On Fire 🔥
Louk Techno Debut
Episode 15/24
Louk
Louk, a talented DJ and producer hailing from Plymouth, has taken to our podcast spotlight. With a background rooted in the early 00s dance music era, he has developed a signature sound that showcases his passion for trance and techno from the likes of System F and legendary venues like Dance Academy on Plymouth's Union street. In our catch up with Louk, he discusses his recent venture into mentoring emerging dance music artists, shedding light on his new role in the industry.
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Artist Interview
I got into techno thanks to a friend in Germany sending over a mix of his and also the trance section in my record store had a really cool looking techno record and I played it and loved all 3 tunes.
Please introduce yourself to those unfamiliar with your DJ sound.
My name is Louk, I am 39 and was born in Plymouth where I still live (after moving to Yorkshire for a year and Birmingham for a few years for Uni). I grew up listening to all sorts of music and going through that stage of listening to happy hardcore, drum n bass (shows like One In The Jungle on Radio 1), cheese/dance compilations that friends and family liked when younger. I wanted to produce music after hearing System F - Out Of The Blue one night when it was known as 'Out Of The Blue - Something To Blow Your Brains Out' on Judge Jules show, and learned the basics on an Amiga, a computer I still love and often play now. Apart from trance, I got into techno thanks to a friend in Germany sending over a mix of his and also the trance section in my record store had a really cool looking techno record and I played it and loved all 3 tunes. I pretty much play that now and have been to many trance and techno events across the world.
When I started making music, I was in my early teens and have been releasing music since 2003, Apart from my frequent record shopping in my school uniform on most Friday's after school, I used to go to Dance Academy and Premonition / Candystore and events like Hindsight and other events in the South West when I was legally not old enough to go but thankfully ID checks were far more lapse back then as I didn't have any! I also used to listen to local radio lots and in particular a show called Club 97 on Plymouth Sound really had some awesome music on a weekly basis from DJs I'd mostly go on to play alongside and work with as I got older.
This was a welcome and hugely dominating influence on my sound as most of my school friends would go to under 18s cheese nights and I was fortunate to go and hear the likes of Mark EG and M-Zone and many others on a monthly basis at a time when the music I loved was at its peak and you could go into a record shop like Bigga / Plain Grooves and out of 30 records would want to buy 29 of them!
I was writing for quite a few magazines and websites reviewing music and events and decided to have a go on the decks after mates said to do so and kept on my case. I am thankful to them as I've had some absolutely wonderful DJ gigs nationally and internationally, residencies and opportunities that have all come from something that was only intended to be a hobby to just get one record out there. Production wise I've released and remixed many tracks as Louk, but also as Cohesive, Hidden Identity, Lewis Gate (named after a low life who tried ripping one of my tracks off), Masters Of Chaos (with legends Noizy Boy & Jonez), Future Vision (Hard Trance), Digital Force (with legendary Plymouth DJ Steve Edwards who is a huge influence on my sound, he also DJd at my wedding), Boglin (with my good friend Blair making techno), 304 (with my good mate Scott for all things acid/ravey), R.B.N (some oldskool breakbeat and hardcore with my friend Graham) and more over the years. This also includes many collaborations with my good friend Nick The Kid, Busho (cornish hard trance ambassador), Brian Eddie (fellow Uni mate and legend), Joe-E and more over the years.
Have to say a very big shout to all the promoters who booked me at a time when I'd only been mixing a few months and my mixing was questionable at best on a good day!
What are your highlights of the past year and what is planned for the future?
After having many gigs and relentlessly producing and travelling in my 20s, I slowed down in my 30s. In the past year my alias for softer techno 'Hidden Identity' has managed to do well after releasing some tracks again, after a much needed studio break when my youngest daughter was born (she's 5 next month). I had built up some hype for the alias releasing on Mauro Picotto's Alchemy label and doing a podcast for him and also Kevin Saunderson's prestigious KMS label among others including remixing Mark EG for Yin Yang. This year after not releasing anything for a few years I had a new original come out called 'Outer Limits' on longstanding legendary label Hooj Choons and only yesterday at the time of writing this, a remix I produced five years ago for fun of Jam & Spoon's 1993 classic 'Follow Me' (such a track!!) has come out on Dutch label Black Hole Recordings.
As for plans for the future, I no longer work full time in music, and after engineering and co-producing/co-writing over 300 tracks for many artists (which I am currently trying to update Discogs about), I don't even have a studio set up here. I have loaned most of my studio equipment out to a good friend who is doing his university studies, and another friend I collaborated with on some tracks. When I do get a chance to make music here (purely on my laptop at the moment) I go to my friends to tidy the tracks using my equipment but that's really rare lately as by day I am a software developer for a retail chain. This means I have the luxury of being really selective with gigs and the ones that I do accept are normally very worthwhile. Ones coming up I am looking forward to including playing at the Depo on 17th August with Will Atkinson, and Hindsight's Birthday in November but of late I'd rather go support friends who are up and coming play gigs and spend time with the family and chill out when I am not working (apart from pub visits, which are still often despite being tee total for 8 months now).
By the time this will have been published, I will have spent a weekend teaching at the HTE retreat in Devon alongside M-Zone, Nick The Kid, Lab 4, this is a good experience for budding producers to learn and I know many who have gone on the previous editions who have learned lots. Production wise, not sure what will happen in the future, there are still a couple target labels I would like to try and release music on but we'll see. I'd also like to do an official remix of Depeche Mode, still the best band ever who I also listen to daily.
...don't listen to all the career advice you are given.
Tell us something positive to inspire future artists.
Haha, could gladly go on for hours to inspire, but I'd say that there are lots of very good, friendly and helpful people out there. Most of the opportunities I have had have been through luck and sending an e-mail out of nowhere and with the mindset that the worst that can happen is the other person / night / label can say no! If there is a producer who you buy a track from and like and play it out, let them know / reach out. If there's a DJ who plays music you like and make, when you have music out there get in touch and send them a copy.
I'd say also protect your intellectual property and most importantly if you are a producer who writes songs and performs on your own music then join the PRS, MCPS, PPL, Musicians Union, IAFAR. All worthwhile organisations that have really helped over the years and are good for helping you get the income you are owed for your music.
Also this sounds very Johnny Rotten, but don't listen to all the career advice you are given. My music GCSE teacher at school told me I'd never amount to anything musically unless I played in an orchestra and that electronic music had no value. The biggest success story musically from my year is a friend at school didn't even do GCSE music and has had three number one albums in the UK charts. Big shout out to Woody!
What artists have inspired your DJ style?
I like listening to all sorts of music in the week, due to the rights expiring on lots of the older tracks I like most aren't on spotify (or even youtube!) so I built a server that randomly plays over 500 tracks daily that I can listen to when I'm not listening to bands, radio and other mixes. DJ style wise in the techno world definitely has a lot of inspiration from Dax J, Paul Damage (both absolutely awesome and high octane and holds no barred energy wise), CJ Bolland, Luke McMillan/DJ The Producer, Andreas Kraemer, Ribbz, Mach One and more for the techno, and of course Mark EG and M-Zone for their energy and tune selection. Steve Edwards for his faultless tune selection and fact we are always sending links to each other of music we like still years on! Also really like Pete Cannon, top bloke, excellent DJ and amazing producer, and Harrison BDP for some awesome chilled out music and the DJs I grew up listening to locally on Plymouth Sound. I still listen to old tapepacks and rave packs trying to find the tunes I grew up listening to, and know many other music obsessives are exactly the same so that always has an influence. I could find a tune from a tape from 20 years ago and then go out to play it for 6 months solid.
Talk us through your podcast mix track selection.
I know you guys asked for a 60 min mix but I went a little bit longer and did a mix you can fit on a CD. I still love listening to them when out and about. I kept everything techno (with a couple of tech trance bits in there) including 4 of my own productions some of which were mentioned above, a load of recent bandcamp/juno purchases, some promos I love, and I'd say half the mix contains lots of older techno favourites and some old 90s bits on Rising High etc. I also threw in a track by Scott Mac that really does the damage still. Hope you all enjoy it and thanks to everyone who's been supportive over the past 20+ years!
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