Exclusive Interview: Debonair

We're thrilled to bring you an exclusive Kolour Blog interview and guest mix from our man Conor Bevan, aka Debonair! It was our honor to release his first full length EP as well as the other project he's been apart of for us. 

So here's your chance to get to know another member of the Kolour Recordings family! He discusses his background, music, and much, much more. 

Enjoy!

Can you tell us a little about the path that lead to you to making your own music?

It's one of those things where you start off DJ'ing and listening to other peoples music so much that you think, "Heck I've gotta give this a go myself." My starting point, and recommendation for anyone starting out, is to make edits and bootlegs of existing material and add a little twist to the sound. Whether it be a structural change or adding additional percussion. I'm pretty sure it's how all the big guns started out! 

You have been pretty open about The Rolling Stones being a band that is really important to you, what is it about The Stones that you connect with so closely?

Yeah the Stones have been a big influence. Especially that quirky late 70's and early 80's era when they were producing tracks like 'Miss You', 'Undercover of the Night' and 'Too Much Blood'. Just like Blondie, they had real balls to try the disco sound, especially coming from a different genre.

Was music always important to you and what music genres did you first find yourself gravitating to?

Coming from an Indie / Rock n Roll background it was only until I started hitting places like Fabric in London that I begun to get an appetite for electronic music. Being introduced to Metro Area was a real game changer for me and I found myself gravitating towards that vintage gritty disco sound. Nowadays I'm really interested in a deeper sound that is rich in warm textures. Andrés, Behling & Simpson, Francis Inferno Orchestra & Session Victim tick those boxes nicely. Club wise I have a soft spot for that jackin' UK sound synonymous with guys like Bicep, Eats Everything, Huxley and FCL. 

Is your family pretty supportive of your musical aspirations?

I think so! It's not really a sound that you'd associate with their generation, but they're very supportive never the less.

  
We’re thrilled we were able to release your debut EP on Kolour, can you tell us how the four songs on “The Rhodes To Nowhere” EP came together?

First off I'd like to say a big thanks for releasing my material; you guys are legends. As you can imagine - plenty of chopping and changing took place and whole demos were being replaced even at the last minute. I wanted to make a spread of tracks that could reach different people. Low BPM slow-jams with smooth melodies for the home and more energetic 'housy' jams for the club. It's been hard getting access to the studio and luckily I met Peret Mako over here in Sydney. He has one of the best ears in the business and he really helped me get the most out of my 4 demos. I owe him big time and hopefully I can make it up to him somehow! (word up if you're reading this).

Were any of these songs saved by some inspiration you later had or did they all come together pretty naturally?

Some started off as just raw melodic sketches where as others started off as percussive rhythms. It was about pairing the lot together in the most complimentary way possible. I'm not musically trained, so everything has been trial and error. People often laugh at me when I tell them this, but I have a habit of recording my whistling on my iPhone and importing it into Melodine (to extract the midi music notes) which I then use in Ableton Live to start a project.

As a person with a creative background, do you ever struggle with putting out your own music in a world of critical, often jaded, music fans?
 

Luckily I've not had many unfavourable comments so far. You can always tell when people don't like something as they don't say anything! I've never been a fan shoving my music in peoples faces and I always prefer them to find it naturally.

When you sit down to start work on an idea, do you think much on the evolving trends of music at the time or do you just do your thing?

Trends are important, but at the same time you can't be original if you follow. One day when I have more experience with music I'd like to be more confident and experimental.

The Fantastic Man EP was a really well received vinyl only EP for us, any feelings of hesitation come up when Mike approached you to remix “Groove With You” for it’s digital debut on the House Of Kolour compilation?

I totally agree. Mic's (Newman) a killer producer, one of the best in the game. I had the pleasure of meeting him just the other day while he was DJ'ing here in Sydney. I asked the poor guy about a million questions while he was playing. Sorry Mic! For me the remix was a great chance to bring something different to the table and I leapt at the opportunity.

The House Of Kolour collaboration is kind of a melting pot of some unique styles, what are your thoughts on this compilation?

It's on repeat. Still! There's so much heat and there's something for everyone in there. The Casino Times and EJECA tracks really caught my attention.

If you were approached to have a song from the Rhodes To Nowhere EP remixed and released on a future compilation, which track would you like to be picked and who would you like to see remix it?

Nice question. I'd say 'Ocean Drive' because I'd like to see those chords manipulated in some other manner. I reckon Session Victim, Peret Mako or Lone could muster up something pretty special!

What can we look forward to in 2013 and beyond from Debonair?

There's a couple of things in the pipeline for 2013. Firstly I'd like to get a haircut and secondly some more time off work would be sweet! Musically, I'm very excited to announce a release on a compilation for Jazzanovas' Sonar Kollektiv label and a remix for BBC Radio 1 regular, Finnebassen (both out in the next month or so). I've also got a couple of tracks that I'm working on with Bang Gangs' Angus Gruzman that will hopefully see the light of day soon. There's a few tasty gigs in the pipeline too. Having spent almost a year in Sydney, I'm moving back to London at the end of March so it'll be good catch up with the London massive and finally get myself some proper studio space!

Here is an exclusive guest mix from Debonair!

 

 Tracklist:

1. Sellouts - Still Strangers (Original Mix)
2. Francis Inferno Orchestra - Come On Now (Original Mix)
3. Andrés - Jazz Dance (Original Mix)
4. N.Y. House'n Authority - Apt1A (Witness Remix)
5. Mic Newman - The Fidelity (Original Mix)
6. Elastic Reality - Cassa de X (Deep Dish Does X)
7. Clouded Vision - City Thunder feat. Emilie Albisser (Chamboche Remix)
8. Bicep & Omar Odyssey - Don't (Original Mix)
9. Charles Ramirez - Sundays In The Shade (Rogerio Martins & Piek Remix)
10. Kyodai - Breaking (Original Mix)
11. Lovebirds - Mandrill (Original Mix)
12. Get Ya Dub On (Jimpster Remix)
13. Knee Deep - All About Love (Original Mix)
14. Worldly - The Music (Original Mix)




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Interview by Glen. (C) KOLOUR RECORDINGS. Do not steal this article without giving full credit and a link! Thanks!