Interview with Falko Brocksieper - 11th Hour Technology

Utter the word Cologne within Techno circles and you will muster talk of relentless minimal Techno and House, galloping beats, Kompakt, Thomas Brinkmann, Reinhardt Voght, and countless others... It is perhaps a surprise then to stumble across Sub_Static, a label based in this city with far richer, more melodic tendencies.

Even though this new Cologne based label was only founded in January 2001, they have already had over twenty releases to their name. Amongst releases from already established artists such as Christian Morgenstern, Unai and René Breitbarth, the label has also seen releases from Sub_Static founders Falko Brocksieper and Michaela Grobelny (aka M.I.A) as well as releases from other artists in Cologne, Canada, Vienna and London.

The philosophy has always been to find the best mixture between dancefloor functionality and innovative experimentation. This has made Sub Static one of the most popular labels in Kompakt’s Distribution network, those well-known specialists for minimal electronic music, and pioneers of the traditional Cologne sound.

11th Hour are pleased to present Falko Brocksieper from Sub_Static…

11th-hour What was it about the Amiga computer that got you interested in Electronic music to begin with? From my recollection (for I was an Amiga owner too…), the music on most of the games was very early-dance / rave orientated (Bomb the Bass's soundtrack to Xenon Two, or any of the soundtracks to games from the Bitmap Brothers as an example...). Has this been an influence in any way, and does it still run through what you are involved with now?

Falko I would say that I 'accidentally' came to make music with the Amiga. Originally I was more interested in its graphic possibilities, and I spent a hell lot of time in painting pictures and logos pixel-by-pixel. Then one bored day I just tried to do something with ProTracker, and it was fun. I think I just tried to make the kind of music everybody was doing with the Amiga: Strange instrumental, melodic synth tracks, hard to compare with anything that 'really exists'. In general, ProTracker was a 4-track sequencer where you could load and play computer-internal samples. Seen from today, I guess this first contact to sequencer-based music programming was the biggest influence for me.

11th-hour How did you make the transition from such musical beginnings to where you are at now? Was this transition smooth and linear, or were there many deviations along the way?

Falko My Amiga music activities did not directly lead to what I'm doing today. I got in touch with Techno around 1993, and for several years I just 'consumed' records and was interested in djing. It was just around 1999/2000 when I decided to create my own tracks again.

11th-hour How has Cologne as a city, and a scene within a city, influenced yourself and the label?

Falko Strongly, that's for sure. Sometimes I remember me playing much harder Techno than today. But then most of the harder stuff started to get really boring, and this was also about the time when I moved to Cologne for studies. Discovering the local scene with lots of tiny underground labels, and even more tiny electronic bars & clubs was a big inspiration for me, and finally this was the motivation to start producing again and to found my own label.

11th-hour Where did you first meet Michaela Grobelny with whom you set up Sub-Static, and what were your motivations for setting the label up?

Falko We met at a real lousy club night in Cologne with about two guests. Both of us were booked for djing, and we ended up just 'showing' each other our favourite records, and we immediately discovered that we have similar attitudes regarding the music. The reason for setting up Sub_Static was that both of us felt a bit outside of the scene in Cologne, and we intended to build up a stronger base for our own, and our friends' activities.

11th-hour How do your differing backgrounds and current ideas fit together to produce the label?

Falko When it comes to the material that we intend to release on Sub_Static, we are mostly of the same opinion. I think that we have a clear vision of the label, which does not need to be discussed between us. It's just there. Regarding our own productions I especially like the fact that both of us really have our own style, which makes an inhomogeneous & interesting combination.

11th-hour How does the sound represented on Sub-Static fit into the general picture of all electronic music? How would you describe the sounds to someone who has never heard of them before, and what would you say is the labels mentality?

Falko We have never manifested the label's topics in any way, so I’d say that its sound automatically results of our own mentalities. From my point of view the special thing about Sub_Static is always its subtleness. We have moved to several directions so far, but there always seems to be a certain common ground - a combination of slight functionality, slight innovation & slight individualism.

Falko I'd say that these are also my personal goals in djing and production. I'm trying to avoid completely worked-out & 'finished' musical statements. I rather prefer to make something like a suggestion or an allusion, which can mean something different for everybody.

11th-hour Since the label's inception in January 2001, you have had almost twenty releases. What reason, if any, is behind this high rate of releases? Is it because there is a large hotbed of talent interested in these sounds at the moment, and if so why do you think this is?

Falko When we started, we did not intend to release at a certain rate. But from the first moment there has always been material that we just HAD to release. Of course the reason might be that there's more great music around than ever before. Production has become so affordable that almost everybody who is interested in minimalist Techno & House decides to try making some of their own tracks. Sure, that's why there's still even more crap being produced.

11th-hour How did you first get in contact with the various artists on Sub-Static? Had you heard most of their work before, or were you approached independently?

Falko That's been different in most cases. E.g. Rene Breitbarth, Rafael Gomez and Christian Morgenstern are friends from Cologne. Most of the other artists sent us their demos. And one guy that we asked for material is Unai. I think he is still one of the most underrated artists in this business. Another 12" from him ('Loving that lost feeling' sus_21) will be out soon.

11th-hour How is the music, and scene attached to the music perceived by those in other parts of the world? Is there a great enthusiasm coming from elsewhere, such as Canada?

Falko Yes, sure. Toronto and Montreal have quickly moved to be real 'hot spots' of interesting Techno. We also received a promising demo from Vancouver lately. But I always discover that there are also places that are not really famous for a great Techno scene, but where people go really mad about what similar labels and we are doing. E.g. Marseille or Valencia, they both have quite small - but very specialized and skilful scenes.

11th-hour Why do you think that there are so many producers interested in 'alternative' dancefloor sounds coming from Canada? You have released records by such producers, so what is it about them that interests you?

Falko I think it's not their origin that interests us. On Sub Static, we have Repair from Toronto, which is produced by Matt & Mark Thibideau. Both of them have also released solo stuff on our label. I wouldn't say they are doing the typical Canadian sound which I'd see as more laptop & plug-in oriented - they have their own style, and it is very thick in my opinion.

Falko It's hard to point out one or two labels that are my favourites. I think today there are dozens of labels that are constantly at very high quality. Well, everybody knows the good labels. However, I would be happy to find more minimal stuff from the USA for example. It's hard to get in Cologne.

11th-hour Which DJ's play your records, and what club-nights worldwide represent such sounds?

Falko Seriously, I don't know. I've come around a bit, but not enough to judge about the situation in the whole world. But it's always fun to receive feedback from places in the world where you'd never expect your records to be available.

11th-hour How important is the distribution network of Kompakt had in exposing the sounds of Cologne, and do you think that there would be such worldwide interest without them?

Falko There are several pioneers in Cologne from several directions, but the guys around Kompakt, they worked really hard for 10 years to promote a specific sound that finally came to be the 'Sound of Cologne'. I guess without them, this term simply would not exist

11th-hour What directions do you think these 'alternative' House and Techno sounds are going in? Do you think they will split off into a scene of their own (globally, and not just in Cologne where they already seem well established), as they grow more popular?

Falko In my opinion it gets harder to find a correct definition of what you're calling 'alternative House and Techno'. If you're into an abstract style of music, there always has to be progress, otherwise everything gets boring very quickly. I think this has already happened to minimal House – especially in Cologne. Currently there are a lot of pop + disco influences. Just look at all those bootlegs! I guess things are just starting to get more technoid and more acidic again. And when people are fed up with this again, the mellow & clean stuff will return again - it always seems to be some kind of 'rotation'.

Falko Currently we are looking forward to our first compilation called 'on and on...', which will be available in September on CD & 2x12". It contains 100% new tracks by various Sub Static artists. Some more album projects are planned, too. And of course we will keep up releasing high quality 12" EP’s for your pleasure.

11th Hour would like to thank Falko for taking the time out to speak to us.