With his 4th artist album Silenciety just released, we grabbed a chat with original Tech House pioneer and aLoLa Records boss, Omid 16B, to find out more about him and his unique new project.
Hi Omid, it’s a pleasure to chat with you today, how is 2019 treating you so far?
Good Morning! I can’t tell you how much of a relief it is to finally have ’Silenciety’ out there. I had to hold out for so long, even to my closest friends, I gave them some of the tracks but not the whole thing!
What goals have you set yourself for this year and what are you most looking forward to?
To get back into swimming and normal life, going to bed at night and seeing some day light again, plus healthy eating and less chocolate!
For those who don’t know you, how would you describe your sound
It’s about feelings into sound. My whole writing process is still based on instinct, you wouldn’t understand why I’ve used certain sounds and arrangements because I don’t know either, they just happened. You go past putting it in a genre once you focus on the feelings!
What first turned you on to DJing and producing and what was your breakthrough track?
Listening to pirate radio stations and going to raves of course! ‘Sex Dive’ on Alola was the first track which was used for clubs advertised on Kiss100 throughout the weekend. ‘Trail Of Dreams’ was getting a lot of love from GirlsFM a huge underground network / radio station back in 1995.
You’re highly regarded as one of the pioneers of the Tech House scene and helped reshape the face of dance music with your hugely popular debut album ‘Sounds From Another Room’. Did you anticipate the record would have such a huge impact and what pearls of wisdom have you got that you can share with new producers just starting out?
Eye Q pushed me hard to make it what they wanted me to want it to become, if that makes any sense? I was aware of too many meetings, etc, but it was for the best. You have to be very sharp and full of humour when a label invests time and money in you, otherwise they’ll just tell you how to make your own record. You got to politely and almost invisibly whisper “Can we do this like a team?” in their ear, only once. They had high standards and they worked with enthusiasm, I didn’t make it difficult or throw a fuss because I had trust in what they wanted to achieve, we were all happy, I wouldn’t have felt the same if it was just about money.
Your brilliant new 4th artist album Silenciety has just come out on your own aLoLa label, what can you tell us about the release?
Each track has a memory of someone or something I love, a person or activity I’ve enjoyed, a group of people or a collection of ideas I’ve been involved in! it’s about everything around me that’s made me who I am mixed with who I thought I was and who I’m going to be one day, from the early days of being in a band at the age of 16 till now when I spend most late nights writing and producing music.
How long did it take to put together and are you happy with the results?
7 years, but you’re never completely happy, I always feel there could be more to add to it and I tried to keep it mostly instrumental and not overdo things. But I keep hearing vocals on top and even more lead parts that I want to add, it was tempting the first time, but even more tempting now!
Please tell us about the inspiration behind some of your favourite tracks from the album?
A story I’ve never told before. It had to be something new, something old, something now, something from yesterday and tomorrow all in one hour. ‘Silenciety’ required far too much attention and focus for what I wanted, the amount of listens just to get the order right and even the slightest adjustments required complete concentration with no compromise.
What’s been your most memorable gig to date and where would you most love to play in the future?
I’ve been asked if I’d start SOS again and my answer hasn’t changed, it’s not solely up to me and if it happens it has to happen naturally like it did the first time! It’s about us as a group and something we all want to do. MOVEMENT FESTIVAL in Detroit as SOS, I think we’ve had a long enough break so it’s not highly unlikely, let’s see!
You’ve been running aLoLa Records for a number of years now, who can we expect to find on the label and what have you got coming up that you can tell us about?
We’re pretty diverse having signed tracks and albums from artists like Vince Watson, Nav, Pete Moss, Anthony Teasdale through to Kevin Mckay, Dj Vibe, Amine Edge, to name a few.
The wonderful Nick Stoynoff from Chicago is doing an Alola mix for us and compilation very soon, Alex George is doing a new Reincarnations mix for SexOnWax.
Which one track that never leaves your record box?
Depeche Mode ‘Enjoy the Silence’.
Finally, what else is coming up that you can tell us about?
July 20th we’re doing a party in London at the House Of St Barnabas (Nitty Gritty) starts early with a host of artists till early hours. I’m also going to Burning Man for the first time, curious and slightly nervous, but I’m glad I’m going it this time!
Silenciety Album is out now on aLOLa Records and available HERE
