Chris Fortier Interview (DJ set inside)

Chris Fortier Interview (DJ set inside)

12 August, 2009 | 7.22PM

• Written by: musicalmissionary
• Filed under: Music News : chris fortier interview musical missionary

As Musical Missionary gears up for its first charity fund raiser event this Friday night, we thought it would be nice to sit down with Friday night’s guest of honor, Chris Fortier, and dig a little deeper into his past, present, and future.

You just moved back to Florida from New York a few weeks ago. What were the main factors that led you to make this move?

As Musical Missionary gears up for its first charity fund raiser event this Friday night, we thought it would be nice to sit down with Friday night’s guest of honor, Chris Fortier, and dig a little deeper into his past, present, and future.

You just moved back to Florida from New York a few weeks ago. What were the main factors that led you to make this move?

The growth and expansion of my family really. We wanted to move somewhere to bring a more simplified life experience to our little ones. A better and easier quality of life. NYC is a tough place and we thought there would be something missing if we forced them to live a cement life. Slower pace, playing outside, going to the beach, those were key factors in making this decision.

What kind of memories will you keep from your time living up in New York? Was it mostly positive, negative, neutral, no comment?

Living in NYC has been the best period of my life on all levels. So many things were starting to happen before I moved there in my career, I had really outgrown everything I had done and created in Orlando. I was already on the road doing gigs around the world in the mid nineties, so moving to NYC was actually a move to fit the pace of what I was doing professionally. It felt like home the first day I was moved in.

So everything was great there and I loved every minute of it. Everything in the world is there and at your finger tips. You really could do anything you could ever think of. Being in that atmosphere where most everyone there is doing something, something of significance, the things where the rest of the country or world looks on TV or in the newspaper to hear/read about what’s happening. Being there, you can feel that energy and it is inspiring to be there and walk side by side with the movers and shakers in every facet of life.

What will you miss most about New York and what do you look forward to most about being back in Florida?

Mostly, I will miss my friends. Then the food probably. NYC is a part of me now. I actually lived in NYC longer then I ever did in Orlando, so it will never leave me. But it was time for me and my family to move into a new chapter of our lives and give ourselves different opportunities not possible in a big city. Moving back to Florida will give us the easier, more simple life, and be able to enjoy the outdoors more, which I think is important at this stage.

I was recently surprised when I read that you started the Balance Record Pool and Balance Booking Agency along with Jimmy Van M back in your Orlando days. I personally dealt with Villo back when I was trying to push tracks through the Balance Pool back in 2003. How did that project start, evolve, and then eventually fizzle?

Yes, I started the Balance Record Pool (with Jimmy Van M) back in 1996. But the company was always two separate entities. One being the record pool which I founded and managed, and the other was the touring agency and eventual booking agency which Jimmy ran. Really there was no cross working between the two and I had really nothing to do with the booking side of the company.

The record pool was created out of the sincere desire to push new music in North America. The idea was to help connect the dots of the labels and key DJs in America and help these labels grow their profiles and of course sales, but also help DJs and the American scene to grow. I was already getting a bunch of promos from labels around the globe, so I had a lot of connections and dialogue with labels. Something I recognized was when I was doing gigs around the states, I was always getting asked about my records and where to get them, etc. So the concept was to get more copies distributed to these key DJs and hope to give a stronger, more defined push as a group.

Because I had this relationship with labels, and we were already doing a good number of events in Central Florida, we had enough trust of the labels to get more promos. I think that was the toughest part was to convince labels in UK or Germany to give 40 promos to a territory that they knew very little about. With that trust, we built more on that and started producing results for labels like higher sales in North America, and also more licensing of tracks to other labels in the US and compilations.

Things grew quite fast, and we found ourselves in a delicate position of having the please both the labels and DJs. This kind of service we were providing was unique with the music we focused on, and the high quality bar of labels and DJs. It was very satisfying to be a part of the big growth of music in states, and watch so many parts of the industry expand and grow during this period.

Villo did join the team shortly after the start and was a huge key part of the success. Shortly thereafter, I moved to NYC to join Jimmy up there, but we were not able to move the record pool up as well. So Villo took over all the day to day operations, and I dealt with just labels from NYC, after a while though, I realized that I needed to get back to my own career. I had founded the pool, and oversaw its operation for 7+ years, but gave little time for my own career. I was still DJing every weekend somewhere in the world, but I was not really making much music, and I felt that I needed to get back to that.

So, in 2003/04, I decided to leave the company, and stepped down from my duties. Since that time, I had nothing to do with the record pool and Villo was the sole managing director. I don’t know the full story about what was the real demise of the Balance Record Pool. What I do know is that Villo wanted to move on himself from the company and he resigned his position, and from that point, I don’t know. But I am proud of my time there and what we created, and I am sad it eventually closed down, but I had been gone from the company 5 years when I shut down.

Who do you stay in touch with most from back in your Orlando and Balance days?

I do speak to a few people, Dave Cannalte, Neil Kolo, John Debo and Tim Skinner. These are all long time friends.

Is there any relationship between your Balance Pool and Agency and the Balance Compilation series you were featured on back in 2005?

Actually no, there is absolutely no relationship. They are not connected in any way. I know there is some confusion about this and was probably not a good idea to have companies with the same name growing at the same time, but they are two separate things and have nothing to do with each other at all. It is just coincidence.

The Balance CD series is just the name of a CD series from a label based in Australia. Actually, the label in Australia had been asking me since they started the series in the late nineties (Balance Record Pool was already running for a few years), but I kept saying “no” from the start because of possible confusion it might lead to. The CD series began to create its own identity with the Phil K CD, and then the James Holden CD, so I was confident and comfortable finally getting involved with the CD series then and felt that people would know the difference. Like I said, it is just great coincidence that the names were the same and the CD series ended up using a number of DJs that were part of the Balance Agency, which was called TCA buy this time anyway.

A quick glance at some of your recent releases reveals remix credits by Alland Byallo, Maetrik, Pheek, and Mark-Henning. These guys are some bleeding-edge techno producers from my recollections. Is this indicative of a new direction for you?

I wouldn’t call it a new direction by any means. I have been playing their records for years. I am not one to change direction or music just because. My music career and the music I play, and have played for over 15 years, is in constant evolution. These are new names in underground music, and I play underground music.

Tell me about 40oz and where that alias/project came from and where it might be headed?

Basically, 40oz was a nickname someone gave me at some crazy afterhours party/bar. It was just something someone said as a joke, but for a few people, it stuck. It wasn’t something I ever thought of using professionally at all. But a few years ago, I was just abbreviating names of my remixes and edits. It ended up in some charts and tracklistings, so I let it happen.

A few years ago though, I had a handful of tracks that I wanted to release, but I wanted to get them out with no pre-conceived notions. I wanted people to judge the music for what it is, and not what they thought it might be. So I did a couple EP releases, but now have connected it to my own stuff, so I see them as intertwined now. I really don’t know if there will be anymore solo 40oz releases. Actually I doubt it. I have a few other aliases now that I am using and plan to use, so I think those will be a focus the rest of this year and next and see what happens.

Do you have any extra-curricular projects cooking on the side akin to your previous tricks with the Balance Pool et al?

Not really. I still have my record label, Fade Records. And we are still releasing music consistently. Just records that I find interesting, it is not a label for income, just another creative outlet musically. I don’t foresee any big ventures for me at this point, I want to still concentrate on my music and DJing which I feel is still getting better and stronger every day.

So what should we be on the lookout for as far as new Chris Fortier music releases?

I have made a serious effort the last few years to make new music most everyday. So I am in the studio constantly now, and also working on planes and in hotels from the road. So there is a bunch of new releases just out and coming soon. I just released a new single called “that being said” on manual music out of Holland. Also just out are some new remixes of my track “losing wait” on my own label. Forthcoming, I have singles coming out on Suara out of Spain, Undercut out of Italy and Global Ritmico out of Germany, as well as a bunch of remixes for various labels too. The plan is to keep plugging along with productions and remix commitments, butnear the end of this year, I will start on my 2nd artist album to come out in 2010. Here is a brief snapshot of some of the releases and remixes I’m putting out:

Originals (2009)
Chris Fortier – Power of One (Power) (Suara Records) – 2009
Chris Fortier – Nom De Plum (Suara Records) – 2009
Chris Fortier – Cool Traun (Global Ritmico) - 2009
Chris Fortier – That Being Said (Manual Music) – 2009
Chris Fortier – Losing Wait (Remixes) – 2009
Chris Fortier – What Was The Question (Undercut Records Italy) – 2009
Chris Fortier – Try Bline (Regular Records) – 2009

2009 Remixes (2009)
Floppy Sounds - City of Sale (Wave Music)
Patrick Zigon – Girl With A Smile (Tanzbar)
Signal Deluxe - Deshora (Dialtone)
Royal Dance – From Here T (Olaris)
Colin Dale – Its What I Am Here For (Endemic)
Jay_Rico - Hiroshi Bobo (Manual Music)
Mikel Curcio – Bonita (London)
DJuma Soundsystem – Zillion Lights (Get Physical)
Jauemetic & Citizen Kane - Criminal Minds (Regular)
Onionz – Dancing For The Dead (Endemic)

As you know, Musical Missionary is committed to channeling the creative energy in the underground dance music scene into charitable causes. What kinds of charitable causes have you been involved with in the past or plan to work with in the future? You can be as general or specific as you’d like.

I have been contributing and volunteering my time, etc. to things since I was in elementary school. My wife and I have helped out with things like Special Olympics and the Red Cross, all of which we do anonymously. I think giving back to those in need is something I find extremely important and will be a part of my entire life.

Thanks a ton Chris.

Chris Fortier will be playing at The Electric Pickle on Friday, August 14th, along with Miami’s very own Stryke and Sebastian. Proceeds from the party will go towards providing music lessons for underprivileged children at SoBe Institute of the Arts during the upcoming Fall Term. Please come early, stay late, and Dance For A Cause! Cover charge is only $10 before 12am and $15 after.

Here’s a set Chris Fortier played at Le Underground in Paris on July 4th, 2009…

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