Clubs list.co.uk/clubs
HAPPY SHOPPER Colin Chapman looks back at the career of Kompact’s Michael Mayer as he guests at Edinburgh Kapital
Confusion, a weekly party which not only proved to be the stepping stone to Mayer’s international DJ career but has gone onto become Cologne’s longest running club night. It was here that Mayer developed a fondness for playing longer DJ sets, an approach he has since become renowned for. Keen to create a sense of drama he would often build through ambient tracks, edge into house and techno, perhaps taking in pop and R&B tracks along the way. The success of Total Confusion saw Mayer earn residencies in Barcelona, Geneva and at established clubs such as Robert Johnson, Fabric and Berghain as well as numerous dates worldwide. However, such commitments combined with his responsibilities at Kompakt have reduced Michael’s production output over the years to one solo album, 2004’s Touch and sporadic single releases, meaning as an artist, he is probably more familiar for his Speicher and Immer series of DJ mixes as well as his collaboration with Superpitcher, as Supermayer. This situation may change in 2012; recent interviews have revealed that he spent much of last year in the studio and plans to put out fresh material soon.
I t seems fitting that as they edge closer to their fifth birthday celebrations in July, that Edinburgh club night Kapital have at last managed to secure the booking of one of their most coveted guests, Cologne-based DJ and producer, Michael Mayer. A figurehead in German electronic music, Mayer is probably best known for his involvement in Kompakt Recordings – not only a record label but also a shop, studios, DJ booking agency and distribution arm for over a 100 other imprints – which he runs alongside Wolfgang Voigt and Jürgen Paape.
Founded in 1998, Kompakt’s origins lie in the Delirium record store, established by Wolfgang and his brother Reinhard, Paape and Jörg Burger. Legend has it that Mayer was the first customer at the newly opened Cologne shop in 1993, unhappy with the available selection he stepped up and complained, this bold move earning him the respect of his peers and in turn a job sorting out orders. Fast forward 18 months and Mayer was a partner in the business. Delirium soon spawned a number of record labels, including Profan and New Transatlantic, which became outlets for releases by Reinhard Voigt, Burger and Mayer, however it was eventually decided that these should be streamlined and housed under one name and Kompakt was born.
In tandem with these activities, Mayer was also able to cultivate an early teenage passion for DJing into a professional occupation which saw him play at various cities, his sets then largely inspired by the innovative techno productions of his Delirium associates. As Kompakt began to take shape, a DJ partnership he had earlier founded with friend, Tobias Thomas also evolved and they established Total 52 THE LIST 1–29 Mar 2012
TECHNO M_NUS: HOBO & HEARTTHROB Supernova at the Arches, Glasgow, Fri 2 Mar; Pyramatrix at Chambre69, Glasgow, Fri 9 Mar
You’re an emerging electronic producer and your label boss is Richie Hawtin aka Plastikman – so do you get star-struck when you talk to him? ‘Why not?’ laughs Joel Boychuk aka Hobo. ‘I don’t usually think so, but I guess the fanboy part of me will never die.’ Boychuk is from just the other side of the Canadian border to Detroit, but Jesse Siminski, aka Heartthrob, was brought up even closer to Hawtin’s ground zero. ‘Growing up in Michigan, I was very familiar with his music,’ he says. ‘I was thrilled when my own started getting his support and attention.’ Both artists are playing an
unofficial M_nus (that’s Hawtin’s label) double bill in Glasgow this month, at separate dates one week apart from each other. Boychuk has been releasing on the label since 2008 and Siminski since 2005, although the latter has known Hawtin since he lived in Williamsburg, Brooklyn with Kevin McHugh, aka M_nus’ Ambivalent, in 1999. ‘Rich is one of the hardest working, most focused and forward-thinking individuals around,’ says Siminski. ‘He can be very helpful with advice, but he tends to be more inspired when artists have their own ideas to bring to the table.’ The pair make comparable music: a deep, dark ambient techno with a particular funk to it, although their descriptions differ. ‘Stripped-down and reduced but meant for dancefloors,’ says Boychuk, whose album Iron Triangle has just been released. ‘That’s where my ideals lie. It’s different, but it’s functional and useful.’ Whereas Siminski, who will set up his own Isnisnt label this year before returning to M_nus, is more imaginative: ‘A snapshot of what’s within my brain at any given time – a messy convergence of emotions, influences and experiments.’ (David Pollock)
Heartthrob
‘MICHAEL WAS
ONE OF THE MAIN INSPIRATIONS FOR KAPITAL’
‘Michael was one of the main inspirations for us starting Kapital in the first place’, says promoter and resident, Barry O’Connell. ‘Over the years, listening to Mayer’s sets has always helped me push myself as a DJ and he’s always topped our list of artists that we wanted to book, but sadly, due to his busy schedule, we could never find a date that suited both parties. However, we weren’t disheartened and luckily for us, that date has finally arrived.’ Kapital at the Liquid Room, Edinburgh, Sat 24 Mar.
M A R K U S J A N S