Crosstown Rebels and Half Seas Over producer Inxec comes together for a brand new EP with Gil Montiel on Italian label Extravaganza this month. Joining the pair on the release are Supernature and Akbal Music duo Dance Spirit – a Californian ensemble going from strength to strength in recent times. The boys took the time to chat with us this week, running us through their day to day, their long awaited return to the US and sharing an exclusive full premiere of their new remix 🙂
WWD: Thanks for joining us guys! Where in the world are you right now and what’s been on the agenda this week?
Currently we’re residing back in the Los Angeles area, and really enjoying and immersing ourselves in the underground community out here. There’s been some really spectacular underground warehouse parties going on as of late, and it’s really exciting to see the scene thriving in that area again. At the moment answering these questions we are busy getting some special new sunrise material together for our upcoming set at this spring’s Desert Hearts festival! Cari Golden is on her way over today to record something special for the morning as well, so looking forward to see where our creative juices take us today.
WWD: You’ve got quite a busy schedule on the go right now. How was Miami? Where were the best vibes this year?
Miami this year was so amazing! It’s almost hard to put into words what a great 5 days it was. We started off by participating in the Kindisch label party with the rest of the Kindisch family at Do Not Sit On The Furniture. A lot of artists and music lovers stopped by through out the night, and it was really nice to catch up with all of our fellow artists and label associates in one place. Everyone involved in the label is super talented and brings their own vibe to the collective whole, and gathering together like this was really motivational and inspiring. A great night with great people that sparked a lot of energy to push forward on some fun projects with the rest of the group.
The best vibes by far was Get Lost. I could write a book on how much fun we had, but I will paraphrase by saying this, Damian knows how to throw a proper adult rave! Our set was well received and we met a lot of fun new people, and got to catch up with many of our friends and associates as it was a gathering of people from all around the world. We were there for 16 hours and there was never a dull moment. Whether it was spending unique and private moments with special friends, or going at it on the dance floor with a group of good people, it was pure magic!
After that I dragged myself to the Ship of Fools Party by the Listed crew, and that was a TON of FUN. Another party with thick family vibes and 6 hours of awesome on a Sunday morning. All the DJ’s threw down exceptional sets but the highlight for me was MANDY and Thugfucker playing the last 2 hours. They did a great job weaving grooves and melodies for us all, and while making a lot of new and good friends on the boat.
We wrapped up the trip on Sunday at the Standard Hotel for Seth’s BBQ with some close friends before covering for a friend that couldn’t make a gig from Costa Rica at El Patio in Wynwood area… Gil was playing that evening too so was super nice to meet up with him and chat in person! Then we crashed for a few hours and caught an early morning flight home!
WWD: A return to Desert Hearts is on the cards soon. You’ve a lot of history with the festival. Has it become an essential for you each year?
Oh without a doubt Desert Hearts is one of those 3 day weekends we keep clear for maximum exposure to friends and fun. We started playing for the guys since their first party deep in the desert in the middle of nowhere when there were just 50 people and it was 20°F and our X1 controller and the Xone92 filters wouldn’t work because it was too cold — but the vibe was magical, the people genuine and full of love and big hearts, and we were hooked. It’s been really awesome to watch them grow over these years now into what it is now, and you can see their love dedication and hard work pay off and what they have contributed to the festival culture is really magical. I love that there is only one stage because it keeps the vibe centered and connected. Sometimes with these big festivals there’s too much going on, you have to organize and schedule your time and where you want to be, and suddenly you’re running around the place like a chicken with it’s head cut off trying to find a home base but never quite — but here, with one stage, it’s easier to always be connected to the music, the people and the vibe.
WWD: Is the festival scene in 2016 something that excites you?
The festival scene is exciting for sure. We are on a couple of bills so far this year, Desert Hearts being one, and then the Woogie Weekend being the other. I am sure other things will pop up but so far these are going to be really good gigs to play around California, and time well spent out doors. This is the first summer in 3 years that we will actually be in the US so can’t wait to have a fun summer in the homeland. I (chris) am also excited for the Dead & Co shows this summer as well haha.
WWD: You’ll be in Europe at a few points over the Summer. Have you a set approach to touring & travelling or is it more go with the flow?
Right now I’d have to say EU is a bit more of a go with the flow situation as it’s still a market we haven’t fully broken in to, though we are working hard on doing just that. We have a couple things lined up right now, a show in Zurich at Frieda’s Büxe in may, and the Mobilee rooftop closing party at the Silken Diagonal Hotel in Barcelona in September, and then i believe a Kindisch showcase in the works at Katerblau in Berlin, but not sure when yet! We’ll be setting up our home-base in Barcelona again in May and June and then September and October, while July and August we’ll be back in the states.
WWD: What’s the most adventurous thing you’ve eaten on your recent travels?
The most exotic thing to date has still been eating puffer fish in Mexicali of all places. It was delicious. Ceviche in Mexico and South America is always a favorite as well.
WWD: What are you most looking forward to this Summer?
There is really a lot to look forward too. Mostly for me as I said above is to be in the States for part of the summer. It has been 3 years so besides playing gigs, I am looking forward to the private moments of fun and adventure with friends around the country and having fun at different concerts, shows, and parties.
WWD: You’ve shared an exclusive preview of the new Inxec & Gil Montiel – Dolphin remix with us today. How did the opportunity come about?
It was pretty random, actually! Inxec just happened to hit me up one fine afternoon while I was resting up and relaxing after the 15 hour day at the Sacbe jungle party Audiofly threw in Playa Del Carmen before BPM started (Chris had gone to Get Lost, but i was completely wrecked and couldn’t move, of course looking back on it i wish i had have gone to Get Lost after hearing about it) and asked if we’d be down to remix! Made my afternoon and we jumped on the remix as soon as we got back from our time in Mexico!
WWD: Where did you put the track together?
We make all our music in the 23rd Dimension, which is what we call our studio, no matter where it may be. At the time we didn’t have an apartment in LA yet, so we had a makeshift “mobile” studio set up in my old bedroom at my parents house. Since we perform live for our shows, we always have lots of machines with us so it allows us to make music anyways with our favorite tools (minus a couple bigger synths). I think we wrapped it up in a day’s time — one of those projects that just flows out with ease… Having really fun remix parts really helps too!
WWD: One thing that would make 2016 a good year for Dance Spirit?
Peace and love consistently manifesting itself moment to moment in the collective consciousness of humanity. The world needs a healing, and we try to do our part as creators to remind and help people tap into this for themselves, once it starts on the individual level and spreads, we might just have a chance of making this world an even more amazing place than it already is.
Release date set for April 11th, 2016.
Follow: Extravaganza // Dance Spirit