We catch up for a quick chat with US legends Dresden & Johnston ahead of their new single 'Keep Faith' which is due for release next week, 13th April.
So Dave obviously this is a brand new partnership for you, how’s it working out and what are your guys’ dynamics like in the studio?
Dave: Like any great relationship, things take time to materialize between each other. I feel that Mikael and I really worked hard at figuring out each others' quirks and musical strong points in the first year of our partnership and knowing where each of us can shine with our respective talents. We also spent a great deal of time listening to our bodies of work to see where we have come and where we can go with it. When we enter the studio now, we know exactly what each of us needs to do to get the job done.
Keep Faith is doing really well over here in the UK, two weeks in the Cool Cuts chart and from what we’ve seen, great reactions from fellow DJs. What’s the track about?
Dave: "Keep Faith" is an anthem for the disenchanted. There is a lot going on right now in the world that scares and frightens people and we felt that a song that inspires people to look past all this and think positively, that could go a long way in alleviating the stresses that the issues of the day have created. To help bring the message of this song out, mikael and I created a short video on youtube with "keep faith" playing in the background showing the many sides of the Haiti Earthquake disaster urging viewers to donate to the American Red Cross.
You’ve had a serious number of remixes done – Morgan Page, Harry Choo Choo Romero, Adam White, Ultra-Fi vs Save The Robot, xx – any more to come?
MIkael: We have a few remixes that we've held back. We will release them either as a part 2 of the single or we'll give them out to our fans at various times in the future as free downloads through things like our newsletter.
Why did you have so many remixes done, is it important for a tune these days?
Dave: A lot of the remixes happened organically. We posted a short clip of us finishing the song in the studio on youtube, and many of our friends offered to do remixes upon hearing this clip. Usually when this happens a few of them are good and many of them are not. In this instance, the remixes that came back were really good and we decided to use them. Then we also needed to hire some "known" remixers since this is our debut single and need to drum up support from the DJ community. All in all, we are super excited with how the package turned out, even if there are almost two hours of mixes to choose from.
Mikael: Several of the remixes that were done came from people that had heard the original and contacted us asking to do a remix. Adam White, Lenny Rukus & Ana Vida and Ultra Fi Vs. Save The Robot are three of those, and these remixes are amazing. I couldn't believe how lucky we were to secure remixes of this quality for the single. When you have that many great remixes how do you choose which ones come out and which ones don't, especially when everyone did such a great job. We plan to release all of the mixes in some capacity over time.
Which one is your favourite and why?
Dave: As a DJ, i really love what Harry "Choo Choo" Romero did. He combined his classic subliminal sound with the ravey Dutch sound that is happening now and dropped the vocal in the break, I have had an amazing response to this version from the dance floor at gigs. I Also love what Morgan Page did, because i love textured production and chopped up vocal hooks. I think Morgan's mix is by far one of the best remixes that has been done to one of my productions!
Mikael: For me I love them all, and I mean that sincerely but if I had to pick a favorite (other than our own version) It would have to be the Morgan Page remix. Personally I just love Morgans style of production.
We’ve been seeing all over the net that you have a new track coming out with Nadia Ali, can you tell us a bit more about that?
Mikael: This song started as a demo I wrote over 5 years ago for an ex girlfriend. At the time I didn't have a vehicle to release this type of song. Because I was friends with both Josh and Dave I sent the track to them and asked if they were interested in helping me produce it. They called me back and said they were interested in doing something with it but that it would have to wait until after they finished some previous commitments. Then G & D broke up and Dave approached me about working on the song together. He had been carrying that demo around in his itunes for at least 2 years lol! Truthfully I was very flattered because Dave's A & R abilities are second to none.
Dave: What i loved about this song from the get-go was how universal it was. Everyone who breathes air and drinks water has had a "That Day" and the song is about a breakup where neither of the lovers blames the other for the failure of the relationship. I also was really feeling Mikael's vocal performance and paired with Nadia Ali, i dare anyone to not be moved by it.
Mikael, your own pedigree in music is pretty damn impressive, can you tell us more about your background and what you bring to the duo?
Mikael: I got my start in San Francisco with my own project Mephisto Odyssey and label Mephisto Records in 1993 with the single "Dream of the Black Dahlia." a few years later the label was absorbed by OM records but not before I released compilations of our labels singles on Crammed/SSR in Europe and City of Angels in the U.S. From there Mephisto Odyssey signed to City of Angels, a label that was also home to The Crystal Method, Uberzone, Sandra Collins, Simply Jeff and others. While at COA we met Troy Wallace who was an A & R guy working under David Kahne at Warner Bros. Records. Troy had ambitions to bring dance music to Warner Bros. and had been scouting us for a while. About a year before we were actually offered a deal at WB Troy came to us and was like "hey Jane's Addiction is back together and I'm their A & R rep do you want to remix their new original?" We were like, "FUCK YEAH!" This was in 1997. That remix project is a long story in itself and was a hair away from never being released, but long story short it turned into a maxi single project with us doing several remixes in various styles to showcase the track to the DJ world. Warner Bros. had expected the single to flop and when it did well in the Billboard Maxi Single sales chart it bought us a lot of credibility and david Kahne let Troy offer us a deal. While at Warner Bros. we collaborated with and remixed several other Warner artists including, Soul Coughing , Los Amigos Invisibles and Static X. When we left Warner Bros. at the beginning of 2002 I took a break and spent my time working as an engineer producer (even though I actually continued to write original material). This eventually led to me co-engineering "The Sounds" record "Dying To Say This To You" in 2005, alongside producer Jeff Saltzman (who is best known for producing The Killers Hot Fuss). Around that time one of the songs I had written while at Warner Bros. was licensed for the Film Hostel which was produced by Quentin Tarantino. This sparked my interest again in resurrecting my career as an artist producer under my old name Mephisto Odyssey, and then a few years later I teamed up with Dave.
You’ve set up your own imprint Problem Child Rekords, what are the plans for that, is it just an avenue for your own tracks or are you looking to bring other artists onboard?
Dave: One of my favorite things about being a musician is finding artists to work with and releasing their work. I hope to use Problem Child as a means to bring new talent to the forefront while at the same time giving Mikael and I a chance to make the music we want to make without compromise.
Mikael: For now it's a vehicle for us to get Dresden & Johnston songs to our fans but eventually (probably not too far in the future) we'll be releasing other artists as well.
You both hail from the States, how important is it for you to break the UK market?
Dave: I think it is still very important to pay attention to the UK market. There is still a very large national system of radio, clubs and festivals to choose from, and if you want to break on a global scale, the UK is still the cornerstone of it.
Do you follow UK music trends? Are there any artists from over here that are really making you sit up and listen?
Dave: I am really feeling what Michael Woods is doing. Strong production skills and an ear for good hooks, this guy is headed to the A list if he keeps it up!
Who from the States (apart from yourselves) would you recommend us to keep an eye on?
Dave: Justin Michael & Kamal are really doing it for me right now. I think before long they will be making huge hits and be touring the global circuit. I also think that Anthony Attalla is smashing it at the moment.
MIkael: Tritonal, Lenny Ruckus, The Andretta Brothers
Any plans to come over and play here soon?
Dave: Mikael and I are heavily concentrating our efforts on making the music that will get us both on the road as a touring act. I Have purposely kept most of my bookings close to home since the split of Gabriel & Dresden so that i could tour on the music at hand instead of doing the obvious and milking off the back of my former successes.
Mikael: I can't wait to get across the pond, I'm counting the days! :)
Thanks guys, it’s been a pleasure J
