Deya Dova Remixed: Interview With Deya Dova

DEYA DOVA REMIXED

Currently residing in far Northern New South Wales, Deya Dova is a dynamic live performer who, with her full live band, is a popular fixture on the festival circuit. In 2009 she released the stunning album Burst which has now been remixed by local luminaries and international heavyweights for the album Deya Dova Remixed. The roll-call putting their spin on the Burst tracks includes Juno Reactor, James Monro, An-ten-nae, Antix, Tijuana Cartel and more, with musical styles as diverse as the artists themselves.

BY LEE BEMROSE

Burst was such a good album in its own right – why bother with a remix album?

Wicked, thanks Lee. Burst was the product of a lock down in my studio for 12 months. It was a big learning curve for me being my first self-produced album, teaching myself the gear and software and developing my production techniques as I went. Although I was really happy with the result, I was still fascinated by the idea of hearing how an established producer would interpret my music. Also being inspired by so many styles of electronic production, I was keen to hear how the Burst songs would translate in different genres.

It's an eclectic mix of producers. How did it all come about? Why/how these particular artists?

I randomly started contacting producers online whose music inspired me for one reason or another. I introduced myself and my then new album Burst. The response was so overwhelming. Naturally some of them didn’t go for it, but most did and I simply followed the leads I had and allowed it to grow organically.

Did you feel nervous at all, waiting to hear the end results of the remixes?

Oh yeah, it’s been a wild process. Thankfully the mixes have all been fantastic and each producer has really captured the vibe of what I am doing, interpreting it through their own lens.

Is it the entire Burst album that's been remixed or just selected tracks?

It’s a selection of tracks. Some of the popular songs like Kyio and Burst got a few different remixes in different genres. For example Kyio got a super juicy tech house doing by New Zealand underground duo, Antix and then a sexy chill/ambient mix by global headliner James Monro.

How was it decided who got which tracks to remix?

I was keen for each producer to pick a track from Burst they most vibed with, so they could really have some fun with it. I made a few suggestions, in terms of particular tracks suiting particular genres, but mostly left it to the artists.

Which tracks are you most happy with?

Ohhh wow. Each track is a gem in its own right. I am a big progressive house/minimal tech listener so I got really excited by the moody, bass-heavy dance remix of Burst by Switchbox. I also love the fresh, European springtime feel of Nyquist’s Burst dance mix and of course the lush, building tech vibe of the Antix remix.

Which were the biggest surprises for you?

Juno Reactor’s rewrite of Hyperglider blew me away. I was naturally expecting a very Juno-esque track, something cinematic in line with his work in movies like The Matrix etc – but the sheer epic-ness of the journey through electronic, tribal and rock textures got me. As a visual artist the track fills me with wicked pictures of sci–fi speed chases, primal ceremonies and expansive landscapes.

I was also surprised by Tijuana Cartel’s remix of Petal – I really dig what they did with the vox at the top.

Did you have any creative input or did you simply put your trust in the remixers?

It was such a pleasure to work with all the international producers. There was a lot of trust, some delivered their tracks final, but most, which I hugely appreciated, were open to my input and feedback. Some tracks where very collaborative, shooting sound bytes back and forth through cyberspace.

It must have felt strange to hand over such personal creations to others. Do you have any feelings at all that anyone got it even a little bit wrong? (You don't have to name names).

I went into it with the attitude that there is no wrong, just different ways of seeing and hearing things. As a very particular and “detailsy” type artist, it was a great experience for me to let my work go out to other labs. I learnt a great deal about producing and writing, but also about what genres are more compatible with my voice and style. Having said that there was a couple of tracks I initially went “What!” but hey, at the end of the day I was into offering something across the board, not just for me.

I see amongst the diverse styles there is some dubstep, one of my least favourite styles of music. Who is responsible for this and what can you tell us about that track?

I was really keen to have dubstep represented on the album. In my own productions I love to flirt with favourite elements across the electronic genres. Although the metal darkness of dubstep doesn’t turn me on, the bass exploration of it does. I was stoked with the elative and super phat tribal mix San Fransisco’s DJ/producer An-ten-nae did of So Happy. And also with the more intricate and worldly dubstep mix Sydney based artist Kalya Scintilla conjured up for Toonmowi Tree.

My favourite tracks from Burst are Twinkle and Move U. What can you tell us about the remixes of these tracks?

Twinkle, inspired by the desert, is also a fave of mine. Aptly, Desert Dwellers have done a stunning down-tempo journey into Twinkle, and also a wicked IDM mix which I think Tipper is going to master in the near future. Adham Shaik tapped into his Indian ancestry and went wild with a West Coast breaks remix of Move U, which he’s told me is rockin' the dancefloor over there.

And another highlight, Bad Day. Can you tell us about this remix?

Quite a few artist took on Bad Day, not the easiest song to turn into a dance track. Dave Basek has served up a cheeky prog house/nu disco remix, I dig the quirky and hooky tweaked out vocal repeating “Ew”. I’m also looking forward to Dick Trevor’s remix of Bad Day which will be a follow up release to Deya Dova Remixed.

Bad Day is a gorgeous clip. Any more on the way? And any planned for the new album?

We had a blast making that clip! And thankfully got such great support from the stations – Rage, and Channel 10’s Landed Music. I'm really keen to do more music videos, a few fun ideas are floating around. Running the Reflekta label independently doesn’t leave much play money, so any sugar daddies of the music video kind out there, or any film makers and animators who are keen to collaborate - FB me :)

You keep yourself pretty busy on the live circuit. Are you also busy in the studio on new work?

Over the past year I’ve been devoted to developing the live show. Performing the material from Burst with the full band is such a high energy party, and I tend to go all out with new mixes, visuals and costumes, I love it. Between that and co-ordinating the Deya Dova Remixed album I’ve only had a chance to do a bit of vocal demo-ing and am looking forward to working with producers on the new material. Now with the release of the remix album I’m keen to get more time in the studio and put all I’ve learnt about song writing, production and dance music with some big phat bass.

Deya Dova Remixed is out now on the Reflekta label. Listen to samples and purchase the album at http://deyadova.bandcamp.com/album/deya-dova-remixed

A different version of this interview will appear in a forthcoming issue of Tsunami. Album review to follow soon.