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 i:Vibes takes a few moments to ask Damon Fonooni aka Habersham, a few questions. He is running Blueprint Recordings with Numinous, and Lobotomy Records with Dave Preston, Luke Kalish, and Phil K. Damon is a twisted DJ and a mighty producer who always fills the top of the charts. Check him out!
Oren: Where did it all begin?
A: Where indeed.......I think my love for music was embedded in me by my father who was heavily into Pink Floyd, Led Zepplin, Prince and Santana long before they were figureheads in pop culture (when they were far more experimental)....not to mention the influence from my mother who was fully into disco and soul / classic RnB stuff, like Marvin Gaye, Barry White and so on. I feel like what i'm into now is simply a modern day manifestation of that music.
Oren: What is it like to run the two labels, Blueprint and Lobotomy?
A: Well, I've defintely learned more through my partnership in both these labels than through my other involvements in the music industry so far. The amount of knowledge and experience I've gained has really allowed me to broaden my horizons in so many other ways. You can apply the same business practices and ethics in anything you do in life.
Oren: Are you satisfied with each label? What are your expectations from each?
A: I am very satisfied with each label. On one hand we’ve got Blueprint which my partner Numinous (Brett) and I have taken on. We’ve always had very like-minded views about the music we should release and it’s always gone beyond that. Brett and I have been running Blueprint for nearly 3 years now, which has taught me almost everything I know today from a music business standpoint. Our focus has always come from a more progressive point of view, but these days it certainly has broken out of that box and now encompasses so much more.
With Lobotomy, it’s an avenue to focus on very unique music…..records and songs that you truly wouldn’t hear anywhere else. Thanks to my partners Dave Preston, Luke Kalish and the occasional helping hand from Phil K, we’ve been able to turn what was always a vision of ours into a reality. Dave and I’s taste differs a bit from what Brett and I are into, as with Lobotomy we tend to be into a bit more (doodoo!)funk.
It’s wonderful to be able to have this balance and different avenues, much like with Dave who also runs Institution Recordings with Josh Waddell and Luke Kalish. And through each you’re going to hear the maddest four-four music not to mention standout breaks and downtempo, from some of the best artists on the planet, without a doubt!
Oren: Which of your productions are you proud of most, and why is this so?
A: The Operators – Furball – Cause I’ll be damned if I’ve heard a more memorable record than this in years! The replay value on it is relentless…and to me that’s the surest sign of a solid record. People love it or hate it, but they do both with such a passion that it only reaffirms how special “Furball” really is.
I’ve just done a new record for Audio Therapy called “My Effingham Sound” which I’m so very proud of! I feel that it marks the end of my early phase into a more mature phase of my music. It’s breaks and it does things that go beyond anything I’ve done before.
I’ve also been working on a lot of Downtempo/IDM style music for a forthcoming album. For me these works are filled with some of the heaviest emotion I’ve been able to convey in my music, not to mention microprocessing sound design to hell and back!
Oren: Where do you find the inspiration to write your tracks?
A: Mostly from hearing so many other kinds of mad music! Wether it's new or old, if it’s original and if I can say I’ve never heard anything quite like it, that’s the stuff that truly drives me. Of course I have to meet expectations of my friends and my critics, which without a doubt pushes me to levels beyond what I may settle on normally.
But I think in the past year most of my inspiration has come from the ups and downs in my life. I’ve been through so much that it’s given me painful, hurt as well as enlightened, uplifting inspiration. Most importantly I’ve been blessed to have met the love of my life who’s shown me more than anything I’ve ever known. And thanks to her you will probably notice a shift in my music towards more emotion, whether it’s moody or warm. Amidst all the shit in the world and in my life, I’m happier than I’ve ever been, and hopefully if I’m doing things the right way, you’ll be able to tell that through my music :-D
Oren: Apart from producing, you are also a DJ. How's that coming along?
A: Man, I couldn’t be happier with how DJing is going for me right now! I’ve been lucky enough to play all over the US, Mexico, Guatemala, Australia (and going back again nearly 6 months later!), and the response has always been phenomenal. I’ve also tried to set a precedent for myself to expect the unexpected from my sets—most people hear my productions and may have this preconception of how I play---but my taste in music changes with the weather!! If a record leaves a lasting impression on you, then that’s what I play
Oren: If you could choose the location for a future gig, where in the world would it
be? Is there any place in the world that arouses your curiosity in general?
A: I really really want to play in South America, whether it’s Buenos Aires or elsewhere, the people there are so purely passionate about music and have a really high level of music education there in terms of the quality of music they hear and are into!
Oren: What are your favorite tunes at the moment?
A: Andre Kaml - Safari (James Holden Remix) [Crosstown Rebels] (for that matter anything James Holden/Nathan Fake/Ozgur Can/Petter is doing right now!!)
Son Of The Electric Ghost - Devil's Logic [Bless] (and yeah, anything by this guy! Guaranteed you’ve never heard anything like his music before!! Don’t mess with Texas!)
Andy Page - Serpent / Blue Noise [Blueprint]
Squarepusher - Do You Know Squarepusher? [Warp]
KiloWatts - Problem Solving (Artificial Music Machine) *ALBUM* [www.EDMDigital.com] (Don’t mess with Texas once again!)
Tipper - Surrounded *ALBUM* [Myutopia]
Aphex Twin – Windowlicker (Kriece Bootleg Remix) (Kriece is da man and rehashes one of my faves!)
And anything by Shpongle----fark it’s truly music that you’ve never heard anything like before!
Oren: Each day we learn something new. What did you learn today?
A: Lately I’ve learned that everything happens for a reason and that there are no coincidences. What appears to be problems in life, big and small, are blessings in disguise---and I am now a firm believer in that change is ALWAYS for the better----even if it doesn’t appear so right away.
Oren: What kind of tips do you have for all the amateur producers out there?
A: A very big regret I have is allowing my early music to be released before I felt my music ability was ready. After 6 years of toying around with audio, I'm only just now feeling comfortable with the music i'm writing, so I urge you to please not jump the gun and release music that is only at an early learning stage for you. Believe me, you may regret it down the line if you do ;-)
From a technical standpoint, I always tell people above all trust your ears---don't base what you do around what someone insists or what a book tells you...while these are all good approaches, at the end of the day it's how it sounds to the human ear, not how it can be viewed on a spectrum analyzer.
Also, I've always had the belief that before you get in over your head with tons of gear, programs, plugins and so on, you should make sure you learn the fundamentals in and out, moving from one tool to another. I've seen people overwhelm themselves with too many options and choices too soon, and the result is half-learned, half-finished ideas that they feel are complete and well thought-out.
Oren: In your opinion, who are the latest talents being discovered in the music
scene?
A: Well to be honest I don’t keep up with music and artists as much as I used to, but to throw some names out there (some of which have been around for ages but remain relatively unknown) are Lusine, Son Of The Electric Ghost (Bill Bless), Robag Whrume, Darkarma, Switch, Joakim, Andy Page, Dan Mangan, John Tejada and the list goes on and on!
Oren: To whom do you owe your success to? Who taught you to be such a production
wizard?
A: Honestly, I’ve been toying with audio for over 6 years now, most of which was self-taught, but of course Phil K showed me the ropes in Logic, which bridged me over into a world of mangling memorable music that I had never known possible. As if you didn’t know already, there’s no one I look up to and respect more than that man!
Oren: Anything else that you would like to add?
A: Well, I want to mention that one of my proudest projects currently is our Digital Download site, EDM Digital (www.edmdigital.com). Thanks to the endless amount of effort, time and energy that seven of my friends and I have poured into this, we have proven to be among the leaders in Electronic Music Digital Downloads sites, and what’s more is we’ve truly come from very basic starts and turned it into a work of art. Our passion and drive has always been based around our love, respect and appreciation for music and artists from all walks of life, writing all kinds of music. Please check us out if you haven’t and keep your eyes peeled for some major advancements that are sure to make everyone take notice!
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