MEET PAUL FRANC

Paul Franc and his modular Live setup

How are you?
I'm doing well, thank you for asking. Excited to dive into these questions.

Tell us a little about your beginnings. What got you into electronic music?
Back in high school, I used to perform in hard rock and metal bands. Around 2010 I went to my first rave and instantly fell in love with electronic music. I was fascinated by the endless possibilities of ways you could manipulate sound. After my first rave experience, I began working towards DJing and experimenting with music production software to make my own music. One thing led to another and it gradually grew into a passion for creating beats and melodies and performing at clubs.

Describe how the scene was when you started to DJ or perform your Live show.
I lived in Toronto at the time, which had a massive house and techno music scene. I ended up having the opportunity to perform regularly at notable clubs throughout the city such as the Guvernment, a staple in the Toronto nightlife scene. Since this was one of the first places that I ever fell in love with house music, it was a really special experience for me to be able to perform for thousands of partygoers almost every weekend. 

When you're DJing or doing your Live show, where's your inspiration coming from?
The beauty of the West Coast landscape is what inspires me to write the melodies and chord progressions that are ominous in nature. Combining these ideas with my modular synth, the creation process leads to a plethora of serendipitous moments, yielding a blend of atmospheric melodies with hints of glitchy and funky beats.

Which artists have caught your attention lately?
Lately, I’m really digging Niteplan, CHMPLOO, and Lukea. Their boundary-pushing approach to electronic music continues to inspire me and push me to explore new sonic territories.

Which musical projects have you been a part of that have marked a great inspiration in your life?
Making the switch to start performing live was such a rewarding experience for me, learning how to build a set from the ground up of all original music that I could play to the crowd for an hour. That was a pivotal moment for me as it was something I had to just go for and have confidence in, and the response was extremely positive. Being able to perform at venues like The Vault in front of hundreds of people has been a career highlight for me. 

How would you describe your sound? Tell us how it has evolved.
I’d say my sound is heavily influenced by the deep tech, minimal, and rominimal genres. To get more specific, I’d characterize it as having obscure textures, abstract percussion, lush chords and melancholy melodies. Back in Toronto I was making all sub-genres of techno but after moving to the West Coast, it’s music culture, my tastes changed. 

Have you got any tracks in the pipeline for the coming months that people should be keeping an eye out for?
I have an upcoming Vinyl release coming out this year to keep an eye out for. I’m also in the process of shopping out about 6 more new deep tech/minimal tracks and hope for these to come out sometime this year. 

Rainforest Music · Paul Franc - Universal Language EP

What are your top three tracks at the moment that are getting the best reaction from the crowd?

I’ve been getting a great response from some of my unreleased IDs which I’m thankful for. Any tracks from ENNE, Rendher, Eddy M, and Bassel Darwish also are sure to go off!

In addition to electronic music, what other music genres interest you?
I have a guilty pleasure for chill, electronica, and lo-fi music. I’m also still a metal head at heart. 

What do you think and have you experienced of the Vancouver music scene?
From my experience, the laid-back vibe of the West Coast definitely influences the local music scene compared to the harshness of large urban jungles like Toronto. Bass Coast Festival would be a prime example of how unique and curated the West Coast music culture is out here, showcasing our scene’s more psychedelic and funkier sounds.

What do you think is missing for the local electronic music scene?
It would be nice to see more underground international artists booked here. 

Any predictions on what kind of music or sounds will be taking hold?
I feel like the rominimal sound is definitely on the rise. I view it as the modern-day deep house that holds lots of untapped potential.

Meet Alüen

photo by: Dakota Carlson

Not long ago, Carlos Ortegas was a premium furniture seller who would sling house-music parties with his underground community on weekends. This is the part scene that he had grown up around, though, so with the intent to find dreams and discover inspiration, Carlos made a long one-way flight to Vancouver, Canada. There, he immediately established himself in the local techno scene via acquaintances that he made in Guatemala.

This was in 2018, four years before this interview was made, and on the side before our dark, sticky wall of the COVID-19 pandemic. During those early weeks of March 2020, Alüen was on tour in Mexico, Nicaragua, Honduras El Salvador, Panama and Guatemala. The immunity professionals’ continuous updates slowly revealed the true state of affairs: we don’t know when this will end. So Alüen hunkered down at his family home, in Guatemala City, stayed in contact with his Canadian loved ones, and turned to digital audio workshops for comfort.

This is the context in which Inside My Head was crafted.

photo by: Dakota Carlson

HE STARTED TO EXPERIMENT WITH MUSIC AT 15 YEARS OLD AND WAS INSPIRED BY THE LIKES OF TIESTO, ARMIN VAN BUUREN, AND ATB, TO NAME A FEW. ALTHOUGH HIS FIRST INTERACTION WAS WITH TRANCE, ALÜEN SOON FOUND OUT THAT MINIMAL AND HOUSE MUSIC WAS HIS PASSION.

I CAUGHT UP WITH ALÜEN TO CELEBRATE THE RELEASE OF HIS RECENT “INSIDE MY HEAD” EP ON RAINFOREST MUSIC, DISCUSSED HIS WORKFLOW, FUTURE PLANS, AND MUCH MORE

I: Hi Alüen! welcome, It’s a pleasure to have you here with me. Where are you based right now? how have you been?

Alüen: I’m living in Vancouver. Have been here for 4 years. I’ve been good, thanks.

I: So, what’s your summer been like? any favorite highlights?
Alüen: Last summer was really good. Had some nice shows around and in Vancouver. Also, got to work in the studio a lot.

I: Congratulations on the release of your new EP on Rainforest Music! You must be very excited to share this one. How has “Inside my Head” been received?

Alüen: Oh, very good! I really enjoy the reaction of the dancefloor when I play the original track or any of the other two amazing remixes. The crowd goes crazy!

I: How did “Inside my Head” come about? Is there a concept or story to this one? how do you decide to name your tracks in relation to the music?

Alüen: So I created “Inside my Head” during the very first quarantine in 2020. I was on tour around Mexico and Central America before that, covid hit and I had to fly to Guatemala, where I’m originally from. Ended up staying 7 months there without being able to leave and come back to Canada, with my loved ones.

I was inside my head a lot, feeling blocked creatively, I wasn’t able to do music or draw for 3-4 months just because of the situation I was in. One night I sat on a small room at my dads place and wrote the main loop of “Inside my Head”.

As for naming tracks, in this case it made sense, after being so many nights trying to make music and wanting to feel creative, and all of the sudden in one night I had so much desire to dance and party that this song was created. Originally the name of the project in Ableton was “Party Inside my Head” but I ended up shortening it to what it is now. It suites how I was feeling at that time.

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I: Tell me about the way you work, how do you come up with the ideas for the music you make? What’s in your studio and your workflow.

Alüen: Honestly, I don’t have much in my studio. I just have a pair of Focal monitors that allow me to listen a very big range of frequencies, Ableton push 2, a Behringer TD-3, a Native Instruments keyboard and my computer of course. I usually start with a basic drum pattern to then mess around with the TD-3 to come up with a bass line. Something I use a lot is Native Instruments synthesizers and instruments. That allows me to be very creative with sound design and come up with interesting stuff to work on.

I: “Inside my Head” also features two remixes, courtesy of Andromo and Paul Franc. What do you “look for” when listening back to a remix for the first time?

Alüen: I just like to see what creative idea the other artist is taking from the original track and adding his own twist. I really enjoy to see how they make their own version of something I put out.

I: What’s next for Alüen? What particular milestones are you looking forwards to now?

Alüen: I am starting to organice a little tour in Central America, Mexico and United States for next year in summer and fall. That will be good! Also, couple more releases in 2023 as well that I am excited about.

I: Thank you so much for your time, Alüen, Wish you all the best in the future and coming projects.

Alüen: Thank you so much for having me.

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Author: Adam Schmidt

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Calling submissions from underrepresented groups

Rainforest Music would like to encourage demo submissions from underrepresented groups, including Indigenous Peoples, People of Colour, People living with one or more Disability, 2SLGBTQIA+ communities, and other groups who experience any type of barrier. Community is at the center of what we do.

New home and habitat

View of Downtown Vancouver.

After growing up in jungles of Central America, Rainforest music now cultivates underground electronic music in the undergrowth of BC cedar and hemlock.

FROM CENTRAL TO NORTH

This migration built a real and sonic bridge across the ‘Americas,’ into the Pacific Northwest where we now exchange with the diverse communities of British Columbia inviting underground talents from Vancouver (and around the world) to start joining the creative tribe we built.

COVID kept us busy. We’ve been letting our ecosystem grow, our. leaves refresh and expand our roots on the Pacific North West coast. We refreshed the label image. and clarify our goals.

The break from the public life pushed our artists into studio solitude where they dreamt of bringing new warmth into a freshly shaped world. Slowly, a new tribe gathers talent to provide new music to enjoy.

Sunshine Coast, BC

PRESENT

Currently, our staff have broad experience in housey grooves, techy productions, and tribal percussions. Expect from us high quality music in a professional, well-curated package that connects to a refined world wide audience. From the west coast to the world this is Rainforest Music Inc.

#cultivatingtheunderground