Beast interviews...Illy Noize again!

Beast and crew were overjoyed when DJ and Producer Illy Noize agreed to return to his Bristol haven. He’s been DJing since 1999 and producing from 2011. He has a residency at the Charles Bronson club in Halle and heads up the record label Joyfriend. We flew him in from Halle, Germany for his UK debut at The Island in Feb 2016. Fast forward to now and we déjà vu what is guaranteed to be one incredible party on Saturday 25/11 where Illy will work his magic at The Island again. The Beast was keen to find out what Illy has been up to since we saw him last in 2016.

Illy Noize at The Island, Bristol 2016

“Hi Beast, it’s good to meet you again. There were several highlights in 2016 and 2017. We (the Joyfriend Team) were working to push things forward for our label. We had some strong releases featuring tracks by our key artists Odd Only, Philipp Harms and Jonson. So for me label work and to see what impact the label gets with its releases was one highlight. Another big thing was playing all these smaller and bigger festivals in Germany. I was surprised by a small festival called Oewerall Festival at the polish border in the middle of nowhere. There was a beautiful lake and my floor, where I was playing, was situated right on the beach. My friends from the crew Herzensangelegenheit invited me to play and it was a great pleasure playing for all these lovely dancers at this beautiful venue. If you have the chance check this festival out. I think it has a great future. Besides that I am now a father and my son is, and will be, a highlight for me seeing him grow up, learning to talk. He’s a sweet little gentleman 😊”

Beast pauses to take this all in…a Dad, record releases, collaborations, Festivals (Beast takes a particular note of that Oewerall Festival to gather up a Bristol collective!) – Illy has been up to so much and is always keeping himself so busy! In amongst all this we want to know just how Illy keeps up to date with all the latest styles of music and what artists is he listening to at the moment?

“In private I listen to Funk, Hip Hop and Disco a lot. I take my time to go through promos and through Beatport and other music stores once a week I think. If I find an interesting track I will go through the labels release catalogue check the other tracks by the artist. With this method I often find older tracks I’ve never heard. In my opinion I am very versatile as a DJ. I often play different styles in my set. If the tracks have the right groove and rhythm I give them a try. For me it is important to play music I like and not what’s hip and in right now.  In the end it is important that the people going to a party have a great evening and the selection has to fit with the vibes on the floor. I always carry a lot of USB Sticks with me to be ready for whatever happens.”

As ever this is one of many things about Illy that makes Beast very happy. Reading the crowd and giving them what they want is one of the key things that we look for in a DJ.

The Beast sometimes finds that when we get DJ's over from the continent they can be quite a bit different with their musical expression! It’s a positive thing. We ask Illy how he perceives the music scene and any difference between the UK and Germany. Also we ask whether he thinks Brexit will change things in the music scene

“There are some great artists that I really admire like Bicep and Eats Everything for example. When I started listening to electronic music I was totally fascinated by UK Garage, Jungle and Drum and Bass. But nowadays you could find every type of electronic music in the UK and some mayor influences come from the island to the scene.

I guess today the clubs are a bit different in Germany than in the UK. For example the Sisyphos club in Berlin. This club opens on Friday and closes on Tuesday. So there is plenty of time to try different music like a real slow house set which is very popular in Germany right now. DJs playing 4 hours and evolving their sets more. If you are bound to a 2 hours playtime you usually go for the bangers. But with longer periods you can open up to different moods. I think this Brexit will tie the scene of electronic music more together because borders doesn’t matter when it comes to music. I am not the most political guy ever but I think Brexit is more for the older generation.”

The Beast is utterly enraptured by Illy’s response – more set times, music not having boundaries – we just want to curl up to one of our favorite DJ’s and keep him as our teddy bear.

Finally Beast asks Illy what he is looking forward to the most at the Saturday 25/11 Minotaur Sound night and whether he has any surprises for us.

“I am really happy to meet the whole Minotaur sound crew again. Last time I was nervous about my set but it worked really well so I am excited to be back again and play. And I really love the venue. It’s a special place. Can’t wait 😊”

Check out Illy's latest Minotaur peak time glory promo mix and come to The Island on Saturday 25/11 where you are guaranteed a magical musical journey like no other. He'll be supported by our other amazing DJ's Lee Williams, Tina Hart, Much Maligned, Sarah Air and Thomas. Tickets are available here: http://hdfst.uk/E40640

Illy Noize - Minotaur Sound Headline DJ Interview!

We have our most anticipated interview yet with our upcoming headline Illy Noize! Illy caught our ear last year when we heard one of his spectacular mixes and rather than wait for someone to bring him over to the UK, The Minotaur Sound team decided to take matters into our own hooves, set up Minotaur Sound and bring him over to the UK for his debut. Have a listen to Illy's Minotaur Sound teaser mix here and read on to find out more about him:

Minotaur Sound: "So Illy, tell us who are your biggest influences and why?"

Illy Noize

Illy: "Hey guys, thank you for having this interview with me. My musical influences reach from raw funk and soul to rock and experimental electronic music. I am very open minded when it comes to music and I enjoy it everywhere I can. But when I should name some all-time heroes of mine, it comes down to Marvin Gaye, Michael Jackson, Donna Summer and all these great artists under the Mo-Town Label roster. I like that live feeling in a record. When you hear the little mistakes in the recording that makes it special. I always try to recap this feeling when I work in the studio. Also for DJ sets I think it's important. I don't like surgical sets. It has to be vibrant and swinging. Yes I think this is the influence for me in music"

Minotaur Sound: "Amazing! And this influence really does show strong in your music. How about you tell us a lesser known fact about yourself?"

Illy: "Haha! A fun fact about me...whenever I go on tour to DJ in another City I always forget my toothbrush. So every time I come to a new City, I have to buy a new one. I have quite a good collection of toothbrushes from a lot of City's I've been at."

Minotaur Sound: "We'll have your toothbrush at the ready when you come to Bristol then! So tell us about the first time when you started to DJ - how did you get introduced to it?"

Joyfriend Record Label

Illy: "I started to DJ in 1999 as a hobby. Started to collect vinyl and practicing at home. Can't say exactly why but I always was into music. Didn't know much about DJ live at this stage but was fascinated by the technique and the way it was done. The turntables and the feel of the records and of course going to the record store was a bit thing for me back in the days. Today I try to buy as much Vinyl as possible but have stopped playing Vinyl at clubs which is a bit sad. I always was into this soulful house and techno music. Not much of a minimal or dark techno guy. I like happy music so to say, always melodic. Then after one year of training I sent some demos to clubs around my hometown. In 2005 I became resident in a club in Leipzig and in 2009 in the Charles Bronson Club in Halle made by Monkey Safari. I started producing music slightly late. In 2013 I released my first records. Until 2015 I released on 7 labels and started to run my own Label Joyfriend with some friends in Halle.

Minotaur Sound: "Illy we are so honoured to have you headline at our upcoming Launch and so very excited to hear what you will play for your UK fans. See you on the 20th Feb!"

Kieran Holden - Minotaur Sound DJ interview!

It's time for another Minotaur Sound DJ interview! This time featuring the super talented Kieran Holden.

Minotaur Sound: " So Kieran, what are your biggest musical influences?"

Kieran H: "'A Love from Outerspace' certainly re-ignited my interest in dance music, it's such a great melting pot. I think the best DJ set that I've heard in a while had to be Paramida at the Masked Ball in Flambards Amusement Park, lovely stuff in a great setting too.

Labels like Emotional Response, Optimo, Tusk Was, Throne Of Blood, Tici Taci and that's sorts of business never leave the bag.

Also hearing some of my tracks getting a play from some personal heroes like Bill Brewster / Andy Weatherall / Justin Robertson and Ewan Pearson is a massive shot in the arm. Makes you want to produce more".

Minotaur Sound: "Just wow, you had us at 'A love from Outerspace!'... So tell us a lesser known fact about yourself"

Kieran H: "Bernie, the Bassist out of The Holles taught me how to play bass when I was a kid, and I've still got his old Rickenbacker bass. Still my only bass and I love it. I let him borrow it for use in this 1975 TV special - which you can view here.

We give you Kieran Holden...Kieran is part of the Upstairs Downstairs DJ collective in Newquay. With releases on Tici Taci and Alfresco Disco and a remix for Nein Records, his production credentials are flawless. See and hear Kieran in deck action at our launch night!

Donewrong - Minotaur Sound DJ interview!

So, following on in the footsteps of last week's DJ G Rowe interview - we are now onto our second DJ chit chat. The intention is to get inside their heads - what makes them kick? What sets them apart from the rest? Donewrong will be at our Launch Night and here is what he had to say...






Donewrong: "So, biggest musical influences? (scratches chin) - ok, I haven't interviewed this candidly before, so it's good to get it off my chest - I've been into music ever since I was a kid. My parents would strap me to a pair of 1210's and beat the backs of my hands every time I made a mistake. At age 9, they sent me to a Russian Academy where I was whipped and starved until I could beatmatch only by looking at the grooves in the vinyl. A few months later, my fingers were replaced with robotic digits by Sovient KGB Surgeons to increase my fader speed. Outside of that, I am drawn to the sound of mating insects and the noise that super heated plasma makes on contact with the flesh of the guilty.






Minotaur Sound: "errrr...ok, that's quite revealing I guess, how about you tell us a lesser known fact about yourself?"






Donewrong: "I love records so much, I had my skin replaced with vinyl. It has caused some personal issues, but when I get down I scratch myself with a pin and boogie to the music it makes. Incidentally that music is FUNK".






Minotaur Sound: "Donewrong is certainly one of those elusive artsy DJ types who takes his work very seriously and we can now see why".






Here at Minotaur Central, we delved further into why Donewrong does what he does:






Donewrong: "People often ask me, "Donewrong, why did you do that? What possible good could come of it?", and my answer is always the same. I lock eyes with them and shriek at the top of my lungs, slowly lowering the volume until it is barely above a whisper, never once blinking, until they stop bothering me. This technique worked so well with Carl Cox that he dedicated his set to me that fateful night in Bali.






One sunny August, many years ago down the old Ladbroke Road, I introduced Fabio & Grooverider to Jungle music. I can't remember if they liked it or not, never heard from them again.










Another tip I've picked up over the course of my career, is that most DJ's can be sent into a ferocious panic if you replace a third of their records with Charles & Eddies smash hit 'Would I lie to you', apart from Mr. Scruff, he gets off on that jam.








Much like a wild musth elephant, my sets are frisky and threatening. Never take your eyes off me, I could be behind you in an instant, garrote in hand, leering like a gargoyle and shivering with blood lust."






...There you have it. We leave you in the safe vinyl hands of Donewrong - watch him in action on Launch Night.

Minimal -v- Melodic Techno?

What is melodic and minimal techno? To answer that question, you have to understand what Techno actually is. Just type 'Techno definition' into google and there are vast arrays and essays about it, it's meaning, it's origins and it's anatomical component parts. Best described by my youngest daughter as 'it's so repetitive!'. Where time is marked with a bass drum on each quarter note and some random squiggle of a sound (could be a clap or a hi hat or a vocal or any catchy noise) on every second eighth note. Techno hails from the use of the 'Techno Rebels' label (those who have read Alvin Toffler's 'The Third Wave' will understand this) and how true techno tends to have been generated on older analog synthesizers and those wanting to keep vinyl production alive. So that's Techno in a very small nutshell.


So, when someone asked me 'what is melodic techno?' - I typed that into google, only to be stood upon a parapet of the unknown. Curious, I decided to explore this a bit more, so as to come up with a definition that wouldn't have me reaching out for a search engine. Techno stalwarts will know about minimal techno - best heard in places like Berghain or Trouw or anywhere with stark, dimly lit concrete walls and a DJ with a gas mask on. A perfect DJ example would be Pearson Sound (and I quote as I have seen him live) - a series of interesting percussion noises, beats and misplaced sounds that kind of work well in a really surprising way. Add electro glitches, progressive drum beats and noises that would appear to been taken from a sci-fi film and you have minimal techno. I.e. there is little to no melody.


Have a listen to this for a good minimal techno DJ set example from Pearson Sound and his latest Essential Mix for the BBC. If you can quote a better example then send it over or comment below.


Melodic techno uses the underpinning structure of techno and instead of sounds and interesting noises, overlays it with...wait for it...melody! The binding together of melody makes a Techno track warmer, more intimate and sometimes uplifting. But what is melody? Stupid question, right? Wikipedia describes it as 'a sequence of single notes that is musically satisfying; a tune'. Does that mean that minimal Techno could potentially be dissatisfying?! In the end it's all in the musical eye of the beholder. A lot of current DJ's and producers are able to swing between minimal and melodic, with ease. You might be up for a night of minimal techno because you're just in that mood, maybe you've had a bad day and you want to hit those techno sounds hard in some dark shady corner. On the other hand, you might be heading out with your mates, all is good in the world and the warmth of melodic techno captivates you all into a lovely bonding session of hugs and love (and that's without a single instance of MDMA ever being taken!).


Good examples of melodic techno DJ's are Maceo Plex and Worakls to name but just a few. Melodic techno at it's best could probably be best encapsulated by this Boiler Room DJ set by Maceo Plex.


Do you agree with this description? What is your take? I'm all ears.


Cathy