Artist of the month of January: Anas M
Anas M is a 24 years old Dj/Producer born in Morocco.
His beats go between minimal house and breakbeat, designed for the most pretentious dancefloors. He has over 100 digital releases with labels such as Blind Vision, Simple Things, Conceptual… And has vinyl releases with labels such as Mixcult, Afterme, Phonichouse, Deepology…
He got supported by a very wide range of artists like Janeret, SUAT, Mihai Pol, Nima Gorji, Vern, Primărie, Mihai Popoviciu, Prichindel and many more.
Tell us about yourself, your journey and where you come from?
My name is Anas / Anas M, I am originally from Morocco but I’ve lived the biggest part of my life in Moscow, Russia.
How did you start Djing? Tell us about your debut and your drive to become the dj and producer that you are today?
My first interest in music happened when I was 16 years old. Louis, one of my best friends, took his small DDJ controller to a school party and I thought that it was so cool. So I also got myself a DDJ controller and we started playing together at our school parties, we did Dj battles and made our friends judge us and as a logical follow up we installed a daw and started to create small patterns together.
Muscovite nightlife also played a major role in my development as a musician. My first time in a club was in Arma. An iconic club that sadly doesn’t exist anymore. I saw Cabanne and Sonja Moonear. They played a set that will always stay in my heart.
What is Worst Date Records and how did it come about?
Worst Date Records is a label that I created 2 years ago when I started to feel that I was pretty established as an artist. I created this label first of all to be able to release my own music and music of my friends. Secondly, it was to get familiar with the full pattern of music production works, from the creative moments you get in front of your daw till when the track is available on streaming platforms. Lately Worst Date Records became a label where I release young producers that I dig very carefully on SoundCloud. I give them as much exposure I can by promoting their music and distributing it everywhere.
At what point of your life did you have that moment where you realized “This is it. This is the genre of music I want to play and produce”?
The exact moment I understood that I really liked minimal house and that I wanted to make minimal house was when I discovered the muscovite label Farmat. They had exactly the sound I was looking to hear. I was dreaming to one day release tracks with them. Today I have a bunch of tracks signed with them and I’m their best seller (flexing a bit).
Who are your biggest influences in music?
In electronic music it’s definitely Matpri, he’s a Dj/Producer from Saint Petersburg and the amount of respect I have for his style and music is huge. His style is unique, aggressive, fast and analog sounding, everything that I love.
In music in general I would say Erik Satie. This is for me the most talented musician that ever existed on earth, his music is so full of feelings.
You are a young dj/producer but already have a very interesting background, one that you built while living in Moscow. Tell us about the inspirations, breakthroughs and the challenges you have faced in Russia, before, and if you are facing different ones in Morocco now since you are back home?
In Russia things went smoothly and as I planned. After discovering Farmat and after releasing tracks with them I got to know many other Russian labels that have wider and bigger exposure around the world. So I made it my goal to become better at making music and release with as many Russian labels as I can. After a few releases and a year of hard work I started to get gigs around Moscow. It first started with Dissident Club in Moscow (It doesn’t exist anymore today) and logically I ended up playing in other clubs in Moscow and other cities around Russia, this took some time though but I kept focused without any distraction above my studies which were not a distraction.
In Morocco it feels like all what I’ve built in Russia means nothing, The only Djs/Producers who know me are the ones played some of my tracks and I am unknown to every type of crowd. But I know that hard work always pays. I started a new project called Medusa which is a label / podcast channel and events every Thursday at Jefferson Rabat.
How was it like working on your latest EP, Lumineuse?
My latest Ep Lumineuse is what I call simple and efficient music. With time and with around 200 tracks produced and released I’ve got a few automatisms that allow me to go to what’s important and unleash many feelings I have inside. In this Ep, tracks are pretty aggressive and fast for the most pretentious dancefloors.
How do you rate the Russian scene and which venues in Moscow do you recommend international fans to attend if they go there at some point in the future?
The Russian scene rocks and is one of the best in the world. No doubt about that. Clubs like Wip, Propaganda, Gazgolder and Mutabor in Moscow are pioneers and legendary. These clubs have created careers and helped develop the culture. In the north, Stackensneider in Saint Petersburg is the most iconic. In the south, Central Park is the best if you’re looking for some chill vibe near the Black Sea.
What can we expect from you soon? Any projects that you would like to tell us about?
I can’t speak much about my future projects but all I can say is that I will always keep pushing hard and working hard in everything that I do in my life because it all comes from my heart.
Famous last words?
Pushin’P
Anas M made a mix for our Grooves Series. It’s an interesting eclectic journey that will keep you wondering in the best way possible. You can listen to his mix now here.