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May 3, 2013
4 mins read

Irish Beatmaker Toby Kaar Talks To Wunderground

via http://www.kieranfrost.com

Here at Wunderground we were lucky enough to be able to have a chinwag with Cork beatmaker, Toby Kaar, ahead of what was by all accounts a savage show supporting Hudson Mohawke in Twisted Pepper last night. Those who weren’t in attendance have another chance to catch Toby as he plays The Village on Saturday 4th as part of a ridiculously good line up alongside Holy Other, Wife and Tropics.

Wunderground: So Toby, can you tell us a bit about what you’re working on at the minute and when can we expect to hear some new releases?

Toby Kaar: There’s lots of new stuff, but lately I retreated back and decided I’m not gonna put stuff out online and instead put it out more on labels or on records. I’m sick of trying to keep up with the internet thing.

WG: Do you find more of a pressure to release more stuff over the internet?

TK: I don’t think it’s the best way for anyone to have a relationship with music, if there’s a pressure on them. I mean from everyone’s point of view, you as the listener and me, it’s not really fostering a good relationship with music if all you’re caring about is newness or novelty rather than quality.

I don’t know, maybe it’s because I started just before music on the internet got big, so I’ve seen outside of it and some people got brought up within it.

WG: Taking that into consideration, what’s happening with your music at the moment?

TK: The thing I’ve been thinking about recently with it is that when you start out you’re taking something at face value….Like myself five years ago I was making some stuff kinda thoughtlessly I guess.

I think people make music because they’re around music and it generates out of this involvement in a scene of being around music and re-creating it. And it being more a cultural thing rather than a personal thing.

Ya’know like, people who have a blog because everyone else has a blog! There’s been times when I’ve known people who have a blog and I’m like really…you’re not a writer like, I don’t really value your opinion on anything, why do you have a blog!?

It’s the same with music, like it’s easy to make music because you’re listening to something and it sounds good and exciting and in the past while I had to step back from the internet and re-assess why I was making music. I think a lot of it now is I’d rather make one song a year really good rather then just churning out something that’s….

WG: Current? Which is something that can’t be created in an instant, there’s a progression.

TK: Yeah! So it does slow down, when you take the shift from doing what everyone else is doing to trying to figure out what you want to do.

Tracks that I’m working on now, I think it’s important they take ages and I learn something new from them…it’s the easiest thing in the world after making a track to make the same track again. It’s been a really big thing to question the thought process.

It’s all coming back to that quality in music. It affected every layer from being involved socially in music but also my own involvement in my own music, trying to get quality out of all of it…to making something really good.

via http://www.kieranfrost.com

WG: So are there any national / international acts that you’re listening to at the moment?

TK: I’ve realised today that I haven’t heard of any of these fucking new bands like, I was looking at the line up for something and I was like who are Everything Everything, who are Django Django!?

WG: pause…Really!?

WG: So tell us, what Irish festivals can we see you playing at this summer?

TK: I’m doing LIFE in a couple of weeks, and I’m doing Indiependence. I’ve never been to LIFE festival and I’m playing a stage [Red Bull Music Academy Stage] full of artists I really admire, I’m really stoked for that.

WG: What acts are you looking forward to?

TK: The guys from the Eglo label, ya’know like Floating Points and other acts from their label, Karenn and deep-house legend that is Kerri Chandler.

WG: Do you have a favorite Irish festival?

TB: I really like Castlepalooza it’s a really nice vibe, really small but really fun. The Courtyard stage, it’s like an outside stable…I’ve played there the past two years, and I’ve seen some really good acts play there.

WG: Performing on different stages at various gigs and festivals have you had any funny or embarrassing incidents?

TK: I’ve had some crap experiences where my gear stops working….I think once you’re up there you get a different attitude like yeah, screw it, whatever happens, ya’know.

WG: Do you have a particular gig that as soon as you came off the stage you felt you experienced a rush because it went so well?

TK: Last years Camdem Crawl happened like that…The guy who was supposed to be on before me missed his ferry..so far as I remember, I think Ghostpoet was DJing before me and I went on and ended up playing longer and everything just went so well…people climbing up on stage!

It’s weird all the ones I really look forward to and think I’m gonna do really well…and they’re okay and now and again I do this show and I’m just like that was amazing.

That’s why I play shows with And So I Watch You From Afar, they’re just different shows…The crowds are great.

WG: Do you experience a different energy playing at their gigs?

TK: That’s the thing I like about playing live and playing with these guys [ASIWYFA] even though our music’s really different, we share that approach of playing to a crowd.

WG: Do you have any stand-out tracks you’re listening to at the moment?

TK: I’ve been listening to a load of house music recently…I listened to a really good album recently by Maxmillion Dunbar he’s made a really good album this year….have you heard of the L.I.E.S. label they’re releasing 12″ a month of really high-quality stuff so I’ve been listening to a lot of that. I still have to get the Nonplus ‘Think and Change’ box-set that came out with Joy Orbison and Boddika‘s label…
When I’m making music I don’t really listen to music anymore, which is kinda funny [laughs].

WG: Really!? So finally Toby, you’re obviously aware of the ridiculous hype surrounding Daft Punk’s new release. With their being a few collaborators on the album, do you have anyone in particular you would like to collaborate or work with?

TK: Yeah man! I hear the Giorgio Moroder track is gonna be mental….Hmmm I could say people I like but I don’t know if I want to work with them….Hmmm, I’ve never thought about that. I’d love to make a track for Beyonce does that count!…or Missy Elliot.

Mikey

Mikey

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