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The Lovely Daze attended a few events this past weekend. Checked out the Barry Mcgee opening at Prism Gallery, Lisa Leone Opening at HVW8, and went to a close friends birthday celebration. Both art shows are a must see if you're in the Los Angeles Area. Here are some flicks. ENJOY!
We will also be terrorizing Alaska and Canada this week. Pictures to come! if you can't wait...stalk us on instagram @thelovelydaze
- The Lovely Daze
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Based out of Mexico, La Royale is an electronic producer and owner of the label Electrique Music. With experiences throughout North America La Royale has been able to create a sound unique to him, as well as his label. Here we catch up with La Royale and discuss everything from his label to his early beginnings.
-------------------------------------------------The Lovely Daze (TLZ): Hello! Let's start with a quick introduction, who are you and what do you do?
La Royale (LR): Hi, my name is Alec Sander aka La Royale, and I live in Mexico City. I am a musician, part time DJ, and I run the Mexican label Electrique Music.
TLZ: Any general influences?
LR: Well I try to absorb a little bit of everything I listen to, but there are a few dance artists that changed my mindset, like Kraftwerk, Patrick Cowley, Giorgio Moroder, Gino Soccio. Other guys that influenced my aesthetic views on music were Zappa, Juan Garcia Esquivel, Stockhausen, to name some I guess.
TLZ: Let's dive right in, and talk about your start.
LR: I come from a punk rock background, so when I was a kid I started making my own recordings using a webcam microphone and some crappy software with a name I can't really remember, so I guess that's what started everything. Later on I started hanging out with these guys that were really into Psytrance and they showed me how to make beats in Reason and made really shady trance tracks with them.
TLZ: Any more info or embarrassing videos/recordings of your early Punk and Psytrance days?
LR: You will definitely find videos of me playing with my old bands at the Multiforo Alicia, which is the most important place for Surf Punk and Ska in Mexico City. I will not give names or links because I don't want to feel bad about myself. The trance recordings were never finished or published, it was just hanging out, smoking weed, and watching my schoolmates make their horrible Psytrance beats.
TLZ: Formal training?
LR: I don't have any kind of training. I learned a lot from playing Punk Rock music, living in New York City, listening to Kraftwerk, and bleeding, making music. It's something that you just learn by being passionate, I've always thought that nobody can teach you how to feel the music, it's just floating there in a subliminal way and you learn to understand it little by little.
"I've always thought that nobody can teach you how to feel the music"
TLZ: Please describe your sound.
LR: I've been evolving with time. I think that every artist has a process where they love something and try to replicate and enjoy it and then they get bored and start experimenting with their own ideas, it happened for me with Cosmic Disco and Italo Disco. Then i started getting more influenced by Latin music, Spanish lyrics, my own ¨chilango¨culture (chilango is a slang used for the people living in Mexico City) and that sort of stuff. So my sound is getting more Mexican every time I hope...
TLZ: So do you have a certain process you like to follow when making music?
LR: With time, I came to the point of making tracks on the go, from start to finish; adding stuff with the flow, and feeling the track as it is created. Sometimes when I just lay stuff randomly I lose the inspiration quickly so I tend to discover the track part by part. I will usually start with a bassline that is bouncing on my mind or a really cool and mysterious set of chords.
TLZ: I'm sure there are some productions you've made that just seem to have taken longer than all of the others. What has been the longest time you've spent on producing a track? Also was that the most rewarding?
LR: Well the best tracks are those that you finish in one night. I don't have to say much about the others.
"I think that every artist has a process where they love something and try to replicate and enjoy it and then they get bored and start experimenting with their own ideas"
TLZ: What kind of equipment is in your studio right now?
LR: Electrique Music has a collection of old samples that we've been always using, I always use the Roland drum machines like the TR-707, 808, 606 , 909 and the Oberheim DMX, that sort of sound. I own a Roland SH101 and a Korg MS10 that are really good analog synths. I'm also borrowing analog gear from the other guys within the label all the time. I currently use Ableton Live and some pirate VSTs like the Arturia MiniMoog.
TLZ: Very awesome to hear that you use a combination of both digital and analog. Do you have any preference between the two?
LR: Go analog if you have a nice preamp and soundcard so you can really get that ¨alive¨ sound out of the hardware. I also think that recording with analog gear is for the patient and perfectionist guy. Sometimes I just don't feel like going trough a really obsessive process and I just pop in the VSTs. They are getting REALLY good in sound, soon analog gear will be just for the nostalgia, and the mindset that you out from playing an old sexy heavy colorful keyboard.
TLZ: Do you have a dream studio?
LR: I want to make an entire EP using the Roland TR-707 drum machine, the classic Prophet 5 synth, a nice mic running through an old school effects unit, and the Apogee soundcard to get the most out of the analog stuff. i just borrowed the Prophet 5 and I should get started real soon. I always create these dream setups before I get to do a song, combining the stuff I can get my hands on.
TLZ: Why make your own label?
LR: We needed to have a place to put all the music we were making and back in 2009, we were really young and didn't really know anybody in the scene. We had no idea how the things were working for underground music in Mexico or New York, so we just decided to start a label ourselves and see what was going on with all the party people later. In 2011, we finally decided to get a good distribution deal and things started growing for us.
TLZ: I read that the label actually started in NY, is there a reason you moved back to Mexico?
LR: I was living in New York City at the time and got heavily influenced by underground House and Techno music. I finished my studies and had to go back to Mexico City, where things shaped up. Some of our people, like Mr Jones and Eddie Mercury, went back to Brooklyn and we currently are running the label in both cities.
TLZ: Who else is Electrique Music?
LR: We are really lucky to have some of the most talented people in Mexico involved like Rubinskee, Marbeya Sound, Avanti, Love Bites, Chemistry, Mr Jones, Juan Soto, Moon Runner (Juan Soto & La Royale) , Eddie Mercury, Gavinho, Cillero, Douglas Nine, Tight, Neon Rider, Andre VII, Volga Beach, Rocco Desentis and many more.
TLZ: What has been your favorite release thus far?
LR: My favorite release is Moon Runner - Cultural Tracks Volume One, which was later transferred to Gomma/Toytonics. I love it because it was heavily charted and really had things going for us, people that we respect started following the label.
"We had no idea how the things were working for underground music in Mexico or New York, so we just decided to start a label ourselves"
TLZ: What can we expect from you guys in the future?
LR: We are releasing really cool music in 2012; getting big name remixes. Hopefully we will start producing some collectible objects surrounding our music. Our artists are releasing stuff with international labels like La Belle, Maxidiscs, Gomma, Pizzico, Santa Esperanza, and more, which is nice as well.
TLZ: Any artists are you currently into?
LR: I really like Comeme, the label owned by Matias Aguayo and Gary Pimiento with artists like Daniel Maloso and Rebolledo who are friends of ours and we really respect. I also like the stuff that's being released by Golden Bug's La Belle Records, Toy Tonics, Crosstown Rebels, and our own Disque Discos, a really weird imprint that we recently set up.
TLZ: Where can the people find you and your labels mates?
LR: We hold residencies at Mexico's hottest clubs, M.N Roy, Club Social Rhodesia, Mr. Keating, Leonor and AM Local, we always have a monthly party dedicated to the vibe of each club.
TLZ: Any last words?
LR: Join the Saturday delight newsletter where we give away all the free promos from Electrique Music and Disque Discos, just go to www.electriquemusic.com and sign up with your email address, you will always get cool stuff, we promise. Also send your demos, we really like to listen to new guys and hopefully release their stuff.
SALUD!
More info on La Royale and Electrique Music:
La Royale Twitter
La Royale Facebook
La Royale Soundcloud
Electrique Music Website
Moon Runner Soundcloud
Electrique Music Soundcloud
Moon Runner will be doing a tour in Europe (Barcelona, Madrid, Valladolid, Munich, Paris, Berlin, and more) this summer.
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Jack of All Tracks:
La Royale:
"I wanted to do a mix with the darkest stuff i´ve produced and co-produced in the last months"
Big thank you to La Royale for the guest mix!
The Lovely Daze attended the second weekend of Coachella. It consisted of good company, good music, and good vibes. Here are some pictures we took accompanied with our favorite tracks/artists that we saw at the festival. Enjoy!
- The Lovely Daze
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