Hamburg lad Martin Stimming is a man who prides himself of producing new, exciting and ever evolving music. Not the kind of artist who's sound is identifiable from the get go, this 'Diynamic' DJ and producer focuses on making music which surprises, wows and entertains his audience from the start. As an artist, Stimming's style is so complex and tailored that he creates his own world of sounds that are not only unique but also infectious in their groove.
Classically trained as a youngster in the violin, piano and drums there seems to be no end to his talent. After bagging a Music production qualification and a studio internship he went onto form one part of Gerbrüder Ton and later met Diynamic Music's main man, Solomun whom brought him to the White Isle this summer as one of the headlining acts of his new night 'Diynamic Neon Nights' at Sankeys. Since making ties with Solomun, Stimming has gone onto release a number of records on Nascent and now rides solo under his surname. Making his mark on the industry with his 2008 release of Una Pena and later with his debut artist album Reflections in 2009, Stimming was quickly the talk of the electronic music world and still remains one of the most exciting producers to this day.
Known for his blinding live performances and ability to pull in a crowd with his melodic and stand out sound, there is no doubting that Stimming will be around for the foreseeable. Using a variety of sources to create his sound from the likes of a coke can to a pizza cutter this innovative producer never fails to pull something cool and quirky out of the bag; in trying to make his style more than just deep house or techno, Stimming has managed to create his own style oozing with emotional excellence. Here we catch up with him to find out a little more about his live performances, tricks of the trade and his relationship with the Diynamic gang.
Talk to us about how you first got involved with Solomun and the Diynamic music imprint?
Well, this was more like a process than a sudden event; I was involved in Diynamic right from the beginning but under a different name which was Gebrueder Ton. My production partner at that time alongside Solomun were were searching for others to start their own label. That's how I met Solomun for the first time and when I broke up with my Gebrueder Ton partner going with Diynamic was the natural thing to do... I do not regret anything.
You have 6 dates with Diynamic Neon Nights at Sankeys Ibiza over the summer, what should people expect from the party?
Good music, nice people, a great sound system, an “undergroundish” club and the best and most forward thinking DJs and live acts on the planet!
And what do you feel you will bring to the night?
My sound and energy which gives the nights a different twist.
How does your sound fit into the Diynamic style?
One thing about the main, or lets say “core”, artists from Diynamic (Solomun, H.O.S.H, David August and myself) is that everyone has a unique style and a slightly different approach to house music; this is something that we are proud of and which we think is very colourful. I'm the one who has the most technoish approach to the whole thing because I grew up near Frankfurt, with techno from the likes of Chris Liebing, Sven Vath and so on. but when I moved to Hamburg I understood that “tempo” doesn't automatically mean “energy”, so I´m searching for that energy I grew up with but doing this on a different tempo with a lot of different flavours and colours.
You perform a live set at all these gigs, why have you chosen to do this?
I always play live, I never simpy DJ - I decided to do it like this because I am a producer and not a DJ. There is a huge difference between the two for me and as a matter of respect for the art form "DJ'ing" I chose to concentrate on what I'm good at.
What do you think is so special about playing live?
The most obvious thing... you only play your own tracks. Also there is nothing like a “general-formula” of how to do it, technically. Every DJ is using the two CD players and either the Pioneer
mixer or the one from Allen&Heath;
whereas with live acts, everyone is making it different. From a very easy to a very complex scenario, depending on what the artist thinks they are able to handle during the gig. When you start
creating your first live set, it's very, very hard to find a good solution to your set up.
Describe your set up for us when playing live?
I´m using Ableton live on a MacBook pro, simply because it's the most stable and solid system that I've found. I was going through a tough learning process with crashing PCs and different machines during some live sets of mine which was not fun at all. I'm also using Native instruments “maschine” with original samples from my tracks, it is also used as a controller for Ableton. I also use Novation launchpad for launching the hundreds of clips that I have in my live arrangement.
As a seriously talented producer, what tips do you have for any young budding talent?
Finish the tracks that you are working on, because that's the best way to learn from your mistakes and don't despair when things don't sound the way that you want them to - they never do.
Where do you pull influences from?
I used to cut ringtones (realtones) years ago for a living and therefore I've heard loads of crap music from around the world. I cut more then 10,000 so I have a big pool of influences. The genre itself isn't important, it's the idea that separates a good piece from a bad one.
Do you think it is important for music to portray a message rather than just sounds?
I'm sceptical when it comes to messages in music - for me, creating moods or atmospheres is more realistic. I usually don't hear messages worth spreading, but I often listen to simple statements and use music to put them on a serious level.
Where do you want to take the listener to with your sound?
On a journey which reflects my feelings andto make the listener realise that we are not that different, no matter where we we come from, or which colour our hair or skin may be.
What has been your favourite artist release to date and why?
Oh, this is a difficult question... there are some albums that I love such as; Amon Tobin's Foley room, New forms from Roni Size, Kakusei from DJ Krush, Christian Vogel's Station 55 plus Anthony Rother and his amazing electro-album “Simulationszeitalter”... just to name a few!
I believe that you are currently working on your third album, how is that going? How do you find the time?
Yes that's true, I'm working on my third album! Unfortunately I can't say how far I am, I already have a couple of tracks and a lot of ideas but I don't want to put pressure on myself and say that i'ts going to come out on a specific date. It's finished when it's finished... and yes, it's not that easy to find the time, but I'm doing well.
What can we expect from the album?
It's going to be 100% dance, after my second album Liquorice - which was very experimental electronica, I feel that there is a lot more for me to say on a 4/4 beat basis. But of course I still try to expand the limits of what is possible on a straight and simple groove. I'm searching for weird combinations, unheard atmospheres and different perspectives.
Aside from that have you got any exciting things planned for the rest of the year?
To be honest - the most exciting thing for me really is this new album and the tracks that I am going to do. Creating music is and always has been the biggest challenge of my life.
Finally... hummous or alioli?
Alioli with fresh baked bread... mmm....
