- Wed, 2006-02-01 14:58
Renaissance is delighted to announce a very fresh start for 2006 – 3D, a compilation that welcomes a new concept and DJ to the label’s ever-growing series of albums.
First to take up the challenge is NYC-based Japanese wonder kid Satoshi Tomiie. An integral member of Manhattan’s prestigious Def Mix collective, Satoshi is famed for his blistering productions and remixes, and his pioneering SAW.Recordings label. Clubbers across the world know him for the incredible DJ sets that see him criss-cross the globe on a regular basis, making him one of dance music’s most respected ambassadors and an immediate candidate to launch the 3D project.
I Like Music caught up with Satoshi mid tour at his hotel in Paris.
“I like music because… its power, it's powering, it inspires.'' Satoshi Tomiie
ILM: Hey Satoshi, how's it going?
Satoshi: Fine, thank you.
ILM: So, you're touring with Renaissance at the moment?
Satoshi: Yeh, well we just started.
ILM: How's it going so far?
Satoshi: So far so good, we've done two gigs so far, one in New York at Crobar and then one in Greece.
ILM: Nice, how do the audiences vary from New York to Greece?
Satoshi: Well it's different, but you know, the way they are enjoying the music is the same really, it's the music they like ...
ILM: sure, do your sets change when you travel across the world?
Satoshi: Not really, I may tweak around the order of the tunes but I carry the same collection of music to the clubs.
ILM: What can people around the world expect if they are going to come along to one of your album parties?
Satoshi: Well, the London gig is really like the album 'launch party' at one of my favorite venues, The Cross. It is one of my favorite venues in London because it's small and intimate and there is always a good vibe, but in general for this tour ... [Satoshi thinks] ... its just always really special for me no matter where I am. A lot of the tunes have been especially produced for this album, so I'm going to drop those which is cool, and you know I'm just going to try and have some fun!
ILM: In your own words can you explain the vibe of the whole album?
Satoshi: Ok, its 3 CD's. The first one is 'Club', second one is 'Studio' and third one is 'Home'. The first one the name tells it all, its the sort of stuff i'm playing in the clubs, this is like part 2 to the ES/ES-B compilation I did last summer, the vibe is kinda continuing from that, from the earlier warm up compilation which carries on to the peak hour.
Then 'Studio' is like I've been working in the studio past to present, from the stuff like 'Chaz' 'Flock' and some brand new production to the oldest one 'Luke 7'. Actually I re-recorded this tune for the compliation, so this represents past to present.
The 'Home' CD is going back to my CD's where I got my influences from. This really represents the past, so its 3 CD's with different themes. I thought it would be great to get the oppourtunity to do this kind of CD ...
ILM: ... and from a more technical point of view, do the methods of mixing vary across the 3 CD's?
Satoshi: Yeah, especially the studio disc, its almost like me producing the mix, not only producing each track also producing the whole mix, so it flows. This was the hardest part of this compilation. I've been working on a number of tracks in the past, and I was actually limited to the number of tracks I could choose from because of what I did before, and I was sort of expecting I may have to compromise a bit, but in the end I managed to do it without compromise ...
ILM: which is good ...
Satoshi: Which is good! At the beggining I was a bit worried, but in the end it worked out well.
ILM: Are you a perfectionist when it comes to your music?
Satoshi: Yeeeaaah ... [Satoshi thinks] its hard for me to say! [ilm & Satoshi laugh] I take alot of time to fix things right.
ILM: Well, you've pretty much toured every corner of the globe. What do you look forward to the most about playing live?
Satoshi: Really, to me, playing in a club is like exchanging energy between the DJ and the crowd, so this is something i'm always looking for. Also, the direct reaction of what I'm doing is something you don't get in the studio. That's probably the biggest reason and source of inspiration for what I'm doing.
ILM: Have you got a current favorite track that you may end up dropping in every set?
Satoshi: [Satoshi laughs] Thats a tough question!
ILM: Sorry ... [ilm & Satoshi laughs]
Satoshi: Ok, hold it ... [Satoshi grabs his record bag]
aaaahhhhhhhhhmmmmmm, lets see ... Yeh there's quite a few actually. [another long pause] I must say the Audio Fly, they are actually using the name Audio Fly-X, they are doing some things a little different from what they usually do with a track called 'Stolen Goods'. That's a track I've been playing for about a month now.
ILM: So you're confident that when you drop this tune the club is gonna blow up?
Satoshi: Well yeah, I kinda know the track very well and have learned the perfect time to play it, so it works well yeah.
ILM: Is there any piece of equipment, studio or live, that you just couldn't live without?
Satoshi: Well in the studio i'm pretty much working off the computer, so I guess it would be software. My main sequencing software is Ableton Live for production and will finish up on Pro Tools. Since I travel a lot I found that Ableton is lighter on the computer so is actually is a bit better for my style of working.
And for DJ sets, as I travel a lot I play mostly off of CD, so I must say Pioneer CDJ 1000MKII and the mixers can vary, I have preferences, like Raine would be my first choice, but with the mixers sometimes you have to work with what they (the club) have, but you know, as long as they have the Pioneer 1000's I'll be fine.
ILM: I was going to ask, are you exclusivly DJ'ing with CD's now or do you use any vinyl at all?
Satoshi: Well yeah, for this tour especially. I will be on it for about 3 months and it's hard to carry all records. Also messing around with software like Traktor, i'm not up for carrying all that gear and setting it up every time, but when its ready, this is the future. I mean CD's are cool, but its very hard work, you have to know each and every track by name, on vinyl you kind of remember from the visuals, colours and covers but with CD's you need to know whats what. You also have to type it, burn it and so on. It would be nice to play vinyl but with CD's its so much easier and convienient for the DJ that travels alot.
ILM: Sure, and with the Pioneer decks you mentioned and some of the mixers you can do so much live editing, sampling, looping and stuff ...
Satoshi: Yeah, if you're really into the loops and hot cues and all that you can do some really interesting stuff.
ILM: Have there been any DJ's that have caught your attention recently?
Satoshi: errhm [Satoshi thinks] ... Not really, some producers yes, but I don't really get much opportunity to see any new DJ's really...
ILM: What about hot producers then?
Satoshi: Well there's quite a few actually, the Audio Fly is one of them, Adam Freeland is doing some quite interesting stuff, this Russian guy called AN-2, he's doing some interesting deep stuff. I can just go on and on really [Satoshi laughs]
ILM: No that's cool ... Could you explain the Satoshi Tomiie process of preparing a killer DJ set?
Satoshi: [Satoshi laughs]
ILM: Sorry man [ilm & Satoshi laugh]
Satoshi: Well a lot of listening really. Studying in fact. I really want to understand what I have. Hours and hours of listening just to come up with a 1 hour set actually. Its like anything really, rock bands before the gig have to do rehearsals...
ILM: That's it, youve got to know your records...
Satoshi: Yeah, you gotta know what you have and what you are playing. You gotta know songs by name. You really gotta study hard.
ILM: Is there any new production in the pipeline?
Satoshi: Yeah, the new single is going to come out probably in about 3 or 4 months time...
ILM: Cool, can you give us some details about that?
Satoshi: Sure, its called 'Glow'. It was actually featured on the ES-B album and Spirit Catcher are doing the remixes for me, so it will be out like April/May time. To me its really like a summer track.
ILM: We'll look forward to that!
ILM: Do you have advice for young musicians/djs/producers trying to break into the industry?
Satoshi: The only thing I can say is like any kind of art form, start copying someone you really like but at the end you have to be original, you have to be different and it doesn't come over night, you have to spend a lot of time and be patient. Continue what you like, that's the only way to become a good DJ / Producer I think. But, some lucky people have done it overnight, but most people work for years and years to catch a break.
ILM: It soon becomes obvious which people have been found for being very experienced and those who landed on their feet over night ...
Satoshi: Exactly, its depends on the time and the opportunities and also, if you succeeded over night, you now have to maintain that success, that's the hardest part. To me it's building your ability step-by-step over the years, well, for me it's worked out alright.
ILM: Just a quick question about music in general. What's in your CD player right now?
Satoshi: I've kinda started listening to the music I was listening to when I was 15 years old. I was kinda sick of it along time ago, but I'm finding it interesting again. Things like Thelonious Monk, jazz stuff. Actually, I understand his playing and appreciate it more nowadays than I did back then. It's probably a bit too deep for a 15 year old kid. Listening to new dance music for me is my job, so if I really want to chill I will play some other types of music. All sorts.
ILM: Well Satoshi, good luck with the rest of the tour. I'm sure it's just gonna get better and better.
Satoshi: Yeah, I will make sure I have lots of fun.
ILM: Cheers for your time, speak soon.
Satoshi: Thank you.
And off Satoshi goes to prepare for another killer DJ set.
