LAMP Weekly Mix #145 feat. Le Monkey
LAMP Weekly Mix #145 feat. Le Monkey
Le Monkey arrives to the LAMP Family from deep space filled with sonic vibrations from his travels through countless galaxies. This is just an introduction to his journey, with much more to come. MR PUZL got the chance to chat with him in his first ever public interview. He has been observing our planet for some time, analyzing and consuming the constant evolving musical environment. Inspired by this organic growth he has put forth this mix along with an exciting LP coming to PUZL Records at the end of the month.MR PUZL: Welcome to the LAMP family! We’re very excited for what is in store with your project. As anintroduction to our fans you’ve put together a fantastic mix. Tell us a bit about the tracks you’vechosen.Le Monkey: Thank you very much for this opportunity! Basically, for this mix, I picked up a series of tracks that I like, from artists that truly inspire me such as Kiko, Throwing Snow and, of course, the master Stephan Bodzin.MP: Who is Le Monkey? How did you conceive of this project and what inspired you to make this styleof music?LM: Le Monkey is a traveler that has seen and heard much throughout his journey. As an artist he's new to the jungle and has much to learn about the harsh law of that environment but still admires its beauty, daily.I have always been attracted to melodic music, in harmony with our time. The Techno movement for the past 3 years inspired a lot of artists to get back on their old machines, and the evolution of the minimal scene toward something a lot more melodic inspired me to create this project. It's been exciting to get back on the good old TR909 and Moog; exploring ways to combine harshness and powerful melody together. But to be completely honest, I make music on a regular basis and suddenly, things fell into place one afternoon. These tracks came out naturally, I guess Le Monkey needed to express himself.MP: This is not your first music project and I assume more concepts will come in the future. How didyou first get involved in making music? Are you trained in any instruments or mostly self-taught?Do you tour or play with any other groups or bands at the moment?LM: When I was younger, I played guitar in a hard rock band. I've also played some other instruments over time. I am essentially a self-taught artist. I came in to electronic music thanks to the Rave movement. I use to play electro and techno in the woods with friends; it was cool. Times have changed and here I am, behind a computer screen, making music with samples from some old jazz vinyls among other things.MP: You also own a record label through another project that we cannot talk about at the moment. As A&R of the label how do you balance your own productions while curating and promoting music from your peers and others in the collective?LM: I have always considered music as an exchange, a constant conversation, a share of influences between people and a perpetual evolution. It is extremely hard to take a step back on the music you put out, our creations and what we can bring to the good artistic development of an artist within a structure like a record label. I think that the biggest chance I have is that I am also a DJ. As a DJ, you get interested in several genres with different moods. You learn how to play with these moods and how to master them, which allows you to take a step back to analyze and learn. But what I truly love about music is this ability we have to influence each other. Indirectly, others influence me and I possibly influence some people I work with. For example, I love putting 2 artists together in the studio, work with them on something for 8 or 10 hours, to see what comes out of it is incredibly rich all the time. MP: In the bio for the label it mentions that the label is focused on “musical open-mindedness” and built to "create a structure that would allow young artists from the electronic music scene to express themselves freely”. This is a very noble cause and one that more imprints should emulate in the future as electronic music evolves. What sparked this approach for the label? What other labels do you feel inspired or motivated you to create this one?LM: Thank you for those kind words. For me, the cause is not noble. Music, no matter its form, has to share its values. The electronic music scene is currently experiencing some crazy changes, a popularity is has never met before, ever. Today, it is difficult for an artist to learn. Learn how to be professional, learn what the job truly is. In France, schools about this subject are extremely late on this matter. I just wanted to create a structure that gives artists a chance, that supports and help them to become what they really are without losing the essence of their art.MP: It also talks about the fact that you offer your artists financial and physical support. In the digital age that is rare and often artists never meet anyone from the label they release on in person. What are some ways in which you provide the aforementioned support to your artists? Where do you see the label heading in the coming years?LM: We own a studio where the artists can stop by anytime they want, we talk a lot together. We help them with promotion and learning how it all works. Basically, we are here for them. I cannot talk about the future, but a whole lot of things are coming up :)MP: One of our favorite questions here at LAMP revolves around the studio. What kind of setup do you have? Do you work from home or usually at a more traditional studio environment?LM: We have our own studio, basically a room dedicated to music. We have some Focal monitors, some analog synthesizers like the TB3, or a Moog Sub Phatty. I also own an Ableton Push, a whole lot of vinyl, and some other weird stuff. I am a nerd about hardware, I like to change configuration, evolve, etc.MP: You mentioned that you work with a shop that sells music equipment and that you often get yourhands on new gear that comes through the doors. What are some of your favorite pieces of new equipment that you’ve loved testing out? What are some pieces of hardware from the OG days that you can’t live without?LM: I have used the Arturia Mini Brute quite a lot. This synthesizer is so powerful. I also love Moog’s stuff, Ithink the next piece of gear I will get is a Sub 37. The MS20 from Korg is something special too, like a tank,it is the only synth I saw that completely changed sound within an hour, a pure analog tank. Virus TI isinsane too. The pieces of hardware I cannot live without? Haha, it will sound ridiculous but: my old sound card, a Native Instrument Audio 10. This soundcard is clearly not built for studio usage, but it works really, really, REALLY well! The sound coming out of it is just great, the processor is great and it is fairly easy to use.MP: Since you have your ear to the ground in the local scene, we’d love to hear about some artists thatyou are really into at the moment that our listeners might enjoy.LM: There are so many of them! I would recommend listening to an English duo called Silas and Snare (https://soundcloud.com/silas-snare) with their tropical techno that gets you going.An artist I admire would be Maxime F (https://www.youtube.com/user/kidysputpikii)Apollo Powder’s House vibe is pretty avant-gardist (https://soundcloud.com/apollopowder)And to conclude, the duo Otter & Sossmi, that represent for me the renewal of the French minimal scene (https://soundcloud.com/pingpongmusique)
Tracklist
1. Hamza - Temple2. Black Mami - Steven Atari3. Fur Coat - Interstellar4. Kiko - Living in Space ft Phoebe5. Booka Shade - Lost High (Andhim Remix)6. Cold Miles - 13167. Olivier Giacomotto & Noir - Reste8. Citizen Kain - Low Blow9. The Element MT - Morphius (Musmeci Remix)10. ????? - ?????11. Notize - Persue12. ????? - ?????13. Le Monkey - ?????14. Pan-Pot - Sleepless (Stephan Bodzin Remix)15. Throwing Snow - Clasp16. Fatima Yamaha - What’s a Girl to do