Midland chats to Skiddle ahead of Zutekh this Weekend

Phonica's Midland will be playing at Zutekh's November party this Friday at Sound Control.

We caught up with the purveyor of deep, atmospheric sounds to talk about growing up in the Leeds scene, current tips, and what he enjoys about a warm up set. 

How would you describe your style to anyone that hasn’t heard you before?

Electronic music with a strong focus on mood and melody is my aim, trying to craft songs, not just "tunes". How successful I am in this venture is up to the listener really.

You were based in Leeds for a number of years before moving to London recently. How did your time spent in the scene there help your own music style?

Well even though for a majority of it I was DJing a different type of music, it gave me experience in playing sets to different crowds and at different times. Therefore it has helped me now, as I understand the difference between warming up or doing a more peak time set and what is required of me as a DJ. Music-wise any experience contributes to how you enjoy/make/listen to music. One thing I must say though is the early DMZ's at West Indian Centre when dubstep was still relatively young were very special; no lights, no smoke, just a set of decks and a huge system and tunes you'd never heard before. It was the first time I had experienced an almost Alien sound, which was incomparable to anything else.

Your release on Aus Music - Through Motion EP had a great response earlier this year. Do you have anymore releases lined up for the label?

I am currently working on my new EP for them, it is going to be a bit more substantial and hopefully contain 4/5 new productions of mine plus remixes. My main problem is that I work very slowly so trying to finish things is taking its time but I'm getting there!

Photo: Ashley Mar

What else have you got lined up production wise?

I have just finished a 12 inch with Ben Westbeech under his Breach alias, there are a couple more remixes to come, firstly of Lee Jones for Aus in December and then a great singer called Lucky Paul on a Berlin Label called Somethink Sounds, and then the focus is just on original material really. I try not to plan too far ahead because it usually ends up in disappointment ha!

What other artists are you feeling at the moment?

A few off the top of my head, liking the stuff Gerry Read is doing, it's quite lo-fi housey stuff, which reminds a bit of Actress but not in a rip off way, it's refreshing to hear a new producer emerging in the UK house scene who isn't throwing every "future bass" cliche at the book. The new Patten album is great again; quite lo-fi, not really club music but excellent nonetheless. Also the stuff Marcus Intalex is doing under his Trevino alias is amazing and the collaboration of Pariah and Blawan as Karenn is going to blow people's socks off! Also recently come across Red Rack'em - he's making really great left house music which is thoughtful but would still work at the more peak times!

What's been your biggest highlight so far in 2011?

Seems like a weirdly long/short year. Travelling and DJing really, Australia/Thailand was amazing, got to see some amazing stuff and stay in really nice places, and just being able to see my mates around Europe and tie it in with DJing makes me feel very lucky. Playing Fabric on Friday and Saturday in Rooms 1 and 2 respectively were pretty mental. Then Ibiza... No comment. Also have eaten some amazing food and met some great promoters/ravers along the way. Sitting here in Peckham on a grey November morning makes it all seem like a distant memory.

You are playing alongside Dinky and Matt Tolfrey at Zutekh in Manchester. Have you heard much about the parties there and how did the gig come about?

Well I sold Rich, one of the promoters, a kidney and he didn't have the money handy so I said i'd do a gig... Joking. I knew Rich from Leeds and then met him and Damo at a gig a few months ago and we had spoken about doing something! The reports of Zutekh have been amazing, rammed, vibes, good crowd so am really excited to play!

What can people expect when you play on Friday?

Well iIm playing the first two and a half hours which is great, so as it's the warm up I get to dig a little deeper and play some tunes that ease people in and perhaps I wouldn't usually be able to play. Just a bit of everything really!

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