With a stellar reputation for traversing music’s genres with ease and discography of classy productions it’s welcome news that Frenchwoman Jennifer Cardini will arrive in Dublin this week (May 8th at the Grand Social to be precise). With releases on the likes of Crosstown, Mobilee and Kompakt the veteran dj and producer is quite the coup for Dublin’s freshest party Squid Inc. A long time resident at famous Parisien spot Rex Club, Cardini has garnered a reputation as a tastemaker of sorts, bringing her versatile style to the likes of Panorama Bar, Nitsa and Fabric.
Having invested heavily in her Correspondant label in recent months (with a series of parties lined up around Europe) there is no better time to catch one of the most influential music selectors in Europe in a live setting. We caught up with Jennifer this week ahead of her show in Dublin to chat!
Hi Jennifer, many thanks for taking the time to chat. We’ve seen your name popping up with increasing regularity of late, what’s new in your world?
Spring is finally here and we are all in a good spirits. Right now I’m listening to the new Mike Simonetti record with open windows working on small “Correspondant Tour” that will take me and the artists that are featured on our third label compilation, due end june, across Europe. I’m also working with David Shaw on the second release for our «Cardini&Shaw » project. I also just started a monthly residency at Radio Marais in Paris where I talk about my favorite labels, artists and play some records. Exciting times..!
Paris is hosting somewhat of a techno revolution at the moment with the likes Traumer and Maxime Dangles impressing on a global level. Do you think French scene is in a good place right now?
I think the French scene is really impressive at the moment, so many young talents and new labels. I’m personally a huge fan of Voiski and Low Jack who release music on L.I.E.S. I think the scene has not only brought new young artists, there are also a lot of new promoters and clubs. You’ll find nice clubs like Concrete that combine good music, great venue, good sound and nice people. Having this « perfect combo » was a bit challenging years ago, Rex Club was one of the only solid places so i’m happy to see that the city is so full of energy !
Has the buzz spread beyond the capital? We see you are doing some of your famous Correspondant parties around the country this summer.
Yes it has, France is doing great at the moment. For a long time everything was centralized in Paris and there was not so much happening outside the capital but places like « Le Sucre » in Lyon , « I boat » in Bordeaux , « Crab Cake » in Rennes totally changed that. They are offering amazing line up for both indie/pop and electronic music. Correspondant has a residency at IBoat and is a regular guest in Berlin, London and Barcelona. It has been so much fun to play there last year and i’m very happy of the feedback the label is getting there.
Has the label been a big focus for you recently?
Yes totally, we release a record per month so that’s quite a rhythm to keep. Man Power’s album will be released at the end of this month, it’s a first album release for both him and the label. Working on his has been a wonderful experience and i’m really looking forward to have everybody listening to it. After that will come our third compilation featuring original music from Red Axes, Roman Fluegel, Chloe.. and then a series of EP’s that will take us to the end of 2015 already. The sound of label is also constantly mutating and we have a lot of interesting projects ahead.
How does the studio fit into your schedule, are you making new music constantly or is it something you like to dip into when inspiration takes hold?
The last four years have been totally dedicated to the label and to playing records so that did not left much time for me to produce music but somehow i’ve the feeling that the learning process did not stop. Spending so much time listening, exchanging ideas, trying to improve the sound or the production with some of my artists has taught me a lot. I realize that every time i’m back in the studio. Regarding my own productions, I do make music on a regular basis and have a lot of sketches that I would love to finish. The next weeks will be dedicated to my project with David Shaw as we have a new EP due for September and to some collaboration projects I have with artists from the label. More on that soon !
We notice you like to share a monthly chart, is it a weird change from when you started out djing and people kept their special records to themselves, whereas now everything is out in the open?
Making a chart does not mean you aren’t keeping some special records to yourself.. Also I’ve always loved sharing music, that’s probably the main reason why i start djing. Let me share one other of my crushes with you :
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ANmL7LvNzdw
Dublin, Ireland is next up for you, is this your first time?
No it’s not, i played in Dublin years ago. I can’t recall where but i remember playing for a very nice promoter who showed me around the city, took me to a great breakfast place and we ended up playing playstation at his place while waiting for my flight. It was a nice evening and a nice day ! Good memories on the city and the crowd so i’m definitely looking forward to be back in Dublin and play Squid this Friday!