Alle Farben is a German DJ/Producer who carries a certain mystique in electronic music circles. Often lauded for his catchy deep house soul productions, his recent release ‘My Ghost’ on Synesthesia Recordings has been well received all round once again. We caught up with the man recently to talk about how he came to find his original sound, and what he has planned for 2016.
Electronic Groove: How are you, how has 2016 been so far, do you have any hopes and dreams for the year ahead?
Alle Farben: I am very fine – 2016 has been fine so far, I was on my annual vacation and I am touring through South-East-Asia at the moment. I made a new album, thus my hopes and dreams are related to it, of course.
EG: What is the role of the DJ, do you think – to entertain or educate or something else? And is there a different between a headliner and resident for you? Which do you prefer?
AF: A DJ has many functions, he is an artist but also an entertainer. I often experienced that a DJ wanted to be an artist or an entertainer only, but that doesn’t work. In my opinion, there is a big difference between resident and headliner. The resident is not less important than the headliner. Although there is a difference: the headliner has usually been booked in order to represent his music, especially his hits. While the resident has been booked because he has a certain touch or feeling for an audience in a certain region or club. I am always grateful if there is a good resident. I’ve done both, I love to play long sets but I also love change, so I prefer none of both.
EG: What is your style as a DJ? Do you play the sort of music you make; is that your aim when in the studio?
AF: In the clubs and on festivals I play Tech-House. But I also love to produce podcasts and radio shows – thus, I play all my music by using different channels. Not every deep track suits on a festival and not every “primetime bomb“ suits into a radio show. When I’m in the studio I aim to produce tracks that are good to dance.
EG: How long did it take you to find your own sound as a producer?
AF: I think that I found my sound pretty early, although in the beginning everything sounded still a bit bumpy, but the ideas were the same.
EG: Talk us through your Synesthesia release – what inspired or influenced it? Where did you start and what gear did you use?
AF: The idea behind it was to represent what is outside the clubs. Therefore, the album was a good frame for me. I recorded the entire album with a band including roads, piano, guitar, cello, vocals, percussion, drums, bass and some synthesizer plug-ins.
EG: Where was it written, when, and where did you start on the tracks? Does all that effect the end result?
AF: Almost everything was recorded in Berlin in the studio of the two DJs and producers called Umami. They gave me a lot of support during the recordings. Berlin was very important in this process because it offered me much inspiration and a creative pool of singers and instrumentalists.
EG: What sort of things are most important for you when making music? Are you a bass head or a melody man, for example?
AF: I am a melody-man! A bass can be tempting as well, but there always has to be a melody!
EG: What else have you got coming up/are you excited about?
AF: My second album will be released soon. I am very excited about it!
EG: What do you like to do away from music, how do you relax and spend your cash?
AF: I love cooking and good food. I support my family – but apart from that I regard myself as a rather saving person.
Catch Alle Farben this week at Time Warp
