Digitalism hit Tokyo
With a release for prestigious mix-album series DJ-Kicks and some extensive summer touring, it has been another busy year for German electro-house duo, Digitalism. It’s set to get even busier for the pair, who embark upon their Japan tour this month. We grabbed Jence and Isi for a quick interview at Pukkelpop Festival in Belgium this summer to talk about their recent production work and what we can expect from their live performance.
“We started playing live 5 years ago right after Idealism dropped” starts Jence as he attempts the difficult task of summing up the evolution of Digitalism into a live show. “In the beginning it was just us and two keyboards […] we were just studio producers and DJs before that and then the whole thing started to get bigger”. This development saw the pair expand their show by taking on a live drummer, carbon strip lighting and an array of synths and drum machines – taking festivals around the globe by force.
However, this year’s tour has seen a stripping down of their live set-up and the band no longer performing as a 3-piece. “Yeah, last year we brought the live drummer but this year the show is completely new and different” Jence explains, “we left all the old synthesizers at home and we’re using a lot of new technology”. The year before last Digitalism made a staggering 90 live appearances in a six month period, so it’s no wonder they felt it was “time to do something else”. The pair feels that this is somewhat of a return to what they call their “musical roots” of club music and Isi smiles wryly when he proclaims it to be “a little bit more dancy”!
Another factor in this regression to the dark caverns of club-land was the band’s DJ Kicks release – with the band joining the likes of Tiga, Carl Craig and Kruder & Dorfmeister by curating the legendary mix series. “What we’re doing with the live show reflects the current things that we’ve been doing with DJ Kicks, you know?” Jence explicates, “there are new tracks on there which are a bit more ‘back to the club’. It’s weird because the whole thing is actually a step forward for us but at same time it’s kind of […] musically where we are coming from”.
Their new material, including tracks such as “Falling” and “So Totally Good”, has already been incorporated into their live show and in many ways the records were refined on the dance floor, as Isi explains; “We played the material already in our live shows at the beginning of this year and it was good to see how people were reacting to it. For us it really helps make it clear – like we can say okay we have to do seven or six minutes or make it a little bit longer, or let’s try to put more into it – we’re perfecting it on the dance floor! I think that’s working well”.
With this return to old ways Jence feels like “the whole cycle is closing” for Digitalism and they are “really free to do anything” on their third album. “We don’t know what it will sound like”, Jence laughs. “Yes, when it comes to our music we just call it adventure” adds Isi, “you know it’s like Indiana Jones – You never know what to expect and all of a sudden some stuff is going on”!
Digitalism play live in Tokyo on October 5th and Osaka on October 8th– expect the unexpected.
Words: Sam Mokhtary
Translation: Iona Nagata
October 4, 2012
