Dorian Paic and Felipe Valenzuela, DJs and producers with deep connections to the underground electronic music discussed their new EP collaboration during an extended feeder insider interview. Born during the pandemic, the project took shape over two years of jam sessions. They reminisced about their early days in music, highlighting Dorian‘s debut EP in 2001 and Felipe‘s Chilean roots.
Dorian, co-owner of raum…musik, emphasised the label’s love for music discovery and adaptation to industry changes. Their studio approach for the EP focused on comfort in sound despite minimal resources.
Their friendship evolved from an Ibiza meeting, leading to a fruitful musical partnership. Teasing part two of the Varia EP released by Brooklyn imprint Onysia and upcoming materials, they expressed excitement for future projects. Overall, the interview showcased their enduring friendship, creative process, and ongoing musical ventures.
minimal / raum…musik / Onysia / underground
feeder.ro: Hi Dorian and Felipe, it’s a pleasure to welcome you onto feeder insider series. Thank you for taking the time to talk with us, we’ve been lovers of both of your releases and your DJ sets for a long time. You have a new EP coming up on the New York label Onysia with Felipe Valenzuela. For those yet to hear the record could you tell us a bit about this project and when and where it was made?
Dorian & Felipe: We did music together in the past already and also had some releases, like our single on raum…musik for example.
With the beginning of the pandemic, we thought it was a good idea to revive this project, as it was the only chance to meet and hang out and listen to music.
Over 2 years we were just jamming around and collecting ideas, like also these tracks for this EP as well.
feeder.ro: Dorian, your history in electronic music runs deep as a DJ and producer, with your debut EP ‘’Umschwung’’ on your raum…musik now being over two decades ago in 2001. Could you tell us a little about your beginnings in Frankfurt around this time?
Dorian: At that time I had been working as a Dj already for 9 years and these were my first tracks which I had produced together with 2 friends of mine.
It was also around the same time when I started working for raum…musik.
The label owner Olaf asked me if I would like to do a record and so of course I took the chance immediately.
feeder.ro: Felipe, you’ve also been steadily releasing music since the turn of the millennium, could you tell us a little about your roots in Chile and how you got your beginnings in electronic music?
Felipe: I had my first contact with electronic music in my early 20s. I came from another musical background and of course, I was also influenced by the emerging Chilean scene and its early protagonists and then later on with the connection between German artists and the electronic music scene in Chile. This mix was really interesting and from my point of view the beginning of a new sound.
feeder.ro Dorian, your raum…musik label has welcomed many iconic names from the underground onto its roster such as Ricardo Villalobos, John Dimas, Christian Burkhardt and of course your music over the past twenty years. Can you tell us what drives you to keep running the label and what has changed for you as a label owner over this time?
Dorian: In the first place, I think that it always has been the love and interest for music, or for discovering new music better to say. This is what mainly kept me going all those years. We celebrated the 25th anniversary of the label this year and I am happy about this achievement.
A lot of things have changed over the years. In the first place, I would say it is different how people consume music these days. Production costs also have increased a lot and for a certain time, it would take ages until you had the final record in your hands. This has changed though and the production does not take too long. Things are always changing over time, so better to try to adapt to these changes as well as possible and always stay open and interested in new developments.
feeder.ro: A question for both of you, could you give us a bit of a breakdown of the studio approach for this EP, were there any particular pieces of equipment that are fundamental to this project and your productions in general? A notable drum machine, synthesizer or even software that’s your go-to?
Dorian & Felipe: Even though we did not have the same possibilities for the equipment as nowadays, it was enough to enjoy some jams and explore a lot with a minimum of resources.
After a while, the results were very nice. There were no particular directions besides making us both comfortable sound-wise.
feeder.ro: This is not the first time you guys have worked together, there have been multiple collaborative works unveiled in the past decade on raum and Automatic Writing. Could you tell us how you guys met and what led you to make music together?
Dorian: We met in Ibiza through some mutual friends. I was still living in Frankfurt at that time. One day Felipe had a layover with a flight in Frankfurt and so he asked me if he could stay with me in my house. This was the first time we hung out together and from that moment on we always visited each other and spent time together, as Felipe was still living in Chile. This was also the time when we started making music together, as we got along quite well from the very beginning.
feeder.ro: After the release of your new EP, what else is on the horizon for both of you, are there any other notable projects in the works or any particular shows coming up that you’re able to share with us?
Dorian: There is a part two of this record as well, that is going to come out at some point. Then we have another EP coming out next year on the label from Oven Club in Valencia. We still keep on meeting and hitting the studio together from time to time. Besides this, Felipe has plenty of other releases in the pipeline, so keep an eye on him next year.
feeder.ro: Lastly, could you please tell us of one record that’s been a staple in your DJ sets over the years? Something that always works to set the tone for your style as a DJ?
Dorian & Felipe: Both of us have been playing for more than 25 years now, so we think that it is quite hard to name one particular record, as also both of us have been developing and modifying our sound from time to time. It is more that certain artists and labels had an impact on us and also influenced our sound. Still, we think it is hard to just name one artist or label… ;))
The EP produced by Dorian Paic and Felipe Valenzuela and released by Onysia label will soon be available at yoyaku.io and deejay.de
Dorian Paic on Facebook | Instagram | Discogs
Felipe Valenzuela on Facebook | Instagram | Discogs
raum…musik on Facebook | Discogs
Onysia on Soundcloud | Facebook
About feeder insider
feeder insider is a series of interviews that explore the universe surrounding music and visual arts while connecting the local to the international creative scene.
