Alex Mine is a name you’ll be seeing a lot of in 2016. The young Italian kicked off the year with a cracking EP on Pig&Dan’s Elevate imprint which is about to be followed up by his ‘Seconds’ EP on Dubfire’s esteemed SCI+TEC.
Seconds will feature 4 huge originals, the biggest of which is the title track. This title track has featured in Dubfire’s sets for far too long. Safe to say you’ll be hearing a lot of it this summer. Released 26th February so keep an eye out! For now, you can listen to him open his sublime Select Cuts mix with it. Setting the standard high with the opening track, he doesn’t disappoint.
Click play below and learn a little more about Alex by checking out what he had to say when we caught up with him before the turn of the year.
WWD : You’re from Turin. What’s the music scene like there?
Alex : I’ve been a resident dj for so many years in my beloved Torino and I must admit that the scene is changing and evolving quite well over the past few years. New quality technohouse parties are growing up in the city among the big festival such as Futur Festival, Movement just to name a few. Not bad!
Being from Turin, the home of Juventus, are you a big football fan? If so, who’s your favourite player, past or present, and why?
Sure!! I try to follow all Juve’s matches even if it’s hard when I’m around the world. Buffon, of course. The best goalkeeper ever and an clearly example of man and player.
Have you got any interesting hobbies outside of music?
I play tennis since I was 10, even if lately I can’t find some much time for it sadly. It’s not a secret I have also a great hobby/passion for pizza. I sometime try to do it on my own but I can hide you that I also eat it twice per week at best pizzerias in Torino. Do not count how many pizzas I eat every year please.
You’ve released on fellow Italian Dema’s label Redrum before. It must be great to have other young Italians encouraging you to better your own productions, and your own label, Comade Music. Does this help you work harder?
My first and only release so far on Dema’s label was on early 2014 title “Surreal” and it was a good release. It’s been played from Richie Hawtin for a while among other top techno artists. Dema is relaunching the label now and he knows he has my support since every release it’s’ banging! Having the label it’s hard! Even if we are 4 people working we have so many things to do everyday, but in the end of the day it’s worth the trouble when a release is going great on the scene.
You run Comade with Alex Costa and DDeck. How did that come about?
Me and DDeck share the same studio from years and in 2014 we decided to launch our label. During the same period a big friend of us (Alex Costa) wanted to start a label too so we decided to join forces and make it big!
You’ve been running it since 2013. How have you found life as a label boss?
Being a label boss may appear super easy and cool but as I said before there are so many things to do if you want to do it professionally. We are 3 owners and we also have another person who help us with promotion, social networks, contracts among other desk jobs. And we are still full of work! Do not open a new label if you don’t can not give yourself to the project.
One artist you’d like to sign to the label in 2016?
There are so many exciting artists right now. And we’re working to bring some of them to Comade Music for the next year. Stay tuned!
You’ve got releases coming in January and February on Pig & Dan’s Elevate and Dubfire’s SCI+TEC respectively. What does it mean to have the support of such highly regarded artists and their labels?
It’s such an honor! When your music it’s played and supported by artists like them it means that you’re working in the right way.
You’ve released on Dubfire’s label before. How did that relationship come about?
Well, I met him during a Sonar event in Barcelona. I gave him my USB stick. After few days he wrote to me an email saying that he wanted me to release that stuff on his label SCI+TEC.
The EP’s themselves, in particular your ‘Seconds EP’ coming on SCI+TEC has huge hype around it. Are you hyped for it too?
Sure!! My fan are literally CRAZY about it. Can’t wait to release that track and give everyone the chance to play it.
Videos of Dubfire playing it out go back as far as May 2015. It’s been a long process! When did you make the track? Was the production process as long as the release process has been?
Yeah, I made that track around April 2015. I took me around 3 weeks.
What’s your studio set up like?
I always worked with Cubase since I started to record some demos with my rock bands a lot of years ago. So in the studio I use Cubase with the whole KOMPLETE pack from Native Instruments and Maschine (software + hardware). But I would like to write Dubfire’s point of view about this “We all have access to the same tools. But it’s how you use it and it’s how you give it a personality – your personality – that I think really makes you stand out from everyone else”. Well, I totally agree.
What’s the best piece of production advice you’ve gotten and who gave it to you?
Be Different is the secret. Ali (Dubfire) is always telling me that.
Not to give all your secrets away, but what’s your favourite studio trick these days?
iZotope Ozone’s “Bass Maker” Special Effects changed my life!
What’s the last record you bought?
Basti Grub & Mike Trend - Hang Over (Original Mix) [Desolat]
One track that cheers you up when you’re sad?
Any Red Hot Chili Peppers’ album is cool to get the party mood
What have been your highlights of 2015?
Hard question! I played in some many nice clubs and venues. City Hall in Barcelona was super cool, as well as Cacao Beach in Bulgaria among many others. Every gig has something special I will always keep with me. Musically speaking: my ‘Be Different EP’ it’s been an highlight for me, the Ep with DDeck on Kaiserisco’s label KD RAW that received massive support from Adam Beyer and Joseph Capriati as well as the ‘Long Life’ Ep on Sasha Carassi’s imprint Phobiq. I also had the pleasure to release one track on Joseph Capriati’s album for Fabric London and Dubfire’s album for ENTER. (both available on CD and Digital Format).
Have you any goals for 2016? More gigs? New countries etc etc..
Of course, new releases are coming out on big labels and new shows are already confirmed gigs in France, Serbia, Germany, Italy and more to be announced soon. See you around the world!
Follow Alex Mine : Facebook // Twitter // SoundCloud