Next up in our Future Stars series is a young talent we interviewed in the past. That time his moniker was Megan but he has changed it to XVIII. This time he is here with a strong mix filled with pounding techno grooves.
Connect with XVIII on Soundcloud | Facebook | Resident Advisor | Instagram
Tracklist
01. XVIII – When We Are Apart (Vox Tool) (Unreleased)
02. AW/SS – Nonnative (Semantica)
03. Mike Parker – Mnajdra (Shifted Remix) (Geophone)
04. Karenn – Rek (Voam]
05. Surgeon – Those Who Do Not (Dynamic Tension)
06. Reeko, Psyk – Withstand The Light of Day (Mental Disorder)
07. Sciahri – Ira (Sublunar)
08. Reeko & Jonas Kopp – Confundiéndolos ([Semantica)
09. Sigha – A Better Way Of Living (Token)
10. Cirkle – The Tower (Float)
11. Planetary Assault Systems – Engage Now (Mote Evolver)
12. Manuel Di Martino – Sublimazione (Denise Rabe Remix) (Persistence)
13. Joey_M – Aurora (Rhombic Remix) (LXVIII)
14. XVIII – Only Noise (Unreleased)
15. Gotshell – C1991 (KR/LF)
16. Stanislav Tolkachev – Song About My Neighbours (Semantica)
17. Sleeparchive – Senza Titolo Two (Mord)
18. Modular Phaze – Can’t Spill Tears (LXVIII)
19. Domenico Crisci – Thinking Of You (Semantica)
20. Bas Mooy – West-Kruiskade (Mord)
21. Moteka – Peace at Last (SHXCXCHCXSH Remix) (Skryptom)
In conversation with XVIII
How are you doing?
I’m good and feeling inspired at the moment, thanks for inviting me.
We had a short interview back in 2016. What has changed ever since?
Let’s see, a lot of things changed since then.. mostly my music taste and the style I play/produce. Have been playing a darker/distorted techno in the last years and also changed my alias from Megan to XVIII because I wanted to start with a fresh project. Last year I did a remix for one of my favourite artists Tin Man which was released on his label ‘Global A Records’. I started a new group/label called ‘Frekuenc’ with some of my friends, did 2 awesome events in our hometown Gjakova but then we split for reasons and after that, I started a new label ‘LXVIII’, the first release was a Various Artists compilation with Sleeparchive, Tin Man, Monix, Dahraxt, Joey_M and more.
How do you look up to the next 3 years and what do you want to accomplish?
I want to release music in some labels I have my eye on and to start shaping my project as XVIII. Also to expand my label with some good artists but at the same time getting upcoming artists from all over the world.
What were the milestones that brought you closer to achieving your dream to become a DJ?
I believe it was playing music around in my city and having a lot of people listen to my music for these past years, then doing that remix for Tin Man really got me inspired and even more motivated to work on more stuff.
What exciting news do you have for us?
I have a new EP coming soon on LXVIII with remixes from some of my favourite artists and who is killing it at the moment so pretty soon you’ll get to see who they are. Also, I have a collaboration coming soon with UK based artist Devastia, she’s a talented DJ/producer from Poland and we’re working on an EP together.
If you could have made one track that’s out there, which one would it be?
Stanislav Tolkachev – Blue Mood, simply because it’s just a strange journey throughout the whole track, energic feeling and it really impresses me.
What’s your creative process when writing music? Do you have an idea in mind or do you somehow experiment and see what’s coming?
Most of the time I have some ideas as to where to start but when I experiment I just start with the Low end of the groove part. Then I’ll sometimes get lost in it and just work in a particular element for hours till I achieve what I really want. Sometimes that’s not the case and I just try to relax and look for inspiration through art.
What kind of gear do you use when producing new work?
I often use only my laptop and headphones and mostly work with distortion/saturation but I’m looking to get a Roland 303 as I’m loving to work with acid lines recently. Be it melodic or energic, dark, just to get inside those acidic textures and also to produce a whole Acid LP.
The process of learning to make electronic music reveals to you how little you know. That makes you increasingly aware of how much more you need to learn to get anywhere close to where you want to go. Your thoughts?
I fully agree with this. Through the years I’ve been fascinated with how many techniques are there to produce electronic music, a lot of sounds that you don’t usually think to put in a track and so much experimenting with effects and new possibilities. I think you never stop learning and that there is a limitless amount of how you approach this genre. As for techno, I’m really digging the sound of Domenico Crisci, outstanding performance with Distortion/Saturation in his productions and also Oscar Mulero’s hypnotic and stunning music.
If you could change one thing about the music industry – what would you choose and why?
More originality and also giving a chance to undiscovered talents, not only those who are already at the top.
Name one track in your crate that gets the dance floor moving every time.
Endlec – We Have Failed
Thank you