MK Interview

He’s been making music since the early 90s, and now he’s heading out to Australia alongside Defected boss, Simon Dunmore… MK is the magic man when it comes to remixes, and has championed the remix of Storm Queens’ ‘Look Right Through’ as well as remixes with Sam Smith’s and Le Youth’s brand new tracks… and we, for one, can’t wait to see what he spins out next. Here we speak to MK, also known as Marc Kinchen from his home in LA and find out about some of his finest moments over the last 20 years…

Hi Marc, how has 2014 been treating you so far?
So far it has been awesome…

Have their been any stand out moments?
I would have to say that anytime I am spending more than two weeks at home and in the studio whilst sleeping in my own bed makes for many standout moments indeed and it has been a great way to start the New Year.

Sounds nice! You’ve worked with everyone from Beyonce to Blondie, Snoop Dogg and Rihanna, what’s been one of the most memorable collaborations or remixes that you’ve ever done and why?
Actually, I would have to say the most memorable is when I worked with Snoop because we were working around the time that Biggie and Tupac were shot, so I had to have an undercover policeman with me at all times and when Snoop would get to the studio, the place was crawling with security. I am telling you there must have been twenty guys protecting us. It was even more surreal than it sounds because we were in Nashville of all places, not exactly “the hood”, if you know what I mean. It was an experience, that’s for sure.

So your remix of Storm Queen’s ‘Look Right Through’ dropped at the end of 2013, the track has been around for quite a while, how did the remix come about? – It’s great by the way!
It came about through me doing a remix for Simon Dunmore almost as a favour, we are good friends and I heard the track and said yeah I like this, I will remix it, so I gave him the first remix and people were really liking it but now that I DJ out all the time, I am able to test things and tweak them as I go on, so I ended up doing two more versions of the remix, but when it came to my Remix 3, I knew it had to go all the way, so I kept it through the summer, my managers told Simon that I had a September surprise for him and that was that and it started growing and growing from there. I just knew it, I could feel it.

You’ll be heading over to Australia soon and will be opening the first party of the year at Pacha, what can we expect from your set?
I am still planning things out, but I will definitely be playing a lot of MK music, stuff people might know and then definitely some new surprises that I have up my sleeve.

Are you looking forward to traveling over to Australia? Will you get a chance to do anything else whilst you’re over there?
Yes, I am really excited about the tour, I have never been to Oz and I have a lot of friends there. Just a couple of weeks now. I hope I will get to see a few touristy things, but I think I will probably be in the studio working on my record.

You’ve had a really successful career since the early 90s with remixes of tracks such as Nightcrawlers ‘Push The Feeling on’, how does it feel to still be in the thick of it and still putting music out there after so long?
It feels really, really great, it is extremely gratifying to come back and be welcomed with so much warmth and enthusiasm, I am a very lucky guy. Everyday is a “pinch me, is this really happening day.”

What’s the most Rock Star moment your career has ever thrown at you?
You may have gathered that I spend a lot of in the studio, so people usually don’t recognize me but now forget it, that is no longer the case… I came to that realization when I was in Dublin recently and four girls screamed “Yo you’re MK”, I got really embarrassed, I didn’t know what to do so I just yeah and I took pictures with them. It’s nice that people want to say hi and tell you that they like what you do. It’s really different from being the anonymous producer guy in the studio. Also, that same trip, I walked by a bus shelter and there was a giant picture of me. That was a first also… I didn’t know what to do… it was a shock. Haha!

You must have a pretty extensive record collection, how many do you think you have?
The key word in this answer is HAD an extensive record collection… and that HAD represented a lot of records. The good news is I have been able to buy back a lot of my own vinyl from Ebay, thank goodness for Ebay.

Tell us, what’s it like being with Defected Records? They’ve got some great names on their books such as Noir, Osunlade, Chocolate Puma – the Defected family sounds like the coolest family in the world! Is it?
Defected is a great label and they are definitely a wonderful bunch of people. They are really just kind of like a big family. I really enjoy working with them…

Simon Dunmore got you back into creating Dance music with the release of House Masters; why did you take a step back from it in the first place?
Sometimes you just need a break and step back, the time away enables you to recharge and be newly inspired.

Are you looking forward to touring alongside Simon?
Yes I am, it’s almost royalty time, so I need to keep him close at all times so he does not spend all that Storm Queen money on shopping for designer man purses. I promised his wife I would an eye on him.

What’s the usual antics you guys get up to whilst on the road?
Well, if I told you what we were planning it would ruin the surprise.

Interesting… we can’t wait. Would you say there is more longevity in producing than being a vocalist and if so why?
I don’t know if that would be true as a rule, I guess it depends on the producer and depends on the vocalist.

Obviously there have been tons of advances in technology since you started out, do you keep up with the times and adopt new methods when making music or stick to traditional methods?
I am a total equipment and tech geek, so if it’s new and different, I know about it, or it’s on order.

If you could remix any track you’ve heard recently which track would it be?
‘Wings’ by Hearts, ‘Black Out Days’ by Phantogram, anything by Sam Smith, London Grammar and Thom Yorke.

Your music is very much situated in the House/Electro genre, but are you influenced by other genres?
Yes definitely, I love all sorts of music and I have a weakness for ’80s New Wave/Alternative

Throughout all the places your career has taken you, where’s been the most epic venue you’ve played?
Berghain in Germany comes to mind.

Being from the US how do you feel Dance music is received over there as opposed to Europe and Australasia?
The US is still in its infancy in exploring and embracing Dance music. It comes in waves; every few years, there is a new genre and we think it will finally turn into a culture and lifestyle like it is in the UK and Australia, but then it seems to peak and quiet down and then it comes back again… I think we are just really starting to scratch the surface and I am happy to say that right now it seems that House music is really being embraced by the hipsters and indie crowd, which is really good since they are all real music lovers.

What’s the last album you downloaded? Tell us a bit about it.
I have actually been downloading a lot of singles lately, I hear something I love and I Shazam it and then buy it. Let me see if I can remember some… Maya Jane Coles ‘Everything’ featuring Karin Park; Flux Pavillion ‘I Can’t Stop’; Alt-J ‘Tesselate’; Coma Cat ‘Tensnake’; Ultraista ‘Small Talk’, Chvrches ‘We Sink’; Trentemoller ‘Moan’; Trentmoeller featuring Jonny Pierce ‘Never Stop Running’; Shlomo “Out of Hand,”; Au Revoir Simone ‘All or Nothing’; Nicholas Jaar ‘Mi Mujer’; Duke Dumont ‘Street Walker’; J Dilla aka Jay Dee Donuts ‘The Donut of the Heart’; and I really like Phantogram. I have a very diverse palette.

Have you discovered anyone new and exciting that we should be listening to?
Yes, Pleasure State, a new band with me, Anabel Englund and Lee Foss… We are finishing some tracks right now and they will be out soon.

What’s in the plans for 2014?
I am working on finishing a few remixes, doing an Essential Mix for Pete Tong and then trying to get back to my album. I am already in the process of finishing some tracks with Shadowchild, Duke Dumont and Route 94.

Can we expect something big, and will there be any chill out time for you?
I hope everything will be successful, but you never know… You make it and put it out and hopefully everyone likes it. Chill out time….they say if you love what you do you never work a day in your life….I am living by that motto right now… I am very grateful to be doing what I love.

If so what would you ideally like to be getting up to?
I am doing it right now; making music, hanging with my friends and family, and travelling to see as much as I can of Oz and beyond.

Thanks so much for your time and we look forward to seeing you at Pacha!