Defected’s Ben Lovett profiles Hector Couto ahead of his debut appearance for Defected In The House at Ministry of Sound this New Year’s Eve.

The last eight years have been rather special for Hector Couto. It was eight years ago that Tenerife-born Couto started DJing - aged 21 – and since then he hasn’t looked back. Early gigs with friends would eventually progress to larger affairs overseas, just as early, informal studio experiments with ACID Pro would lead to official remixes and releases on heavyweight labels including Hot Creations, B Pitch Control and Noir Music.

Couto’s first EP (alongside Luca M) was ‘Primera Cosa’ on Frequenza Music in 2009, a balled up mix of house and techno that would inform his subsequent work and overall style. That same year saw similarly engaged remixes of Carlo In Action (‘Rumba Loca’) and Ivan Pica (‘Intense Harmony’). It wasn’t long before Couto’s discography accelerated, the next three years taking in a swathe of funky, driving EPs for the likes of Uruguayan imprint Soulman, Tenerife-based Pura Music and German enterprise Brise.  Remixes, too, arrived for Dale Howard (a slinky, stab ‘n’ jack take on ‘Now Strip’) and Chris Lake, and the DJ travelling began in earnest.


“As a young boy I started to get interested in electronic music on my island Tenerife” Couto reflects. “We were very influenced by the UK music scene, by its culture, because we’d receive thousands of people from there to party and go clubbing. They brought the sound with them and so a movement began on the island which I grew up with. My big break was having the freedom and confidence to do what I wanted to.”

Ask Couto what his musical manifesto is and he’ll struggle to give you a specific answer. “To be honest, my sound is very personal, formed from when I was growing up” he suggests. “My musical identity is influenced by many styles and artists…I think that’s the best way to describe who I am right now.” It’s fair to say, however, that Couto’s is a vibe shaped as much by Chicago house as it is old-school techno– the perfect fusion of rhythmic bite and emotion.  It’s a vibe, too, hugely popular with clubland, Couto one of Resident Advisor’s Top 100 most charted artists of 2011, 2012 and 2013.

Over the past three years his reputation has really accelerated. Assured EPs alongside Cuartero (‘Juke Box’, on Tube & Berger’s Kittball, 2012) and Darius Syrossian (‘Who’s The Douche?’), on Hot Creations, 2013, and ‘Here We Come’, on Definition:Music, 2013), and slick solo outing ‘Sunday Anthem’ (on a shared Definition release with Ben Mono, this year) placing him squarely before a wider-than-ever global dance audience. “Am I quick in the studio, or thoughtful? None of them” he remarks. “I only approach the studio when the inspiration comes….”


Does Couto prefer the studio to the club? “I genuinely like both” comes the answer “I have no preference. I don’t have a big difference either…producing or playing. I’m just building in the studio and testing on the dancefloor…I think both of them go hand in hand to give the best results to the public…to the crowds.”

And now he’s readying himself to play to a whole new audience. The Defected In The House New Year’s Eve extravaganza at Ministry Of Sound will mark Hector Couto’s first outing (of any kind) for the label. How does he feel? “I have a great feeling about being part of Defected’s big end of year party” he grins. “I really like the label and the movement around it…I’m really glad to be playing with the Defected family this New Year!”

There’s more: “You have to look and see what a great job they’ve been doing in recent years. I think Defected right now is more than just a record label…the team have created a label beyond the music…where people can feel recognised and identified, and can feel genuinely part of a fantastic movement.”


Couto is attempting something similar, in spirit, with his own imprint Roush. The Tenerife-based label was established last year and, as its slick, crisply branded website asserts, is driven by a desire to buck ‘new trends’ and simply celebrate ‘good underground house music’. Roush, the website continues, is based on clear passion and ideology – it is the underground. The label’s roster proudly boasts Okain, Jamie Trench, DJ Le Roi, Josh Butler and Julien Sandre alongside, of course, Cuartero, Syrossian and Couto himself.

“House is more than music, it is a lifestyle” Couto elaborates. “We can see and feel the support of everyone. We created a movement…people will be listening and dancing to house music for many, many years. Roush is part of this and doing great. We’ve celebrated the first year with great releases, results and feedback from many people in the dance industry. My partner Antonio [Melo] and I have now been working very hard to surprise everyone with a second fantastic year…it’ll be really satisfying for us to share the musical ideas we have for Roush and the big plans that are coming - stay tuned! 

Can Couto tell us anything about what’s coming next? Not really, he’s keeping his cards very close to his chest. “I’ve been chilling with my friends on a ‘short trip’ holiday on La Graciosa island [within the Canary Islands], it’s my favourite place” he begins. “What’s next? Just to work hard, enjoy my friends when I can and be happy….”

There’s a definite sense that he’s happy with his progress so far as an artist, which he promptly confirms: “When I think on all the things that have happened to me over the years, I can only be glad for it. I’m really happy and I will keep working hard to ensure good things keep happening.”

What does Couto think is the recipe for artistic success in these hurried, saturated digital times? Dance music is a vastly different beast to that which it properly started out as in the Eighties…. “I think it’s just about being talented, humble and patient” he calmly states. “Electronic music is still viable for a long-term music career, for sure. If you are talented and have a good team behind you then everything is possible.”

Words: Ben Lovett

Hector Couto plays Ministry of Sound for Defected In The House this New Year’s Eve alongside Noir, Nick Curly, Sam Divine and more – click for full line-up and tickets