Crosstown Rebels and Last Night On Earth artist John Monkman joins revered west coast party throwers Do Lab for weekend two of Coachella this Saturday. The London-based producer is set to debut his brand new live show at the iconic festival. With a new remix on Noir’s NM2 also climbing the charts, we caught up with the powerhouse producer to get the lowdown on his live set essentials, his projects with Pete Tong and all his recent news.
WWD: John, great to catch up! You’re debuting your new live show at Coachella this Saturday (April 21). It’s an amazing accomplishment for any artist to feature at a globally renowned festival like Coachella. What are you most excited about?
Playing to the US crowd. The scene has really exploded the last couple of years. The energy is huge at the moment. The desert is a pretty cool backdrop for testing new material too.
WWD: Are there any other artists on the bill you’re excited to check out?
I’m a big fan of Avalon Emerson, so will try and catch her. To be honest I often fail at seeing the acts I plan to at this kind of event, so often best to relay on stumbling into something random. It usually works.
WWD: Of course, you’ll be debuting your new live show on the Do Lab Stage on Saturday. Can you share with us three key pieces of kit in your set-up?
1) Akai Apc40 – this is the main controller I use for triggering samples, loops and SFX. I also use it to control plugins I’m running inside Ableton.
2) Korg Minilogue – it’s a versatile thing and most important it’s super portable so perfect for taking on the road. I use it predominantly for adding pads/soundscapes and weird stabs. The white noise and LFO are good for messing around with also.
3) Ableton – this is at the core of the set and brings it all together.
WWD: Performing live obviously offers up much different challenges to a dj set. Where do you see the biggest challenges on the live side?
They’re very different beasts. There’s more flexibility when djing, however, there’s a specific purpose with the live set and the journey it takes you on. It’s a different buzz committing to a certain selection of music and rolling with it.
WWD: Will you be incorporating any of your fan favourites like ‘Phoenix’ and ‘Harmonix’ in a refresh for the new live show?
Harmonix is definitely in, still considering whether Phoenix is relevant, it’s one of my favourites though so we’ll see ☺
WWD: Your recently released remix on Noir’s NM2 is fast climbing the charts. Have you been surprised by the reaction to the track?
Nailing the main bass patch that carries the track was pretty satisfying, I remember getting goosebumps whilst recording. I’m happy to see it resonating with people.
WWD: Music-wise, what else can we expect from you over the coming months?
The next release on Beesemyer Music is from Kincaid and Sinal, the EP is titiled ‘A Very Stable Genius’ I worked on the remix for this which is going out with the EP May 4th. It’s a real roller of a track, nice and dark.
Pete Tong and I are working on the second track of a new EP. We’re aiming to get this wrapped up in LA when I’m over this week.
Following that I have an EP out Beesemyer Music scheduled in more early summer + a signing which I’m not able to disclose yet but am really excited about.
Follow: John Monkman