Different things can happen when you sit in your university's library with a fellow student and both prepare for your final exams. Probably you will start to talk about your topics or maybe just ask for a pen or a piece of paper. As a smoker you might meet each other again in front of the doors, both with your heads full of questions and not enough answers. You might start to talk about other stuff and if only so you don't have to think about your exams. You might find out that both of you dj and that you are into similar music. You might even go on and fix a meeting to spin a few records. In some rare cases you might finally become friends and introduce each other to some people. People, that again are into a similar kind of music. That's how I got to know Marcus aka MARQUESE, one of the whiz kids in the German House scene.
Not long ago we met for an interview. Here's the transcript, followed by MARQUESE's yet unreleased "Monkey Business" as a soundcloud teaser and an exclusive 60-minutes-mix by MARQUESE for you to download. Enjoy!
Propellor: Hi Marcus, good to have you here. What's the story behind your alias MARQUESE?
Marquese: Now that's the best question right in the beginning (laughs). I used to dj together with my mate Julian and we named ourselves JULZ and MARQUESE, which seemed pretty obvious regarding my real name, Marcus. Later, when I faced the issue of releasing my first record, I needed a name and so I decided to stick to my DJ name MARQUESE.
P: It sounds spanish though. Any coherence to that?
M: No, not at all.
P: So you got German roots? Where about are you coming from?
M: I'm from the Westerwald (author's note: Westerwald is the Central German Uplands ) originally, but I live and work in Cologne.
P: You say you work here. Do you make your living by producing music and djing?
M: No, I work as an art teacher in College. Unfortunatelly I can't subsist from music only. On the one hand it's rather difficult anyway, but on the other hand I quite like it to be connected to the real world so to say. The world besides electronic dance music. This is beneficial as I don't feel the pressure that I have to release or dj every weekend. It's just a good feeling to be financially independent and to be able to do my thing, regardless of what people expect from me.
P: That sounds tricky to me, Marcus. I mean, you must have a completely different rhythm during the week as a teacher and as a DJ on the weekends.
M: Yeah, true. On most of my fridays I take a nap after school and then get ready for the night later on. Like tonight. But I have my lie-ins at the weekends and luckily Monday is my day off where I find the time to work on my music. But I've got to say that it works very well for me to do both: to work and to produce. Like that, I get done more than when I only concentrate on my music.
P: Does your job influence your way of creating music...do you get ideas from working as an art teacher?
M: No, not really. Well, maybe in a way. My work is always process-driven and when I start with a new tune, I haven't got a fixed idea or concept. It's more a specific sound that I begin with. This can be a bassline that I like or just the sound of a tea spoon on the floor. That's my basis and from there I proceed. The framework of a track is always done pretty quick and then I put it away and let it rest for a week or two. Afterwards I dig it out and work on it again. So there are always a couple of things or tracks that I work on at the same time. But every process has to come to an end and that's when I finished a tune.
P: Do you perform your tracks as a live act as well?
M: No, I never play as a live act. The reason is that I think, as a live performer you need to be real good. You haven't got the same choices a DJ has. You only play your own music and so you have to have a whole bunch of excellent tunes to fill a set with. I haven't been to many great live performances of other producers so far. It gets boring easily.
P: But you do play your own tracks when you dj?
M: Yeah, of course. That's essential to find out if and how my tracks work on a dance floor.
P: You brought out a tune called "Keep Movin" on LA PEÑA but your name wasn't mentioned on the record sleeve. Isn't that a disadvantage?
M: Well, that's LA PEÑA's concept. They never mention the artist's names on the sleeves. But that doesn't mean a disadvantage for me. If anything, this release helped me to get to know a whole bunch of people and opened doors for me.
P: Does sympathy play a role when you decide to release on a label? I think of your "Weekend You EP"on NIVEOUS RECORDS, a label that is based here in Cologne.
M: Yes, that's an issue. I'm friends with Maik Loewen, the owner of NIVEOUS. And generally I prefer to work with people that I know and that I like.
P: And for the future...will there be any upcoming releases soon?
M: "Filter Tool" is out now on LOVELETTERS FROM OSLO, Nekes and Federico Molinari's label and I already finished the tracks for NIVEOUS 06, which will come out in the beginning of next year. I might do NIVEOUS 07 as well, but that's not settled yet.
P: Is there any record besides your own tracks that you bought recently and would like to recommend to our readers?
M: Yes, there's this 12" I bought a couple of weeks ago. Actually it's from 1999 and came out on NEXT MOOV TRAXX. The guy is called JOVONN and that's his "Pitch Black EP", a beast!
P: Right on. To finish off, I'd like to give you a couple of names. Always a pair. You've got to decide for one of the two. Ready?
M: Sure, go ahead.
P: Michael Jackson or Jichael Mackson
M: Michael!
P: Porsche 911 or Volvo station wagon?
M: That ain't a question for me right now (laughs). But if I had to make a choice, I'd rather go for the 911....obviously.
P: Jay Z or Nas?
M: Nas
P: Minimal or Maximal?
M: Oh, that depends on time and place. I don't want to exclude any of the two.
P: Ok, what about PC or MAC?
M: Definitely MAC.
P: Carl Graig or Kenny Dixon Jr.?
M: Kenny
P: Piano or saxophone?
M: I like both, but a classic piano is unbeatable.
P: A bottle of beer or a fancy cocktail?
M: Both
P: Drum'n'Bass or Nu Skool Breaks?
M: Drum'n'Bass
P: Shared living or single flat?
M: I like both, but a single flat has clear advantages. I work on my music at home and this way I can be as noisy as I want whenever I want.
P: Chicago or Detroit?
M: Soundwise? Chicago.
P: Theo Parrish or Omar S?
M: Omar
P: Ok, Marcus. That was it. Thanks for taking your time. Good luck for tonight and for the future. Take care.
M: Yeah, thank you for the nice interview. Bye!
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