Feadz - The Distortionist
Ed Banger pin-up Feadz, AKA Fabien Pianta, is returning to Australia for Harbourlife (which just won the inaugural OZ Festival award for best location). 3D’s Rezo caught up with the DJ of distortion.
From where did your love of music spring-
I had an older sister who was a very big influence on me – also, my parents were a great influence because they put me onto good music in the early days, but it was my sister who put me onto hip hop, and as soon as I heard it I realised it was me. Then to see it emerge over the years has been a great experience. I even got into drum n bass for a while, though I got bored of that. Yet with hip hop everybody knows what is like a hit and what is like a classic. You can do your own thing and mix it with your own music and it really leaves a lot of options. So I was very passionate about being a DJ and things started to go smoothly for me and here I am.
You grew up in Paris, a city loved by most of the world, and home to an incredible electronic scene. What are your thoughts on everybody’s view of the Parisian scene-
I grew up here so I understand people’s point of view but the scene here has changed and evolved so much over the years but it remains very exciting. There are artists who are writing and producing amazing French hip hop but there is also amazing music coming from overseas as well.
As part of the Ed Banger staple you’ve worked with the likes of Mr Oizo and Uffie, but you’ve also remixed artists such as Annie and Humanoid. What’s on the cards at the moment-
I want to stay in the studio and do my own thing. There is also an album that I really want to finish and I won’t give up until it is over! It won’t necessarily be a reflection of what I play in the clubs; we play mostly instrumental music in clubs with a Baltimore sort of feeling, so I don’t want to copy that. I want to create something with great energy and I hope to put a few tracks on there with Oizo. The tracks will not take the same direction though; we want to go with the fragility of real artists and come out with great things. I really believe that music has to be good rather than just exist.
‘Good’ like Kraftwerk, perhaps- You’re a big fan, aren’t you-
It’s actually listed on my MySpace page and I love their music because it’s all so simple; this code machine type stuff, the scenes and all the drums with a touch of humans with a deep melody. As a kid, I remember loving that sort of music; music that had a lot of information, it was emotion charged. It was in your face and now I know where they sample this and that – it’s cool.
And what of your Australian trip-
Well it’s not my first time. I had such a wonderful time last year; I hope people can remember me. I also hope to represent my DJ skills on my own. I’m not there just to represent my sound or the Ed Banger sound, but to play tracks that are very fresh. I was a DJ before I was producing music so that’s what I consider I am best at. And I am confident in my ability to do it well.
WHO: Feadz
WHAT: Plays Harbourlife, Mrs Macquarie’s Point
WHEN: Saturday 22 November
MORE: fuzzy.com.au