today @ Mash //

This week @ Mash Radio

this week //

21.00 Arhitektonski Fakultet

LAG // Interview

  

 A prominent producer, DJ and promoter of underground culture, Lag is one of the most exciting new names in the world of electronic music at the moment. After a pair of killer EPs on Mord Records and receiving a heavy ammout of attention and support from legendary techno mainstays such as Surgeon, Dave Clarke and Bas Mooy, it appears that Lag is well on his way of world domination using his signature a lethal combination of off-kilter percussive patterns and thundering bass blasts coming together for a heavy yet sophisticated dancefloor experience.

In advance to his upcoming Skopje date and his recently released BTKRSH podcast, BTKRSH's own Andrej Anchevski has a surprisingly blush-inducing chat with Lag

   Andrej - You burst on the scene with a very unique, mature and fully formed sound signature - how did music ideas and production skills evolve to this point?

   Lag - It's a combination of things really. I liked a lot of different techno styles, both in DJing and production activities, but sending music to label bosses I realized that they are often interested in artists who have a recognizable sound. So I just picked one thing and stuck with it. It's greatly inspired by the offbeat masterminds of Slovakia - Rumenige (aka Olga+Jozef), Loktibrada, DJ Boss...They established and popularized this branch of industrial techno called "offbeat" where every element is kinda telling it's own story instead of complimenting the other elements, but the mish-mash of all these together makes a surprisingly coherent whole. Rather than imitating them (they each have a very recognizable style anyway) I just went for a combo of that and some of my other influences… A friend (whose Boiler Room performance you can find by searching for his new pseudonym X-Coast) used to give me a lot of DnB music so I also listened to a lot of Ed Rush & Optical, Matrix, Concord Dawn etc. Another friend used to bombard me with IDM stuff. Well, he still kinda does. You can check his stuff out by searching for Mika Tehnika. These two guys are who I blame for my inability to just make a loop and go with it. Instead I have to go into heavy programming and editing and doing elaborate arrangements.

   As for the vocals... I listen to a lot of music, including pop, so I grew up around a lot of MTV music as well. The thing is - I can't understand lyrics in songs, so I observe the human voice as just another musical element in the track. Obviously this is not the case, and mixing engineers often put it forward in the mix cause of it's value to the vast majority of listeners who understand the lyrics. It's basically putting it forward for it's meaning, even if it's lack of musical value might deteriorate the overall musicality of the song. This is the reason I hated vocals in music for a long time – just one too many song which had huge potential ruined by, what was for me a wrong choice in the mixdown. So for a time (years, really) I was basically against vocals in music. I remember buying the vinyl of the Code 6 EP by Joey Beltram for Dormir, and then instantly selling it when I discovered it had vocals which I haven’t heard in the previews. But over the years I ran into some pretty cool techno vocal tracks like BMB – Be Like I Am, DJ Boss – Depka Rulez, Casual Violence – Briefly Sexual, Regis - Purification but also IDM stuff like Altered:Carbon – Tinted Corvettes, Aphex Twin – Rubber Johnny etc. At one point I just said “okay, let’s try this” and now the gates are open – I can’t close them. I can’t stop using vocals as sonic and rhythmic elements of the track. I love it.

   Andrej - What does "techno" mean to you? having gone through so many cycles of both purism and divergence over the years, how would you describe the state of the techno nation at this moment?

   Lag - Hmm to be honest I always saw techno as something full of possibilities which is why I always freak out when it enters a “tunnel” where everybody is making the same song. Whenever this happens I just want to leave it all behind. I remember the layer-the-loops techno era around 2003-4... I basically abandoned techno back then and went into other genres, and then came back to it when I discovered industrial. I liked it because it was very experimental and free in expression. For example the first track in the BTKRSH podcast is from that era. You can really hear that it’s something special. Then MNML came, and then Berghain techno came – more tunnels. Even though there is always some great music to be found in these tunnels it always pisses me off when it happens. It just destroys the magic of the genre somehow, especially as many people see it as their heroes being spineless and jumping the bandwagon ie. doing it solely for the money and not for the music itself. You know what I mean? But for the past 3-4 years it feels like it felt when I just entered the scene – many unique artists making unique music and the scene couldn’t be healthier for it. Just really good to be a part of it right now. You have a lot of good tool-makers, but also a lot of people still trying out new stuff and getting away with it. Just play Paula Temple’s Deathvox, Mick Finesse & Pinion – Dead Boyfriend Alley or SCNTST – Let You Go and you’ll see what I mean.

   Andrej - Soon you'll be playing Skopje for the third time at the BTKRSH parties and the crowd has gotten to know you quite well, yet this mix is a bit different. How was the podcast recorded and what is the idea behind it's arc/narrative?

   Lag - As I said - I like a lot of different music. I’m always excited when something or someone opens a new door for me in this regard. For example the movie Apocalypse Now made me fully understand the music of the late sixties, and the show Supernatural made me appreciate classic metal. I better understood a certain aesthetic of electronic music through you as well for which I am forever grateful, so this is both a “thank you” and a “happy birthday” mix for you. (many happy coincidences and a lot of blushing going on here - editor's note). This is why I didn’t go for the classic “pow pow parteeey” mix, but instead tried making something personalized... First off – this is intended for home listening. Second it’s a part mixtape and part classic mix. You’ll see what I mean. Third – I tried suppressing my “I MUST PLAY ALL THE STYLES” standard approach in favour of going for the deeper, hypnotic stuff I think you might enjoy, which I honestly hope you will. Recorded with two turntables and Serato. Play it loud.

 
   Andrej - Is living in Serbia a hinderance? Is it an inspiration? Maybe both?

   Lag - Having some great festivals around here really brings a lot of good music and spreads the influence, but for some reason we keep seeing the same acts over and over again. There are a lot of DJs, producers and clubs here, but there is no money and no PLUR so a lot of bad blood floating around. There are a lot of parties but no real club culture. A lot of the club visitors just come over because the “normal” places closed so they don’t have anywhere else to go. Or to be cool or whatever. And the travel is always shit, whether it’s local or international. The thing I think we miss the most (not only us but all the ex-yu countries except for Macedonia it seems) is that we seriously lack educators and prime-time slots on media for spreading the music and good vibes. This results in not enough people coming for the music, and too many people coming for and from bad drugs. You know what I mean? ...Though I really see it getting better over the past few years though. Hopefully a sign of things to come.

tonight 20.00

stream starts 21.00 //