Out of all the interesting characters playing this year’s Woogie Weekend there is probably no other shrouded in more anonymity than TÂCHES. He is considered one of the rising talents in the scene yet relatively little is known about him. We try to strip down the façade and get to know TÂCHES on a much more intrinsic level.
(Include enjoying the occasional taco and sneaking in to a fest from time to time, and you might be surprised to find out he is a lot more like the rest of us than one would think.)
WWD: You have toured the states a few times now, playing intimate clubs and big festivals, which do you prefer?
As much as I relish the excitement of a festival set, nothing really compares to the intimate connection you can experience in small clubs. You feel a really special kind of energy when a set goes well with a small crowd that you’ll never be able to experience at a big festival. When you DJ close to or in the crowd, you’re part of the party rather than the centre of it. This is amazing because you don’t feel like you’re just playing to sea of faces, you experience a far more personal connection with the people you’re actually performing for.
WWD: Do you ever feel like you have to change up your sound depending on the crowd?
On the whole, it seems that the spectrum of sound that I play resonates well with most crowds. I tend to play quite organic and minimal stuff but always with a subtle melancholy which I feel tends to set the scene for reflection. I offer people a time and space to lose themselves in more psychedelic and tribal types of music. It tends to be quite raw or quirky sounding, but it’s always punctuated with some sort of emotion that you can ‘feel’ along to while dancing.
WWD: The big thing out here on the west coast are the transformational festivals, a la Burning Man and more intimate gatherings like Desert Hearts, why do you think these are becoming popular?
I think it’s a natural progression for people who like the idea of festivals but get disillusioned by the corporate nature of them, the massive crowds and the 1,000,000 same artists all shoved into some huge theme park sized venue. This in turn has helped make these smaller and more personal gatherings gain popularity because they provide a more close knit community spirt and allow people to experiment with their own identity and beliefs surrounded by open, likeminded individuals. People need love and to connect in ways that aren’t dependent on having signal and battery. When you experience the wholesomeness and unity that you feel at a transformational festival, you thrive off of just being you with a bunch of other people being themselves – quirks included. You learn confidence and benevolence. When you couple all of this with the often more excitingly curated lineups, it’s no wonder more and more people are starting to take note of the changing tides.
WWD: You’ve stated you really benefited from a personal experience at Desert Hearts, what is it that drew you to that event and other such gatherings?
The first time I came to LA, I was kidnapped from Hollywood and taken to Desert Hearts in the (surprisingly spacious) trunk of a Prius. Having only stopped to let me out to buy a medium sized burlap sack of jerky, I was appropriately pleased to be let out of the trunk to carry supplies when we arrived. The fact that the party was one beating heart of a stage that never stopped offering you its embrace was something so new to me that I was instantly captivated. The relaxation of not running between multiple stages and huge flocks of people all the time, and the atmosphere provided by incredible people and a stunning location were enough to put me off larger festivals completely. I like being able to feel like I’m at home at a gathering and that is what these types of events offer. I’d love to play more of these kind of events in the future as I always leave feeling immensely recharged and full of unwritten music that I need to get down.
WWD: It seems like there is becoming a larger emphasis on live acts, have you ever considered a live setup, or do you strictly DJ?
For the moment, I’ve only done DJ sets but I am working on piecing together a live set for next year. When I’m producing, I’m constantly jamming with myself and assigning parameters to knobs and keys that allow me to get all pumped in my bedroom. I think it’s the logical next step for me to be able to allow people to experience what I think is the stronger side of my art by producing and remixing live. I’d prefer to do a live set that consisted of on the fly production and improvisations based off the huge amounts of (for now) unfinished ideas that I have, rather than simply performing songs that I have already put out as I think this adds an extra pinch of novelty to the set.
WWD: Your personal sound has grown and matured a lot, now that you have had official releases and started touring, what is the next phase in your career?
Having always put out tracks one at a time, I’m excited to say that I have my first EP coming out in the next couple of months. I feel that I’ve finally dropped the monkey on my back that constantly held me back from being more prolific. Ultimately, I have the simple aim of making as much great music as humanly possible, both on my own and in collaboration with all sorts of musicians from different backgrounds.
WWD: Before we let you go, what are you most looking forward to at Woogie Weekend?
Tacos and wearing glitter.
Words by Jordan Marrone
Connect with TÂCHES
https://www.facebook.com/officialtaches