Sebastian Russell
Force LP
Fenou
Digital Album
fnud04
Out: 18 September 2015
Tracklist
1. Pourpre
2. Free Fall
3. Hide
4. Force
5. Silent Laugh
6. Something For You
7. Death Song
8. Légèreté
9. Flirt
10. Altered State Of Conciousness
11. Shark
A hundred years ago, London’s East End was one of the ugliest eyesores of the British capital: a dirty, muddy hole; marked by the acrid stench of textile factories, social injustices and violence. A run-down slum, in which you would only have set foot, if you really had to.
Today the area, that was once Jack The Ripper’s favourite hunting ground – Whitechapel, is a hotspot, where creative media professionals, designers and artists of all kinds have settled. A district where Sebastian Russell finds a lot of inspiration for his House / Electronica tracks.
After numerous EPs as Producer, DJ and musician, he now presents his first studio album “Force”. Russell is not a newbie to the club scene: For more than ten years, the busy thirty-something-year-old has produced and released his tracks on renowned labels such as Telegraph, M_nus, MBF, Trapez, Lebensfreude, Multi Vitamins, Mescene, Adjunct and the Mo’s Ferry imprint Fenou.
Furthermore, the now London-based Russell has made a name for himself with his idiosyncratic remixes for colleagues like Mark Henning, David Durango and Dapayk. His floor filler “You Freak” was published in 2008 on the Minus compilation “Sound Comes From Can Elles” and was also found on Richie Hawtin’s mix CD for the renowned DJ Mag.
His track “Re-Experience” got him a lot of attention when it was chosen for a TV advertisement for the mobile giant Samsung. So now, after having released the pre-single “Freefall” in June, follows the long awaited debut album “Force”. At the age of 10, Bordeaux-based Russell started practicing classical guitar, at 13, he turned his attention to rebellious rock ‘n’ roll, at 16 he was interested in funk and jazz until he discovered the magic of the machines at 24: Minimal Electronica, teased out from analog drum machines and a very manageable number of devices.
During weekly improvised sessions with a small group of musicians including Mark Henning and inspired by experimental artists like such as Aphex Twin and Squarepusher, Russell began to stretch his creative probe in different directions. Russell calls his distinctive style “Sexy Romantic Techno”, in which the particular mix of melody and beat is in the foreground. Just as in “Force”. “I give a lot of attention to the harmonies within the tracks, and to the emotions.
I make my music from the gut and do not think much about it after. Everything comes from a feeling. I am an absolute romantic and try to convey this in my music for the club scene.” Having already performed alongside renowed musicians like Matthew Dear, Bruno Pronsato, Luomo, Spektrum, Cabanne, Italoboyz, GummiHz, Audio Werner, Arnaud Le Texier, Ekkohaus and Matt John, Russell now opens a new chapter with “Force”.
The album title was a logical decision with “music as the biggest driving force in life,” he explains. “Everything in life is determined by a certain force and a certain influence. We depend, for example, on gravity. I like strength training – even that has to do with the interaction of the various forces.
My tracks are about the flow of energy between me and the audience,” as Russell demonstrates with the continuous forward aiming “Free Fall”, the creepy-gloomy “Death Song” and the next single candidate, the seemingly floaty-light “Pourpre”. The only thing left to say is: May the “Force” be with you!