Garuda & Digital Society Interview Gareth Emery ahead of his Performance at The Northern Lights Concert @ O2 Academy Leeds, Friday 8th OctoberTickets Available from these outlets:http://www.ticketweb.co.uk/user/?region=gb_northeast&query=detail&event=400888http://www.skiddle.com/events/11385369/The Northern Lights Concert is the first concert themed event from you, can you tell us what we can expect and what the differences will be to a usual Garuda event at Sankeys?The main difference is in the production. Part of the reason why we wanted to do this event at the O2 was because it’s such a big room, which means we can bring in a shit load of additional production and put on something proper special. Sankeys is a great club venue, and doing shows there we’d always spend extra bringing in lasers and VJs, but that was about the limit. With the O2 we can expand to custom LED screens, CO2 cannons and other exciting stuff. Also, as it’s more of an arena, it’s better suited for live singers and performers on stage, plus it’s also that big bigger. Some of our big events at Sankeys maybe got a bit too hectic when the club was completely sold out… but with the O2 we know however busy it is, it’s still going to be comfortable.
Are there plans for Northern Lights Concerts to be held in other countries?Er, I don’t know really. If this one is a success then maybe. It’s by far the biggest and boldest thing we’ve done on the events side, but assuming it all runs smoothly and we don’t fuck it up, we may take it elsewhere. We’ve had a few promoters from overseas asking if they can host one but I want to make sure the first one works out before thinking about that.
What inspired the name Northern Lights?It’s sort of a tribute to the North of the UK, specifically Manchester where I moved to a couple of years ago, because that definitely was a turning point in my career. The biggest change was getting a proper studio and office rather than working at home – then quite soon after that we founded the Garuda label and club nights, and of course it was in my Manchester studio where I wrote and produced the album. I used to think of the North as grim but it’s been pretty good to me the last few years and I love living there.
With your debut album released and hitting the #1 spots in both the US & Canadian iTunes Dance charts - what can we expect from Gareth Emery in 2011 and beyond?There’s a new Sound of Garuda mix compilation due at some point in the not-too-distant future and we’re also doing a Northern Lights remix album which will be out in 2011. And of course I’m already thinking about another artist album, but I plan in taking it a bit easier, so that won’t be surfacing until at least 2012.
Sum up the production process of NL in three words...Fucking hard work.
What track on the album is your favourite and why?Probably Sanctuary – but that was always going to be the case as it was the first single and has done really well already, so there’s no worries about people not liking it. Other than that, I’d say Arrival is quite special for me, as it’s a cool, housey track but still goes off.
Gareth Emery Northern Lights album Out NOW! Click to PurchaseArrival features Brute Force (an Indian duo). Can you throw some light on this crossover collaboration?This was a long process. I first heard the flute that features in the track about two years ago when I was touring India and met Tuhin (one half of Brute Force) and immediatley loved it, and wanted to do something with it. The Brute Force guys loved the idea and sent me the flute, but I didn’t get a chance to look at it for probably another year and a half and I’m sure there were times when they thought it would never happen. The actual track itself started in April, the night before I was playing Armin’s ASOT450 celebration in Bratislava. I really wanted something new to kick off with, and ended up staying up all night to write an intro track, which essentially was a very basic version of Arrival, done in about three hours. It worked great as an intro but lacked something organic for me… so on the plane on the way back I was wondering how to introduce a bit of texture to make the track a bit less synthy, when I suddenly remembered the flute. Of course, the tracks were in different keys, but I was able to re-pitch the Arrival demo and play the flute over the top, and it was clear the two were a good match. So the next week I headed back into the studio, changed the key of Arrival, added the flute and a bunch of other stuff, and it was done. Track of the album for a lot of people it seems.
In the economic climate of today, what are the toughest challenges in running your ‘Garuda’ label and club night?The label is challenging and doesn’t make a lot of money, but that’s more down to the fact that most people download the music rather than buy it rather than the economic climate. We also spend money on good remixes and nice artwork, so all in all it’s good that I don’t rely on the label for a living. The club nights do a lot better, but we’re really about making sure people come and have an amazing time, so we spend a lot of extra cash on visuals, production, lasers etc that we could do without, but it makes a big difference. The nights have done great, but that’s partly because we only do 5-6 of them a year so can make each and every one fairly unique. Doing it every week would be more difficult.
Who is your next tip for big breakthrough act?Ben Gold. He’s making some great music and is a really good DJ too – I think you’ll definitely see him getting bigger and bigger over the next few years.
Thanks for your time Gareth, roll on the 8th October!Garuda & Digital Society present
GARETH EMERY: THE NORTHERN LIGHTS CONCERT
plus special guests Sean Tyas, Orkidea, Greg Downey, Ben Gold, Mark Eteson and more.
@ O2 Academy, Leeds. Friday October 8th 2010, 10pm-6amArena.10PM-12AM: ORKIDEA
12AM-04AM: GARETH EMERY (4 Hour DJ and Live Set)
04AM-06AM: SEAN TYAS
Club.GREG DOWNEY - BEN GOLD - MARK ETESON
HIDDENAGENDA - MED & NEIL BAMFORD - GAV PILLING
Tickets Available from these outlets:http://www.ticketweb.co.uk/user/?region=gb_northeast&query=detail&event=400888http://www.skiddle.com/events/11385369/