FEATURE: Mike Rish / tor\nn [Interview + Premiere]

Mike Rish is somewhat of a quiet achiever, with the Melbourne native having a string of releases under multiple aliases across numerous subgenres of electronic music. However, it’s under his own name where he lets his progressive-house imagination wander. His studio output is prolific, and has been embraced by progressive heavyweights, with support from the likes of Guy J, Hernan Cattaneo, Nick Warren, Jamie Stevens, Kasper Koman, Matter and GMJ, to name a few. His “progressive” and consistent rise is the result of a diligent and very selective output of music, opting to release music to keep people engaged, but also wanting more..

Hello Mike, congratulations on launching your new label tor\nn. What inspired you to take this step at this moment in your career?

This is something I’ve wanted to do for years. But, in this day and age of social media and “hype” culture, I was (ironically), torn about when the best time was to do it. My friend Peter gave me a nudge to start it about a year ago, and initially I was hesitant, but now I think it’s the best decision I’ve ever made.

The reason I wanted to start a label is to have something of my own. You could call it control but I think creative freedom is a better term… I wanted to be in control of the artwork, what I released, when I released it etc.

I’m sure we’ve all been in the position where you sent some tracks to a label, that you really believed in. Only to never get a reply, or they decide that they wanted track B and C, but not A, which was the one you felt the most strongly about. And they also wanted you to change the arrangement or certain synth sounds or whatever… and they wanted to release it in 6 months time. I hated all of that. I just wanted do my own thing.

The name tor\nn is intriguing — what does it represent conceptually, and how does it relate to your artistic identity?

Torn between decisions is something I always experience, maybe all of us experience it to some degree. And the presence of choice can be the very thing that leaves us unable to make a decision. For myself, I was always thinking strategically with music… “Should I release this on that label and that on this label?”… “will it fit their sound?”… “should I send another follow up email?”. And on a personal level, “should I try and do music full time ? Or should I stay in my job and have financial security?”. Torn is essentially indecision, and the best way to eliminate it is to remove the things you can’t control. So, I did. The name is ironic, because tor|nn. is now the thing I’m most certain of.

I make a lot of music, and I know exactly how I want it to sound. Whilst having the support of big name DJs and producers is a big honour and it’s important in the world of social media, it’s not something that drives me.

Your first release on the label is your own EP Dope Riddim / Election Day. What made these two tracks the right choice to open the tor\nn catalogue?

Dope Riddim is a track I made over the European summer. I was living in the Netherlands with Kasper Koman at the time and I had this idea that I couldn’t figure out how to finish. A couple weeks later I was in a hotel in Prague preparing for a gig that night when I eventually finished the track, played it that night and realised maybe I was on to something when I saw the crowds reaction. I think it was the following week where I sent it to Hernan, a few days before Balance Croatia.. He played it and the crowd went bonkers. I knew this was going to be the first track then.

Election Day is something I made earlier in the year, and have been playing it in a lot of my DJ sets. It’s a slow burner until it gets to the build. Then it takes off like a rocket ship. The concept of somewhat simple tracks that can turn a club on its head is something I gravitate towards. Something that surprises the audience.

How would you describe the musical direction and philosophy behind tor\nn? Is there a “signature sound” you want the label to become known for?

The signature of a label develops over time. At this point, tornn is very much in its infancy. I have a vision of where I want to take the label, but putting it into words is hard. Its more of a feeling than anything else.

I have a background as a mix and mastering engineer and it’s important for me that the music be technically really strong as well as creatively unique. That may be a little ambitious, but the music has to rock and it has to be intentional.

Will tor\nn focus mainly on your own productions at the start, or are you planning to bring other artists into the roster early on?

Surprisingly, I’ve already had an large amount of demo submissions. It’s amazing to see people wanting to be associated with the label before the first release is even available.

But, for the moment, it will be my own productions.

I want to be in a position where I can give my absolute all to an artist’s hard work and vision, and at the moment I’m not in the position to do that.

What qualities do you look for in an artist or track that you’d consider signing to tor\nn?

If we go down that path of signing other artists for the label, the music has to be unique.

Many artists say label-building is a chance to showcase music that doesn’t fit other platforms. Does tor\nn give you a creative freedom you didn’t have before?

100%

I have a lot of music that perhaps might not work at 3am on a packed dance floor.

This is something I will definitely explore in the future.

What challenges did you face putting the label together — was it more creative or more logistical?

The idea of seriously starting a label started over a year ago. But I spent a lot of time thinking about why I wanted to start a label, what I wanted to achieve from it, how I wanted it to look, the name etc. It was April this year that I decided on a name and a concept and it took a long time to solidify the artwork. I spent months looking for ARTISTS, not graphic designers. I wanted to have an artists contribute to the project as much as the music does. I didn’t want a graphic designer to have a pre-conceived idea of “ok, dance music label, they probably want X, Y and Z, in this font with this layout”

The artist for the cover art is from Ukraine, and his work is something I really love. We spent many weeks going back and forth with ideas, but we have a concept now that we are both happy with.

You’ve been steadily evolving your sound over the past few years. How does this EP reflect where you are creatively right now?

This EP is the culmination of a few things. It’s my first label, the tracks for the EP were made during my first summer in europe, that I was able to do because I quit my day job in June.

I wanted to create something that felt like freedom, which I have done with the label. But everything about the first EP was done during a period of my life where I’ve felt the most free. Free from work, free from responsibility, free from pressure. I didn’t have a a boss I had to answer to, or a job I had to be at… I was in Europe during the summer, making music during the week and touring on the weekends.

Creatively doing exactly what I wanted.

What roles do spontaneity and long-term planning play in your production process? Do your tracks usually come together quickly or develop over time?

Good question.

Sometimes tracks can come together in a couple of hours, sometimes it can take months. I challenge myself to kind of tweak and re-invent my sound every 12 months, whilst still keeping some form of signature. So, I could have a brand new track thats unlike what I’ve done before, but people hear it and go “oh this sounds like mike”. It’s the tracks that take longer to develop where I learn the most creatively and technically. It’s easy to do the same thing over and over, but it’s a challenge to do something new that may or may not land with the audience. Doing the same thing over and over is boring to me.

You’ve built a great fanbase around your deep, hypnotic, groove-driven style. How do you keep yourself inspired without repeating formula?

As I mentioned above, I want to constantly challenge myself in the studio. I don’t want to do the same thing over and over.

I very rarely listen to progressive house outside of the club or rekord box. I don’t want to be inspired by anyone else, I want my creativity to be uncompromised. Partly because I just want to do me, but also theres so much amazing music being made that it would be easy to be influenced by it.

Travelling for gigs always gets me inspired, I’m always making ideas on the road. In airports, planes, train stations, hotel rooms… thats inspiring for me. I have a nice studio, with great monitors, synths etc, but its sometimes not always the most inspiring place to make music

Are there any sonic territories or genres you want to explore with tor\nn that you haven’t touched before?

I’ve made music under a number of different aliases before, with anything from dub techno, deep house and banging techno.

With tornn, I want to develop it’s sonic identity, irrespective of genre.

You’re known for blending analog textures with sharp modern production. What tools, hardware or techniques defined the sound of this EP?

A few people have asked me a similar question regarding the analog vs digital thing, and how I manage to make things sound the way they do. I don’t really have a single answer for that. I just know how I want it to sound and I know how to get it to that point.

I want my stuff to sound strong on a big system. You can have a great idea, but if it’s not produced well it can sound flat on a big system. The opposite is true too, you can have a really simple track, but if it’s produced well it can sound huge on a big system.

All of the music I made over the Euro Summer was made with some DJ headphones and a laptop. I’d say I got lucky with the mix maybe 60-70% of the time, but headphones aren’t a substitute for monitors in a well treated room. But I made it work.

Having all this fancy expensive gear can be good fun to play with, but I don’t think it always means a better outcome production wise. Working within limitations is a good thing.

How do you approach the emotional side of your music? Is there a story behind the moods you create, or do you let the groove lead the way?

The groove Is the most important part for me, and the emotional side of music is dependant on a few things… How I’m feeling, the weather, did I just get a new plugin etc etc

You can change the feeling of a track dramatically with a few tweaks. It doesn’t always need to be a 3 minute breakdown.

Subtlety is just as effective

Do you feel starting your own label changes your role in the scene — from producer and DJ to something more like a curator or mentor?

Not at all.

I’m a person first and foremost and a producer / DJ secondly.

I will always try and help young producers where I can, because I know how daunting it can be early on in your career.

What do you hope fans feel or think when they hear the very first tor\nn release?

A statement.

I had other track list options for the EP. Some more emotive introspective music.

But ultimately I wanted the first tracks to make people go “Phwoa!”.

Long-term, what is your vision for tor\nn in 5 years? A tight niche imprint? A broad platform? A home for a collective of artists?

It’s a little difficult to predict where tornn will be in the future. For the moment it is just to release the music I want to release, when I want to release it. Obviously I hope that those who connect with what I do will appreciate the direction of the label.

Can we expect label showcases, tours, or live events centered around tor/n in the near future?

Again, it’s a little early to say. But my vision for the label in regard to showcases and tours, is for it to be synonymous with what the label represents sonically. That is something that will develop over time. But, I can see tornn showcases and tours on the horizon for sure.

And finally — what excites you most about this new chapter, and what message would you like to share with listeners who have followed your journey so far?

Freedom.

The label will obviously be synonymous between Mike Rish the Artist and Mike Rish the owner of tor\nn.

But it’s important to have some separation between myself and the label.

The label is its own thing. It doesn’t have an opinion.

That may be a hard one to reconcile, but most importantly I hope people enjoy the music.

Mike's first release on his own tor\nn imprint 'Dope Riddim / Election Day' is available now