Michael Fakesch interview

Michael Fakesch interview

20 August, 2007 | 3.41PM

• Written by: nitzan
• Filed under: Music News : cut-n-paste, funkstorung, michael fakesch, solo

Having recently finished his new solo album ‘Dos’ on K7! Records [listen to it in the player below], we caught up with Michael Fakesch for a quick chat about his excellent new LP. The record also made it into Beatportal’s The 20 chart for August.

How does it feel to be in the limelight again? It’s been a while since your last solo effort.

“It has good being in the limelight for the first time, not again.

“For me the last solo album was just a fun thing to do.

“I was totally committed to Funkstörung at that time.

“Now since Funkstörung is gone, ‘Dos’ feels like a completely new start.”

You co-produced the ‘Dos’ album with Taprikk Sweezee. How was it working with a vocalist?

“I first started with the beats and then Taprikk added vocals.

“After that I began remixing his vocals and then, surprise, surprise, Taprikk also began remixing my beats.

“It was a constant remixing process and the hardest part was to find an end to it!

“Taprikk and I only met once in my studio for two days, so we did everything via email, phone and ftp sharing!”

Are you planning to go on working together again?

“Actually working together was so much fun, it would be a sin not to repeat it.”

If you could work with any vocalist dead or alive, who would you pick?

“James Brown, ah no that’s too obvious. I’d have to say Bon Scott the former AC/DC singer.

“Ok, actually Björk and Thom Yorke are my favorite voices.”

‘Dos’ has a real pop feel to it - are you planning to get more into pop?

“I’ve never done a pop music production, although maybe the Jay-Jay Johanson album we produced was pop.

“Anyway, yeah I’d like to do a pop-production, I wouldn’t like to deal with freaky pop starlets or greedy managers though.”

What’s your studio set up like?

“Pretty basic, I use a PC with Cubase 4, with loads of smart electronic plug ins.

“Some Native Instruments stuff, Ableton Live, Wavelab, Audiomulch, all the usual things.

“The only hardware I have in my studio is a Linndrum, an Elektron drum machine, an Electribe EMX1, an Oberheim DX, a Kawai r100, two Acidlab Basslines, a Yamaha DX200, a Nordlead 2, three Kaoss Pads, five different Faderfox MIDI controllers, a Micromodular, plus all the stuff Tapprikk used in his studio (Logic, Electribe emx1, Access Virus and a Jupiter 6).”

What’s the most surprising instrument you used to make the album?

“Maybe the most surprising element was a trombone (played by Icelandic Helgi Jonsson).

“I also used a 303-Clone a friend of mine built called an Acidlab Bassline.

“But the most surprising element was probably me clapping and smashing things in the studio to create percussion sounds and Taprikk using his voice to create synthie-like-sounding melodies.”

Do you design your own artwork and website?

“No, fortunately I’ve got loads of good friends helping me out.

“Sebastian Onufszak from my hometown Rosenheim for example did my album artwork, Joel Kitzmiller from San Diego did the Myspace site and Paul Paper from Vilnius did the website.

What’s next?

“In two weeks I’m gonna start recording a techno album together with my friend Quietpoint.

“I am looking forward to going back to my roots, using only old school equipment and hardly any computers.”

Can you remember the record that first got you into music?

“AC/DC ‘Back In Black’ - I was 11-years-old back then.

“When I turned 13 or 14 Public Enemy ‘It Takes A Nation of Millions to Hold Us Back’.

“Then finally Human Resource’s ‘Dominator’ got me into techno.”

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