Finn Johannsen – Disco Biscuit 22th November 2012 Guest Mix

Finn Johannsen – @ WNUR 89.3 FM Chicago September 14th 2012

UK Bass/Dubstep special, recorded for m50’s radio show in Chicago.

Kahn – Like We Used To
DJ Abstract – Touch
djrum – Turiya
Taylor – Squeege
Nautiluss x Lord Skywave – Ultraviolet
Zed Bias – Reminisce About The Phuture
Elgato – Luv Zombie
Pangaea – Inna Daze
Kuma – Dawn Stepped Outside (Horsepower MK7 Mix)
Grey Goo – See Me
Irrelevant feat. Brad Sucks – Better Off In Me
Graphics – Name This
Bandshell – Rise Em
Instra:mental – Thomp
Untold – Bones (Rockwell Remix)
J Beatz – Subwoofer (Grievous Angel Remix)
Helix – Stacks Riddim
No Symbols – Straight
Kode9, Benny Ill & The Culprit – Fat Larry’s Skank
Djrum – Turyia (Tessela Remix)
West Norwood Cassette Library – Coming On Strong (Pangaea Remix)
Djrum – The Darkest Hour Is Just Before Dawn (Undercoat Pt. 2)
LD – Traumatic Times
Lorca – Hold Back
Pangaea – Memories
Synkro – Don’t Know
Luke Envoy – So
TRG – Surreal (5AM)
Forsaken – Hypnotised
Horsepower Productions – Voodoo Spell
Double Helix – LDN
RSD – Pretty Bright Light
Killawatt – Sidewinder (Ipman Remix)
Kahn & Neek – Percy
Geeneus – Congo
Untold – No One Likes A Smart-Arse
Data – The Construct
Data – Knives From Heaven
Photek – Closer (Pinch Remix)
Pinch – Elements
Opus – I’m Goin In
Dub War – Funky Deal
Anti-Pop Consortium – Ghostlawns (LFO Rik Waller Mix)

@ Pulse Radio

Macrospective is the new mix compilation from Macro Recordings due out 12th September.  The label, owned by Stefan Goldmann and Finn Johannsen, is known for pushing the boundaries of regular techno and to demonstrate its back catalogue as well as their inventive approach to the scene, this is a double mix with a twist.  The pair have selected exactly the same tracks for each of  their mixes, but compiled the tracks in an alternative way- a method that highlights their individual talents as well as different parts of the tracks themselves.  So when Pulse caught up with Finn and Stefan, we decided it’d be rude not to try and replicate their idea in interview form.  Here’s what the pair had to say in answer to the same questions in a different order- Stefan’s turn first!

Pulse:  Tell us a bit about your history as a producer/DJ.  Stefan Goldmann:  Around the year 2000 I had some basic equipment together and quickly learned to program nice House beats. I spent some years deepening my skills and knowledge, working with different labels. When I felt comfortable enough to do my own thing and not needing an A&R to tell me what can be released and what not, it was time for Macro.

Talk to us about the new Macrospective CD mix and how it all came about.  Label compilations are boring. DJ mix CDs are boring. We wanted to do both in a way that excites us AND that reveals deep mystic truths to the listeners. I think our label catalogue isn’t boring. We love it. Even those who know it all might still find it interesting to listen how two DJs work it to get the best mix out of it. It is a contest with no winner or loser – I believe the material allows for several interpretations. That’s what we prove. I can’t recall anyone having done that before. That’s why we did it. Actually, we could have got all our DJs on it – that’s actually an idea: the Macrospective DVD with 10 mixes. But just with the two of us you get an insight of what drives us as DJs and A&Rs, too. It’s more compact and concentrated. Clarity is important.

You’re known as someone who likes to push the boundaries of concepts and techno itself. Where are you trying to push it to?  To where no one else has bothered to push them yet.

What was the inspiration behind setting Macro recordings up and who runs what at the label?  To me, that my ideas of what I wanted to do grew beyond what most A&Rs considered acceptable for their labels. I needed to eliminate the discussions and headaches. So one summer night, while having a beer in the park, Finn and I just where like: can we do it? Ok, let’s just do it.  Now I make the tea, while Finn puts paper in the copier – meanwhile our mysterious boss, who is hidden from the public, sits in a mailbox in the Caymans and reaps all the money.

What’s getting you most excited in your musical life right now?  That Finn is an official releasing artist now. And that everything is new and amazing. My whole life as a musician is changing. I’m happy I have a constant flow of ideas what to work on and how to make it work. Everything is shifting away from the traditional structures to new structures. While many are in panic, I’ve never before felt so free to pursue the music I want to do, to ignore what others believe is necessary to oblige to and to find new ways to support it all.

Pulse: Talk to us about the new Macrospective CD mix and how it all came about.  Finn Johannsen: We found that it might be time to take a look back on what we did so far and to thank our artists for their contributions, but at the same time the usual formats for label retrospectives did not appeal to us. Stefan and me work together so well because we are very different persons and we are very different as DJs, too. Thus we came up with this concept because we thought it would reflect all that. When we compared the results it quickly became apparent that the experiment was successful.

What’s getting you most excited in your musical life right now? Music I had not heard before and which I find interesting basically excites me the same as when I carried my first money to the store to purchase records at the age of 6 or so. And I’m confident that it will never stop. And all the possibilities!

Tell us a bit about your history in music.  Pretty much all I do for a living is closely connected to music. I buy music since the 70’s, I play music since the 80’s, I write about music since the 90’s. In the last ten years I co-founded Macro to release music, and I took up working at Hard Wax to sell music. Music Music Music.

What was the inspiration behind setting Macro recordings up and who runs what at the label? It was out of discontent mainly. We felt the complaint is not as productive as the act. Since then what we do and who does what is constantly in flux. We have friends that help, collaborators we collaborate with, and we establish missions to accomplish with every new week.

You’re known as someone who likes to push the boundaries of concepts and techno itself. Where are you trying to push it to?  We just try to push things forward, no matter in which direction. And since we do that, with every closing door several other doors opened. And now our imagination is running wild.

Pulse Radio 8/11

Finn Johannsen – Invitation To Openness Special Part 2

Mixes recorded for the Invitation To Openness Special at soulsender.de

Aaron Smith – Sometimes I Wonder
Creative Force – It’s So Good
Mirage feat. Gary L – Everything’s Gonna Be Alright
Ron Carroll – A New Day
Donnell Rush – Symphony
Inner City – Pennies From Heaven
Ce Ce Rogers – Brothers And Sisters
Total Eclipse – Come Together
Kevin Elliott Presents Malik Hart – We’re On Our Way
Tommye – I Need To Go Away
Miss Joi Cardwell – Goodbye
The Bias Project – The Valley
Mark Rogers – Twilight For Some

Finn Johannsen – Invitation To Openness Special Part 1

Mixes recorded for the Invitation To Openness Special at soulsender.de

New Deep Society – Warehouse (Days Of Glory)
Park Avenue – Don’t Turn Your Love
Sterling Void – Someday
Masquerade – Real Love
Frankie Hollywood Feat. Ricky Dillard – Feel The Fire
Fred Fowler – Times Are Changin
Joe Smooth – I Try
Paris Brightledge – Learn To Love
Irving And Romeo – Brighter Day
Ce Ce Rogers – Someday
Will Downing – A Love Supreme
Fingers Inc. – A Love Of My Own

Finn Johannsen – Sweatlodge Show January 2011

Mix recorded for Artist of the Week-feature @ Sweatlodgeradio.com

Interview (by Elie Eidelman)

You are a well respected music writer writing for publications like De:Bug, RA and your own blog (among others). Has music writing always been part of what you do, and what came first? The writing or the djing?

I write about music in public since the mid-90’s, and I started playing out in the late 80’s, so definitely DJing came first. My output as a writer has also been not as prolific as it turned out to be after I moved to Berlin in 2003. I knew Jan Joswig, the fashion editor at de:bug at that time, from former days in my hometown Kiel and he asked me to contribute. I started out writing reviews and then turned to features and especially interviews, some of which got quite some attention. So that eventually led to writing for other print and  web publications too, like doing the “Playing Favourites” series for Resident Advisor, my “Rewind” series for sounds-like-me.com, Groove Magazine, and a lot of other media. The Website you’re referring to is not a blog in the sense that I write about everything that goes through my head, it is more like fragmentary online archive of my activities from the 90’s until now. Writings, Mixes, Gigs, the label, and a plethora of other things. It is not that I’m that vain to want everybody to know what I do and did, it is kind of a reminder for myself that others can follow if they like. Excuse the irregular updates at this point, but I slowed down all said activities a bit to have more time for my lovely wife and daughter, and I took up working at Hard Wax, too. Consider me well busy.

Can you please tell our readers what is D*ruffalo and who stands behind it?

I can’t possibly tell, at least not anymore. When D*ruffalo was unleashed 4 years ago, it was some sort of a media experiment initiated by a semi-anonymous collective of writers, producers and DJs based in several German cities, intended to be a platform to share love for what should be loved, free of any conventional restrictions. Soon some lack of love for what was deemed not as loveable showed up as well, but basically it was conceived to be the Fort Alamo of sincerity. Decidedly non-ironical, accidentally post-cool and fiercely anti-hype. At some point The D*ruffalo Hit Squad and the according Druffmix series was brought to life, to shine a light on music no light shined upon. But it totally spiralled out of control. I don’t know what it is right now, or if I am still a part of it even. But apparently D*ruffalo celebrates its sheer existence and the 50th Druffmix with a party at Berlin’s Soju Bar on February 11, and there are negotiations about a regular residency there. If the unpredictability and confusion of the D*ruffalo members allows. Which is probably unlikely, maybe. I can’t possibly tell.

You are running Macro Records together with Stefan Goldmann. How’s the process been running a label and what can we expect from Macro in 2011?

When we founded Macro we decided to only release music we find worth releasing, at the potential risk of longer stretches with no releases at all. But then the label took up so much momentum that we now have more releases lined up for this year than in the years before. March will see a new EP by the rather sensational Elektro Guzzi and Stefan’s magnificent “The Grand Hemiola” 2×12″, you can hear excerpts of both in the mix I recorded for you. We will follow that up in April with a live album by Elektro Guzzi and a compilation of the late works of the composer and conductor Friedrich Goldmann, Stefan’s father, who sadly and much too early passed away in 2009. We are also in the process of preparing several other projects for later this year, which are not yet ready to be unveiled, but well worth waiting for. We worked very hard to achieve a position in which we can do whatever we want, and as long as this strong support will stay with us, we will do just that. Expect the unexpected.

You’re known for your eclectic dj sets. What can you tell us about this set you prepared?

My sets, be it in a club or radio context, can be quite diverse, that’s true. But I don’t believe in eclecticism per se. Meaning, I don’t want to attract opposites just for the sake of it. If you neglect a certain coherence, structure and narrative you will end up sounding like a jukebox, however interesting it might be musically equipped. I like thinking of a concept when doing a mix, as subliminal or not it might be. With this one, I just intended to combine an experimental streak with a dancefloor functionality, while providing a glimpse of unreleased Macro material and tracks of artists I consistently admire, and tracks I still find as interesting as the day I first heard them. Which in the case of this playlist, was not too long ago. At any other time the set would probably have sounded differently, but this was what I then had in mind for this purpose and I hope it makes as much sense to the listeners as it made to me when I recorded it.

Stefan Goldmann – Mining The Vein / The Grand Hemiola
Raime – This Foundry (Regis Version)
Shackleton Vs. Kasai Allstars – Mukuba Special
Theo Parrish Ft. IG Culture – Traffic
Elektro Guzzi – Boom Room
Margaret Dygas – Hidden (NSI Mix)
Farben – Kursbuch 1&2
Son Of Sam – Nature Makes A Mistake (Âme Mix)
Marco Bernardi – Klinsfrar Melode (Sprinkles Deeperama)
WK7 – Higher Power (Hardcore PCK Mix)
Pinch – Croydon House

Rewind: Klaus Stockhausen über “Party Boys”

Im Gespräch mit Klaus Stockhausen über “Party Boys” von Foxy (1980).

Wie bist Du auf „Party Boys“ gekommen? Beim Plattenkaufen für DJ-Gigs? Du hattest ja 1980 schon mit Auflegen angefangen, als die Platte rauskam.

Die Platte ist, denke ich, von 1979, aber es war wohl 1980. Angefangen habe ich drei Jahre vorher. Ehrlich gesagt war ich in Amsterdam in einem Plattenladen, Rhythm Import, und es war der Nachfolger von „Get Off“, und „Get Off“ ging relativ gut ab. Ich habe in drei Clubs gearbeitet zu dieser Zeit. Donnerstags/Freitags in Frankfurt in so einem Armee-Schwuchtelladen, der hieß No Name. Da waren nur stationierte Soldaten, sehr amerikanisch. Samstag/Sonntag Coconut in Köln, und Montag in Amsterdam im Flora Palace, was hundert Jahre später zum It-Club wurde. Und du hattest drei verschiedene Musikrichtungen. In Köln war es diese Hi-NRG-Nummer mit sonntags Schwuchtel-Tea-Dance, Poppers etc., bei den Amis hattest du funky to Disco, und Amsterdam war britisch angehaucht. Diese Fusion war ganz gut.

Wie hat sich denn das Britische in der Musik in Amsterdam manifestiert?

Es war soulig, Hi-NRG, aber später auch so etwas wie Loose Ends. Es waren Elemente von Rare Groove drin. Und bei „Party Boys“ fand ich einfach diesen Hook so toll, der eben wesentlich eleganter war als zum Beispiel „Cruisin’ The Streets“ von der Boystown Gang. Eigentlich könnte man diese beiden Platten übereinander legen, es funktioniert perfekt. Und diese schrägen Stimmen. Ich mag Stimmen gerne, und wenn sie slightly off sind, mag ich sie noch viel viel lieber. Read the rest of this entry »

Rewind: Eric D. Clark on “Atmosphere”

In discussion with Eric D. Clark on “Atmosphere” by Funkadelic (1975).

How were you initiated to the Funkadelic world?

That’s rather hard to say; I believe I first heard Funkadelic… early 70’s? Seems as though I remember hearing “Maggot Brain” as my introduction to their music? And it would most probably have been at a party; maybe a cousin’s house or on a military base at a function? Don’t really know. However I seem to remember that piece first: I certainly had no idea what or who it was? At the time I thought the label art was somehow the band’s responsibility, therefore I would buy records according to the artwork; if I was at a friend’s house and they had something I liked I would go to the record store, usually with my father, and look for the same artwork and buy the record (we’re talking 7″ singles here). Needless to say it was often not what I was looking for. However, rarely did I return anything! This is how I ended up finding out about Led Zeppelin at age 5 or 6. I was looking for Rare Earth. When I finally witnessed Funkadelic’s artwork first-hand it cemented my high regard for their overall “thang”!

Was it a part of your childhood and youth in California?

There was a very strong and rich musical culture in our house. Every morning before school we were allowed to listen to music (no TV, only on Saturday mornings) that we selected from an extensive record collection procurred over previous decades and life in Kansas, Philadelphia, St. Louis and Poplar Bluff Missouri, Osaka, and wherever else our parents had been on their journeys with the military. This included 78 rpm shellac discs and 7″ children’s records recorded at 16 rpm. Father always loved Jazz and has an extensive collection of Blue Note recordings from the label’s inception until around 1970 something. Errol Garner was a big favourite, Booker T. & the MG’s. I did not really get into Jazz though until much later, though I liked Errol Garner! The rest was boring to me then. “Shotgun” and “Green Onions” I liked a lot but until this day I can’t stand James Brown for example?! Only one song that I can’t remember the title of, from around 1958. Mother was into Gospel and female vocal performers such as Morgana King, Dinah Washington, Mahalia Jackson, Dakota Stanton, Aretha of course, also some guys like Major Lance and Joe Simon both of whom I still love today. This collection still exists, excerpts of which you can hear in a set I uploaded to soundcloud.com/eric-d-clark under the moniker “The OZ Effect”. When I’d go looking for what I liked and tried to share it with them it was not met well. They tried to form me with classical which I found to be very little of a challenge, especially as I could trick the teachers by learning pieces twice or even three times as fast by listening to them on vinyl (my component stereo system was right on top of the piano next to my father’s AKAI reel-to-reel, which he bought in Osaka three years before I was born and I adopted; when I am at our house in Sacramento I still use this machine!). Funkadelic were strictly off-limits (very enticing) but I kept the records anyway, even though they were considered to be devil music by Mom and Dad. I was still under ten? Read the rest of this entry »

Rewind: Hardrock Striker on “I’m A Cult Hero”

In discussion with Hardrock Striker on “I’m A Cult Hero” (1989).

Do you have a past acquainted with this music? Is this the compilation that nailed down musical preferences you already had, or did you have a different background and were you just looking for something in that direction?

This is clearly the music I was listening to as a kid. Back then, my biggest dream was to be in a rock’n’roll band, no way I wanted to become a DJ (“what a joke I could have thought”) as this meant nothing to me, imagine playing guitar and being on stage screaming in front of a crazy crowd or mixing records, even a monkey could do it! Obviously, it’s only when I started DJing that I understood the power of it and realized my immaturity.

I chose this compilation because even if it looks like a pure rock record, many of the bands inside are using electronic, though I had no clue about it while I was listening to them. I discovered house in Los Angeles in the late 90’s, I went there to form a heavy rock band but I ended up going out with some friends who were doing house, especially Peter Black who introduced me to Doc Martin, the Wax connection, DJ Harvey. We started being friends, speaking about art, music and I discovered that he was also into New Order, Front 242, Ministry, Echo and the Bunnymen, Joy Division and that he was doing house too, so I thought this music finally wasn’t that bad! I started digging, to sum it up, New Order leads me to italo, italo to chicago, chicago to techno. We did a record company called Parisonic / Square Roots where I was doing reissues (already in 2003) of obscure stuff such as It Ain’t Chicago’s “Ride The Rhythm”, Mickey Oliver “In-Ten-Si-t”, Ralphi Rosario “In The Night” etc. I educated myself through the records I was putting out.

“I’m A Cult Hero” is a bootleg compilation with 80’s dark synth pop music, originally released in 1989. Why do you think such a record was released at a time when acid house ruled the clubs? Was this a reminder to what was going on a few years before, or even a counter-reaction to what followed? What might have been the motivation of the label to do this record?

I think that even if house and acid were blowing up at that time, dark synth-pop and minimal wave were still huge. Remember in 1989, Depeche Mode was also on the verge of getting the biggest rock stars in the world with the 101 Rose Bowl concert and the release of one of the best trio of singles of the 80’s: “Strangelove”, “Behind The Wheel” (Mmmh, the Shep Pettibone Mix!) and “Personal Jesus” which was a combination of rock guitars and electronic so it makes totally sense.

The motivation of these guys was primarily cash I guess but I honestly think they did an amazing job! There are two categories of bootleggers: the creative ones and the thieves, I guess they belong to the first one. Read the rest of this entry »

Playing Favourites: Silent Servant

Doctor Mix And The Remix – Out of the Question (1979)

A lot of the music we’ve picked out to discuss comes from a similar background in terms of time period, style and sound, but I think this one is pretty obscure. How did you find it?

Through a friend of mine. There’s a label in New York called Acute Records maybe eight years ago or so. A few of my friends in California are really obsessed with The Jesus and Mary Chain, and one of the members of the band mentioned once that this was one of their favourite records of all time. The thing I like about it is the extremity of the music. It’s super high-pitched, with distortion and tinny drum machines but then it’s covers of, like, Stooges songs.

This track in particular has this really insane, rhythmic track that’s super metronomic but super heavy at the same time. It’s very aggressive, but not because of the levels of distortion. The first time I heard it I thought I was listening to [The Jesus and Mary Chain’s] Psycho Candy. The more I looked into it, the more I realized how much of an influence it had on them.

It’s funny. The Jesus and Mary Chain were always compared to The Velvet Underground, but apparently there’s much more to it than that.

Sure. There’s not a lot of stuff like this. The guy was in one of the first French punk bands. And, with this, they kind of combined the attitude of the Velvets with these misinterpretations from a different country. I love that because, for me, techno in California was always a misinterpretation of what was happening in Berlin and Detroit and Chicago just because we didn’t really have a big scene. We had a club scene, but not a techno scene. I just really love the weird interpretations of The Stooges and stuff like that.

Are you interested in bands that deconstruct rock tradition in some way?

At the end of the day it’s all about attitude. Willing to push things a lot and not really care. It was the same when I first heard Cabaret Voltaire’s “Messages Received.” I just didn’t know what to say, I was blown away. I thought, “It doesn’t get any more honest than that.” I think that’s the whole thing. There’s an honesty in the music that you can’t remove. There’s a visceral element to it. That’s how myself, Karl [O’Connor], Dave [Sumner] and even Pete [Sutton] interpret music in some way I think.

Cabaret Voltaire – Messages Received (1980)

There was a very heavy art slant on what Cabaret Voltaire did. I think it’s very, very art driven. They’d also have the influence of The Velvet Underground and all that ’60s psych rock, but they’d do all these awesome records and what came through the most was the attitude. “This is what I wanna do, this is how I’m gonna do it.” And they just went for it.

Is that a quality you try to pursue? Not thinking about what you can or can’t do?

Yeah, I talk to Karl every other day on the telephone, we’re in very heavy contact on a weekly basis, same thing with Dave. But it’s funny because when I make music it’s purely to see what he thinks, just for us to discuss… “Oh, I really like this. What do you think?” It’s more a conversation from an art base. I try to work in a very automatic response way. I work in art direction, so I work quite a bit on TV commercials and magazines and stuff like that. So when I work on music it’s usually very late at night and I have to work in headphones, so it’s usually like a weird mantra type state, kinda conscious and unconscious, while I’m working.

It’s nice because there’s a sense that I’m not really thinking about anything particularly. I’m able to work on music in that mindframe where I’m doing it purely just because I want to see what I can come up with. In a more artistic sense, sometimes I will make a visual and we will work to the visual. Like with the artwork for the album. That was made first. Then we made a record that matched that.

For labels like Factory, design labels were incredibly important. They were, in many cases, as important as the music.

When you get that double impact of visual and audio, you’re like, “Wow, this is really intense.” Cabaret Voltaire for me has always done that. All the artwork on their covers. The early ones especially had that handmade element, which I’m sure was some of the guys in the band literally cutting things out by hand and assembling collages. Read the rest of this entry »