INTERVIEW: Piem

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When Barcelona based Piem was exposed to House music of the 90’s & early 2000’s, he seemed destined to journey into the world of underground music. These early musical experiences shaped Piem into a firm favourite on the Barcelona club scene. With tracks on well respected labels such as Knee Deep in Sound, Nervous Records, Toolroom and VIVa Music to name a few, we had a chat with him to talk about his upcoming release and more …

How are you, what’s good and bad right now?

Hello! All’s good here.

It’s been a very good summer, I played Ibiza, Marbella, Mykonos, Moscow, Odessa, London and Barcelona. I’m still buzzing from my first tour in Chile and Colombia, the crowd were amazing… also have a lot of good releases coming up so I can’t complain. 

Honestly, the only bad thing I can think of is summer is almost over, but that’s not too big of a deal. 

What state is the Barcelona scene in – lots of young producers and DJs, meeting places, record shops and good parties and so on?

Barcelona is super cultural, it’s rich in this respect. We have so many local artists but on the other hand we have many foreign artists based in the city. It’s a great mix. The production schools are very good, the skills and knowledge people acquire help them to stand out. If you’re looking for a record shop, I’d have to say Discos Paradiso, it seems to be a mandatory stop for many of the top djs as well as the hardest electronic music fans. Parties- most of the people in Barcelona know you can party Monday to Monday, from rock to techno and every single party has its own USP. 

Does the city have a certain sound do you think?

Barcelona has always been a city that welcomes and hosts a wide range of genres. It has room for everyone though, but Techno has always been massive here and continues to grow. It’s got a strong place in the city. There’s lots of events and festivals during the year such as Sonar, DGTL, Elrow, and Primavera Sound has always been more Indie but that’s evolving and now they’re putting some techno and house names in their line ups. 

How did it inspire you coming up? What events, DJs, labels did you attend and look up to?

Carl Cox, Kerri Chandler or Erick Morillo, are some of the names I love to watch playing. These are the ones I have liked over the years, but then there’s many other artists like Patrick Topping, Claude VonStroke, Michael Bibi that have and continue to always surprise me too.

You curate the parties at W Hotel – what do you look for in the DJs you book?

First of all, we want quality artists, in terms of music. This year we had artists such as Green Velvet, Kerri Chandler, Duke Dumont, Cassy amongst others… that being said we don’t always look for big names as we also book new talents. They are just starting touring and these are the ones that surprise you with their skills and talent.

And what is it like playing there as a resident? How does it feel to be at home?

Yes! It’s always good to play at home, you have the advantage and comfort of knowing the crowd. It gives you more of a creative license to do whatever you want. 

Tell us about your new one for Superfett – how did you hook up with them?

I’ve always been a big fan of Mother Recordings since they started. I signed my first single with them in 2018, although I must admit, I was talking with them for a long time and sent music to Nhan until he gave me the opportunity. From this I then signed an EP in Superfett last summer and this year we are doing the follow up, and I’m so excited for this. 

The drums are fantastic – where do you start on them? How long do they take?

Thanks! I started, like most of the time, playing some drums randomly till I get the groove. The idea of Paradiso took me a couple hours, then I spent a few more days finishing the whole track. Drums are simple but effective, I think with the right sounds you have enough. 

Do you have a studio set up or do you make music in the box or?

I’ve had my own studio for many years but last year I started using the studio at W Barcelona hotel. Being totally honest, most of the ideas and the skeleton of the tracks are started on my laptop… then I finish everything in the studio. 

What else have you got coming up?

Over the next couple of months I have new releases… Mother Recordings, Repopulate Mars, Crosstown Rebels and Desert Hearts are some of the ones I can mention but soon I’ll be able to go talk about more.

There’s also a couple tours around South America before the end of the year, and some cool gigs in Europe in cities I’ve never played before. 

So there’s lots of exciting things coming up! 

Piem’s ‘Paradiso’ is out now on Superfett, grab it here – https://www.beatport.com/release/paradiso/2686253

Listen to Piem on Soundcloud

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