From azure coastlines that sparkle in sunlit Caribbean seas, stars aligned in ‘The Glistening City’ of Cancun. Christian Orlo and Alexis Dialtone forge a bond that would lead to the creation of their Noble Spirits production pseudonym. Also the founders of the groundbreaking Dialtone Records and Dialtone Tales, the duo march forward into a bright future. The result is an impressive career that has seen DJ appearances alongside some of the finest names in the industry: DJ T., M.A.N.D.Y, Honey Dijon, Audiofly, YokoO, Sebo-K, Jay Haze, Luomo, Adana Twins, Jay Tripwire, Tone of Arc; part of a star-studded cast in an ever-growing ensemble.
We catch up with Noble Spirits to learn more about their Dialtone and Dialtone Tales labels, their origins, chemistry in the studio, and their views on music and life.
Electronic Groove: Hi Christian! Hello Alexis! Welcome to EG! It’s great to have you with us. How are things at the moment?
Noble Spirits: First, we want to thank you for inviting us to your Spotlight series and for this interview. We really like your work and we feel excited about being part of it.
Things are moving pretty well for us, we are working on new EP’s at the studio and changing our sound to a more upbeat groove, but taking our time. We always say that the music has to create an emotion in the people that hear it. So if it doesn’t reach that point, the music won’t work. People won’t remember it. Therefore, we take our time finishing our tracks. I told Christian once if it makes me cry or gives us goosebumps we are on the right track. Haha!
Electronic Groove: Let’s get to know you better…What is Noble Spirits? How did it come about? For how long have you been Noble Spirits by now?
Noble Spirits: It has been 4 years now since we created Noble Spirits. In the beginning, I started as a melodic techno project and released our first EP on Ilogic with the sound that I was looking to push. Then Alexis sent me some ideas he created and we thought we had something unique there. The process has not been easy since we both have been dealing with many personal issues that make life a bit hectic, but that has helped us to produce emotional songs as an output to express our feelings. The more we explore our emotions, we believe our music will keep evolving. This journey has helped us reach the #15 position in electronica Charts, #90 in organic house/downtempo, and getting featured on Beatport’s charts, top 100 releases, and front pages. So we think we might be on the right path 😉
Electronic Groove: And who were you guys before Noble Spirits? How did you get into electronic dance music and the industry? Is Noble Spirits something that you weren’t before?
Noble Spirits: We are two real brothers from Cancun, but not the ‘bro’ type now overly used (laughter). We started with a couple of good friends the first underground house music parties in the southeast part of Mexico; including Cancun, Playa del Carmen, and Tulum.
Christian: It’s been almost 20 years in the music industry for me. In that time, we have worked together on several different projects (Funk Shuei, Indie Horizons, 2´Over:clockers), each one with its characteristic unique sound. Releasing in labels that were hot in their moment.
For me, it all started when Daft Punk dropped their ‘Homework’ album in 1997, and Alexis gave me a copy of their debut CD. I was hooked once I heard ‘Burnin’, everything changed from there. In the beginning, it was extremely difficult for me to sign my music on the labels I liked and would have loved to release my music. So I got frustrated, but usually, my approach to things is to take them head-on. Therefore, I decided to launch my own label 14 Years ago called Dialtone Records and just recently the new Dialtone Tales launched a year ago.
Electronic Groove: How would you describe your sound by now? Do you guys have a favorite ‘gateway’ piece you’d recommend to get into Noble Spirits?
Noble Spirits: Our sound is very personal and emotional, it usually reflects what we are going through and feeling in life, but our music is slowly moving away from downtempo beats to faster tempos. We tend to mix organic ambiances with percussive rhythms mixed with melodic riffs. Modular sound generation is necessary for us, although now it is done via software; someday we would love to build our own Analogue Modular Rig.
Our favorite ‘gateway’ pieces to recommend getting into Noble Spirits would be ‘Eysin’, ‘Sacred Chants feat. Tone Of Arc’, ‘My Soul’, ‘Sarkari’, and ‘Audiense – Sad at Window (Noble Spirits Remix)’.
“We always say that the music has to create an emotion in the people that hear it. So if it doesn’t reach that point, the music won’t work. People won’t remember it”
Electronic Groove: You’re also behind the Dialtone imprint. Congratulations! How was the label born? How is it currently doing? What kind of music and artists do you tend to be on the lookout for?
Noble Spirits: Many thanks. Yes, the label was born 14 years ago as an output to get our music heard. Alexis started being the label manager during the early days until he couldn’t and that’s when I took over. Taking full control of everything: designing, mastering, and A&R. Now the team is growing, adding a community manager, and Alexis is back, now in charge of our monthly radio show for Proton Radio.
I am always looking for artists with fresh sounds. When I listen to the song, it should make me feel something or take me on a ‘journey’. Original vocals are growing back on me and also having artists play live recorded instruments gives songs a unique character. I also like artists not afraid of getting out of their comfort zone to explore new sounds.
Electronic Groove: what is the difference between Dialtone and Dialtone Tales?
Noble Spirits: Dialtone’s sound is more dancefloor-oriented, usually with tempos over 118bpm, mixed with melodic elements. As for Dialtone Tales, it explores the downtempo side of music, sometimes ethno-influenced. It all comes down to releasing good quality music.
Electronic Groove: By the way, thank you for your fantastic EG Spotlight set! What were you looking to transmit? What can listeners expect?
Noble Spirits: As we said before, we like to transmit feelings and emotions. We grew up hearing Global Underground, so every podcast we do has a journey as these great artists did it. Beginning with an intro that builds until it reaches the peak point and finishes in a way that makes you feel that you just landed after a great journey through musical landscapes.
Electronic Groove: Let’s dive into the studio for a bit…What is your dynamic like in there? Who does what? Do you try to rely on each other’s strengths?
Noble Spirits: Usually Alexis drafts a rough edit at his home studio so that we have an idea to follow. Then we take everything to our studio located in my apartment and work on it until we are happy with the groove. Then, I usually work solo adding textures, ambiance, and melodies (I tend to dive in deep into sound generation and gets a bit personal in the process lol). After all this, I give control to Alexis and he deletes elements that he feels aren’t solid enough. He is also in charge of giving the final touches and editing the song.
Once everything is ready, I’m in charge of adding effects, mixing, and mastering when needed.
“Dialtone’s sound is more dancefloor-oriented, usually with tempos over 118bpm, mixed with melodic elements. As for Dialtone Tales, it explores the downtempo side of music, sometimes ethno-influenced”
Electronic Groove: What else can we expect from Noble Spirits in the future? What new milestones are you looking forward to in the coming months?
Noble Spirits: We are working on new EPs, a remix for Baikal Nomads, collaborations with Aroma (IND), and our good friend AmuAmu.
We hope this 2022 we will be able to achieve our dream to play our own music, with guest musicians, in our Live Set we started working on. It has been difficult for us to get there because of the lack of time. We have our own businesses and sometimes time is a barrier. Anyway, we look things into a bright future so stay tuned.
Electronic Groove: Thank you for your time guys! We wish you all the best for the future!
Noble Spirits: Thanks a lot for the interview! We want to share with everyone that music is everywhere; the best music for us is the one that gives you a positive vibe and makes you feel one with the universe. Stay humble!
A quote we always liked: “Without music, life would be a mistake”.
Noble Spirits’ ‘Emotional Garden Remixes’ are now available via Dialtone Records. Grab your copy here.
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