Dyed Soundorom began life in the 90’s as a lowly Parisian promoter, striking a deep affinity for the apparently legendary Batofar After Parties. Hard for me to comment on their legend status as I was busy trying to be a highly educated student in the late 90’s, however its fairly clear in retrospect that Soundorom was well schooled in the virtues of deep grooving house, if the written word is anything to go by. Since those formative years Soundorom has taken that template and applied it to his own music, with his debut 2008 record ‘Question’ quickly setting a marker for things to come.
Dyed Soundorom’s arrival has been gradual, but like any electronic producer who’s truly worth the plastic he’s been pressed on he has remained true to his passions and not compromised the sound he passionately believes in. Its fair to say that 2011/12 saw Dyed finally emerge from the shadows of cult status as a string of remixes and residences, most notably for us Maya Jane Coles – What They Say, elevated him into the global DJ spot light. Soundorom has further cemented his position within the clubbing fraternity with the launch of the collective Apollonia imprint and DJ partnership with fellow best buds Dan Ghenacia and Shonky.
Ahead of Apollonia taking over the spectacular EXIT dance stage and their impending Fabric 70 compilation (Out June 17th) we popped into their studio for a quick show and tell.
BBB – Hey guys, thanks for chatting to us, Apollonia is not just a label but also a DJ lineup with you each playing one on one off, have their been any disagreements over who gets to play what, any particular tracks that have caused a frenzied race to the decks, who gets the final word?
It has always been natural for us to play together and because of that, there is never disagreement btw us. Like any normal DJ we collect new music every week and though we have similar tastes we don’t always have the same point of view. When we DJ together we love to play records that we cannot play all the time, like for example something a bit obscure or an old record that we had forgotten about. But one thing that’s important whatever we play, we play with the flow of one artist. The funny thing is there always comes a moment in the night when two of us want to play the same record next without realizing, that shows there is a real synergy between us.
BBB – Having read your recent RA interview, its clear that vinyl still holds a precious place in your hearts, we started out in the 2000’s vinyl only, however like many DJs we have progressed through the various stages of digitisation. We find the fabled 1210’s rarely operate correctly these days, is it not time for DJs to accept change and move on?
The main reason we play vinyl is that it’s easier to find good music on vinyl. We also have a big collection and a lot of records are impossible to find in digital format. However we also play cds and use a usb stick. We think all the mediums are good to play music and fit pretty well together so it’s about not moving on but more about incorporating new technology into our set up.
BBB – Taking the digital revolution a little further, there currently seems to be 2 schools of thought when promoting a new record. A) Hype, Twitter, Hype, Facebook, Hype, YouTube or B) Don’t say a great deal, leak a short clip and be as vague as humanely possible about the release date. For us the vague approach has got a little tired, whats your opinion on how a record should be released?
Once again we think there is not one way better than another. It’s more about the product you want to see. For example, Underwater by Point G is vinyl only release on our label because its important for us that we keep this track as a collector item. But on the other hand, releases like Daze Maxim with the Dyed Soundorom remix, we want to touch as many people as possible, so it’s better to do a big promo push.
BBB – Collectively you’ve pretty much had the privilege of playing in all the worlds major club scenes, taking in Tokyo, Berlin, London, Paris, Ibiza to name a few. If you had to pick a location of preference, what would tip the balance against its global rivals?
For us our fave clubs are CircoLoco Ibiza, Panorama Bar Berlin and Fabric London because they are places where vinyl is working perfectly and the sound system is amazing.
BBB – Apollonia Records has developed as a platform for your own productions, whilst also exposing breaking new talent. In the last couple of years we have seen a number of talented new producers and DJs breaking through to inspire a generation, who has stood out for you among the current crop and why?
Djebali is definitely one that attracted our attention. He is inspiring for producers running his vinyl-only, solo label ( djebali ) – pushing this side of the industry with his timeless house cuts.
BBB – If you had carte blanche and could sign 3 artists from any era (past or present) to Apollonia, who would it be?
First of all Prince, we are huge fans of his work and he was one of the reasons we called our label Apollonia. Derrick May because he hasn’t released stuff in a long time and we played with him for Movement in Torino it was simply amazing. Callisto because he passed away a few months ago and we will repress an old track of his on Apollonia in June, also included in our forthcoming Fabric compilation.
BBB – This will be Apollonia’s debut at EXIT Festival on the epic Main Dance Arena, do you find it easy to take these sort of shows in your stride or is it important to have an element of fear before performing? How do you approach such a set?
The pressure is important and it gives a lot of inspiration. It helps also the concentration.
BBB – Finally, if you could DJ at any time in the history of club land who would be headlining?
It would be at Studio54 back to back with Larry Levan.
You can catch Apollonia take over the epic dance stage at this years EXIT Festival (July 10th – 14th), also look out for their forthcoming Fabric 70 mix that drops June 17th.