One of the finest techno producers to emerge in the second half of the decade is undoubtedly Redshape. While the man behind the mask has been turning out releases for some time, it’s his work under the Redshape moniker that has left an indelible mark. With his first-ever Australian tour this weekend, inthemix spoke to the spotlight-shy prodigy in his studio while he was having an evening beer.

I want to start off by going to the start, more like the pre-Redshape era. You started off with a 12-inch release in 2000, and was under your own label which you just created, CONTENT. Were you not willing to go through other labels?
Simply because there were just no other labels to release on. I lived in an area where there were not many techno producers, maybe three of about ten thousand? So we really didn’t know much about distribution labels. The only thing I wanted to do was put out a record. So I got in contact with guys from the Czech Republic, they had a pressing plant. And that’s how things got going, the birth of Content.

Did you know what you were doing? Like, how did you have the confidence to run a label? Is it that easy?
As I was 17-18 at the time, I really didn’t think about it much then. But now, running a label is really challenging. But if you do not have too much alternatives to do, then it was like a risk, and it was quite expensive. Other people in the day, such as friends of mine bought stuff like motorbikes, and I spent money on the release. I’m quite a naive person. I don’t think too much about what I do, I just believe in what I do and go with it. It worked out well in the end, but at that time it was quite hard. We had no experience in doing what we did, and it only got better.

Then came a new era; the Redshape era. This is where the mask came about. The masked concept was obviously central to Daft Punk, and has carried through to acts like The Bloody Beetroots. Where did this idea come from? Why red?
When I did the label I also produced and released slower Detroit tracks, and when the scene over flowed in 2005, I played a lot in Spain, and a lot of loop techno was coming out. I thought that I need to escape this common scene, so I thought that I need to reshape me. Reshape didn’t sound like a cool artist name, so I went for Redshape instead.

When the first gig request came in 2006, mostly from the same clubs I’ve played at before, I didn’t want people to know Redshape as the previous me. I wanted to remain anonymous, which now is not so much of a big issue. People where taking photos and I thought, okay, I’ll put on a mask, as I like masks. And it went on. Daft Punk did play an influence also. They wore the transparent masks in the ‘90s on their live first gigs. I liked it. So I did similar, but in red. But the deep thinking was from what I said previously.

Do you tend to always play live at a gig?
I always play live. I also do DJ sets, but never together with the live set.

What type of setup do you use? Ableton? Traktor?
I use Ableton for sequencing. But I’m not too sure what I will be bringing to Australia just as yet. Most of the times I play in Europe I bring an extra drum machine for live programming. I only have like really short parts in Ableton, which midi sequences the drum machine and I arrange every track. I don’t have pre-recorded breaks or anything. I only have really small parts only like beats or piano tones, and I have to move faders and turnups to make music out of it. So it’s pretty much as live as you can get.

Has there been a change in the sounds that you have been generating from your early years to the Redshape era? Is it that your taste in electronic music has changed?
Hmmm, yeah. Maybe. I’m not even sure [giggles]. When you get older, you get more music and with music comes more knowledge. I used to listen to a lot of indie rock years ago, which is also like a big influence for Redshape. It was probably the biggest difference; I covered stuff like Detroit, deep house, stuff I didn’t listen to before, by acts such as Theo Parrish and Moodymann just to name a few. But the old Detroit stuff I liked in the ‘90s, I still love, whereas I did fade away from the harder techno from in the day.

What is the most valuable asset that you use in the studio while releasing tracks?
The E-mu SP-1200 drum machine. Probably my number one. For about the last three years, nearly every Redshape drums are made with this. I love it. Could almost worship it [giggles].

You will be visiting Australia in a few weeks. Have you been here before?
No, first time coming to Australia, and I must say I am super excited.

Is there anything that you are looking forward to while down here on the over side of the globe?
To see the country, fans and most importantly, my uncle. I haven’t seen him in years. Give him a visit, go site seeing, and whatever else I could fit in.

Finally, what can fans expect while you are playing? Playing live, right?
I’m actually looking forward to having a great party. When I play live, I get quite ravey sometimes. So some rock and roll party will be great, and I’m sure it will work out. I’m going to put some special stuff together before I come on the tour. It should be fun!

Redshape tour dates:
Friday 23 April – Democracy @ Geisha Nightclub, Perth
Saturday 24 April – HAHA Industries Warehouse Party, Sydney
Friday 30 April – Stable @ Roxanne Parlour, Melbourne
Saturday 1 May – Sugar Nightclub, Adelaide