Interview: Greg Ochman

Although a relative newcomer, Greg Ochman's deeply rooted passion for creating emotionally driven electronic music has already made its mark. With an elusive yet emotive take on organic house, the Polish artist made his debut on Sebastian Leger’s Lost Miracle imprint in January of this year. Well received by both his fans and contemporaries, it not only enjoyed a lengthy stay in Beatport’s Organic House chart, but set the course for what promises to be a breakout year. Now following his ‘Parallel Time’ collection for Switzerland’s Radiant, Greg makes his Clubsonica debut with a three-track showcase entitled ‘Mistlove’. We had a chance to catch up with Greg for an exclusive chat just prior to the release. Enjoy!

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

Hi guys, many thanks for having me. I am feeling well -  many thanks :) I am big fan of your channel. The last piece of music I have listened to was Synthetis by 'Blonde Nuit'.

What are your plans for the coming week?

For the next week I have in plans to finish 2 next tracks (one original and one remix) but there are always more music ideas over the week and this is in the loop :)

One of your first releases was an EP on Sebastien Leger’s Lost Miracle earlier this year, tell us how that came about 

Yes, it was in march last year. I produced 2 tracks (Delylah & Blonde Nuits) which was my first ever music produced in organic house genre. I was searching for a label on Beatport and I found Sebastien’s Lost Miracle so I sent demo. Seb liked both tracks and signed an EP to Lost Miracle. Few months later I did one more tune ”Flowers In Bloom” and we decided to add it to the EP.

Do you feel like a release like this legitimized you right away as a new artist and did you receive a lot of interest from other label’s following the release?

It was a huge positive response from many many persons, especially from Lost Miracle Community group on Facebook but not only.  I have  received a massive support for “Delylah” EP as new artist and yes many labels still sending me an invitations to release my music with them.

You have a new EP out this week on ClubsonicaRecords, tell us a bit about the release and how it showcases your individualities.

There are three tracks on “Mistlove” EP , where each track is different, each with very own vibe, atmosphere but with the same emotions.

I think for a lot of artists music allows you to write a sketch of your own personal universe in a way, your travels, life experiences etc. Is this something which is true for yourself? 

When I start new project and play some melodies in a loop around a beat  and  there is always that   unexpected moment i hit a great chord progression or a melody that makes smile on my face, then I can say it’s a journey into my personal universe.

 Where does your inspiration come from and was there anything that inspired these three tracks?

My inspiration is coming from everything what is around me but it’s hard to say what was the main thing that inspired me that time when i produced those tracks. I just wanted them sound in majestical and mysterious vibe.

Walk us through the production process on one of the tracks, whichever you like.

Let’s take a "Mistlove" track from this Ep. I started with a rhythm as usual so always  at beginning try to find and build some nice percussion loop (congo, bongo etc), then add kick, hats, shakers, clap. When I am happy with rhythm I usually play piano to find nice and interesting chords but in this track i v started with Pads so I found some nice chords progressions and recorded them. After that I played some synths and added some arps and bassline. At the end was synth with main melody. So when I have loop with all those parts I am start to build arrangement and while doing it a lot of ideas coming to my mind so I am adding  extra synths line or chords progressions and harmonies.

WasClubsonica a with label you had in mind for the project from the beginning? And what made the label a great place to release these particular tracks?

I am following Clubsonica from some time now and I like most of  their releases,  so I am happy to be in Clubsonica family. Juan from Clubsonica sent me a message on Instagram asking if I have any free tracks I could send to them for a listen. In that time I just finished those 3 particular tracks and sent to him and signed all of them to Clubsonica.

What’s a piece of gear that always gets used when you’re writing a track? And what are some studio tools that featured heavily on this EP?

I work on  Imac with Logic X, Adam A7 monitors and m-audio midi keyboard. For all my tracks I am using Vsti from Arturia and all synth lines, melodies, basslines and other sounds you can hear on 'Mistlove' EP. comes from there.

When working on music is the dance floor always something that’s taken into consideration?

Not only about dance floor as I like to build a tracks with unique melodies which in one side are a nice songs to listen  but at the other  you can dance to them.

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

I've always liked movie soundtracks and it would be great to produce at least one of them. I think it would give me the opportunity to show the audience my music versatility.

Apart from music, what makes you happiest?

Spending time with my family.

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

A lot of my music definitely coming up and looking forward for clubs and events opening to see you all there on the dance floor.

'Mistlive' is available for pre-order now via Juan Pablo Torrez's Clubsonica Records: https://bit.ly/2Qqraoa