- Era-spanning techno.
- Sam Coates took to techno like a diligent pupil, falling in love with the genre through labels such as CLR in the late '00s. But it didn't take long for the student to surpass his proverbial teachers. Almost immediately, the Manchester native was putting out functional, pitch-perfect records with everything intricately balanced. The requisite move to Berlin only sealed his fate as a future techno luminary, and today, from his new base in Kyiv, he's one of techno's most reliable and exciting workhorses. His releases (and those on his label, SK_eleven) are minimalist yet colossal.
We've praised Coates in these pages for his "sense of economy—how to get the hardest impact out of just a few elements," and that's also the idea behind his RA Podcast. Stitched together from records old and new, his intricately layered mix connects disparate eras of techno, highlighting the genre's most timeless attributes: mechanistic rhythms, rudimentary melodies crafted from the strangest sounds and, of course, the power of the bass drop. It's hard to imagine anything sounding more capital-T techno.
What have you been up to recently?
Life has changed a lot lately. I moved away from Berlin and it's one of the best decisions I ever made. I got engaged to my love and I'm happily working away in the studio and more than busy everyday with sound design projects, managing my gigs and hunting for new music in between walking the dog.
How and where was the mix recorded? And can you tell us the idea behind it?
The mix was recorded at my home. I have been compiling tracks in a playlist since the RA Podcast was confirmed. I'm a big lover of newer and older techno, and I always try and incorporate them together in my DJ sets through layers or loops as most of the '90s techno doesn't punch as much as the newer stuff so I at least try and utilise them somehow. This mix is a showcase of this.
What's one club or party that had a major impact on you as an artist?
The enigmatic K41 in Kyiv. K41 had a huge, huge impact since I first performed there in 2020. Now I'm becoming more and more of a regular at the club and it's the most inspiring place to play in the world, especially in these times. I'm forever thankful to the crew for putting their trust in me. Even during this horrific invasion of Ukraine people still need their release and K41 is offering this in a safe space, with extra care and attention to make sure they also do their part supporting where is necessary at that time.
You mentioned layering tracks to give them more oomph. Is this something you do a lot? And do you edit the tracks you play?
I have many old '90s tracks that I edit. Usually it's by adding one of my notorious kick drums underneath and cutting out the low-end completely in the older track. This leaves space for the entry of the new kick and it retains the character and soul above. Again, I edit some tracks, not all, with hi-hats or extra rides and claps. In this modern day there are so many possibilities and it also frees up a deck for when I'm DJing to create even more.
What kind of sound design projects are you working on, and how does that work affect your approach to techno?
At the moment there are a couple of fashion things as well as advertisements and some collaborations for fun. I've been mainly focused on motion graphics work, but I hope to work on some more reality videos using Foley and other techniques to create a new world. I find it very interesting, although it does mean techno has taken a back seat at the moment. I'm learning new DAWs, lots of new tools and it's very time consuming, but I really enjoy this home studio life without the long travels.
What's one social or political cause you want the world to pay more attention to?
The invasion of Ukraine. I don't think it's the right place to share my views but I do believe everyone should open their eyes once again and show 1,000 times more support to their European neighbours. What I saw from the scene in the beginning was very heartwarming, but it quickly faded and people forgot about the good times and countless trips they had in Ukraine during 2020 and 2021 in the pandemic when Kyiv was flooded with techno tourists. Well, now everyone's forgot, but the people there still live and fight everyday and will until there is victory for Ukraine.
What are you looking forward to in the near future?
There are many nice shows and SK_eleven label showcases coming up, and it's a great pleasure to perform and present the label in these quality places. More recently I started to do a lot more studio work with sound design for advertising and other pieces like this. I'm very inspired by this world to work alongside video, and it's a new realm for me which has become a complete obsession—and something I hope to turn into full-time work.
TracklistDoltz - Subsumption [Bitta]
Amanda - Monkaunis [Ahrpe Records]
Steve Bicknell - Untitled B2 [Cosmic Records]
Jeff Rushin - Spacing in Between [Connwax]
Yant - Unreleased [unreleased]
Heiko Laux - Antipode [Klockworks]
Oliver Rosemann - Synesthesia [recorded things]
Jeroen Search, Julia Gover - You Are The Machine [Pushmaster Disc]
Johannes Heil - A1 Untitled [Kanzleramt]
Setaoc Mass - Seeing Clear [Forthcoming SK11012]
Robert Hood - Radio Active [M-Plant]
O [Phase] - Flyby/Falling (Enchanted Version) [Token]
Yant - Pushing [ukraine fundraiser]
Deluka - Mind Games [forthcoming SK11X027]
Scan 7 - Origins
Dorian Gray - Sequence No.1 [RawRaw]
Flug - Miracles [odd/even]
Andre Kronert - BT 2.1 [odd/even]
DJ Taz - Palloquinone
Psyk - Origins [non series]
Holden Federico - Steep [forthcoming SK11X025]