AC Slater
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AC Slater

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“It has really weaved around a little bit for me – music that is,” he says in retrospect from his home in WV. “I’ve really come back to what I love recently. Dub, house, electro, drum and bass – it’s all about bass music for me. It’s always been that way and I’m really feeling that vibe right now, more than I’ve felt in a long time.”

A decade plus veteran of the game, Slater is well known for not only his studio work, but also for a number of remixes and collaborations that have hit the big time. “It’s always fun to work with different people,” chimes the American, rather humbly. “It’s like stepping out of your own bubble. When you click with someone it really works! I’ve done a lot of remixes over the years because it’s what I really love. It’s about picking out the elements of a song you love and making them your own. I’ve been lucky enough to remix some of my favorite songs and artists.”

“A simple love of twiddling knobs in the studio keeps my brain occupied and my feet tapping. Look, remixes as well – they can be really fun; normally when I get approached for a remix, the first time I listen to a track I realise if I want to do it. If I listen to a track once or twice, I already have an idea for a remix knocked out in my head. The track has to do it for you I guess, but it’s about taking the parts apart to see if it is something you can build on. If a track isn’t as amazing – it can be a really good song – you can do something different, better, but some are too good to do anything with.”

Likewise, he isn’t too fearful of the odd collaboration or two either. His 2010 EP – Creepin’ – with Drop the Lime, highlighted his diversity as an artist. “Yeah we got a place in LA for a couple of weeks and started working on music and we wrote four tunes and that was one of them. We just wrote a little instrumental and I was like ‘Hey Luca, do some vocals on here!’ so you know we laid some shit down. I did some vocals, some really creepy vocals as a fucking devil or something and a little speaking part. And yeah that’s that!”

To that end, his other classic remix – Show Me Love – was one of his finest moments – an opportunity to tweak a track that he considered an anthem. “That was an absolutely amazing experience,” he says. “I was also really lucky to get the chance to remix some Moby material and that was great too, because he was an inspiration for me coming up!”

He also adds that right around the time of the Australian tour he’s got a new EP coming on Sweat It Out Records. “It’s a straight original dance floor killer and I’m doing a lot of work in that sort of style. So I’ll be promoting that when I get down there. I’m also working with my man Tittsworth from DC and a few other artists around the place so there will be some new and exciting music coming out.”

And as if all that isn’t enough, he’s also focused on his Party Like Us imprint, which is his three-year-old baby. “The whole idea was to make straight dance floor music. Nothing’s really changed there. It’s all about the bass driven music I mentioned, with a lot of old rave influences. Right now, it’s evolving a little bit too. We’re doing a bit of hip hop and things like that. It’s going really well; we’re building up a roster of artists that are doing cool music and even some merchandise as well.”

Finally, he shares a few words on the tour as if to ensure we get the whole picture. “When I DJ, I have my own agenda so I do want to play certain stuff. I also enjoy playing a wide range of tempos so depending on how the crowd is feeling, I’ll go with the flow a little which is a great way to work for me. The past two times I’ve been out, I’ve done festival tours. This time it’s all club shows so I’ll switch up the style a bit. I’ll be playing music from Trouble and Bass and Party Like Us.” 

As an aside, I’d add that Laidback Luke and Crookers didn’t choose him to do their remixes by accident. It was a calculated move that seemingly, won’t stop paying dividends. And what better a country to practice a love of surfing and cocktails in, than Australia? Slater is coming back to the right place. Let’s make him welcome.  

BY RK

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