Distal
Atlanta based producer, and part-owner of EMBASSY RECORDINGS Distal has found himself rapidly building an internationally familiar brand in 2010.
Combining time travel with dance music, Distal breaks down the more ambiguous sounds from the past and fuses them with thoughts and equations of the future. Never afraid to take risks along the way, he has created a very specific and friendly sound for himself, bridging the gap between techno, breakbeat hardcore, house, funk, gangster rap, and even pop culture.
This enthusiasm has already gained the attention of many well-respected pioneers working in Dubstep and Techno today. Most recently his first two releases under EMBASSY RECORDINGS have graced the track listings of Appleblim, 2562, Joe Nice, Moldy, Ramadanman, BenUFO, Julio Bashmore, Breakage, and Moldy. The list of recognition is set to grow in March 2010 with three releases due out (Rogue Dubs, Car Crash Set, and Embassy).
We had a moment to catch up with Distal and see what's good on his end:
BF: Yo, what's been up Distal? New Promo mix is no joke.
D: Just working hard 24/7 man. Even feels like I'm working in my sleep!
BF: You recently launched a new imprint Embassy Recordings. Was this something you had been wanting to do for a while and how did it ultimately materialize?
D: Embassy Recordings (www.embassyrecordings.com) is run by myself and label mate "MITE". We have wanted to start a label since before I can even remember. Childhood dreams. We just wanted to make sure the timing, aesthetic, branding and content was correct. When the skillet got hot, we jumped. After 'Attempt at Yellow', and 'Chocolate Circuit' started making waves in big name track-listings we knew we had our first release under the belt. We landed a digital deal with St. Holdings and the rest will hopefully go down in the books.
BF: What else can we expect from the label in 2010?
D: The first release is set to drop next week on all major sites (Beatport, Juno, Addictech etc.). The second release will release on April 12th. It's going to be my track 'Serengeti' for the A side and the flip will be a nice techno jam, 'Villa de Straylight' by Mite. We have a lot of big things planned for this year. Embassy will be a playground of eclectic sounds. Mite and myself both value music of all moods, and we're going to bringing the overall vibe of the label up and down with only the theme being 'quality'. We called the label Embassy because we wanted to make sure it was a safe haven for artists to express themselves however they wanted.
BF: 'Serengeti' [EMB002] is probably one of my favorite tunes at the moment, gotta take the time and big you up for that one, really an outstanding track. Joe Nice dropped that badboy at DubWar last month and it went off. With your tunes getting played out by trans-Atlantic DJs such as 2562, Appleblim, and Julio Bashmore just to name a few; how do you think the internet and social networking tools like Twitter have affected you as a producer and DJ?
D: It's funny growing up Electronic music wasn't as reliant on the internet, but nowadays it's the forefront. It has its pros and cons. With all these internet tools you can reach such a larger audience than you ever could have before. You also get to communicate more freely with every aspect of the scene ( press, label owners, promoters ), and at a faster rate. No more mailing off mixtapes in a box with postage to the UK! And lastly you get to work faster, you can send parts back and forth and have a remix overnight; In the long run it speeds up the evolution of things. We're going to all be ROBOTS soon!
On the flip technology has a major downfall in all of this, clutter. It has come down to 'how well you can push your music', and not 'how good it is'. I see lot's of people branding their names in my brain that I'd rather not have branded. But its a forced society, we can't choose what we hear sometimes. There is A LOT more clutter to sift through to get to the good stuff. Some artists get lost in the clutter that need to be in the forefront.
BF: Atlanta isn't necessarily one of the first cities that you associate with dubstep, how did the scene initially come together and how have you seen it evolve since it's inception?
D: Atlanta Dubstep (www.atlantadubstep.com) is doing BIG things. The whole scene down here has really embraced the sound, ALL of the sound. Our first show was 2562 last year, it was packed out... things just fell in place! We've had everyone on the spectrum here from 16bit to Ramdanman, and we just celebrated our one year with UNTOLD! The key I really believe is the fact that we have A LOT of people in our group from all different scenes pushing the sound. We all travel in different circles.
We had one of the best cities in the nation for DnB a few years ago via Mayhem and his night TRANSIT. And we currently have a very blessed Minimal and House scene as well. When dnb started to slow down the hardcore dnb fans were looking around for something to cling to, and the house heads were looking for something that was different. A lot of that comes together at our shows. I really believe sociologically speaking electronic music is going backwards, we're going back to the early 90's where everything was played together and the genre lines were a lot more blurred.
Oh and not to mention we have the biggest and best SoundSystem in the state! You FEEL the music at our shows.
BF: The ATL Dubstep crew have brought in some huge talent in the past year and haven't been afraid to bring in acts that defy the standard 140bpm half-step wobbler formula. How have these nights gone over and what's been your favorite event so far?
D: We try and make the venue and area fit the aesthetic of the music we bring. The harder we go, the more grimey of a spot we get etc. It has seemed to work so far. We pull a little extra from the target crowd, but still keep a steady mixture. Like I was saying before we're all from different musical backgrounds and we all have our own tastes, which in the long run is a BIG positive. My favorite dj set so far has to be 2562 our first show! He got some people moving in that crowd that I haven't seen move in a long time. His sound is so specific. A close second is Appleblim. Talk about a selector... wow playing all across the board. I have nothing but mad respect for that guy.
We have Babylon System this month and my buddies Inferno and Shortsck of Heat Promotions are bringing ROSKA, ROSKA, ROSKA that same week. So much positive talent coming to our city. I'm glad to be a part of it all.
BF: Big up yourself, Distal. Thanks for taking the time and for continuing to push the limits in 2010! Before we let you go, what are the top ten producers you're listening to at the moment?
D: My current TOP TEN artists NEW AND OLD I'm listening for:
1. Dubbel Dutch
2. Aardvark
3. Domu
4. Cosmic Revenge
5. XI
6. Mensah
7. Bok Bok
8. Sines
9. FBOM
10. Julio Bashmore
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DISTAL
Embassy Recordings
