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Music

Alci Exceeds High Expectations With ‘The Traveling Soul’ on Apollonia

The Swiss producer knew that a release on Apollonia meant keeping up with Dan Ghenacia, Dyed Soundorom, and Shonky.

As the year progresses, the red-hot Apollonia label from Dan Ghenacia, Dyed Soundorom, and Shonky keeps up its steady release schedule with a sublime new EP from Alci. The young Swiss producer has already made a name for himself with celebrated releases on labels like Paris-based Phil Weeks's Robsoul imprint. Now comes the delightful three-track The Traveling Soul for Apollonia and it's serious, the standout being "All Bun," a composition of original melodies and minimal composition, with deep, catchy rhythms and vocal clips.

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THUMP: There aren't many prominent electronic artists with Turkish roots. Is there a sound or culture from your place of origin that you carry with you?
Alci: I would be lying to pretend that I am not influenced by my origins. The sound culture that I experienced as a child—and the importance of music in everyday life—are deeply anchored in my actual relation to rhythm; to my perception of groove and beats.

How do you maintain a balance between analog gear and new technology? Do you have a preference between vinyl and digital?
I am fond of vintage in general—from cars to furniture to gear. That's why I'm always looking for old stuff especially synths and modules even if I am not using it. I like the feeling of having it. I have kind of a collector spirit, I must admit. In my studio, I have a really good balance between digital and analog. If the sound is good and if I like it, the criteria of being generated from an analog or digital gear aren't there anymore. Of course, there are some advantages when it comes to the sound but I mix all my tracks with an analog mixer. I simply love vinyl, even if I mostly play with USBs because sadly not every club is conducive to the use of the black gold.

You've been on the bill for both the acclaimed underground FUSE London and tINI And The Gang parties. Do you favour that deep, dubby tech sound featured at each?
I met tINI and the FUSE guys after my first release on Robsoul Recordings. My introduction to tINI was at Cabaret Club in Zurich. It was the first time that I heard my own track in a club, being played by a DJ I really like. We talked a lot about music and realized that we share the same musical taste. We exchanged our email addresses before leaving and from this moment on, we kept sending each other our favorite tracks. At this time, I also sent my music to the FUSE guys, as they had charted one of my tracks. They liked something and chose to release it on their label. The latter may represent a deeper, dubby genre… although at a FUSE party you will listen to all genres between house and techno in a mix.

How does it feel to be releasing on one of the hottest labels at the moment? Did Dan, Dyed, and Shonky have any input on the release?
Well, it's awesome of course! It's such a pleasure to release on Apollonia. Since my first one, I had the urgency and huge need to dig a lot, as I knew that the bar was very high. Those guys have a lot of experience with the crowd for many years, so they precisely understand how a track has to be in order to suit their expectations and taste. That's why I felt so much pressure exerted on me… as if I knew that my musical knowledge needed get even better to keep up with them. So they played the tracks a lot and then told me what they thought about them, offering advice and helping me progress. Listening to other people's thoughts is a good way to learn, although, you need to digest it and mix it with your own vision when you feel good with it.

What about this track best represents you and your style?
Self-made, strange, and uncommon sounds that make sense when in combination with others. It's like having different ingredients which aren't really exciting in the flavour—even strange when you take them separately—but when you eat them altogether, the entire taste of this combination is a pure delight. And, of course, you can hear my hip-hop roots throughout… my old habit to sample some old funk and soul tracks!

Alci is on Facebook // SoundCloud Apollonia Music is on Facebook // Twitter // SoundCloud

Christopher is on Twitter.