Photo courtesy of the artist
Some people stumble upon electronic music by accident, whether it's hearing a catchy dance-pop collaboration on the radio that piques their curiosity, or by exploring the alien sounds emanating from any given festival's DJ-dedicated stage. Other people, like Brazilian DJ and producer ANNA, are born into it.Already a seasoned international DJ, ANNA surprisingly has yet to make her mark on American soil—but that's about to change this month as she embarks on her first US tour. On September 16, she marks her third release on Tiga's Twin Turbo label with the Artha EP, another fine example of her blistering techno prowess. Today, THUMP is premiering the record's B-side, "When It Rains," a steamy, subterranean track with tightly swirling synths that builds to a mad climax. File under: tunes to play if someone ever throws a techno party in a submarine.Get into "When It Rains" below, along with a Q&A with ANNA.THUMP: Having grown up around the nightlife industry, what's the most interesting/weird experience you've seen inside a club?
ANNA: It's a tricky question, you can imagine the amount of crazy and interesting stories over the course of my career. The first one that came to mind is from when I was playing in Czech Republic, I don't remember the name of the city, I arrived at the club and they've prepared a special production in the whole club with a Brazilian motif, but they put up billboards with totally random words in Portuguese; God knows how they looked those up, but the words had nothing to do to with anything, stuff like "Casa de Cambio" which means exchange office, or "Cadeira" which means chair, "Circo" which means circus, not to mention drawings of bananas and all sorts of cliches, but it was so absurd we laughed like crazy all night long.Tell us about the Artha EP. Is there a story behind the track "When It Rains" that related to the proverb "When it rains, it pours?"
Well, the tracks were made in different moments. I wrote "Artha" first. I wanted to make a strong track, dirty, dark, with a deep melody. I was not inspired by anything in specific for this one; it was a studio session that I started without having anything in mind, and "Artha" came up. "When It Rains" was made after I went running while listening to Ame. I love their music, it's full of depth and soul, and the name is not related to anything, actually it was called "It's Raining," because there was a sound on the track that reminds me of rain, but suddenly I didn't like the name and thought that "When It Rains" sounded better.Artha marks your third release on Tiga's Twin Turbo label. How did you meet Tiga, and how would you describe your relationship with him, and how your music fits into the Turbo catalog?
Actually I've never met Tiga or talked to him, I signed my first release on Turbo after sending my tracks to Francis, the label manager, but I have since developed a great relationship with the label, they are fantastic to work with. Tiga has the final word on signing the tracks but unfortunately I still haven't met or talked to him, I hope it happens soon!This month, you're embarking on your first American tour. What do you anticipate most about this trip?
I always wanted to play in US, I am so excited it is finally happening. I am very curious to see how the people are gonna react to my music. We booked some club venues on the tour as well as two big festivals, so I will get the whole experience. Also, my last gig is in San Francisco and it is a place that I always wanted to visit, so I am looking forward to that.
The daughter of a local nightclub owner, ANNA was 14 when she realized she too wanted to make dance music her career. In 2011, she put out her debut EP Behind The Groove on Christian Smith's Tronic label, and the flow hasn't stopped since, as she's continued to rack up releases on trusted labels such as Diynamic, Knee Deep in Sound, Octopus, Ultra, and Kraftek.Read More: ANNA Has Arrived and is Here to Stay
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ANNA: It's a tricky question, you can imagine the amount of crazy and interesting stories over the course of my career. The first one that came to mind is from when I was playing in Czech Republic, I don't remember the name of the city, I arrived at the club and they've prepared a special production in the whole club with a Brazilian motif, but they put up billboards with totally random words in Portuguese; God knows how they looked those up, but the words had nothing to do to with anything, stuff like "Casa de Cambio" which means exchange office, or "Cadeira" which means chair, "Circo" which means circus, not to mention drawings of bananas and all sorts of cliches, but it was so absurd we laughed like crazy all night long.Tell us about the Artha EP. Is there a story behind the track "When It Rains" that related to the proverb "When it rains, it pours?"
Well, the tracks were made in different moments. I wrote "Artha" first. I wanted to make a strong track, dirty, dark, with a deep melody. I was not inspired by anything in specific for this one; it was a studio session that I started without having anything in mind, and "Artha" came up. "When It Rains" was made after I went running while listening to Ame. I love their music, it's full of depth and soul, and the name is not related to anything, actually it was called "It's Raining," because there was a sound on the track that reminds me of rain, but suddenly I didn't like the name and thought that "When It Rains" sounded better.Artha marks your third release on Tiga's Twin Turbo label. How did you meet Tiga, and how would you describe your relationship with him, and how your music fits into the Turbo catalog?
Actually I've never met Tiga or talked to him, I signed my first release on Turbo after sending my tracks to Francis, the label manager, but I have since developed a great relationship with the label, they are fantastic to work with. Tiga has the final word on signing the tracks but unfortunately I still haven't met or talked to him, I hope it happens soon!This month, you're embarking on your first American tour. What do you anticipate most about this trip?
I always wanted to play in US, I am so excited it is finally happening. I am very curious to see how the people are gonna react to my music. We booked some club venues on the tour as well as two big festivals, so I will get the whole experience. Also, my last gig is in San Francisco and it is a place that I always wanted to visit, so I am looking forward to that.