By: Christina Schmidt
In the past year alone SHADED has created a list of massive releases including ‘Dwell’ which hit #1 on Beatport’s Minimal chart and a few months back Love This City had the pleasure of reviewing SCI-TEC’s release of ‘Gender Bender’…not only did we have this track on repeat in the LTC studio, but all of our followers could’t get enough of it, and without surprise left us all wanting MORE! So after such a fulfilling year of production, playing around the world, going on tour with our very own Carlo Lio and a list of other incredible achievements, when we found out SHADED would be finishing off 2014 with a NYE party in London and to top it off heading to Toronto New Year’s Day to play alongside Joseph Capriati at Ryze, we were beyond excited to catch up with the Cali man himself and feature him as our first interview of 2015. SHADED’s music is raw, so sexy, beyond funky, the definition of dynamic, and quite simply some damn good techno!
You just played a NYE show in London, Ontario and then made your way to Toronto for a NYD party with Joseph Capriati at Ryze. With pretty much every venue in the world having a New Years party what made you decide to come play Canada, and how was the vibe in Toronto?
Canada is always amazing. I have never had a bad gig there and always love coming back, so when the offer came through it was a no brainer! First stop of the night was London, Ontario, and it was my first time playing there so I was not sure what to expect. It turned out amazing with a sold out crowd, lots of music lovers, and was a great “start” to the night as right after I hoped in a car and made the drive to Toronto for my 10am set time at Ryze. Toronto is always bomb, and NYD was no different. They love underground and its one of my favourite cities to play.
You have had an extremely busy and successful year, touring worldwide and releasing some big tracks, tell us a little about 2014 for you and what were some your favourite moments of the year.
Yeah, 2014 was another great year for the books! I am a big fan of manifesting and reaching personal goals, so this past year was fulfilling for me on many different levels. Every gig has a special feeling, but there were definitely some gigs that stood out from the bunch. Actually, this NYE was great as it was my first double header night – spearing two proper gigs in one night. Or as Ricky (Canadian Trailer Park Boys reference) would say, “getting two birds stoned at once”! Also, I recently played in Venezuela as well, and I did a 3.5 hour live set to a fantastic and relentless crowd. That was special for me, as Venezuela has not been a serious techno/house destination for DJ’s in the past due to government issues, security and such, so it was amazing to bring my sound to them.
What were some of your favourite tracks of the year?
Anything from Eric (Maetrik / Maceo Plex). The guy is a monster in the studio. He is one of the few guys that is constantly out doing himself, always surprising you and keeping it fresh, while still keeping his sound true. His remix of that track ‘Crossfade’ was pure fire. The Whyt Noyz boys put out a track called ‘Jingles’ that was a f**king bomb! My homies Dance Spirit have been putting out amazing records, really deep yet energetic house that could almost be considered minimal in some sense, verging into that Romanian style. I guess there are too many to list…
https://soundcloud.com/scitec/dubfire-presents-scitec-radio-ep-19-w-shaded-jpls
To start off the New Year you are playing at the El Row-Ibiza party at BPM which is great way to start off 2015! What’s on your agenda for the New Year, any other exciting shows to tell us about?
Ye, BPM should be great. The El Row parties are always nuts, and I am super happy to play for them! As of right now we are working on the schedule, as January is always the slowest month of the year in dance music as everyone is resetting for the New Year. Looks like I will be playing Ibiza a little more this summer which is always exciting. The goal is to always out do the previous year…so hopefully more info soon!
You have described your musical roots as being “groove laden, rock inspired minimal “surf” techno”, something that instantly makes me think of California! How did growing up in the star studded state influence you as an artist and your sound?
Music is inspired by emotion, and emotion seems to most always be your projection of your environment, whether it be your physical or emotional surroundings. At first my so-Cal upbringing was a subconscious contribution to my music, but the more and more I develop as an artist, the more apparent it becomes. In turn it makes me feel the need and want to represent where I am from than ever before. There are now a lot of transplant DJs and producers in LA and so-Cal, but not too many that were sculpted out of that life style from the beginning, so I am just trying to represent where I come from, and push techno, and say “hey, we can do it, too”. Its funny, everyone thinks I am German ha ha. Even my girlfriend thought I was German when we first met. But I’m like – “No! I’m from the beach baby!”
With your dad being a musician and a classic rock producer, how did you land yourself in the dance music scene, and was electronic music always a passion of yours?
I was never into electronic growing up really, mainly rock, until I was about 17. I remember I heard the electronic group Air for the first time and was like, “whoa…who is this?!” I was instantly hooked on their moon safari album and never looked back really. I really got into them and Royksopp, with their Melody A.M album; those albums became my holy grail. And during this time I was also really getting into instrumental hip hop music, so intuitively being into making music I began learning sequencers and synths and drum machines. That was a new beginning for me in terms of opening the boundaries of music making and music synthesis.
Tell us a bit about your time in Barcelona, how do you compare working as an artist in Europe oppose to the US?
In terms of techno and house, being in Europe is a necessity. The scene is thriving and the music fans are present with open arms. It was where the majority of my first gigs were during my first year of properly touring, so in terms of my gig and music mentality I compare everything to Europe. The US is starting to gain traction, with the major cities leading the way (and have been since the beginning) like NYC, Detroit and LA. But in general the crowds and clubs cant compare. The US scene is now being built on this EDM institution, where as Europe was build on an underground lifestyle. So it will be interesting to see if the US can break free of this lame bottle service EDM scene and find the true roots of where this music came from, which is on its own doorstep. With that being said, I definitely approach playing in Europe and the US with different head spaces, and realize that there are still some barriers that have not been broken in the US which change the course and direction of how I play depending on the country.
In order to achieve success we all know evolving within the industry is a must. In 2012 you took the leap from success as a duo in SHDWPLAY into your solo career as SHADED, what was the influence behind this decision and what have you gained on your personal journey as an artist?
Well that was a hard decision for me, but it was inevitable looking back. As SHDWPLAY we were starting to break through and get some love, so that was exciting for me, and opened my eyes to turning music into a real career. But my partner was in a totally different headspace and our visions moving forward were totally different. So it was just a natural decision. I wanted one thing and she wanted something else, so we split. I feel like when you really want to make something happen, you can’t work with anyone that isn’t 100% into it. Looking back it was the best decision I ever made career wise, and it was a real learning experience. I found out who really had my back and believed in the music, because I was literally just starting a new name. Even though I had become known as SHDWPLAY, Dubfire still took me on tour as SHADED, with just one EP under my new moniker. On one side I was starting at zero, but from the other I was right in the game, and that’s thanks to Ali and all the fans that continued following me after the split.
Since you have gone solo you have played your live sets everywhere from Berlin, London, Brazil, Croatia and across the US (just to name a few) and you have some major festivals and shows under your belt. Where are some of your favourite places you have played?
Best gig of my life to date is hard to say, as every gig tends to have something special in store. You’re only as good as the crowd you are playing for. Its like a classical musician playing for a crowd of classical music lovers- Its going to be amazing no matter what. So my favourite places to play are these places with history, culture and true understanding for dance music. Its these places I love to play, and I know I am playing a place like this when I get proper nervous. I usually get a more excited version of nervous, which is what I thrive on. But when I get properly nervous its usually because I know the crowd I am playing for is ready for you, and they want A game all night non stop, and that can be a little nerve racking when you are playing all your own music live for people who may or may not know of you. First place without a doubt was Warung. The passion is oozing from the crowd, it’s the definition of a celebration.
If you had a weekend off and could go anywhere in the world to any party or festival, where would it be and who would you hear play?
Warung Beach Club in Brazil… and listen to Maceo Plex / Maetrik haha.
This past year you had releases that charted everywhere, including ‘Dwell’ that reached #1 release on Beatport’ s Minimal Chart, and one of my favourite which was ‘Gender Bender’ which did AMAZING, what will you be following up with in 2015 and what can we expect from you on production side of things?
I have 2 EPs scheduled with Dubfire for SCI+TEC this coming year. I am working on some new stuff for Tiga for Turbo right now as well. Also have a couple remixes I will be doing. I try to release music in some form every couple months to keep the momentum moving so it usually sees me putting out 6 separate releases a year, and 2015 will be no different. The goal this year is to expand the sound. I have been going a lot funkier lately, Gender Bender being an example, and I have loved the results. I am still going darker and minimalistic like the old SHDWPLAY stuff but a lot of that I am saving for a possible album I have been in talks about putting out.
https://soundcloud.com/dancingastronaut/shaded-gender-bender-original-mix
You have some of the worlds most influential producers like Dubfire, Sasha, Tiga, Richie Hawtin, and Joseph Capriati supporting your music, what has been some of the best advice you have received from some of your mentors?
The main thing in dance music is to stay humble and stay patient. Persistence will beat resistance. So if you believe in what you are doing then someday someone else will believe in it, too. Might take a year, might take 10 years, you never know. So do what you do and make what you make, and don’t conform for anyone. Best advice I got was from an old friend. “If you love what you do then you will never work a day in your life”
Everyone in Toronto was talking about the magic that happened inside Ryze New Year’s Day, and we hope that was the perfect jump start to a year filled with some amazing new music and some amazing shows we can only expect from one of our favourite artist’s of the year- SHADED!
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