MaximalMinimal

This is exclusive stuff : Axel the Baron, the co-funder of the Darling Records label, has accepted to answer a few questions for MaximalMinimal. This fairly recent,, clairly « house » label (only a few months old), presumably anounces the strong return of the good old « French Touch 1.0»!!

MXMLMNML: Hi Axel, could you briefly present yourself, for those who don’t yet know you?

Axel: Actually i’m not a very presentable person…(the pun was nicer in french…)

MM:Ok then, let’s get to the point (laughs): So, Darling Records was an idea of your’s and Julien Kourbatoff’s, where did it come from?

Axel: It was a old dream of mine to create Darling Records. I beggined everything alone, the volumes, thee mastering, the whole lot…But after a while it just became too much, especially since i’m really no big fan of paperwork…So when Julien [Kourbatoff] came to the studio to put forward an awesome sample, we did the track together…and it went so well that I basically asked him to join me in my work. And by the way he’s an awesomely competent guy, a really tough worker.

MM: Wasn’t the project a little risky? Between trying not to deceive the early days aficionados and going with the present flow of over-saturated-electro?

Axel: Yes you’re right, it was and is risky, but we have faith in this music and we’re going all in until the end. It’s like an actual love affair with house music, it’s not just about a dancefloor, but it’s also an emotion, something that marks and touches you, it’s something much stronger than just a fashion trend, it really goes much further than that.

MM: Many are currently speaking of French Touch 3.0 (Surkin, Yuksek,Nil, etc…): so does this come backof the 1.0 prove a will to make the new generation (re)-discover house music?

Axel: Actually, i prefer qualifying the stuff we do on Darling as 1.3 or 3.1 =). I don’t think there’s anything like a come-back going on, that everything is already here! Take for example `Around the World’ in the 2007 Alive album: kids love it as if it was brand-new!!For me that’s everything that needs to be said…

MM: Eric Chédeville is also participating on your project, do you think that he will, besides the track on Primary School, sign the second EP?

Axel: Rico is not on Primary school. At first he was only supposed to do a remix for me, but in the end it just became a genuine track of his. I was really psyched, especially that it’s awesome! Also, in june he passed at my studio to produce a pop track but us finishing early allowed him to remix Shooting girl. But I insist when I say that Rico only participated in a single Darling track.

MM: So where do you think the label is heading? Towards more prestigious artists? or are you going to try and concentrate on young new artists?

Axel: It isn’t one or the other, I have to answer yes to both! I can’t say anymore…it’s up to you to follow the volumes!

MM: Are you trying, through this label to bring back to life the old « classical » house, or to make it evolve, to introduce new tones in it?

Axel: We just wan’t to continue what we’ve started and let our hearts guide us…

MM: And how about a date for the new EP? Something exclusive for all our readers?

Axel: End of october!! And by the way if you wan’t to purchase some Darling tracks it’s exclusively on our website: www.darling-records.com <http://www.darling-records.com/>…

Our policy is to only do vinyl records.

MM: Any last words?

Axel: IN HOUSE WE TRUST!!

A big thanks to Axel to have accepted the interview! The end of 2008 promises to be very busy on MaximalMinimal…so stay tuned!

myspace.com/darlingrecords.com