Feel good disco house. That’s what we’d say he specializes in. Just think back to the first time you heard Tensnake’s breakout record, “Coma Cat”. It put a smile on your face, didn’t it? Was the sun shining?
Hailing from Hamburg, Tensnake has come a long way since “Coma Cat”, and the DJ-producer will be making his rounds over Winter Music Conference this year for the first time. Aside from his gigs at Electric Pickle and Ultra Music Festival, Tensnake will be headlining his own event at Gavanna on March 21 alongside Simian Mobile Disco, Danny Daze, Miguel Campbell and more.
We linked up with Tensnake for an interview to find out more about his style, his musical background and a recent fave track of ours.
Click here to buy tickets to Tensnake at Gavanna!
Give us a little bit of your musical background. What was your first big break into into the dance music industry?
I think I was maybe around nine years old when I discovered the record collection of my older brother. It was a massive archive of all the beautiful early and mid 80s boogie sound. I fell in love, especially with the bass sound of that era. Unfortunately my brother sold all his records when he was moving years later. And what’s worse is that it wasn’t me who bought them!
My big break came with “Coma Cat”, which got signed from Permanent Vacation to Defected in 2010. A lot happened in between, of course.
We love that you have a very unique, retro sound! What kind of factors contribute to it?
I think it has a lot to do with my selection of drum and synths sounds. But I don’t think about it too much. It is more an automatic process while writing a track. I try to mix old outboard gear with software-based sounds. But most of my production comes from software these days.
Your recent remix of Friendly Fires’ “Hurting” is a favorite of mine at the moment. How did the remix come about and what was the production experience like?
The band were Tensnake fans so got they in touch. I loved “Hurting” and decided I could give it the Tensnake touch. I ended up supporting them at Brixton Academy just before Christmas. There were 3,000 people at half past midnight and I was on right after Friendly Fires. It was a great end to the year.
What else do you have in store for us as far as releases for 2012?
I just remixed Little Boots’ new single, but there’s also a new Tensnake single coming – I’ll be performing that with Jeremy Glenn at Gavanna on Wed 21. And then when Miami is over, I have a couple of days in the studio in LA. Then I need to go home and finish work on my album.
How are things going with your label, Mirau Musik?
We had a bit of a quiet time in 2011, but 2012 will be more active. We are about to release the debut album of Iron Curtis. He is based in Berlin and musically rooted a lot in the Detroit House sound. But it is definitely not a club album only. It is very well balanced between club and home listening. I love it.
You’re playing a couple of different venues over conference this year – Gavanna, Electric Pickle and Ultra, for example. How do you prepare for a set for different kinds of events, like a small intimate room versus a big festival?
I have a couple of productions that I’m still working on. And I also need to prepare several different sets for Miami – it’s only four days until I leave for New York and there’s still so much to do.
One awesome WMC memory: This is my first time! But I’m very excited. Also, I can’t wait to see some sun. It’s cold and grey here in Hamburg.
