LU56, Ryan Sullivan

15. Jun, 2010 Comments

Ryan Sullivan has been a well known name in South Africa’s underground for over a decade. Known for rocking dance floors nationwide and releasing a string of killer singles, EP’s and remixes on labels across the globe such as Pure Substance, Bellarine, Perc Trax, FeralCode, Virtuoso, Source of Gravity, Glo-Tech Africa, L2 Music, Fiberline Audio, Worldwide Exclusive, Underground Lessons, Plastik Phylosophy, Vertikal Records and even his own label, Gut Feel Records. All of which garnered support from some of the world’s leading underground DJs and radio stations.

In mid 2010 the Cape Town based artist teamed up with Triplefire Music to release his first full length album titled No One Will Ever Know, a ground breaking piece of work guaranteed to gain reverence across the board. Inspired by the early sounds that originally steered his attention towards electronic dance music, Ryan constructed No One Will Ever Know as a mix consisting of 12 great Sullivan originals and remixes. Musically rich melodies and harmonies combined with driving, percussive rhythm at a comfortable tempo form a serving of music suitable for the lounge, car and dance floor alike. No One Will Ever Know can be downloaded for free from www.ryansullivan.co.za/no-one-will-ever-know/no-one-will-ever-know.html.

Can you describe your personal sound in a bit more detail?
My sound is constantly evolving which makes it hard to describe in too much detail but I am always hooked on groove and musical substance. I love music with interesting rhythms, which can be anything from complex percussion to a simple driving beat. It all depends on how it’s put together and how it’s used. Most important to me is the musicality. The best records for me evoke some sort of emotion and failing that the song must be cleverly quirky.

What/who have been Influences in your life?
Everything influences me in some way but assuming you mean things that have positively influenced my music I would have to say that my surroundings and other people’s music are my main influences. I’m mostly moved by sad music and seem to find endless inspiration in relationships with people, especially at the beginning and end of relationships when my emotions are unsettled. I would actually go as far as to say that I’m most inspired when my life is slightly unstable.

Who are some of your favourite producers & djs?
There have been so many over the years, young and old, famous and unknown. Some of my all time favourites are The Prodigy, James Holden, Radiohead, Thom Yorke, Sigur Ros, Thomas Newman, Orbital, Aphex Twin, BT, Leftfield, Chicane, Fluke, Herbert, The Chemical Brothers, Underworld, Charles Webster, Coldcut, Dj Shadow, UNKLE, Faithless, Shpongle, Moshic, Hybrid, Mogwai, some NIN, Bjork, Lamb…too many to mention.

Some newer guys are Applescal, Trentemoeller, The Field, Royksopp, Wighnomy Brothers and again, many more.

I like different types of music for different reasons. All of the above along with many more have been huge influences in my life and obviously in my music even though you’d probably never hear it.

Best memories as a DJ?
There are many but one is when Lee Burridge asked for the dj playing after me to be kicked off so that I could play some more. That was a serious compliment. Especially considering I was performing my own productions live.

Another moment was while partying with James Lavelle aka UNKLE and promising him I’d get sick if he forced me to drink the Jagermeister he was trying to feed me. He made me drink it and ended up having to hold my hair back while I got sick. I know it’s silly but a good memory none the less.

What equipment do you use?
For dj performances I use a laptop, Traktor, Kore and a midi controller.

What can listeners/dance floors expect from a typical set of yours?
My main aim is always to deliver something a little different and hopefully thought provoking. The music I play is always alternating between musical and emotional, and groovy and quirky. I love to play serious music in a fun way. It’s all about relativity. Every song has a different effect depending on what was played before it and what is being played after it.

Tracklisting

Ezequiel Sanchez – Slightly Man – Dialtone Recordings
Luis Caballero – Cucarachas – 76 Recordings
Nils Noa – Uno Dos Rocks (Christian Sol Remix) – Troll Records
Ryan Sullivan – Truth (CDR)
Module – Framed – Manual Music
Ryan Sullivan – Min Work – Gut Feel Records
Nipp – ORL (James Harcourt Remix) – CDR
King Roc & Dimitri Nakov – Alameda Jau – Bedrock Records
Davide Squillace & Michele Tabucchi – One Lobster, Please (Mathias Kaden’s Gambass Remix) – Sci+Tec Digital Audio
Pascal FEOS – The Beat Goes On – Level Non Zero
Peter Horrevorts – Nymph – GEM Records
Ryan Sullivan – Chase – CDR