#lemonick

lvlsrvryhi: So first off, I guess, introduce yourself - where are you from and what was it that set you off producing / DJing?

My name's Nicolas, I'm 19, I live in a small town called Vevey in Switzerland, by the Leman Lake, and have been DJing and producing for about 5 years now. I used to listen to rock and hip hop before I got into electronic music through some of my friends when we were 14-15. During the summer of 2009 I went for the first time to two electronic music festivals in Lausanne called Chocolate and Electrosanne, where I heard mostly house and techno at that time. I really liked it and basically just wanted to give DJing and production a try for fun, and then I simply never stopped!

(One answer in and I'm already feeling old / late to the game)

lvlsrvryhi: How did you get to the sound you're at at the moment - are there a bunch of Lemonick tech-house tunes in the depths of a hard drive somewhere?

Of course there are! And I still make some if I feel like it. Since I discovered electronic music I've always been into a lot of different styles and genres, and when it comes to production I've always tried to do the same, mainly because i get quite bored if I make the same stuff all the time... But yeah for example my first proper release which came out in late 2013 on Argent Sale was very housy and techno-ish, then I made Flash Street like a month after, and at the same time I was also working on a release for Car Crash Set which was also very house and techno inspired, a bit darker but still. I've tried making everything haha, from UK funky to lo-fi techno to hip hop beats... I think that's what I find fun, I get really bored otherwise. Right now based on what I've been releasing lately and putting on my Soundcloud you could definitely say I've been more into making "bass" music / drum tracks or whatever you wanna call it, but that's probably just a phase, because I'll always be interested in making very different things, who knows what I'll be releasing in a year! Same goes for my DJ sets, I find it very boring hearing the same thing for two hours

lvlsrvryhi: The first track I heard of yours was Rooftop like a year back. What I remember most was thinking: 'who's this guy making six minute long rolling club tracks; and how does he make all six minutes essential!?' - I mean obviously there are ridiculously long techno and house tracks and such, but most club tunes coming out are 3-4 minutes and everyone only mixes in the first two and a half; do you make longer tracks on purpose or does it just kind of end up that way?

I definitely don't do it on purpose haha, it always ends up like this, I don't know why. I've been asked a few times to cut them a bit shorter for the releases, I think the original mix of 4th Floor was almost 10 minutes long at first for example haha. I guess it must come from my older house and techno influences where most tunes are that long. But to be honest I generally prefer longer tracks (unless they're the same 16 bars looped for the whole thing). I've always liked working as much on the intro and outro of a track as the rest, and always appreciate it when you can hear a tune well polished all the way, especially in club music where you won't necessarily hear all of it in a DJ set. I like the idea of club music that you can also listen to at home, something that has a bit of an extra thing instead of just pure club stuff.

lvlsrvryhi: Your soundcloud has a bunch of rips of your tracks played on NTS and Rinse shows - what's it like to come out of Switzerland making club music and getting it played on radio shows based in London?

We don't really have a specific Swiss sound (unfortunately), so it's not like it sounds completely out of place I guess, my music is so influenced by the UK that it kinda makes sense in a way I think (without wanting to sound pretentious). It's great obviously when your tracks are getting played on such good radios, but it feels kinda weird on the other hand, because we don't have a radio culture like the British one at all here in Switzerland, for example the only big radios there are here is a group comparable to the BBC, we have 4 radio channels and 2 TV channels. My show on Couleur 3 (the 3rd national radio station, which is more into alternative music) is very different from a standard 2 hour show on Rinse or NTS, I play an hour of music every month where I've been asked to switch genres every 3 tracks or so, make a mix that makes sense to people that are not necessarily into club music, talk on top of it, etc. I've been doing this since last August and I still haven't played any of my tracks haha! But it's a great challenge I love doing that differs a lot from playing in clubs, which is a very good thing in my opinion.

lvlsrvryhi: I guess related to that, I know a lot of internet-bound producers that want to play nights outside of their local area but don't often get the opportunity - do you feel a part of a local scene or are you longing to play outside of Switzerland?

Switzerland is so small and there aren't as many clubs as in the UK, so in the end the whole country feels like my local area haha! There's only one venue in my city for example (where I only played once actually, which was last November), so when you're a DJ here you generally quickly get to play in other places. I'm lucky to have played in a lot of different venues here and there across the country. As it's so small you get to know about the few people who are into the same music as you very quickly, and in the end everyone knows everyone here. Which is quite cool frankly, because I definitely feel like we're all part of the same family. Other than that I've had the chance to play abroad 3 times, twice in Paris and once in Clermont-Ferrand. So I definitely don't feel like I'm struggling to get out of my city luckily!

lvlsrvryhi: Let's have a chat about the mix - is there anything not included that you've been listening to lately?

I haven't really had the time to sit down and properly listen to (new) music during the last few days, but I've been mostly listening to hip hop albums while travelling for example, I enjoy the Azizi Gibson album on Brainfeeder, Lupe Fiasco's Tetsuo & Youth, and I know I'm late but a friend of mine recently introduced me to Shawty Pimp too. A mix Para One did last year compiling the best of French rappers Doc Gynéco & Stomy Bugsy has also been still on heavy rotation lately. But the main goal when I prepare a mix, like on my radio show, is to put a bit of everything that I like, so obviously I couldn't in one hour, but I'll never let anything out on purpose I think. That's what i like about doing these, I can play stuff I wouldn't necessarily play at a party. This mix in particular isn't really a good example as it's still very club-orientated haha but yeah. It's a collection of recent and older tunes I've been enjoying listening to and playing during the last few weeks, and there are a few exclusives from myself and other producers I really like.

lvlsrvryhi: There's definitely a couple of left turns in here; with the Nguzunguzu / French rap blend and the complete drop out for that Sosi track - there’s a concrete sense of progression

Like, every time I prepare a podcast, what I try to do is some sort of natural progression through the mix, having a notion of start, middle and end in it. It could be done within the same kind of music all the way I guess but that's where I think it gets interesting when you blend several things into it. The first part of the mix starts with Kuduro-inspired stuff, focusing mainly on the drums, most notably with tracks from Lechuga Zafiro and DJ Nigga Fox, then moves forward ghetto house with Color Plus and Bleaker, and finally with a bit of everything from Jersey to UK funky to trap inspired beats with DJ Milktray, Bushido, and a bootleg of Nguzunguzu and Booba I made for fun a few weeks ago. The middle part is a bit more downtempo, then the mix goes on with a favorite of mine from Sosi I discovered not long ago, and then finally finishes on one of my last tunes I made last month.