Interviews

Published on September 3rd, 2014 | by Lex

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Artist Feature 004: Aaron Scott

For this weeks interview we take a dive into the world of deep-house turned techno creator Aaron Scott.

From his Soundcloud Bio:

“Let’s avoid the has-been third person bio. Focusing on what’s important, I’m 19 years old, living in Lyon, France, and you’ll find on this page everything that comes out of my mind. My major goal in life is to make people feel thanks to music. I’m working as hard as I can with what I have to share my unconditional love for music and I hope that you will find something that will suit you. Let’s keep the idea of Music as the key, and push away as much as possible the business side, because after all, the sound is the only thing that matters. Music is according to me the greatest gift of all time, therefore I’ll do my very best to give all my tracks for free, without missing big opportunities. Hoping you’ll enjoy, I never thought someone would actually read my description that far so I’ll just leave it here. Have a sweet journey. Welcome.”

With that brilliant intro from the man himself, lets get onto the interview below!

How old are you & How did you get into producing music / how long for?

I’m 19 years old, I’ve been producing for about 9 months and I’ve been playing since I was 12. I guess that genetics are a little responsible, my father was a DJ for 15 years, he was constantly on his electric guitar whilst spinning records on his turntables.

I got Ableton Live last summer and wanted to share my passion with the world, so I produced a 3-track Deep House EP called « Make The Light », and put it on Soundcloud. That’s how everything started! It turned out great, the feedback and the help of my friends sharing my work motivated me to pursue my passion, so I started releasing more tracks.

After only a month, the help of Youtube Channels such as The Vibe Guide or TheSoundYouNeed was not expected at all and helped me to gain much more exposure. I’ve been producing Techno for the past 3 months, it’s a different world, and after having experiencing both, that’s the one I identify myself the most into.

How and why did you turn from producing Deep House to Techno ?

I like the underground spirit that is in the Techno scene and crowd, the fact that Techno is not compared as something made to be sold by major labels, or to be played on TV or on the Radio. It’s just like another dimension to escape from society, and I love that idea. But I didn’t know that until I got out to the Techno events regularly. You realize that you always see the same people, it’s a little underground community, our names aren’t written anywhere, but we all know each other!

Now musically speaking, Acid Techno is really something that I instantly loved as soon as I heard it Live. Our relationship started on a Sunday last winter, at a Rooftop here in Lyon called Le Sucre. It was 5PM and Nina Kraviz was closing an intense weekend. She played a track named Chaos by Regal (That just got released on Involve Recordings, go get it, it’s massive). When the track’s acid baseline started to resonate, it was effortlessly embracing the kicks and rim shots, everything just sounded perfectly in absolute order and chaos at the same time. Time stopped, the crowd literally exploded, and so did I. I was truly amazed by the emotions that this sound were making me feel. It was wild and powerful, made to dance, made for the feet. That’s probably at this moment that I knew that Acid Techno was the next thing that I wanted to explore.

Who are your musical influences?

I have a pretty wide range of influences, from pioneers such as Robert Hood to younger artists like Recondite, or newcomers like Etapp Kyle. An artist will influence me as soon as one of his tracks transforms a moment into a journey.

If you could compare yourself to an already established artist, who would that be and why?

I honestly have no clue. I can’t compare myself to any established artist as I’m just starting out, really. I’m nothing but a kid producing music because that is what I love, that’s about it. I’m glad that I have a whole life to establish myself as an artist, so I’d rather focus on building my original work rather than trying to comparing it to anyone.

What do you work with in the studio ?

I set up a home studio in my flat. I work with Ableton Live 9 Suite & Ableton Push. On the machine side, Roland’s TB-3, TR-8 and System 1 developed with Aira. I strongly recommend these machines, especially the TR-8. Apollo Twin Duo Soundcard. All of it combined turns from music on the screen to music at the end of your fingertips. And that’s how I like to work the best, I want to be able to modulate the sound at every second, it almost feels like you’re literally touching it !

Where do you usually gather songwriting inspiration?

The moments when I feel the most inspired are always when I’m going out. I like to be in the crowd, to feel music hitting you. It’s where I get the most inspired, most of my ideas come from when I’m going out, dancing for a good 6 hours and coming back home with the head full of new ideas, sounds and atmospheres. I’m thankful for living in a city that lives with music, there are so many events every weekend, the scene is strong, there’s inspiration everywhere!

What would you say is your signature sound or style?

Until Eternal, you could recognize the rough synthesizer with arpeggios, as well as motivational speeches. That’s what I liked the most producing, until I got hit in the face by Techno. I’m currently working with these Acid baselines as you heard in the Savage EP, or in Acid Takeaway. To me, a baseline / synth / or whatever instrument you’re using in your track needs to be modular, the sound shape has to change alongside the track. Today, I guess that modular acid baselines would be my signature style. But I always try to experiment with new things in each track, to always evolve in my work.

What do you think about online music sharing? Do you ever give your music away for free? Why?

I’ve been giving most of my tracks for free. When you’re looking for new records online, you’re just like a surfer going into this ocean of sound, and track after track, some might be good, some might not, but you’re going back into the sea every time because just like every surfer, you’re waiting for that one wave that will completely blow you away, that unique and special wave that you will never forget. And if I’m ever responsible for creating that special wave to someone, I don’t want him to pay for it. That’s how I see it, music is a gift, it is the transfer of emotions from a waveform to a heartbeat. But the music industry has always been a part of the game, and sometimes you have to feed the sharks in order to surf on the best spots.

Today the majority of people on the internet are downloading and you can’t make money thanks to records as easily as you could before the 21st century and internet popped in. Internet killed the Music Industry, and expanded the Music World. I’m not into this movement for the money, I’m here for the sound, the sharing of emotions. This is why I gave all my tracks as free downloads as soon as I was releasing them. After a while, the track might be published on a label, in order to have credibility for event bookers and promoters when you’re asked for gigs. I wish to continue to distribute free tracks every time I have the chance to. « Let Me Dance One Last Time » will be released at the end of next month on Armada Music. It’s my first official release. I particularly like the fact that such a huge label wanted to sign this precise track because it’s been family-made. My father is live on his acoustic guitar, I’m taking care of the rest of the track. My family is so important to me and I’m glad I can have a little part of it in my first release!

What do you think your listeners will get out of your music?

When I was producing Deep House, I tried to put a motivational message on every track with speeches that motivated me personally. In my tracks, appart from Eternal where It’s actually my own voice, every single speech you hear is a speech that particularly helped me going through different stages of my life. Now, I’m focused on music for the feet, that makes you want to get up and dance. That’s what I’m trying to do, with making my tracks the most personal and neutral in the same time, I removed vocals from my latest tracks because I feel like everyone should be able to make his own journey with a track, without influencing the brain by putting any speeches or vocal into it.

Music is made to share messages, but it’s also the open gates of your own mind and imagination. Music will take you anywhere you want, that’s what’s beautiful about it. And that’s also the challenge with producing Techno. Creating the biggest journeys with the less instruments possible. It’s exciting.

We love your latest release titled ‘Acid Takeaway’ – Could you give us the story behind this track ?

The Live recording of Acid Takeaway comes from a 10-hour non stop studio session that I did on machines that I recently had, the Roland TR-8 and TB-3. I just fell in love with this duet and couldn’t get my hands of it. They are incredible. After a full day of experimenting, I turned my camera on, pressed the record button, and jumped in. That’s how the track was born.

What are you currently working on, can you give us any hints?

I’m just coming back from London after M-Plant’s 20th anniversary last Sunday. The line up was absolutely stellar and gave me so many new ideas to work on! I’m currently preparing my first Live Act that should be ready for the end of the year. 2015 should be full of new stuff and very exciting!

Do you have any tips for upcomming producers who want to perform live?

I strongly recommend The Ableton Push to help you create live patterns with a stunning simplicity and efficiency. As I’m still learning new things everyday, I’m far from being someone to go get advise from if you want to do a live set. The only advice I could give would be a quote that says « If you’re not doing it for the necessity of creating music, you can give up now ». In a live show, it’s just like if you were making love with the sound, in real time, you have to be completely engaged with what you’re doing, make it personal, make it original, don’t call it work, call it play, and everything should be fine. Truth is that there’s no right way of producing / performing music. Music is personal, and as long as it’s made with passion, it’s made the right way!

As we understand you have had a busy agenda along the year, what was your favourite moment? Any funny stories?

My favorite moment of this year was performing for the first time at an open air, in Lyon! It was a beautiful afternoon during summer, about 10.000 people were attending, It truly was the best gig I’ve done so far. When I play, I always have the best times of my life, It’s what I love the most, making people feel things through music, this entity that has the power to gather people together. Being an actor, a part of that movement is something I truly love. Music touches every single human being differently. What I actually enjoyed the most was simply to look over the decks, witness the moment, and enjoy the ride as much as I could, because these are ones of the few moments when I truly feel alive. Music is what I love, and I’m so thankful for everything that has been happening in my life thanks to it.

There are a few funny stories, that weren’t really funny for me when it happened but It’s always something to laugh about the next week. I remember on a weekend, I had a gig as headliner in Lyon, and when I started my set, I realized that the CDJs that should have been linked were actually not, the cable was broken, no spare one, and I only had 1 USB Drive (complete begginer’s mistake)! So I only had one turntable out of the whole setup that could play the tracks I had. I started stressing out, and then one of my close friends that was there handed me his USB drive that he always carries with him. So I did this headlining set without knowing one half of the tracks! My Pre-listening was for sure fun to watch. Fortunately, it turned out well, he had some killer tracks, but from now on I always carry 2 SD cards and 2 USB drives!

What’s your favourite track to listen to / include in your mixes at the moment by another artist?

Surgeon released a debut EP on Token called « Fixed Action Pattern », and the Dub version is absolutely stunning. Turn the volume on and step into the next dimension.

What are your future plans?

I have a few DJ sets planned for the end of the year in France. The Live Act is taking most of my time, so my goal is to be able to play it everywhere I can as soon as the cake will be baked! I’m excited!

Listen & download Aarons latest 3 track EP titled ‘Savage’ – DOWNLOAD

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