Photo: Press (D. Tiffany/Sophie Sweetland)
You started out as a guitarist playing in bands before turning to electronic dance music. What was it that drew you to it? Where the certain records or labels that had an impact on you?
Actually my first band was electronic dance music, this was before before I was playing guitar in bands, so I was always interested in that type of music. I became more serious about producing house and techno after I had gone to a couple of my friends studios to mess around on their old Roland synths and drum machines. I was like “woah this is too fun and easy to make trippy sounding music!” Back then I was listening to a lot of Strictly Rhythm, DNH, Tribal America, that sort of sound. House music!
Together with producer NAP, you form the duo Ambien Baby. 2019 saw you release two records already. How did the project come together? It appears as if Ambien Baby was in fact intended to be an ambient project.
Ambien Baby was conceived around the same time as D. Tiffany and intended to be an output for the more ambient and chill music I was making at the time. I didn’t ever really end up putting anything out myself under that moniker. Instead, me and Daniel started making some downtempo chill-out tracks and I was like “ahh, Ambien Baby should be our name instead!” Now you have today’s Ambien Baby that is definitely not so chill! On the latest release on FATi Records you can hear the progression through the years of the sound. The first track is one I recorded myself before Daniel was in the project and it progresses from there to the Ambien Baby sound of today.
Having founded Planet Euphorique in 2018, you now have a first compilation called Tiny Planet coming out. What’s the concept behind Planet Euphorique and what was important to you when putting together the label’s first various artists release?
Planet Euphorique is my first label and was intended for me and my friends to be able to put out our music with out having to shop it around to all these labels that maybe we have no connection with, etc. I personally really hated doing that and would rather just put out my own music in my own time how I want to! If everyone else was I thought why can’t I. So thats where Planet Euphorique came from and I try to just release music by people I have met in real life and chilled with and I know what their vibe is! Homies, you could say… So that was also the idea behind the compilation. Four tracks on there are by people that I love personally and their music, but they all didn’t have full records ready and I wasn’t willing to wait any longer! The tracks must be heard!
A new project of yours is the xpq? imprint founded together with Special Guest DJ aka uon. The first two releases came from Ghostride The Drift (Huerco S., uon and Exael) and Exael, the sound seems to be influenced by labels like Chain Reaction. Why did you start xpq??
I started xpq? Because one morning I was chatting with Shy aka Uon and he sent me this trippy file of music which ended up being the Ghostride the Drift record. I was like “OMG this needs to come out now“. So I messaged Richard at Rubadub and was like “I’m starting a new label with Shy and this is the first record” and Richard was like “sick, I’m down – let’s go!” The sound is obviously a lot different to Planet Euphorique and more experimental. I love collaborating with Shy on the label because he brings a different vibe which is always important in keeping things interesting. He also has a fresh eye for aesthetics and has done all the artwork for the label. He has exposed me to so much cool music and the releases we have coming up are exciting and music by our talented friends, the people we hold in high esteem.
You only rarely record DJ mixes. What was the idea behind your contribution to the Groove podcast?
This mix is all unreleased Planet Euphorique, ISLA records and a couple others thrown in.
Last but not least: Where can we see you behind the decks in the near future and what are your plans as producer and label owner?
Ill be touring in Europe until mid-August. Then heading back to Montréal for some dates in North America, then back again to Europe for October and beyond! I have a few remixes on the way, but other than that no D. Tiffany or DJ Zozi releases planned. Probably will be new music from me next year, so stay tuned!
Stream: D. Tiffany – Groove Podcast 216
