In just three short years, one particular Berlin organisation has been responsible for releasing a slew of quality, fresh sounding four four club cuts from the likes of Kris Wadsworth, Jordan Peak, Huxley, Tim Green, Paulo Rocco and Mr. Ho. As such, it hasn’t passed us by unnoticed.
Keen to learn a little more about exactly what goes into Klasse Recordings, we decided to send a letter east, or rather email, and hope it could be fixed for us to ask someone involved some questions. Luca Lozano, the bossman, so we got to quizzing him on our eternal six questions. Complete with nuggets of wisdom available to be gleaned, what follows are his responses to our well-meaning grilling…
Describe your imprint’s output
Somewhere inbetween House and Techno, with influences coming from Trip Hop, old Hip Hop, Jazz and Soul. Everything seems to have a dustiness or ‘dirt’ to it; unpolished in some way. I don’t like perfect sounding music. Groove is important, as is originality and not following trends. We release four to the floor club music but are open to anything as long as it’s good. The release of my album heralds a new chapter for Klasse and I’m keen to continue the tradition of album releases within the Klasse gang.
What would you say makes it different?
The attention to details, the identity of the artwork and various flyers. Everything is born from my OCD riddled brain and therefore has a unique flow compared to some other labels. Whilst our style changes here and there I’d like to think we rarely bow down to the usual dance music cliches. Once something blows up and goes pop, I have a tendency to run a mile, often at the detriment to our bank account.
What is it that makes you keep looking for new talent to expose?
It’s a hard feeling to put into words, but every now and then I get the feeling that I’m ‘done’ with music, that I have heard everything there is to offer… music ceases to excite me.
Then I come across something that re-ignites my passion, this is usually coming from someone new to the game..someone with an energy and enthusiasm that might differ from someone that has been in it even for just a minute. A good example of this is hearing FJAAK’s – Remember Me, or Hevals’ Daze, both tracks I subsequently signed. It honestly feels like a drug high sometimes and I think it’s as addictive as any drug is. I want Klasse to be a label for new artists, not just to rely on people already at a certain stage of the game and therefore more likely to get us attention.
What’s the label’s pinnacle achievement so far?
I’m too humble to admit to any pinnacles, we had some success with a few previous tracks, licensing and sync and all that other shit that helps keep things afloat. A personal ‘landmark’ will be the release of the album, it has been over three years in the making (with one year of it just sitting around, maturing like a bottle of posh wine) and I’m happy to finally see it out. Of all the things I have ever done or made, it is this album that I am most comfortable with…I don’t question it, it is what it is and I’m very happy with way it sounds and plays. I hope other people feel the same.
If people were going to hear one release from your camp, what would you prefer it to be?
Impossible to answer, if you were to only hear one you wouldn’t get a complete understanding of what we try to do. I’d subject you to a Clockwork Orange style listening session, strapped to a chair and all that…. you’d be a better person for it, trust me.
All being well, skip forward five years, where would you like things to be?
