MjuzNews u petak 8. decembra organizuje drugi parti u saradnji sa klubom 20/44. Nakon Les Yeux Orange iz Pariza i prepunog broda u januaru, naš sledeći gost je Albion, spejs disko guru i osnivač Camp Cosmic festivala.

Albion dolazi iz Stokholma i poznat je kao jedan od najvećih digera zaboravljenog Euro diska u svetu. Svoje pronalaske deli kroz seriju mikseva Mixtura koji trenutno broji 26 nastavaka ili kroz izdanja edita na lejblovima kao što su Ambassador’s Reception, Frisbee Records, Passport to Paradise i Macadam Mambo. 

Domaću podršku na žurci će pružiti Bojan Lule Gajić, rezident DJ kluba 20/44 kog je ljubav prema editima dovela do Passport to Paradise, istog lejbla na kom i Albion objavljuje svoje edite, kao i Bagira od MjuzNews-a.

Pridružite nam se u petak 8. decembra na brodu od 23h. FACEBOOK EVENT

Albion je odvojio vreme da pred svoj prvi beogradski nastup odgovori na naša pitanja.

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MjuzNews: Zdravo! Nadamo se da te zatičemo u nekoj udobnoj situaciji. Gde si i šta radiš sada?

Albion: Zdravo MjuzNews! Trenutno mi je veoma udobno. Veče je i sedim u Mixtura studiju sa velikom šoljom čaja.

MjuzNews: Da li možeš da nam kažeš nešto o svom muzičkom ukusu pre nego što su tvoji miksevi postali tako važan deo Intergalactic FM/CBS databaze? Albion pre prvog Astronomixa.

Albion: Na početku XXI veka sam organizovao žurke i festivale, puštao muziku i svirao u bendovima. Ceo lov na vinile u koji sam išao da bih zadovoljio publiku (ili možda ipak sebe), rezultirao je serijom mikseva koje sam nazvao „Vendetta“. Napravio sam 30 takvih mikseva koji su bili emitovani na sada ugašenoj radio stanici „Hurricane FM“ na holandskoj frekvenciji.

MjuzNews: Kada ti se javila želja da postaneš DJ? Da li možeš da se setiš kako si se pripremao za svoj prvi nastup?

Albion: Kada je Hip Hop nastao mnoge stvari su se preko noći promenile za klince moje generacije pa tako i za mene. Ušao sam u brejkdens, a potom i u grafite. U tom periodu sam slušao isključivo oldskul rep ali me didžejing nije privlačio. Kada je Gengsta rep nastao nekoliko godina kasnije, očuh me je odvukao u stranu i rekao: „Ne bi trebalo da slušaš ovu hipnozu. Šta misliš da si ti, neki klinac koji juriša po Harlemu sa utokom?“

Od tog trenutka sam krenuo ispočetka sa muzikom.

Srećom, moj očuh je imao kolekciju ploča sa uglavnom UK prog, rok i folk muzikom i nešto r&b-ja. Kada su nam na muzičkom tražili da donesemo muziku koju slušamo doneo sam Spencer Davis Group – „I’m a man“ i moji ortaci iz razreda su normalno odmah pomislili da sam potpuni čudak.

Bar mislim da sam među drugarima stekao reputaciju onog ko je najveći muzički frik. Na žurkama u srednjoj školi sam obično ja birao muziku, obično na CD getoblasteru. U to vreme, oko 1990. godine, imao sam prijatelja koji je želeo da se proslavi kao promoter žurki. Sve se vrtelo oko toga da imaš sponzora na flajeru. U ovom slučaju su to bili Bic upaljači pa su tako to postale „BIC“ žurke. Iznajmio je mesto, namestio saund sistem i stavio me u didžej but. Postalo je prilično popularno. Oko 500 klinaca se pojavljivalo svaki put. Nakon tog perioda sam napravio veliku pauzu i počeo da snimam mikstejpove sa najboljom drugaricom umesto toga. Ona je snimala uvrnute stvari sa radija i mešala ih sa got i vejv trakama iz osamdesetih i uvukla me je u sve to.  Kasete smo dekorisali lakom za nokte i bindijima i razmenjivali ih.

Imao sam još jednog prijatelja koji je počeo da se bavi didžejingom kada je imao 15-16 godina na sint/got/ebm žurkama i ja sam mu često bio podrška kad je puštao. Obično je puštao očigledne flor filere ali je ponekad umeo da ubaci pesmu za koju je znao da mi se dopada pa bih se napalio ko blesav. I onda je jednog dana naprosto skrenuo u rokabili i motore. Po meni je on ostavio prazninu koju sam na kraju sam odlučio da popunim. Tako da sam krajem  devedesetih sastavio neke od svojih omiljenih pesama iz osamdesetih i počeo da puštam po barovima u Stokholmu.

MjuzNews: Prvi Astronomix si snimio 2006. a prvu Mixturu 2008. godine. Koja je razlika između tih serija? Da li si prosto došao do boljeg naslova ili je došlo vreme da kažeš potpuno drugačiju stvar?

Albion: Kako sam shvatio da ne dobijam to što hoću kada puštam napolju počeo sam da snimam mikseve kod kuće. Astronomix serija su bili signali koje sam slao u svemir sa željom da doprem do zamišljene publike sa najsofisticiranijim mogućim ukusom. Nakon što sam se predstavio CBS publici Astronomix serijom jedan gig u Njujorku je postao prekretnica za mene. Nedostajala mi je Evropa i shvatio sam da stari dosadni Stokholm zapravo i nije toliko loš – sve dok si kreativan. Došao sam kući i prikupio neke fenomenalne trake za predstojeći miks za koji sam osećao da je tražio nešto više. Takođe, moj prvi sin je bio na putu i bio sam ubeđen da će Mixtura da bude moje Veliko finale jer sam mislio da više neću imati vremena da snimam mikseve. Prijem na CBS-u je bio odličan tako da je ubrzo nastala i Mixtura 2 i onda se sve jednostavno nastavilo. Kako su Astronomixi bili napregnute ekskurzije u autsajdersku muziku, drznuo sam se da se izražavam više kroz Mixture.

MjuzNews: Koliko znam, Mixtura koja je dobila najviše pohvala onlajn je Mixtura 5. Mi glasamo za Mixturu 10. Objavio si i desetine mikseva na raznim uvaženim blogovima. Kojim miksevima si najzadovoljniji.

Albion: Kada sam počeo da snimam Mixture odlučio sam da dokle god ih nastavljam svaki miks bi trebalo da nadjača prethodni. Kada slušam unazad, čujem različite nijanse sebe reflektovane u tim miksevima. Ponekad se vratim i slušam svoje Mixes of the Week koje sam radio za Dreamchimney.

MjuzNews: Objavljuješ edite na raznim lejblovima. Veoma si velikodušan kada je reč o deljenju informacija o originalima, a uvek podeliš i informacije o pesmama iz mikseva. Za koju pesmu si dobio najviše zahteva za ID?

Albion: Hvala, dajem sve od sebe. Verovatno Kingcats – Down In California.

MjuzNews: Trenutno ima više didžejeva nego ljudskih bića na planeti ali retko ko ima takvu reputaciju kada je reč o disko žanru kao ti. Koga bi poveo na pusto ostrvo da sa njim deliš disko peškir?

Albion: Disko peškir bih delio sa kompletnom Camp Cosmic binom, a nove talase tj. New Wave peškir sa Mond binom.

MjuzNews: Svakog leta organizuješ festival u šumama Švedske. Mnogo Beograđana flertuje sa idejom da ode na tvoj festival ali malo ko to i uradi. Evo prilike da im kažeš zašto ne treba da propuste Camp Cosmic 2018.

Albion: Ako odluče da dođu, priroda će se pobrinuti za to, bez obzira da li je teško ili lako.

MjuzNews: Sastavljaš veoma disko ali i veoma raznovrsan lajnap na Camp Cosmic-u. Koga bi voleo tamo da vidiš ko još uvek nije nastupao? Ko te je oborio s nogu setom?

Albiom: Većina setova me obori s nogu, tako da nemam vremena da se osvrnem na to što nedostaje. Mnogi koji su već nastupali se vraćaju da nastupaju ponovo. Kako oni napreduju tako napreduje i zvuk na Camp Cosmic-u.

MjuzNews: Reci nam nešto o tome kako nalaziš ploče. Da li kupuješ onlajn? Da li često posećuješ buvljake na Kamčatki? Da li obijaš kuće kao neka disko Zlatokosa?

Albion: Ima nekoliko lokalnih prodavnica ploča koje redovno posećujem, a u inostranstvu idem na buvljake i u tamošnje prodavnice ploča. Ponekad imam sesije preslušavanja sa prijateljima. Dešava se da i kod kuće odem u podrum po ploču, a vratim se sa gomilom dugih koje mi se učine zanimljivijim u trenutku. Često mi i neko od prijatelja pusti numeru koja odjednom zvuči kao totalni pogodak u odnosu na to kad sam je poslednji put čuo, nekoliko godina pre. Naravno, tu je uvek i internet. Baš sam pre neki dan proveravao – prvu ploču koju sam poručio onlajn sam poručio pre 22 godine. Ali ipak više volim da uprljam ruke, tako testiram svoj ukus i osećam se više povezano sa otkrićima.

MjuzNews: Neko razmišlja o tome da odustane od izlaska na brod 20/44 i ostane kod kuće iz bilo kog razloga. Nateraj ga da promeni mišljenje jednom pesmom.

Albion: 

ENGLISH

MN: Hello there. Hope we find you in a comfy situation. Where are you now?

Albion: Hello Mjuznews! Right now I’m quite comfy, it’s evening and I’m sitting in Studio Mixtura with a cup of tea.

MN: Can you tell us something about your music interests before your mixes became such a seminal part of the Intergalactic FM/CBS database? Albion before the first Astronomix.

Albion: In the beginning of the 21 century I was throwing parties, DJ-ing, played in bands and organizing festivals. All that vinyl hunting to satisfy the club audience (or maybe myself), resulted in a mix series called “Vendetta”. I made 30 of those and they were broadcasted by a now defunct radio station called “Hurricane FM” on the Dutch FM band.

MN: When did you develop interest in DJ-ing? Can you remember the time you prepared for your first ever gig?

Albion: When Hip Hop came, things changed overnight for so many kids in my generation. For me as well, I started breakdancing but soon moved on into graffiti. During this time I listened to oldschool rap all the time, but the fourth leg of Hip Hop, DJ:ing didn’t appeal to me. When Gangster Rap came a few years later, my stepfather took me aside and said to me: “You shouldn’t be listening to this hypnosis music. Who do you think you are, a kid running around in Harlem with a gun?”

From that point, I had to start over with music.Luckily, my step father had a record collection with mostly UK prog, rock, folk and some R&B. When we were asked to bring a track that we liked in music class, I brought Spencer Davis Group – “I’m a man” and my class mates of course thought that I was a complete weirdo.At least I think I became recognized among my friends as the one who was the biggest music freak. At their high school parties I was the one who got to select the tracks, typically on a CD ghettoblaster. Around that time, in 1990, I had a friend who wanted to make a name for himself as a party promoter. It was all about getting a sponsor name on the flyer, in this case it was Bic Lighters so it became the ‘Bic’-parties. He rented a place, set up a sound system and put me in the DJ booth. It got pretty popular, around 500 kids turned upevery time.  After this period I took a long break and got into making mix tapes with my best friend instead. She recorded weird stuff from the radio and splice together with 80’s goth/wave tracks and got me into doing it as well. We decorated our tapes with nail polish and bindis and exchanged them. I also had another friend who started to DJ when he was 15-16 at synth/goth/ebm parties and I used to support him when he played. He played the usual floorfillers, but sometimes he snook in a track he knew that I liked and I lit up like a candle. Then one day he was into rockabilly and motorbikes instead. For me, he left a empty gap, and I finally decided to try to fill it myself. So by the end of the 90’s I put together some of my fav 80’s tracks and started to play in bars here and there around Stockholm.

MN: You recorded the first Astronomix in 2006 and the first Mixtura in 2008. What is the difference between the two series? Did you just come up with a better name or was it the time to say a completely different thing?

Albion: Because I felt I didn’t get out what I wanted from playing out, I also started to record mixes at home. The Astronomix series were signals I was sending up into space with the mission to reach an imaginary audience with the most sophisticated taste possible. After having introduced myself to the CBS audience through the Astronomixes, a gig in New York became a turning point for me. I got homesick for Europe and thought that boring old Stockholm wasn’t so bad after all – as long as you are a creative person. I came home and had managed to gather some killer tracks on the upcoming mix that I felt that the moment called for something extra. I had my first kid coming also and had decided Mixtura was going to be my Grande Finale, because I thought I wouldn’t have any more time for making mixes. It got received well on CBS, so Mixtura 2 came not so long after and from then it just continued. While the Astronomix series were farfetched excursions in outsider music, I started to dare to express myself more with the Mixtura series.

MN: If I’m correct the Mixtura that got most praise on the internet was Mixtura 5. I vote for Mixtura 10. You have also published dozens of mixes on various respected blogs etc. Which mixes are you most content with?  

Albion: When I started with the Mixtura mixes I decided that as long it goes on, each mix should top the previous one. Listening back, I hear different shades of myself reflected in those mixes. I go back sometimes and listen to my Mixes Of The Week for Dreamchimney.

MN: You continued releasing edits on various labels. You are also very generous to share original song info and track ID:s from mixes. What’s the song you got most ID requests for?

Albion: Thanks, I do my best. Probably Kingcats – Down In California.

MN: There are more DJs than human beings on the planet right now but very few have as respected reputation in the disco genre as yourself. Who would you take on a desert island to share a disco towel with?

Albion: I would share it with Camp Cosmic stage and the new waves with Mond Stage.

MN: You’re organizing a festival in forests of Sweden every summer. Many Belgraders flirt with the idea of going to Camp Cosmic but very few do. Here’s your chance to tell them how easy it is to go to your festival and why not to miss CC 2018.

Albion: If you have decided to come, nature will find a way, no matter if it’s hard or easy.

MN: You also make a very disco but also a very diverse lineup at Camp Cosmic. Who would you like to have there who didn’t play already? Who knocked you out with a set?

Albion: Most of the sets knock me out, so I don’t have time to reflect upon what’s missing. Many of the artists who play return. They evolve and for every year the Camp Cosmic sound does too.

MN: Tell us something about your digging route. Do you grab stuff online? Is it the frequent visits to flea markets of Kamchatka? Do you rob houses like a true disco Goldilocks?

Albion: There are some local record stores I check and abroad I go to fleamarkets or record shops. Sometimes me and my friends have listening sessions. It also happens at home that I go down in the basement to look for a record and come back with a bunch of others that I find more interesting at the moment. It’s funny how taste changes over time. Quite often a friend plays a track for me that sounds totally ace compared to when I last heard it, years before. Of course there is always internet. I checked the other day and I ordered my first record online 22 years ago. But I still prefer to get my hands dirty, I get to challenge my own taste and I feel more connected to the finds.

MN:There’s a sad lonely dancer who is thinking of giving up and staying home instead of going to the party at 20/44 on December 8 for whatever reason. Make them change your mind with a song.

Albion: Mirzino Jato - Apsolutno Tvoj