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 Ever since 'Rain Stars Eternal' the electronic dance community have fallen in love with Solarstone yet again. The new compilation 'Electronic Architecture' takes the mix album unto a whole new level. i:Vibes caught up for a word...
The Solarstone project is the work of one very talented DJ and Producer Richard John Mowatt. He's been releasing records since 1994 and has with a few other notable aliases like Liquid State and Young Parisans but it’s his Solarstone productions dance fans will best know him for. The record that set the world alight was 'Seven Cities' which was release in the boom era for Trance back in the late nineties and featured one of the most epic set of strings you will ever hear in a Trance record. That trademark sound brought other classics like Solarcoaster and Speak In Sympathy which go down as true classics in the genre and rightly so. His last artist album, which I think was his first came in 2007 with the superb 'Rain Stars Eternal'. It's an album that really pushed forward the new sound for Solarstone but still kept that uplifting Trance vibe. His latest compilation is a mixture of progressive, trance, breaks and house spread over two articulated mixes. It's 'Electronic Architecture' of an audio nature and one of this summer's essential albums. We caught up with the man behind Solastone, Richard Mowatt to get all the latest.
i:Vibes: Rich, thanks for taking some time to talk to www.ivibes.nu. It has been some time since you talked last to us. Since then you have released the album Rain Stars Eternal. How happy have you been with the general feedback of the dance public worldwide?
Rich: Yes it’s been a while, nice to be back! The response to RSE was phenomenal to be honest, I didn’t hear of one bad review or comment. When you put your heart and soul into a record you kind of Steele yourself in preparation for the negative and sometimes even nasty remarks from some critics, but people really did seem to ‘get’ the album this time, you couldn’t really hope for more than that. Maybe it’s partly because the album was pure Solarstone, a little bit of this and a little of that, I wasn’t trying to shock people or do anything wildly different… the Solarstone is fairly consistent really, it sort of mutates slowly over time, people who follow my stuff across the years would have understood the flow of the album very well.
i:Vibes: What track or aspect of this album are you most proud of?
Rich: ‘The Last Defeat’ is my favourite track from the album. At the time of recording I was going through some pretty heavy personal stuff, I guess you'd call it a time of change, and this track was my way of dealing with it. It's an incredibly emotional piece of music, and I think that the guitar solo from Nyje Summers is breathtakingly beautiful. Although it has a poignant tone it is still an optimistic sounding track too... when I hear it I envisage the sun rising over a misty battlefield the morning after the fighting has ended.
i:Vibes: “One can never get sick of listening to Part of me. What was your inspiration behind this beautiful vocal track with Elizabeth Fields.
Rich: Well this one does have a bit of a story behind it. The vocal melody is based upon an old traditional gypsy song called ‘She Moves Through The Fair. Both Elizabeth & I love the record and decided to use it as inspiration for a song of our own, something to follow ‘Speak In Sympathy’. The actual reasoning behind the lyrics is very personal to Elizabeth; it’s a song about birth, death and everything in between, a song for a loved one. It’s actually going to be the next single, the final one from the RSE album. The Thrillseekers have done a beautiful remix of the track too.
i:Vibes: There seem like there are millions of female vocalists around, but how do you choose finding that special voice for your tracks? What is most important?
Rich: Ah that really tends to be lucky accidents to be honest! Elizabeth and I have known each other for years; in fact she is the first friend I made when I moved from Wales to the midlands when I was 17 – that’s 20 years ago! Essence (Lunar Rings) and I were introduced by David Penner (Andain). Alex Karweit (Breakaway) I met at a party when visiting Essence in San Francisco and Julie Scott I contacted after hearing her sing one line on someone else’s record (I thought she sounded incredibly seductive!).
i:Vibes: You’ve got some nice remixes for “Part of me” including from The Thrillseekers. What makes the Steve Helstrip sound so special in which he always finds a way to create a new innovative piece of music.
Rich: Steve is a total perfectionist like me; he doesn’t let anything leave his studio unless he is totally 100% convinced about it. He is his own worst critic. This kind of approach is all too rare in the music industry these days, most producers will release absolutely anything they record, and most labels will release anything that sounds ‘Ok’, which is why Djs like myself and Steve spend hours wading through hundreds of very average tracks each week on promo. It is incredibly annoying, but when someone like Thrillseekers send you something, you know it’s going to have ‘quality’ stamped all over it. His remix of ‘Part Of Me’ is very subtle and has a wonderful chord change in the middle!
i:Vibes: Your new project is the mix compilation Electronic Architecture. The name and CD cover says it all, but how and why did you come up with this unique idea?
Rich: Partly through disillusionment with the majority of edm compilations released these days, it is like the rest of the danced music industry, 99% shite and 1% inspired productions. Labels and Djs seem happy to just churn out generic rubbish with no though going into the gathering of material or the design, it just seems to be ‘that’ll do’ all the way, which is an attitude I loathe, it is art for heaven’s sake, it should be treated with respect, thought through properly, with high ambition! Back in the early days of edm there were labels like Renaissance and Global Underground who dared to be different, I guess I’m trying to contribute to that ethos in my own small way.
i:Vibes: This is most certainly a CD I will remember in ten years time when looking through my CD shelf, but does the cover of Electronic Architecture give some hidden meaning or is it just abstract artwork?
Rich: If there were hidden meaning behind it, I wouldn’t tell you, now would I? You have to figure it out for yourselves!
i:Vibes: Your combination of art and music seems to be ground breaking in the trance world in 2009. How would you like the listeners to capture this combination that you feel so strongly about?
Rich: I suppose immersion is the answer to that question. I think in the modern world young people seem to have less time for ‘Art for Art’s sake’. Perhaps take some time to step away from the computer screen and go out and see some physical Artworks, the Tate Modern is well worth a visit if you are in London for a weekend. As far as the CD itself is concerned, I love albums that give you enjoyment from simply looking at and handling the thing. It is manufactured from 100% recycled material, which gives it a really lovely tactile nature from the fibres in the cardboard used… maybe I am losing my mind over all this, but it even smells nice.
i:Vibes: I love seeing mix compilation track lists when you don’t necessarily know the name of the artists. You took many unknown and up & coming acts from the Solaris label. How difficult was it putting together a mix CD of 26 tracks and getting the right flow?
Rich: It was pure joy to do. The bonus of having all this new music from young and enthusiastic artists is that they are happy to provide sample packs and make changes to the tracks if asked. I received a full remix pack for every track on the album, so I had totally freedom in creating the mix exactly how I wanted it. It is more of a tapestry than a mix this time around; it was so much fun to do. If I wanted to isolate a synth line and warp it, I could, if I wanted to use the melody from track 4 over track 8, I could do that too, or use the ride cymbals from track 2 and pitch them up slowly to create a crescendo into another track for instance. Many of the tracks contains elements of many of the other tracks, it all adds up to a unique piece of music really, which is what I set out to achieve.
i:Vibes: Music wise there are so many trance compilations available nowadays, what is most important for you to have with Electronic Architecture sound wise that doesn’t make this your typical trance mix CD?
Rich: Everything I have previously mentioned! It helps to have signed all the material to my labels, it makes it easier to continue doing new things with the material, for example there is the ‘EA Unmixed Selection 1’ CD that we have lined up for people who want to get their hands on some of the unmixed originals, we couldn’t do that if we were licensing in the material from 3rd parties. It also keeps the costs down too, as you’re doubtless aware there is little money to be made from dance music these days.
i:Vibes: If you had to choose one artist from Electronic Architecture that you think could make a big breakthrough in the next years, who would you choose?
Rich: Without doubt Bot Cipryan, his track Astral Breeze is simply breathtaking, and the remix work he has done for me recently shows immense potential. Having said that, I would put my full support behind any of the artists on the album, they are all immensely talented individuals.
i:Vibes: You are taking Electronic Architecture on tour. Club audiences will see stunningly beautiful graphical superstructures built on video screens above their heads. How difficult will it be to get this realized in each city that you will visit in the next months?
Rich: Well it all depends on the availability of decent quality video screens. I’ve recently moved to Dance Therapy who are very well placed to arrange all this kind of thing properly through their previous experiences with Ferry Corsten.
i:Vibes: Do you think that the Electronic Architecture is a concept that could grow in the future and be presented by other artists?
Rich: Depends what you mean… it’s really my personal vision for my own edm comps. If other artists share that vision then great, but I hate repeating myself or things becoming stale. The concept of using entirely new material is a big task to undertake, I’m not sure other labels or Dj / producers have got the patience! It’s not something I would farm out to other djs; it’s kind of my baby.
i:Vibes: You were recently in Buenos Aires, Argentina on tour. Besides some misfortune with the sound system, what kind of experience was it playing in Argentina?
Rich: Yeah there was a massive problem with the sound, it was so disappointing, but the people were so nice about it. Last time I played in BA the event was littered with problems too; perhaps it will be 3rd time lucky for me over there! The people have that Latin passion that is so infectious, they are such a beautiful nation too, and I always feel a bit fat and a bit bald and a bit old when I go there!
i:Vibes: It is a pity that you are seldom in Germany. The Technoclub in Frankfurt, the home base of Talla 2XLC is a place where you would feel very much at home. If you spun “Seven Cities”, the crowd would not let you forget their response to that track! Why don’t you check it out sometime? I am sure that you have heard of it.
Rich: I would love to play there, all it requires is an invitation from them!
i:Vibes: One of your inspirations is The Pet Shop Boys. Have you heard their current album “Yes”? I love the album and think it is one of their most complete albums that they have ever made. What is your opinion of their newest work?
Rich: I am ashamed to say I have not listened to it yet, but it is at the top of my ‘to buy’ list! Yes I love the Pet Shop Boys, they were my favourite band when I was growing up and I find it incredible that they can continue to me so inventive even after this much time.
i:Vibes: What future goodies can fans await from Solarstone in 2009?
Rich: Well, I’m currently remixing something that can only be described as an all time classic of electronic music, then after that I’m remixing something from a very big name edm producer, then after that I’m remixing a real summer vocal classic. We will be promoting tracks from ‘RSE Remixed’ throughout the summer too, the album contains brand new remixes of every single track from the ‘Rain Stars Eternal’ album, and it is being spear headed by a very special remix of ‘Late Summer Fields’. The whole thing gets released and the end of the summer. I’ve also begun work on the next Solarstone album which is scheduled for 2010. Oh and before I forget, we have some cracking new mixes of ‘Slowmotion’ lined up too!
i:Vibes: One of your top friends at Myspace is the German legend Taucher. What has his music meant to you in the last 16-17 years?
Rich: The guy is legend for sure, his productions are consistently evolving and changing, which reminds me, I must ask him to remix something for Solaris at some point! That would be a real honour for the label.
i:Vibes: What is something that you would like to get done this summer that you haven’t been able to in the last years?
Rich: Have a decent holiday with my family that is something that always seems to get overlooked for some reason, people imagine that Djs are on holiday every weekend but it’s so not the case. My recent 3 day trip to Buenos Aries consisted of 24 hours of travelling either way, several hours in airports, a few hours in a hotel room and 3 hours in a club – not much of a holiday! Oh to spend more time exploring all these wonderful places! It’s tricky when you have young children too because you have to work around when they can and can’t do. For example I’d love to go trekking in Peru, but I’m not sure my 3 year old son would be up to it!
i:Vibes: Thanks Rich for the chat and good luck with Electric Architecture
Rich: My pleasure – thanks for inviting me back!
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