Experimental yet functional: this is how Midland tames dancefloors

Midland’s all-night-long tour of the UK last autumn showcased a DJ at the top of his game. He captivated crowds with five-hour stints that showed a masterful control of energy. Areas charted spanned from Λένα Πλάτωνος’s 1980s Greek spoken word-pop down to Matthew Jonson’s minimal rollers, the mind-bending, chaotic techno hybrids of A Made Up Sound to Radiohead. Packed-out dancefloors thrived upon precise selections, hooked to the London-based DJ's unfaltering approach to ebbs and flows.

As a producer, Midland is among the most consistent in the house and techno sphere. Since making his debut release in 2010 he’s built up a potent back catalogue, with that record and each thereafter standing out among each respective year’s best.

It’s not often that a label that's just two releases into its life pulls a dedicated fanbase, but the launch of Midland's own Graded imprint in 2013 did just that. ‘Archive01'/'Realtime’ made a splash with its combination of beguiling vocal chops and murky sub-lines, while ‘Drumtrak’ on the second EP stunned with its richter scale-charting bass that blows the roof off any club it’s drawn for in. The records created a clamour for Graded material that didn’t dip in fervency across the two and a half years that passed before the mighty ‘Blush’ dropped last month.

During that time Midland additionally founded his ReGraded sublabel to pursue an interest in sample-led house, hitting quickly towards the end of 2015 with two massive releases in as many months that lit up dancefloors across the globe. His own ‘Double Feature’ provided a smooth glide through strings, while Hubie Davison’s track ‘Sanctified’ pushed the dynamism up considerably with euphoric vocals and swirling disco samples merged into a track with the vigour to send any dancefloor wild, reflected in its support by DJs from Gerd Janson to Seth Troxler. It was a free download on SoundCloud when Midland first heard it, and now it’s sold out multiple represses. He knows how to pick them as well as he makes them.

The next ReGraded EP from Midland is out on June 3 and once again it’s a near-flawless release, fronted with the finely-crafted 'Final Credits' on the A-side which is an irresistible seven-minute groove. We’ve got the exclusive premiere alongside a Q+A below.

Why did you start Graded?

The reason I started Graded was due to the fact that having previously released with a few labels, I wanted a bit more freedom and control in how the music was presented as well as being less constricted by release schedules. I liked the idea of writing something and then being able to have it out within three months.

What would you say your vision for the label is and how successful do you think you've been in that so far?

For me the goal of the label is to release experimental yet functional club music. I was listening back to the previous releases before our interview to get some perspective and I think I can say that they have a theme and that the label has a sound. Also, the idea is to make the records collectible both physically and musically and I think it’s something people appreciate.

Is music you release on Graded specific to that label?

I think so. I was speaking to a friend recently about this and I can instantly tell if a record is a Graded record. Why that is I don't know but usually it has something to do with synths. Synths are quite a big part of the process.

I like the use of vocals in a lot of your tracks that are really warped or reversed. Are they yours? You used to be in a choir right?

I used to be in a choir, but haven’t used my own vocals yet - mostly they're just sourced from various parts of the Internet. There's so much stuff out there and it's pretty easy to make things sound different to the source material. I think it stemmed from reading an article a few years back about the voice and vocals as just another frequency on the spectrum; it made me think, they don’t’ always have to be the emotional anchor of the track, they can just be another element as much as a snare or a hi-hat. So with quite a few of them it's just been a matter of using them more in a percussive way or as an accent.

What inspired your decision to start ReGraded? What got you into that sample-based, disco-leaning house sound?

I think it was seeing Gerd Janson at Panorama Bar early last year, he just held this vibe all night where the groove and the tension was really tight, it felt like peeking through your older brother's bedroom door listening to him playing all these amazing records. All through his set he maintained this vibe and at no point did it feel like it went too full on or too bombastic. It was soon after that I went home and wrote the first ReGraded record, and that was my attempt to channel that experience, that feeling of almost being weightless in the club. Since it didn’t fit the main label, the logical step was to put it out through my own channels. We already had the means to put out a record through Graded with the distributor and designer so it actually wasn’t much work. What started as a pretty off the cuff endeavour is now something I'm really enjoying and I'm getting sent a lot of really great music for and so in that respect the label is starting to become its own beast which is great.

Were you surprised by the huge demand for the Hubie Davison release or did you think you had a massive track on your hands when you picked it up?

I thought it was the biggest record I'd heard in ages. But often when you think something is going to do well it actually doesn't or it slips under the radar. I still remember e-mailing him and asking if he'd tried to get it signed and he hadn't. It was a free download for a couple of weeks. I think because we have never really pushed ReGraded massively, using promo companies or the such, it's always been quite under the radar and so it's really heartening to know for a track that we initially pressed 400 copies of is now up to 1500.

You’re quite outspoken about social and political issues on social media. Do you think it’s important to use your position to speak out on these matters?

If I wasn't in the position that I'm in, I would still be discussing these issues, so I don't think it really changes anything. I don't personally feel like I have an obligation to say things because I have some followers on Facebook or Twitter, I think I just end up speaking about things that are important to me. I’m sure this loses me followers but then perhaps we didn't need to be connected in the first place?

Yeah you posted once about losing followers and a general shitstorm brewing after a “vaguely political” post. It seems a lot of dance music fans on Facebook and wherever aren’t receptive to progressive/liberal dialogues, which seems incongruous to the scene.

Yes and no, actually. Often some of the most discussed and widely shared things have actually been related to those sort of subjects more than the typical "my new record is out today" post. I think now more than ever we find ourselves in a really interesting and at times depressing situation with this constant dialogue taking place through social media. Some artists engage with it, some don't.

After playing the MMA club in Munich a few months back you noted the more progressive dance music policies of Germany and Holland. Are you worried about the UK nightlife scene?

I'm wouldn’t say that I’m worried about it, because there are still people throwing really great parties. I just feel like our government needs to actually engage with it as a valid art form in order for it to flourish. It's always been viewed as a slightly naughty cousin that the establishment tolerates but doesn't actually engage with. There needs to be dedicated people who can act as mediators between the nightlife industry and the government, a night mayor/minister, someone who can be in contact with clubs and owners and then report to back to the government and work out strategies to improve the situation.

Do you think parties on the continent are better than in Britain?

That's a very contentious question! Personally I like the chance to play longer and I like nights that run longer because that’s often when you hear the most interesting music. I would love to see what would happen in Sub Club if it went for 12 hours, but also I worry it could just be Armageddon [laughs]. It’s always funny speaking to British people after going to Berlin and hearing them comment on how much better Germans pace themselves in clubs, not having the 3/5am closing time to race against. I recently played in Cologne at Jack Who and the club owners said, "You've got a three hour set, but you can play for as long as you want." So I ended up playing for five hours, and that felt like the natural time to stop.

It’s a very different type of energy in the UK. In clubs like Subclub you experience these almost nuclear reactions to music because they have the three o’clock closing time looming over them, so really its in full swing from about midnight and then in clubs like Panorama Bar you can build up to a moment over a 30-minute path. Neither takes preference; both have given me some of my most cherished dancefloor moments.

I saw you post about that gig in Cologne and you were saying how perfect it was. What ingredients achieve the perfect party?

It's not really that complex. This is why I loved that party. The guys who ran the club took me out for dinner and told me a bit about the space and the ideas behind it. I soon learned that the club was a temporary space and that even though they only had it for a year and a half, they had decided to give it a go and had furnished and built the whole space with their friends. Everything from the sound to the décor to the DJ booth, was really lovingly thought out. The crowd was super mixed, everyone in there was themselves. There was all different shades of people, colours, sexualities, and it just felt really safe and welcoming. I felt instantly comfortable there. It's incredible in places like these that records you would consider really deep or understated suddenly become these huge moments. It's almost like people are willing the best reaction out of a song rather than waiting for a drop or something like that.

How do you prepare for marathon DJ sets and what is your perfect set snack?

Ha, "my perfect set snack"! Usually it's apples and peanut M&Ms, with tequila. [laughs] Preparing for them is just a matter of organising your music really, really well. That's not a matter of planning what you're going to play, it's having all your playlists and things really well organised. I rip all my vinyl so I have a folder with all my new vinyl rips, then I'll have a new folder with all my released stuff and unreleased stuff. Then it's broken down into subsections: disco, melodies, moments, vocals. If it's all planned out in front of you, it's like cooking a really complicated meal but having all the ingredients pre-chopped and laid out in front of you.

Do you think clubs are still really important as safe spaces for diverse types of people to come and let go?

Of course. Even though these sorts of places don't exist perhaps as much as we'd want, there are all sorts of club nights and collectives that are really focusing on that all over the world. In the US parties likes Honey Soundsystem, Honcho, Wrecked, Mens Room etc are tapping into gay history and reclaiming dancefloors and spaces with their own unique twists. I would highly suggest reading Andrew Ryce’s feature for Resident Advisor and Shawn Reynaldo's piece for NPR. In the UK you have nights like Chapter 10 and the whole Block9 crew at Glastonbury. Alongside this, collectives like Discwoman in New York and Siren in London are focussing on furthering the presence of women in dance music through parties, bookings and all sorts of avenues. To me it feels like a really exciting time because you've got all these different groups of people taking matters into their own hands and creating some really exciting movements in electronic music.

You’ve spoken a little about your experiences with anxiety and depression, which is something a lot more DJs are opening up about now, and how exercise helped you overcome it.

When I moved to London I was in a really weird position in my life and career. Music felt like it was stagnating and I was feeling really lonely living in London, which in turn led to quite a lot of serious anxiety. The problem is when you’re anxious or depressed the basics feel really tough and totally overwhelming so it can be a real mountain to climb to just get up and go outside. It got to a bit of a breaking point and I decided I had to try and do something to rectify the situation so I decided to give running a shot. This was the first time I had stuck with it for any length of time and suddenly I was getting to the end of doing a run and feeling really clear headed, like the cloud that was in my head and the lump in my chest had decreased. It was a pretty simple step that changed my life. When I stopped being able to run because of knees I started swimming, it's now something I do pretty much every day for that very reason.

It's obviously difficult to talk about private issues if you've got a big following, but I guess it might make it easier if you've got a big, adoring fanbase to support you.

Yeah, it's true. I'm trying to think who was it recently who sort of that they needed time out. It was Rustie wasn't it? There was an overwhelming outpouring of support towards him, which was great to see because it is slowly helping to dismantle the stigma attached to it within our world, but we need to remember a lot of people don’t have these support networks to fall back on and it can be so easy for people to fall down the cracks.

'Final Credits' is out June 3 via ReGraded

Patrick Hinton is Mixmag's Digital Intern. Follow him on Twitter here