2019 Rewind: Apparel Wax

apparel_wax

How was 2019 for you?
Apparel Wax: 2019 has been a great year for us with the release of our first LP, then the sixth EP and a special Japanese CD issue which have been a great success.

Highlights?
We give credit to our fans and listeners because that’s a massive boost to our confidence. It gives us the strength to look for new material and helps us to find new ideas to complete our vision of what Apparel Wax is.

Lowlights?
High tide and low tide, it’s always like this ut we like to always think positively and find new motivations and learn lessons from a disappointment.

Song of the year?
My pick is the whole Flying Lotus LP Flamagra. It’s an example of perfect narrative technique which actually matches with what Apparel Wax is trying to do in terms of storytelling. Every track of the album is functional to the next one in the track list but they doesn’t necessarily have to be similar one another, they’re just little stories that, brought together, tell the whole story. That is essentially what we tried to achieve with Apparel Wax’s first LP, and I hope we succeeded.

What’s your New Year’s resolution?
We’re excited to welcome 2020 with our seventh EP, but this year’s highlight is going to be Apparel Music’s tenth birthday. We’re preparing something special to celebrate this milestone. We’re also setting up our first world tour to be able to bring our vibe, an inclusive vibe, to our fans even in the remotest places.

2019 Rewind: Frankey & Sandrino

Frankey & Sandrino

How was 2019 for you?
Sandrino: 2019 was a very exciting year for me. We played some really good shows and visited some new and exciting places. We released a lot of new music on labels we love. I spent almost the whole year with my family in Tuscany’s heavenly seaside. My love and hunger for the music is stronger than ever. (It constantly grows every year.)

Frankey: As Sandrino said, 2019 was an intense year. We travelled a lot and wrote a lot of new music. At the same time I’ll never get over the fact that each year seems to pass by faster.

Somehow the last NYE feels like it recently just happened, but in reality the next one is already knocking on the door.

Highlights?
S: My little daughter’s first day at kindergarten; my older daughter’s 16th birthday; our family trip to Sicily at the beginning of the year; my first India tour; and my all-nighter at Goethebunker.

F: It feels like the amount of good quality gigs was higher in 2019 than in any other year and it’s also what keeps me going and look positively into the future…

Lowlights?
S: Regrets I have a few but then again too few to mention…

F: The importance of social media, political correctness and black & white filter-bubble-thinking went way too far in 2019. At this point it becomes unhealthy for everybody. I naively hope we will come to a turning point soon.

Song of the year?
S: To be honest, I find it very unfair to pick just one song out of around 2000 collected during the whole year. Every single of those songs gave or still give me some sort of satisfaction so I can call them all songs of the year as I love them equally.

F: Never able to pick a track and I also like to look at the global music situation including everything. So for me the most refreshing development of 2019 is the phenomenon of Billie Ellish, as she is a true artist in all aspects, created a new and fresh sound and yet she seems to become one of the biggest stars in the world at only 17 years old.

What’s your New Year’s resolution?
S: More time with my family, maybe a little vacation, doing more sports, writing new music…

F: Like every year: More sports and more structure.

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2019 Rewind: Vivian Sessoms

Vivian Sessoms

How was 2019 for you?
Vivian Sessoms: It was an unusual year but also a great year with a lot of highs points.

Highlights?
Releasing new music at the very end of 2018 (LIFE) and then again in the spring of 2019 (LIFE II). It was music that came from very deep places inside my heart and soul, and that I felt really reflected my view points. I directed my own videos, and was very involved in the editing and the look and feel of the whole process. That was a rewarding experience. It introduced me to filmmaking in a very small way, which was omething I’ve always been interested in.

Lowlights?
Family illness.

Song of the year?
“6 Summers” by Anderson.Paak

What’s your New Year’s resolution?
Start a new YouTube page on fashion, food and design. It’s something I’ve wanted to do for a while but was never able to find the time. I’m gonna dig in this next year.

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2019 Rewind: Keith Carnal

Keith Carnal

How was 2019 for you?
Keith Carnal: 2019 was a great year! First of all, I’m very grateful for getting to play in so many clubs/venues/festivals/etc. Really cool that I get to do this for a living, even though it’s my hobby. The greatest part is that you get to see and meet so many people which you wouldn’t have otherwise. Really glad I got to tour the U.S. twice, went to Australia and South America! Secondly, I got to release a lot of music and I discovered a lot of great music. So all in all, it was a good year!

Highlights?
Making my album, which was a great creative journey. No boundaries, no thinking: “Will this work in a club?” Just producing what I like and releasing it. Great thing was, that I got a lot of great feedback from a great variety of artists and music lovers.

Lowlights?
The news from the municipality that I couldn’t build my studio in the garden, the reason I moved there in the first place. But luckily I found a studio, shortly after that news.

Song of the year?
Well, song of the year, hard to say. But I played Planetary Assault Systems’ “Give it Up” the most I believe. It was in nearly every set I did last year.

What’s your New Year’s resolution?
Make more music and make another album. Wasn’t enough in the studio last year, which is a no-go for me.