Kovu Interview!

Here we have an interview for you from Kovu! Kovu is an up and coming Producer and Dj. He is becoming ever popular on the likes of Soundcloud, as he begins to find his feet in the underground music crowd!

Hello Kovu! For those who may not have come across you.. introduce yourself..?

I'm Kovu, i'm 19 and currently living in Manchester for university. I'm studying Economics, and making tunes when i'm not studying economics. Its (kind of) working.

How did the name Kovu come about? 

It just had a catch to it, I started labelling my first remixes as 'Kovu' and it just stuck.

Describe to us how you got too where you are today.... how long have you been making and producing music? 

I started recording stuff when I was 14 but I didn't start getting a feel for what I was making until about last year, I got lots of positive feedback from various people, including the legend Todd Edwards who is supporting some of my tracks I collaborated on with Artek. This spurred me on to make more stuff. I think its important to be respectful to everybody also in the scene, whether they are a bigger or smaller name than you. Its easy for people to get a bit cocky and arrogant once they've received lots of good reviews and climbed a few rungs on the ladder, its never cool when that happens.

Who and what have been key influences for you in that time (your musical life)? 

I first took a serious interest in underground music when I discovered liquid D&B when I was 14 Hospital records was a big influence and big D&B fans may notice certain elements of liquid d&b in some of the Garage tracks I make. I also took a liking for Dubstep in 06 after hearing Skream's self titled album and Burial's debut and i would say 2006 was the most influential year for me in terms of music, I really opened up and started discovering loads of different types of music.

How would you describe your music to people? 

Good question! At the minute I'd definitely say the word Garage is most applicable for whats on my Soundcloud. A lot of my drum patterns tend to have funky elements and I like claps and snare drums a bit too much sometimes. I also often like to include organ style sounds in what I do. I'd say I generally aim for club focused tracks, however I do sometimes like to make more mellow and relaxed tracks such as the remix I did for Bruises.

What can you tell us about your setup and how you go about making music? What equipment do you use etc? 

Im using my PC with Ableton 8, a 49 key midi keyboard and my trusty monitors. I'd say my collection of sample packs is my prized possession however.

It says on your myspace that you have supported the likes of Nero, Boy Better Know, Coki, Cotti, Flux Pavillion, FuntCase and Cookie Monsta. Would you class any one these shows as one of the highlights of your career? If so which one(s)? 

The show that i would say was a highlight so far was when I supported the Circus record take over in Manchester last year hosted by Just Skank. 500+ crowd stayed strong til 4-5am!

Which cities in the country have you played and what venue(s) have been your favorite!? 

Birmingham, Manchester, Coventry, Newquay. DJing the day time parties for UTRs summer break in Newquay this summer was one of my favourites, DJing to a small beach in the sun while getting the drinks in.

Are you signed to a label? If so who? 

I'm currently unsigned.

Whats your opinion on the music industry in general? 

I like where things are headed at the minute, some genres have turned a little towards the pop culture and as always some new exciting genres have sprouted.

Whats your favorite track that you have produced/remixed, and why? 

This is a hard one, I really dig the first track I made with Artek 'And Then', but I was also real happy with the Seven Times remix that we did for Submerse & Resketch as well.

What are you currently listening to, and why? 

Currently im really feeling my Garage and darker House genres such as the stuff coming out of Night Slugs right now. I'm still a big fan of Hudson Mohawke and the whole glitch hop thing too.

What can we expect from you in 2011? 

I've got good feelings for 2011, as I've pretty much settled in Manchester now and have some good ideas for tracks to make. The release for 'And Then' should be released on vinyl by Fortified at the start of 2011, and I think Artek has other big ideas in mind for us. I'm also working on 2 EPs that will hopefully drop on two separate labels. And you'll probably hear a couple more remixes as well.

Anything you would like to add?? 

Thanks for you're time!

Just also like to say a big thanks to Kovu for putting aside the time and effort to do this for us! And keep up the good work! Here is a track by him for you all to enjoy. If you want to hear more and follow what Kovu is up to don't forget to look at his Soundcloud page, by clicking HERE!

James Wheeler - Dim Lights (Kovu Remix) by Kovu

THIS TRACK IS AVAILABLE FOR EXCLUSIVE DOWNLOAD HERE! DON'T MISS OUT!