by: Juan Porrata
After having run the now defunct BPM Records did you notice any patterns of purchase or taste preferences (besides shoplifting) among Dallas dj's?
Yes, even during the days of BPM, we noticed that people started buying more and more digital music due to its' immediate availability and lower price. I personally haven't bought Vinyl in over 3 years.
Also, what do you find to be the benefits of a digital distribution model over the more brick and mortar record store? Do you think the traditional stores are becoming extinct?
From a pure business standpoint, the digital distribution system is becoming more and more refined and allows for much faster delivery to key clients (TV/Film, Top DJ's, Radio etc). Also the overhead of having inventory is completely gone making it easier for labels and promotional agencies to spend money on marketing and advertising.
Personally though, I LOVE record stores. I love spending hours in a record store browsing for rarities and out of print stuff. Especially places like Forever Young or Half Price Books where you can always find great records for sampling. I really hope the traditional stores don't become extinct, at least I don't expect the "mom and pop" shops to go way since they carry a great variety of older material. Newer chain stores (Virgin) are however starting to go away it seems.
Tell me more about your show on Proton Radio? Where and when can people find it and what can they expect?
The Show is called "Blue Industries" and airs on the first Saturday of every month at 2pm Central Time. We usually have a 2-hour mix plus a one-hour guest mix. Expect to hear everything - we don't really try to stick to one genre, we just love playing great electronic music.
[http://protonradio.com/show.php?showid=167]
[http://www.blueplasmarecordings.com/media]
How would you currently describe your sound? In my opinion, I know in the past you took a very Progressive House approach although now it seems to be moving more towards a breaks format is that correct?
Interesting Question. I'm not one to toot my own horn, so it's hard for me to really describe my own sound except that I just love music. I guess in the past few years I've done some progressive stuff, but I don't really like classifying myself in one genre or another. I really enjoy melodic stuff and I love breaks. Lately I've been getting into a lot of classical composition (some of which you'll hear on the Hybrid Remix), a lot of which I'll be using on the album. I've always enjoyed experimenting with sounds and creating new textures out of odd stuff like noise, voices or common household soundfx. I've been playing around with Supercollider and Reaktor a bit as well to create interesting soundscapes and noises.
Any new projects or music you are working on that you would like to mention?
Currently working on remixes for Proton and Blueplasma. This year I'm going to concentrate more on working on my Album and playing out more. I've also started a new side project called "Oscar The Supermouse" to explore a more "techy / experimental" sound.
You can check my website [www.stefananion.com] for a list of all upcoming releases, events and other fun stuff.
Any shouts you would like to give?
The wonderful Crystal - my Girlfriend (+the kids), Mum, Dad, Jordan Daniel & Bri, Zack aka Starfire, Elizabeth, Nick Miranda, Evan Arnett aka The Emissary, Merritt & The Edgeclub Crew, everyone here on DDM - thanks for the continued support, Sam and Jason @ Proton and everyone else I forgot and of course, yes Juan, you :-)
And lastly, how fucking tall are you? Can you dunk? Do you think you are the second tallest German next to Dirk?
I'm 6 foot 5 inches tall. I love Basketball, but can't dunk to save my life. I think Dirk outranks me by another foot and a half, but I've never met him so I wouldn't know. If I keep taking those growth hormones though, I'll reach my 8foot goal finally and then you'll be seeing me on the court, oh yes! :-)
