If one were to single out an overarching narrative for the trajectory of electronic music in 2009, it would surely be the emphasis on the past — on the founding myths and legends that electronic music emerged out of — as a source of inspiration. With disco breaking out from small-scale revival to established Room Two, even Room One fare, with deep house announcing itself as the heir apparent to the ubiquity of mid-decade minimal, and with the cavernously retrospective, Detroit-flecked techno of the Berghain/Hard Wax crew dominating tracklists, it seems that in 2009, the only way to look forward, was to look back. Accordingly, Mathew Jonson chimed in with his take on the theme for Ghosts In the AI, his last Wagon Repair release of the year and the decade.
wagon repair
Talking Shop with Wagon Repair
This time we examine the Canadian-born Wagon Repair, which started as the home of pals Mathew Jonson, Konrad Black, Graham Boothby and Loose Change and has blossomed into one the most versatile and sought after labels in techno and house. Favoring quality sounds over particular aesthetics, WR boasts releases from The Mole, Tobias Freund, Seth Troxler, Deadbeat, Minilogue, Hrdvision and more. Mr. Jonson kindly answered our questions between gigs, shedding light on his favorite Wagon Repair release, the odd origins of the label name and the reason people love vinyl.
Sex Trothler, Sexplosion
[Wagon Repair] “Through a leaking bodily cavity resembling the pork found in Chinese restaurants, Satan shat out a crystal beaming with glowing red embers. This crystal matured into the fetus of Seth Troxler.” Thus begins Beyond Booking’s bio for the artist behind “Sexplosion,” the newest EP on Wagon Repair. Both the absurdity and the extravagance […]
The Mole, As High As the Sky
[Wagon Repair] The adjective I keep reaching for when describing The Mole’s debut album, As High as the Sky, is “minimal,” even though I feel guilty of a misnomer. There’s nothing sparse about it; and even though the changes are slight, there is definite forward movement coursing through many of its 11 filled out tracks. […]
tobias., I Can’t Fight the Feeling
[Wagon Repair] After nearly 25 years in the music business, some artists find their skills and instincts dulled, often leading to inadvisable collaborations, obtuse vanity projects and waning popularity. Lucky for us, electronic veteran Tobias Freund’s near 25 years of experience as Pink Elln and as half of NSI, Odd Machine and Sieg Ãœber Die […]