Reboot AKA Frankfurt’s Frank Heinrich never meant to have music be more of a hobby, and yet he has recently thrown caution to the wind, ditched his job in the corporate world and decided to pursue DJing as a full-time career. It seems he made the right decision, as Reboot’s live sets have become famous for their sexy energy, stunning presentation and incorporation of dance sounds across the spectrum.

Between playing clubs throughout Europe and being featured on Luciano’s Fabric41 mix, Reboot has most recently been involved in the unique Aether Project, an amazing live show for dance audiences incorporating a blend of sounds, lights and colours to enhance the overall musical experience. He tells ITM more about this exciting new project and what it’s like to live the dream…

You’ve been DJing for a long time now (since 1992 with Marco Delle Donne), I guess your days as Reboot are only still in their infancy by comparison. Has Reboot always been lurking in the background, producing and remixing since the early days, or is the move a fresh one?

Haha, that’s true! But I am sure that “he” has always been somewhere around there. In 2002 I moved to the very south of Germany for a couple of years. That caused some logistic problems and we couldn’t work together very often. I’ve learned a lot from Marco, as he is an amazing musician. But at one point I just wanted to produce my music without having to compromise. That’s why I started this solo project.

I know you never intended to take on DJing or producing as a profession; at what point did you decided to make a go of it? I can only imagine it must have been a hard and risky decision to make?

It sure was. Since I finished university, I have been working as a business consultant for ten years. Making music and DJing was just a hobby and my big passion. I know how hard it is to make a living in this industry, so I never realistically thought of it as being my profession. I just quit my job this year in March. It became absolutely impossible to do both in a professional way. At a certain moment, I realized I couldn’t concentrate equally on both jobs. I was just too exhausted from travelling and playing every weekend. So I made the decision to give “living the dream” a shot. My family and friends also supported me a lot during this time.

A lot of your stuff is very versatile, especially the percussive beats you use in your tech house tracks – you seem to draw inspiration from all over the world. Do you spend a lot of time experimenting with different sounds?

First off, thanks a lot! That’s exactly what I intend to achieve with my productions: paint a picture, influenced by all different styles of music from all over the world and present it in a versatile way. I spend most of my time researching and experimenting, always trying to develop and redevelop my sound. At home I usually don’t listen to dance music. It’s more jazz, world music or classical that inspires me.

Who are the guys you were listening to in the early days that drew you towards the more experimental percussive beats?

Well, I had my first steps in electronic music when I was a teenager, and was strongly influenced by the so called “sound of Frankfurt” in the early 90’s. Stuff like Harthouse and Eye-Q, Detroit techno or deep house. But only at the end of the 90’s did I start really digging into different styles of music. World music, especially from Latin America, as well as jazz, trip-hop and funk made me think a lot about the mechanisms and rules of modern dance music – something like “searching for the mother-groove”. So, I receive a lot of inspiration from there.

I guess the more experimental you are, the more the learning curve continues to get steeper? Who are the guys you are draw inspiration or learn from now?

Basically I get my inspiration from my entire surroundings, not necessary from certain musicians. But if I had to name some people that I really like listening to at the moment, it would be: Avishai Cohen, Bonga, Paco de Lucia or Fuday Musa Suso.

I really like your most recent house release Enjoy Music, released on the Defected label. When I hear this versus previous releases, especially hits like Charlotte, there’s no better indication of your versatility. Is house music where you’re heading, or do you not even know yourself?

This track is more an homage to classic house music, just like the stuff, that Defected or Strictly Rhythm used to release back in the day. That’s also the reason why I licensed it to them. It’s a party track and it doesn’t intend to be anything more than that! I sure won’t start to produce more tracks like this, just to ride the wave. It was a cool thing for me when I did it, but the next releases will be completely different. I don’t want to regulate myself or get pushed into a certain direction.

I know your release on Cadenza was very eclectic – since then have you seen yourself moving towards a more definitive sound or are you enjoying experimenting?

In my opinion, creativity is nothing but an endless journey. It takes you to lots of different places, sometimes you stay longer, sometimes you move on fast. As soon as you end the journey – creativity ends. So for me, there is no alternative to experimenting and development. As long as you feel comfortable with it, you should be able to try whatever you like.

Do you ever plan on releasing anything on Cadenza, for nostalgia’s sake, or any other reason?

My next releases will be on Cadenza. I just finished a remix for the Frivolous EP and we have a Reboot EP out in January. I’m also working on my first album for them, and we hope to have it out by April 2010. I have a very strong relationship with Cadenza. They do my booking and my management. But most importantly they are like family to me.

It must be pretty gratifying when a producer and DJ like Luciano is using your tracks in the mixes he throws down, most notably Be Tougher in his Fabriclive 41 mix?

What a question… of course it is! I was always a huge fan of his work and he was one of my biggest supporters from the beginning. The first time he got in touch with me, I thought my heart was gonna jump out of my chest. Not only am I very thankful for his support, I am even more thankful that we became close friends over the years.

You, Luciano and your other colleagues at Cadenza have started the Aether Project, which after four years in the making, finally started touring in 2009. I understand there are some pretty complex technologies, visuals and audio that makes-up the show?

The core idea of the project is to channelise sounds, colours and lights into an outstanding new experience for the audience. The technical and financial effort is huge. 2009 was something like a built up year. It is very complicated and cost intensive to run the show, so we had to get experience and learn from it. For next year we have to reconsider all these experiences and decide how we can push it further.

It seems very cutting edge. What’s the creative process in putting together something like this?

It is a big challenge to bring all the different musicians together, make them produce new tracks and finally get it linked to the visual presentation. We worked very hard on that and did lot’s of rehearsals. In the beginning it was quiet static, but after a while, everyone was able to put in their own ideas and creativity. It is a fascinating process and I am really happy to be part of it.

Any plans to bring it to Australia? (Please bring it to Australia).

Haha, hopefully we can! For the moment, there are no confirmed shows at all for next year. We have to do our homework first.

Reboot live dates:

Fri 11 Dec – Ambar, Perth
Sat 12 Dec – Lady Lux, Sydney
Fri 18 Dec – Cuckoo, Adelaide
Sat 19 Dec – Barsoma, Brisbane
Sun 20 Dec – Revolver, Melbourne