Over the last couple of years, few have risen faster and further than Eric Estornel’s Maceo Plex. The Texan’s lively basslines and breathy, computerised vocals have become synonymous with the groove-focussed, slowed-down house sound that has become so prominent of late.
Plex of course is just one of a handful of aliases Estornel goes by, so why exactly has this particular manifestation caught the collective imagination so vigorously? Here, Defected’s Ben Lovett speaks to the man himself to find out.
Dallas isn’t the first, second or even third place one might consider in terms of electronic music innovation. The Texan city is about as far off the clubland map as its gets; more JR than DJ. It has, however, oiled the wheels on DJ-producer Eric Estornel’s speedy ride to the top. Estornel, behind crowd-pleasing house alias Maceo Plex, owes much to the ‘hood he grew up in.
It wasn’t always Dallas. Estornel’s young teenage counterpart moved there with family from Miami in 1991. A few years later and his family were back where they started but Estornel was determined to stay having planted strong sapling roots as a music maker. Local DJ work had led to production experiments with Windows 3.1 software and MIDI equipment in 1996, Estornel indulging his interest in electro, breaks and Detroit techno. But he was also pulling shifts at Dallas record store Illmatic and when, in 2000, it started selling minimal grooves from Cologne then his world would expand much further.
“Both Dallas and Miami were incredibly isolating” Estornel opens. “They had no real scenes. My early years in Dallas were at a huge remove from the rest of the dance community; I was truly cut-off. But that, actually, was a blessing. Being in that situation allowed me to establish my own way of doing things... lay down my own processes and discover my own set of influences. When I eventually moved to Europe, I was able to put that learning to work.”
That move, in 2009, coincided with the birth of Maceo Plex but in fairness Estornel was already making waves with original aliases Maetrik and Mariel Ito. His first ever release - excusing a low-key electro pressing on Illmatic’s in-house label – came via the former in 2000. Appearing on then celebrated US imprint Immigrant, the appropriately-titled EP Entering The Cycle attracted huge interest; Estornel really had entered the ‘cycle’, there now being demand for a regular sequence of releases. Maetrik’s dark, muscular tech sound would evolve through a string of EPs and singles for Iron Box, Mothership, Regular and Treibstoff as well as studio albums Quality Exertion (2002) and Casi Profundo (2005) – also Treibstoff releases. Mariel Ito, meanwhile, would convey tense, twisted future-electro sentiment on weighty mid-Noughties EP outings likeIndexed and Split 2, not to mention bold 2006 long-player My Cyborg Depths.
Where then does Maceo Plex fit in? According to Estornel, Plex is something of a stripping back of the “tough robotic armour” that has lined much of his career to date. “It was late 2009 and I thought I’d record a disco-vibed record, Gravy Train, just for fun” he explains. “I sent it to Damian Lazarus [Crosstown Rebels founder] and he loved it. He loved it so much that he wanted me to explore making a full album of tracks with the same mood. Maceo Plex was just an experiment to begin with.”
That album, Life Index, arrived on Crosstown Rebels in 2011, an ecstatically-received record as deep and percussive as it was sexy and soulful; a record owing as much to intricate househeads Moodymann and Isolee as to tech royalty Kenny Larkin and Model 500, and even G-Funksters Parliament. Life Index paved the way further singles on Crosstown (including this year’s Frisky), Art Department’s No 19 label and Estornal’s own Ellum Audio. There were remixes, too, for Azari & III, Friendly Fires and Laura Jones, and a phenomenal rise in DJ bookings. Things have opened up in a way surely Estornel never thought possible.
And yet there are more releases on their way. Next month, Maceo Plex puts out an Ellum EP Love paying tribute to Colourblind’s smooth cover of the Jones Girls’ late Seventies disco gem You Gonna Make Me Love Somebody Else, as remixed by infamous Hacienda jock Jon Dasilva, and Chilean-German duo Closer Musik’s lustrous electronica groove Future Musik with smart new 2012 interpretations. For the former, Estornel tracked down Dasilva and Colourblind vocalist Joi Cardwell, legendary house diva, to help with re-recording.
“The Colourblind track is really special to me, an early Nineties classic” he says. “A lot of people lament the loss of those sorts of dance records today. Back then you couldn’t complete the arrangements in a single day so they were kept simple and more focus was applied to the grooves. The sound systems in a lot of the Nineties house clubs were also poor compared to now, so producers had to apply more effort to make their records sing. But, look, the electronic scene today is still good. There’s a lot of average stuff being pushed out and certain artists take certain technology and processes for granted but the good records are still there. Plus you have techno back in, the whole Hot Creations thing, the retro-house thing... the scene is exciting. And if the technology is used well then you can add something in terms of sound quality and experience that just wasn’t there before.”
Estornel is already recording his second Maceo Plex album, due out in 2013, in much the same pioneer spirit. What can we expect? “It’s going to have less of a focus on house” he confides. “There will be some deep house cuts, and I may include the Colourblind revamp, but there’s going to be far greater experimentation.”
Does that include bolder use of Estornel’s own vocals? His tonsils did, of course, feature on Life Index as well as in the Maceo Plex live show which debuted in Miami last year; next month, listeners will hear them on Future Musik. “Yes, I plan to use my vocals more. I’m constantly trying to improve them and way that I use them” he confirms. “But I don't want to overdo it. Their use will be sporadic and where they fit with the music I’m making. I’ve never been afraid of pushing new ideas or sounds to get to where I want to in the studio or for that matter the club.'t
Plex’s second artist album is also scheduled for release through Crosstown. What insight can Estornel give into the Rebels camp? Here is a group of artists who, under Lazarus’s assured direction, have definitely turned clubland on its head in recent years....
“There is a pretty unique buzz in the same way that Minus had a buzz when [Richie] Hawtin, Magda, Troy Pierce and Marc Houle first properly came together” he acknowledges. “But it is different with Crosstown. The Minus guys are almost glued together in the studio, it feels like, whereas we all work largely apart. Everyone is making these fresh deep house grooves and there is a unique connection between them but we’re all doing our own thing. It’s testament to Damian that he can see the common thread and still give us our space. There’s no close-knit collaboration; we’re all part of a wider deep house movement, which is amazing in its own way.”
A reality that plays true to the positioning of Estornel’s own career: “I’m not exclusively tied to any one person or label. I work with a wide range of people; I like to have that independence.”
But just how much has that Dallas-inspired independence been tested over the past year, in the wake of Life Index’s immense success? “It’s been a busy time, for sure” he answers. “There have been a lot more decisions to make and more noise and distraction around what I’m doing but when I’ve been DJing and producing I’ve channelled those pressures away; the music always comes first. It’s a different matter outside of the club or studio; that’s when the reality of the decisions you’ve made for your career hit home and you start analysing their consequences. That sort of thing has become more stressful but you learn to handle it. Life Index has actually helped me figure out my sound as Maceo Plex; it's not anyone thing but you could say its deep house with disco influences and a darker sheen. People want a different but groove-orientated take on house which is why I think it's earned the attention.”
The stresses are not just mental either, but physical. This summer, Estornel has been playing on average six nights a week. “That schedule demands total concentration” he stresses. “I need to carefully prepare my playlists for each of those appearances. That takes time, because every city and club is different and many of them I haven’t played in before. I also like to have a drink before I play, to take the edge off things. Over the course of a few weeks that builds up; and the lack of sleep... it hurts. The experiences I’ve had have been so worth it but this job isn’t easy, it is a proper job.”
Estornel’s move from the States to Spain (Barcelona) has undoubtedly helped; both in terms of creativity and ‘out of office’ relaxation. “It’s been the critical point of my musical life so far” he suggests. “Dallas was often gloomy and rainy and I think that was coming out in the music I was making. I needed sun. The Spanish weather has influenced me a great deal; in truth, it’s helped drive Maceo Plex forward. Spain is such a happy environment which suits me as I get older; there’s the beach... friends... a more relaxed vibe. And the electronic scene here is really evolving. There’s great artists like Davide Squillace close by, who provide inspiration.”
Despite his rapid rise and the subsequent fervent interest, Estornel feels he has the right set-up around him and the right resolve to push on without fear of any kind of obstacle. He remains as busy with Plex as he does with Maetrik (releases for Cocoon, remixes of Silicone Soul and Timo Maas), and there are further projects on the way with Hot Creations wunderkind Danny Daze (as electro-edged combo Jupiter Jazz) and, naturally, Ellum Audio (including new material by close Plex associates Odd Parents).
“I’m a fast music maker” Estornel concludes. “If the details around me are right then I’m quick to make things happen. I know what I want, whether I’m playing out or working out new tunes. I don’t think I could be any other kind of artist.”
Words: Ben Lovett
Maceo Plex & Jon Dasilva’s Love EP is released on Ellum Audio (US) on September 24.
