boiMAG.com "Interview with Seb" Tuning in Article

by Nicky Roland

In this issue, I’ll be talking to a fellow house producer who over the last couple of years has become a good friend and partner in crime. House of Seb is a French underground house music producer from the South of France. A huge fan of Chicago House, he revived his music production passion during the height of the lockdown and hasn’t looked back since. I have edited some of Seb’s responses for legibility but tried to preserve his tone throughout this interview.

Q: Hi Seb, it’s a pleasure to finally sync up and do a feature on you. Could you start by telling our readers a bit about who you are and where you’re from?

A: Of course, and thank you very much Nicky for this great opportunity to be interviewed by you. I am Seb, from House Of Seb, born in the North of France near Belgium. I am married, 2 children, 1 dog and I live in Vence in the South of France. I’ve always loved technology and testing new things like a geek and I’ve released 4 patents in the computing area. I am currently working in a big company as Applications, Data and Artificial Intelligence Director.

Q: When did you first start getting into music, and when did you discover your passion for House.

A: I’ve loved music of all styles for as long as I can remember, new sounds, new styles... I was born in the 70s, so as you can probably imagine, music was rich with many different styles that were filling our lives and airwaves. My passion for Electronic music and House started at the end of 80s when I first discovered electronic music. Frankie Knuckles you know? He became my reference. My passion increased with the ´New Beat movement’ and opportunities to go to a famous big Belgian club ´Boccaccio Life ´ which at this period was the biggest temple of electro, where electro lovers from numerous countries congregated every weekend.

Q: Chicago House has been a huge influence on you and your music, what attracted you specifically to the Chicago sound, and have you ever made the pilgrimage to the mecca of House?

A: Do you remember what I said? Franky Knuckles was my reference. The House Music movement was launched in Chicago and even today in my opinion, all other movements like EDM fall in behind it. Chicago House is for me the mother of them all. I love it, as it’s a style derived from disco and funk, which was in my roots. I had the opportunity with my job 10 years ago to visit Chicago and you can imagine how happy I was to be there and listen to famous Chicago house tracks in this location. You are true it was like a pilgrimage. Amen!

Q: You leverage a combination of AI and played instrumentation in your music, could you explain your technique and workflow to our readers?

A: Of course, technology as you know evolves a lot and very quickly. I see and use the AI only to assist me during the creation phase when there are periods of lack of inspiration or when I’m stuck finding the appropriate chords for a melody. I use an iMac and logic pro X which for me is the best hardware/software to produce my music. I used AI in a limited way as it cannot generate emotions; emotions are generated and created by the artist. It needs to stay like that. I also use AI during the mixing mastering phase with wonderful tools like Ozone to help me to adjust sounds and frequency in the stereo shield and be at the right level of commercial tracks. AI must be used to save time, assist, and provide guidance for better quality, but not to produce a full track otherwise we cannot be called artists.

Q: Who are your biggest musical influences, and if you could collaborate with anyone, who would it be?

A: I love also Jamie Principle, Mike Dunn, Mousse T. They are all my musical fathers in this style and the reference in House Music. I cannot spend a week without listening to one of their tracks. Nicky Roland is very good as well, isn’t he? :-) You asked me about collaboration, what about we produce a track together in the future?

Q: You produce music and a ton of marketing material while holding down a full-time job, how do you balance things?

A: There are two reasons. First, I don’t sleep much, and early in the morning or late at night I have time to manage my social media channels answering fans, and the tons of messages that I received. I do that at these times as it needs to be managed quickly to ensure engagement and respect for the people who are asking questions or contacting me. It’s also the best time to not be disturbed by external events which can break your productivity. The second reason is to have a strong process of creation using a methodology to ensure that you quickly finish what you started. All of what I do and create is capitalized and never a waste. Even if I don’t use it immediately I know that I can reuse it later. I also use some automated tools to simplify the creation of media and spread them in a consistent and quality way.

Q: What would be your dream engagement?

A: I would love when the people are back on the dance floors, to be booked at Tomorrow Land. Would you come with me?

Q: Do you have any gigs lined up in the coming year, or online events we should be aware of?

A: I don’t know yet. I am for now in a big creation drive to produce more and more tracks, optimize my workflow and have more materials. In parallel, I invest my time into creating my digital record label named HOS Records to manage artists with the same passion and create digital content.

Q: On that subject, where can we find you on social media/online?

A: I'm on the main social media platforms, such as Instagram, TikTok, Twitter, and Facebook, and of course on all major streaming platforms. All my online presence can be found at this link: https://push.fm/fl/8h6tzfdz.

Q: Last, but not least… If you could change one thing about the world, what would it be?

A: I would change things to ensuring that all things are done in the interest of our mother planet. Egotism is increasing in the world. More and more people are looking only at their feet and their own interests. I know that it’s the economic management system that pushes us to that. But politically I am pretty sure that things can change to remove silos and ensure that people can all live together with the same interest, protect the planet, but above all, ensuring love between them. And we all know that music is the one element that can unify people. This is what I try to do with mine. Thank you, Nicky

And thank you Seb! I personally can’t wait until we can stand on a stage together, and about that collaboration? That's definitely on the table!

As mentioned above, Seb’s music can be found on all major streaming platforms. His style is heavily influenced by Classic/Chicago House and Deep House, heavily infused with his own unique flare. Be sure to also check out some of the HoS Records playlists on Spotify is you want to hear some of the best emerging House artists from around the world.

In other news...Georgie Porgie and Music Plant are back with another blazing hot track, this time with the Legendary Glenn Friscia, leading off 2022 with a massive track!!! Glenn flips a classic into a peak hour masterpiece, with two killer mixes. The House mix gives you a sax solo while the Jackin House beats are straight-up fire!!

Tower of Babel, my latest release is out on all major platforms and starting to make waves. This is a completely different style for me, drawing on classic electro, tech house, and even a little dubstep. It’s been compared to early Daft Punk, Cybotron/ Model 500, and even Don Diablo. If you’re looking for a new and unique sound, give it a spin.

And...I would be doing you a disservice if I didn’t mention my favorite new queer Brazillian indie artist LAIALEX.

“FLECHA” is the second single by LAIALEX, a new queer artist from the Brazilian indie scene who combines video games with pop music rhythms, what he likes to call “GAMER POP”. In this song, he pays homage to City Pop (those catchy tunes from Japan’s 80s pop, like the beloved “Maria Takeuchi - Plastic Love”). His sound is also infused with influences like Róisín Murphy & David Bowie.

“FLECHA” is part of the EP DELIRIA, a soundtrack for a video-game of the same name: DELIRIA, an LGBTQIA+ musical narrative adventure. LAIALEX isn’t just a musician, he’s also a Game Director and Producer!

The music video, a co-production of Aipo Digital and Buva Films, was directed by Marcelo Engster. A tribute to the “80s chroma-key” aesthetic, we see LAIALEX dancing and strolling through the night of a digital metropolis, looking for some good company but getting disappointed by toxic men and relationships, you know… the usual dilemma of dating apps).

You can find LAIALEX and FLECHA on all major social media and streaming platforms. Be sure to check out his YouTube channel for some cool and creative videos.

Nicky Roland is a house music producer originally from the UK, now based in Denver, CO, Find him on Spotify and on Twitter @nickyrolandmusic

Editorial: boieditorial@aol.com Advertising: boiads@aol.com

VIEW boiMAGazine ONLINE at: www.boiMAG.com

Advertising Contact: 773.975.0264 - boiAds@aol.com