Interview with Ashtech
7th June 2009 @ 10:00pm
1. Can you introduce yourself and tell us a bit about your musical background? How did you get into music?
I
got into music when I was very young, I used to listen to electro , techno and hip-hop and began as a DJ when I was still a teenager. This
led me to know and learn more about several artists and listen to different music styles and
a few years later I was really into reggae and dub music, which
inspired me to experiment with the sound and become a musician and a
producer.
I studied many instruments and chose the bass guitar as my
main one, played with different bands and produced different artists,
and then a few years ago I moved to London, where I released my first
solo album, Walkin' Target, with Interchill Records and produced by
Gaudi.
2.
You've just released Meditronica which is a collaborative project
between you and fellow artist, Polcari - can you tell us a bit about
this release and what listeners can expect from it?
Meditronica
is produced by me and as you said it is a project created by me and
Polcari. It is a dub oriented album that goes across different moods - electronica, live sound, dark and chilled.
Meditronica
is an open project, the aim is to have collaborations from different
artists and in this first release the guests are three great artists - Dub Gabriel,
one of the key players in the dub music scene in America who works with
Meat Beat Manifesto, Dr Israel, Mad Scientist, Michael Stipe and
countless others; Eraldo Bernocchi, a guitarist, who has worked extensively with artists such as Bill Laswell, Mick Harris, Thomas Fehlmann, Harold Budd; and Raiz
the former frontman of Naples act Almamegretta, who collaborated with Massive Attack, Leftfield, Adrian Sherwood and Steward Copeland
amongst the others.
Polcari and I wanted to realise an album with different artists who share our same passion for Dub
3. You're also currently working with the RareNoise label - what is the focus of this label and how did you link up with them?
Yes, Meditronica will be released on 23 June on the new London -based label RareNoise.
RareNoise Records
is a record label whose releases sit at multiple crossroads - crossroads
between audio and video, crossroads of live performance and studio
reconstruction and, more generally, crossroads of musical genres, which focus on a broad palette of genres, from ambient/electronica, to
electro/avant jazz, to alternative rock, to dub and dubstep - often
within the very same release.
Meditronica and RareNoise were born together - while working in studio we met with Giacomo, the owner of RareNoise. He
was still planning the label, he liked the project from the first
moment and was very enthusiastic about it, there has been a good
synergy from the beginning. We liked the idea of Meditronica being a new project and the first album release for RareNoise. We plan to let them grow-up together.
4. Are there artists that you are or have collaborated with on the regular?
Some
of my good friends are artists who love dub music as I do and we share
ideas and opinions about music, so it comes naturally to do projects
together now and then but not on a regular basis, there is no tight
bond to do this. I have been collaborating on a regular basis with Almamegretta,
as a bass player and composer for many years and this is when I met
Polcari and Raiz.
5. What are your upcoming projects for the second half of '09?
Other
than Meditronica, I will be, as Ashtech, in the new Interchill
compilation, One Dub, set to be released on 23 June...the name
of my track is Just Try and it is a new spaghetti-Western style track.
I will also be touring in Europe both as Ashtech and with The Meditronica Project.
6. Do you know much about New Zealand or Australia? Any plans to make it over to this part of the world for some shows?
I
would love to play there, New Zealand is a wonderful place that I
would love to visit. I have been told that Walkin' Target did very well
in Australia and I know that there is a massive scene over there and spectacular
festivals! Maybe next year I will be there!
7. Any last words for the NZ massive?
Massive respect and love to everyone, dub it up! Thanks for this interview, it has been a pleasure to speak to you.
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Comments
correct! this is not only udsbtep, it is many things- mostly though it is just sick! check out pearson sound/ramadanman's mix from this into' j.doe them' by joy o./ramadanman on the fabric cd- mental. hold it . golden music.
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