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FWD Interview>> Luis Flores Interview
Luis Flores
Mexican born Luis Flores has been producing electronic music for over fifteen years, as well as helping to launch the highly influential Mexican labels Nopal Beat Records and Antena Discos. Flores has also been at the forefront of raising Mexico's profile as a destination for clubbers and techno fans worldwide, helping to organize massive concerts, festivals and parties for the public as well as working with international organizations such as MUTEK to bring their events to his homeland. After the release of his 2009 Damage EP on Droid Recordings to critical acclaim (being charted by Speedy J, Chris Liebing and more), Luis Flores has become a core artist for Los Angeles based techno crew Droid Behavior where he continues to push his brand of dark, paranoid minimal rollers alongside LA heroes Drumcell, Audio Injection and Raíz.
DOWNLOAD AUDIO FILE
Artist: Luis Flores
Title: FWD0122
Length: 59:56 minutes (82.32 MB)
Format: MP3 Stereo 44kHz 192Kbps (CBR)
Title: FWD0122
Length: 59:56 minutes (82.32 MB)
Format: MP3 Stereo 44kHz 192Kbps (CBR)
You grew up in Mexico, which didn't have much of a techno scene until the very late 90s/early 00s, can you tell us about growing up in Mexico and your first experiences with electronic music and techno?
I was first exposed to electronic music in the late 80´s at a local club called Ricks where Jorge HM would dj everything from Nitzer Ebb to Skinny Puppy. Afterwards, our interest in the music grew to the point where a bunch of us ended up doing a radio show at the state’s college station (104.3 FM) called la Fabrica X in 1989. That led to putting on concerts and parties where EBM and Industrial were featured.
By 1991 the rave scene was exploding here in Guadalajara through a series of parties called Danceterias. Jorge was the dj and this time playing techno, house, acid, etc. The parties got so big after a couple of years that the police and government came down on us in their usual fascist
manner and stopped everything for a year or so…
From 1994 to 2001 the scene grew with several promoters, djs and radio shows even specializing in specific genres. All this time dealing with the government and police every couple of years whenever the crowds became too big for their “moral” peace of mind.
By the end of 2001 the scene was peaking again and a 4,000 + people festival outside of Guadalajara got brutally raided by the police on the whim of the newly elected governor, Francisco Ramírez Acuña, who was on the hunt for easy headlines for his war against crime.
Fortunately though, Mr. Ramírez underestimated the scene´s determination and ability to organize and suffered from a nation wide media backlash and free party protests held in front of the government´s HQs in downtown Guadalajara.
By 2003, electronic music had become a legitimate cultural expression and the municipal culture office, lead by Santiago Baeza, was funding free festivals, galleries and street shows for crowds of up to 15,000 + people.
From 2003 until the end of 2006 the city experienced several landmark events held in the city´s main square and streets featuring Skoltz Kolgen, Richie Hawtin, Dr. Martin, Bajofondo Tango Club, Sidestepper, Misstress Barbara and the microMUTEK 2005 and MUTEK@GDL 2006 festivals to name a few.
You helped found Nopal Beat Records, one of the most influential record labels in the Mexican electronic music community. Can you tell us about the role Nopal Beat played in bringing techno to Mexico and can you explain its trademark "acid cabaret" style?
Nopal Beat came together at the end of 1999 as a vehicle to release all the music being produced by the few electronic artists at the time. Back then electronic music was shunned by all major labels and most independents in the country, so we decided to publish the music
ourselves.
We decided to make a specific effort in incorporating the aesthetic, musical and visual, of the old school cabaret dark Mexican nightlife as the label’s mark and in the artists’ shows, integrating live Latin percussion and related visuals to our presentations, the result was called Acid Cabaret.
By the end of 2001 we signed with EMI and got into that whole “major label” cliché with all of its nightmares and wonders: big budgets and big responsibilities.
The Nopal Beat – EMI joint venture came to an end in 2005 after the record industry collapse happened to reach the Mexican majors and we became independent again, re-releasing all our catalogue with several new albums.
You also helped launch the Antena Discos label. How was this different from Nopal Beat and what's going on with it these days?
Antena came about as the escape valve for all the music being produced that did not fit into Nopal Beat´s indentity. Where NB’s sound encompassed everything from house to jazz and drum n bass to cumbia, Antena focused on all the machine driven sounds that since then feel more relevant.
You are one of Droid Behavior's core artists. How did you guys meet and start working together?
I met Moe, Drumcell, at a festival where we played on the same stage. We seemed to hit it off musically and started corresponding till the Dain Bramage E.P. came to be.
Afterwards I got the chance to perform at one of their Interface shows in LA and eventually was able to bring Raíz, Audio Injection and Drumcell down to Guadalajara.
What does being part of Droid Behavior mean to you and how has Droid Behavior helped to raise the profile of techno in the US and especially the west coast?
Droid seems to be one of the few names doing steady work to put the US back into the techno limelight, taking all aspects of the culture, musically and visually, to deliver something with depth to the audience in their releases and performances.
I am grateful to be a part of it to say the least.
Let's talk about production for a bit. What gear/plug ins have you been using lately? Do you prefer hardware to software? Why or why not?
I got my first sampler around 1991 and then got seriously into an analog synth addiction which lasted the most part of that decade, but when computers finally got to the point where you could do most of the work in the box, I got rid of my collection and never looked back.
I truly appreciate the hands on aspect of analog and outboard gear in general but wouldn’t trade the microscopic level of control computers give you, me being obsessive that way. At the end of the day, if I had to record all of my outboard gear into the machine I wouldn´t be able to
finish any track.
Mix wise the UAD card and plug-ins have been my cornerstone since 2006. On the side of composition, when I installed the first version of Native Instrument´s Massive I stopped using any other synthesizer except Reaktor. New additions, the Sound Toys Suite is my holy grail lately and I owe that to Audio Injection for introducing me to them.
All this running in Ableton Live.
I last saw you perform at Droid Behavior's Interface 31 where you played an amazing set from a live PA. Can you talk to us about what hardware/software you use in your live rig?
My obsessive approach to studio work is the opposite when it comes to the live setup where hands on is the main objective.
The setup includes: Vermona Drum Mrk2, Behringer BCR2000, Mackie 802-VLZ, RME Hammerfall soundcard and Ableton Live running on a VAIO laptop.
Your live PAs are characterized by a highly improvisational nature. Can you talk to us about the role of improvisation in live performance?
All the tracks I have produced since 2006 are broken down by parts in my Live file along with new loops, this way I can recombine anything to a different result to suit the occasion.
Most of the time I have no idea how the set is going to start and when I think about where it’s going to go it usually goes in a different direction once the music starts.
Lastly, where's your favorite place to party and why?
Berghain in Berlin hands down. Had one of the best times watching Moe and David perform there!!
-Interview: Sam Allman >> VIA : FWD MAGAZINE
-Interview: Sam Allman >> VIA : FWD MAGAZINE
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