a lot of us together. For example, it was through Justin’s
band Turing Machine (the first band James and Tim produced together) that James met
Jerry Fuchs so that’s really how Jerry came to play and become friends with Juan. Tuesday
Stylistically, Panthers was worlds away from our music but we all listen to the same stuff,
more or less. It just so happens that the music we make takes on different forms, I guess. And for the record, I think “The Trick” was one of most slept-on LPs of the past five years. DFA should reissue it on vinyl.
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myspace.com/stillgoing
April
dfarecords.com
Listening “Hold On”, your super single of 2007, your sound seems a nice mix of ‘70 american
soul disco and tipical ‘80 italo disco. What would be an appropriate definition for your
sound?And are you NY Knicks fans?
I would say our own music is pop music heavily influenced by dance music from the 70s and
80s. But first and foremost, all our songs are pop songs - verse, chorus, verse, chorus, etc. Just like Britney Spears or Michael Jackson.
And yes, we’re both Knicks fans. Alex follows basketball more than me, but being from New
York you have to be a Knicks fan. It’s a rule.
Your last release is a 12” splitted with Friendly Fires, in which one you cover each other. This
is usually a “classic” rock number!? Do you have a special feeling with them? And how long we
have to wait for your debut album? Or do you prefer to move with “single” format?
We met the guys from Friendly Fires in Corsica this past summer where we were both
playing the Calvi On The Rocks festival. Ed and Alex drank rum together into the early
morning hours and drunkenly made the plan to cover each others songs and a friendship
was born. As for the album, it’s done. However, it’ll probably take a while to come out just because
record labels tend to move pretty slowly. It’s just the nature of the beast. But we do love
doing singles so we’re going to do a EP/12” this summer with two new songs and a song
called “Say My Name” which will be out on the new Kitsune comp this month.
Nicholas you also play in Juan MacLean band. Tell us about this experience and have you ever
thinked/planned for a Holy Ghost live set?
Sfortunatamente ho dovuto interrompere la mia collaborazione con i Juan MacLean circa un
Sadly, I had to quit The Juan Maclean about a year ago as it became too demanding to tour
with both Juan and HG!, but the experiences I had for the three (four?) years I spent playing
in that band were some of the most fun and rewarding of my life. It was a great gig - it was
the first time I ever really got paid to play music which was great. And getting to do it while
playing music I sincerely loved with people I love even more was just amazing. I mean, just
getting to watch Jerry play from five feet away every night would have made it worth it but
Juan, Jerry, Nancy, Eric - I love all those people more than I can put into words.
As for HG! live, that’s the next big project we’re undertaking. It’s happening, it’s just been
hard to pin down the right personnel but I think we’ve got it sorted. We’ve started booking
live dates for summer, so look out.
Still Going
R
You’re a great remixer too, for example one of the last ones was for the Grammy winner Phoenix,
for “Listzomania”. Most them are collected in the self released compilation “The Remixes Vol.1”.
Which is your approach in the “art of remix”?
I’m not sure we have a fixed approach. First, we have to like the song and from there we
look for an element in the original that might be fun to recontextualize for the dancefloor
in some way and then just go from there. It’s usually a long process of building a track up
and then stripping it down again to the strongest elements and finally, usually after a couple
weeks, it feels done.
Still Going
INterview
by Matteo Quinzi
At the moment you have released two 12”, the aforementioned “Still Going Theme” and the new “Spaghetti Circus”,
always for DFA. How long we have to wait for a debut album? How and when the collaboration with DFA
started?
Your name is arrived suddenly and unexpected in 2007 with the anthem “Still Going Theme” for DFA. Tell us
about your life before the release of this 12”. How did Eric and Oliver spend their “previous days“ in music? How
and when did you start to djing and produce music together?
Oliver: I’ve been producing and recording since 2002. Eric and I met at the first Rub N Tug jams at our friend
Rui’s loft on the LES. I engineered and programmed for some of the early Rub N Tug records and we eventually
started collaborating as Still Going
Eric: I was messing around on turntables in the 80’s & took on DJing full time in mid 90’s.. got into production
in 2004. Liv actually engineered the first production i ever did .. and it’s moved forward ever since...
Your sound is a very intriguing mix of house music, disco, jazz, soul and funk. Surely you are very passionate and
influenced by different styles of “black music”. What do you think about that?
Oliver: I can’t really say I’m influenced in that way. The writing process for me usually involves trying to clear
my head of any direct influences. That’s one of the reasons Eric ad I work so well together. I tend to write in
a vacuum while Eric brings a deep knowledge of music - be it “black”, “white”, or yellow to the process.
Io tendo a scrivere in maniera “neutra” poi Eric aggiunge, grazie alla sua profonda conoscenza musicale, quel
tocco di “black”, “white” o “yellow” che serve al brano.
Eric: Music is music to me.. either i like it or i don’t.. all rainbows here...
Which are your favorite artists? I mean, those who considered the primary influences for your music and those that
you like just listen?
Oliver: I listen and love to all kinds of music. Jazz, disco, classical, metal, salsa, afrobeat , country - I’m an “equal
opportunty” listener. I’d say my primary influence is New York City - rather than specific artists.
Eric: I don’t think i am influenced by other artists so much.. i just listen to what’s being done and if i think
it sounds good then go with it...
Eric: an album is possible... i mean we’re half way there with 4 tunes already in the can.. we are currently
working on 4 more original tunes.. so add those up and an LP could happen... only time will tell...
Oliver: We can only promise to keep putting our best foot forward so to speak. Whether or not a long player
comes from our efforts remains to be seen.
In the last years you have posted different and eclectic podcast on Resident Advisor and Beats in Space. This is what
we have to expect from your dj set today? Have you ever thought to release an official dj-mix?
Oliver: I think those mixes offer a fairly good representation of our club sets. However, every gig offers an
opportunity to try something new. I think it’s important to mix things up a little. One night might feature
more disco, another more house or techno. It really depends on the venue, the crowd, and how little sleep
we’ve had leading up the to gig. We may eventually release an official mix but for now we’re focusing on
original material and remixes.
The side B of your last 12”, “Untitled Love” is a super spacey soulful ballad. It reminds me a disco version of
“Evidence” by Faith No More. Tell us more about this track. How it was created? Which was the starting idea?
Oliver: Untitled Love started as a loose jam we built around a guitar hook I wrote. It wasn’t until Eric came
up with the core lyrics that the song began to take shape. Bringing Reggie Watts in to perform the song really
brought the whole thing together in an organic kind of way.
You have remixed a lot of different artist, like Presets, Doves, !!! and Crazy P. How do you choose the artists ad
the tracks to remix?
Oliver: We’ve learned that we have to hear something within the original track that we can work with. A
couple of our remixes have found us essentially writing new original songs - something we’ll be keeping for
ourselves moving forward. We need to feel that we can bring a fresh perspective to the original track. If not,
you’re just polluting the airwaves. So the answer to your question would be “very carefully”.