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Artist quote:
"Techno is still the most innovative music. All the good elements of a techno production are used at some stage in different dance styles”
bSelected discography:
Umek 'Zeta Reticule' (Electric 12)
The knowledge:
Listening to Slovenian techno producer Uros Umek explain how he got bitten by the acid house bug is a reminder how easy we have it in the UK. Growing up in Communist Yugoslavia, Umek says that “I always liked dance music but I couldn’t buy any good electronic music in Yugoslavia during those years. I’ve still got a lot of the pirate tapes I collected during that period; it was the only way of getting proper music. You couldn’t buy any electronic stuff except stuff by industrial bands like Laibach or Borghesia. It was really hard, there were no dance clubs or parties.”
When the communist bloc fell at the start of the 90s it was also Umek who took the plunge and started putting on large-scale parties in the newly re-formed Slovenia. Unsurprisingly, after years of cultural repression, his fellow countrymen embraced electronic music and attendances at Umek’s events mushroomed.
However, as the nascent party scene made the transition from an underground scene to an overnight phenomenon, it also attracted the attention of the authorities. “At the beginning, it was OK because the scene was so small,” he confirms, adding “but when it became a big thing, it attracted the attention of the police. They just couldn't believe what was happening!”
Slovenia’s law enforcers weren’t the only ones surprised by the burgeoning club scene that Umek was primarily responsible for. Visiting European and UK DJs were amazed that the country’s scene had developed so quickly and that the sound track of choice was underground techno – again, supported by Umek, the resident DJ at these large-scale events. While the twenty-six-year-old name checks Surgeon as one of his earliest influences, there’s another, more practical reason as to why techno became the country’s favourite club music.
“I originally listened to acid house, “ Umek says, “but I started to produce techno because I liked it and because in the early days my studio equipment was really basic so I didn’t have much choice. To make good house you need a lot of equipment,” he continues, visibly warming to the topic, “but techno is still the most innovative music. All the good elements of a techno production are used at some stage in different dance styles.”
Apart from releases on his own runs Consumer Recreation label, Omak’s hard-edged style bean to surface on imprints like Planet Rhythm, Audio, Missile and Communiqué, but it’s his association with Billy Nasty’s Tortured and Electric labels that have resulted in his most interesting releases to date, with his second ‘Mechanism’ release for Tortured alternating between dark, slamming techno, funked up tribal loops and gritty electro and his ‘Zeta Reticule’ series for Electric fusing Front 242-style body music with malevolent electro dub rhythms.
In between releasing a new record or remix on an almost weekly basis, Umek is also putting out a mix CD on Tortured next year and is currently developing a four deck technique that he’ll showcase on Torture’s 2001 tour. “There’s gonna be a lot of surprises in future from me: I hope you like them,” he says modestly, and looking back at what Umek has achieved in a few short years it’s hard not to believe that he’s only getting into his stride.
Discography:
ZET4 - Ljubljana EP - ZET
AB008 - Absense
XS-008 - Sample Rate EP - XS
EX001 - Expire
PRRUK 5 - Krka EP - Planet Rhythm
PRR 19 - Lek EP - Planet Rhythm
Comunique 032 - 2x12" - Comunique
ZET6 - Ljubljana 2 EP - ZET
UMEK01 - Audio LP - ZET
XS-015 - Umek vs. Misjah - K pr norcih EP - XS
ECOM 20 - Ecom
XS-017 - XS
EX010 - Umek vs. Inigo Kennedy - Made in Slovenia EP - Expire
AB016 - Absense
12SPIEL07 - Spiel-Zeug Schallplatten
KUPEC 01 - Consumer Recreation
CLR2 - Kilevox EP - CLR
Audio 16 - Umek vs. Ben Long - Audio
CLR4 - Diflevon EP - CLR
Kial 5
Kial 6
BNR 340 - Urtoxen EP - Black Nation
12SPIEL11 - Gluerenorm EP -Spiel-Zeug Schallplatten
PRMT041 - Chris Liebing & Umek - Downtown EP - Primate
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X-Trax 20 - Picture disc compilation - Umek - X-Trax
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Remixes:
Potential 5 - Ben Long RMX Umek
Potential 6 - Space DJ'z RMX Umek
Monoid 21 - La Monde vs. Levatine RMX Umek
Ground 8 - Jamie Bissmire & Ben Long RMX Umek
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Future releases:
EP on Potential
EP on Advanced
Remix for Cold Dust on Red Seal
Remix for G-Force
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..:: Walking The Eternal Path Of Euphoria ::..
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Umek Discography
