Interview: Flowers on Monday

One hailing from the highest mountains, living in the wilderness and overcoming his struggles to survive, takes on an adventure with his elephants to dust off his past - reaching out for new ambitions. The other originated from the deepest oceans, shifting dark, towering clouds to a glowing red, while the sky transforms into a fascinating palette of colors - changing each and every day. Two branded individuals, crossing paths at 48° 0′ N, 8° 0′ O, merging into a project of an extraordinary sound, produced and shared for the people, who need it. "Flowers on Monday" is an unexpected gesture or a hug from a stranger - our small gift, when you’re going through a rough time. Music with a soothing foundation and a magical finish - one that implements our appreciation for the little things, which imprint themselves in your heart and memory. Our life energy, in a world filled with tension and pressure. Build out of electronica with organic roots, in form of live instruments and vocals, this project transfers it’s listeners to forgotten places, to let them dream away. Since their inception just over a year ago, Flowers on Monday has taken this unique ethos to great heights, showcasing their music on All Day I Dream, Akbal and Do Not Sit On The Furniture. Now on the cusp of a remix for Magician On Duty we catch up with the duo for an exclusive chat. Enjoy.

Hello Guys, thanks for joining us. What is your current mood and what was the last piece of music you listened to?

Hey guys, thanks for having us. Our mood is mixed at the moment. On the one side we’re very productive with new music and our streetwear brand, on the other side we’re sad not be able to play live and sometimes uncertain because of the whole Covid-19 situation.

The last piece of music was a promo from our good friend Kora. His Saisons label will release a beautiful two track EP by Ercos Blanka this month.

What are your plans for the coming week?

The plan is to work further on our current musical projects as well as shooting the winter collection for our streetwear brand to finish this before Christmas. We’ve also recording a new set for All Day I Dream in another special venue in our hometown.

How has living in Germany affected your taste in music what comes out of your studio?

Honestly living in the southern part of Germany affected our style a lot. We take our inspiration from the nature around us. Walking through the forest recording new sounds to make the track more organic is our thing. We’re more than happy to be surrounded by the Black Forest because it gives us a lot of energy and comfortable feelings.

Tell us about your record/music collection, where do some of your early influences lie and can you name five tracks that were most important in your musical development?

Talking for myself (Chris), my music collection is diversified. You’ll find all sorts of House Music in there. Starting with old Fugitive Dubs and Moodymann stuff to the keinerechte vinyls and all sort of new stuff. It’s always hard to pick favourite tracks but currently listening to tracks by Kiasmos (Olafur Arnalds & Janus Rasmussen) & Bonobo and also Moderat.

Stefan found his influences in different kinds of music like

• Pat Metheny - Antonia
• Snarky Puppy - We Like It Here
• Lucio Dalla - Caruso

 Your Flowers on Monday alias is relatively new, you were recording under a different one previous to this correct? What prompted the new name?

This is true, we already produced music under the “PHCK” alias, which was a constellation of three. Sometimes people develop in different directions which is part of being human. One of the members left the project after finishing our “More Than A Machine” Album for All Day I Dream, so it was time to reinvent ourselves and start all over.

A successful partnership is generally based around balance and compromise; how do you manage these things within the Flowers on Monday dynamic?

Cannot agree more, balance and compromise are essential when working together. We’re talking a lot about everything which is important but also gives each other space when needed. That works out pretty good so I guess it’s a solid agreement 😊

What do you want your music to convey to the listener? And does it vary from project to project?

Music is such an interesting instrument to submit feelings. If the listeners get any kind of feeling while listening to our music we definitely reached our goal.

There are messages we receive from people who said our music helped them through difficult times – what could we want more?

When working on music is the dance floor always something that’s taken into consideration? Or does a certain vibe or flow sometimes transcend that?

Our aim is not to produce dancefloor music in particular. Like previous said it’s more about transmitting feelings. If the flow is right, there is always a chance of producing a dancefloor track but home-listening music is more our thing at the moment. Starting from zero without any conceivability is sometimes a good plan when producing music.

You have a new remix of Double Touch & Reigan out this week via Magician On Duty. Tell us about the remix, how you approached it and the production process behind it.

Sometimes it feels right when two different worlds come together. We already had an existing project, just a really raw idea of where it goes, which we couldn’t figure out. Then we received the remix request from Double Touch and we immediately knew that these two should belong together. We worked it out and soon we had our final version of the track.

What’s a piece of gear or software that always gets used when you’re writing a track? And what featured heavily on this remix?

Recently we like to add the Moog Sub 37 to our organic tracks which has a nice contrast. In this remix we especially worked with string samples we recorded live and take on the proactive role, a piano and e-bass which was also recorded live.

You’ve been quite selective since the inception of this alias, keeping your music for a few select labels, what made Magician On Duty a good home for your music?

We focused on the quality not quantity since founding Flowers on Monday. Working on defining sounds and especially the mix at the end is such an important part of the track and what it transmits at the end. Magician on Duty was always on our radar and we already talked to Adrian about a release some time ago. Now we’re happy to participate a remix for them to kick the collaboration off.

How have you been dealing with COVID-19? How is it currently affecting Germany?

The regulations are getting harder every week. Our hometown is actually a hot spot in Germany at the moment. The only thing we can do is stay home and wait. Feeling a little anxious is normal, I guess.

Has the lack of live gigs played a factor on your creativity in the studio? Or has it made you more productive?

Finally having time to produce music without looking left or right feels quite peaceful. You’re not forced to produce under pressure. It’s different but feels good for now.

Once nightlife eventually resumes globally what kind of effect do you think this period in our history will have on the clubbing experience?

It affects everybody in this world, so I guess people will be more cautious with each other even when it’s over. This is actually not a bad thing because we’ll be dealing with this virus for some time.

We truly can’t wait to play gigs again, no matter if people wear masks or are even in a plastic bubble 😊

What have been some of your favourite tracks over the quarantine period?

Finally having time to listen closely to music is another positive thing. These tracks are in a private playlist I made:

• Lastlings – Out Of Touch
• Blindsmyth – Of Stars and Oceans
• Powel – Johannesburg
• May & Robat Koch – Bad Kingdom

Is there a movie you would have loved to have produced the soundtrack for? And if so why?

For me (Stefan) it would be K-Pax because this movie has a perfect mix of dramatic parts and it gives a perfect look behind the idea of a universal love.

Apart from music, what makes you happiest?

Health and family are most important in life. Having someone who supports you whatever happens is a blessing. This should be appreciated every day – not only during Christmas. Go and hug your loved one whenever you can (with enough space of course 😉)

What does 2021 hold for you? Anything you can share with us?

We finished a original four track EP for a special label probably nobody knows 😊

There will also be another remix coming in January for our friend Hot Oasis (hope I can say that already).

It was a productive time the past months and we want to take the chance to thank everybody for their support on our music <3

Flowers on Monday Remix of Double Touch, Reigan 'Wide Eyed' is out now via Magician On Duty: https://bit.ly/3hac1Ac