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Meet Khaled Elsayed, the Egyptian-born and Brooklyn-raised DJ/producer who goes by the name Abu Ashley. After working in New York’s underground scene for a number of years, holding residencies at staple spots like Le Baron Chinatown and Brooklyn’s Bossa Nova Civic Club and teaming up with Parka Records to release his first EP, he packed his bags and made the great migration to the world’s techno Mecca, Berlin. We had a chance to sit down and chat with Abu about his travels, dub techno, clubbing in Berlin, his ‘Asmaa’ EP and more. Give the mix he made for us a listen and enjoy!
For those who don’t know you, tell us as bit about yourself. I’m originally from Port Said, Egypt and I grew up in Park Slope, Brooklyn. I make house music.
How did you get into electronic music and start producing? I first got into electronic music in the 1990s, when I was around seven or eight years old. There was a random trance radio station that always played trance at night. I was listening to Hot 97 and accidentally stumbled upon this trance station and listened to trance for about four hours. This was back in the Limelight years, so this station sparked my interest and got me really into Moby and The Prodigy. Moby is one of my heroes.
Your debut EP, ‘Asmaa,’ was released on New York-based vinyl label [par ka] in June. How did you start working with [par ka]? I met Anibal (par ka’s founder) about two years ago through a mutual friend. He came to a bunch of my parties and we started hanging out. He wanted to start a label, I had a bunch of music, and we just clicked. We’ve worked together through everything; the label, A&R, and our timing worked out perfectly.
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What was the inspiration behind your EP? There are two, really. Firstly, I had been working on a lot of techno but I felt like my productions didn’t have any soul. So I put away my 909s and technical machines and wanted to experiment with Eastern sounds. I wanted to experiment with different sounds and I just gravitated towards Eastern sounds. I started fucking around with different types of drums and synthesizers. Then, I watched ‘Asmaa,’ which is actually the name of this tragic Egyptian movie about a woman who contracts HIV and is ostracized from society. Right after watching it I went into the studio and made the track. I feel like I translated my feelings at the time into that song, and that’s how the EP came about.
After getting rid of your drum machines and techno instruments, what replaced them and became your soulful studio? I sampled a bunch of Middle Eastern sounds. I have a huge stack of Arabic records, so I wanted to take elements from the old Eastern world and make it contemporary without making it cheesy.
You recently made the move to Europe – Amsterdam and Berlin, to be exact. How has this affected your outlook, musically? From a DJ perspective, both the standard of performing and the quality of sound and music is much higher. I’m not saying Europeans are better, because most of these DJs are actually American, but the atmosphere in general is better. In America, you have a headliner, opener and closer. However, in Berlin there will be an opener, maybe six headliners, and a closer and the closing is the best set. DJs have around 20 to work with, it’s just different. The whole cliché of being taken on a journey actually came to life for me and I’ve felt so much more inspired by the music I’ve been hearing here. In the US, I do get blown away sometimes but not in a traditional club atmosphere. There are fewer laws limiting nightlife in Europe and it’s difficult to compare to the US.
Underground parties are another good example. In America, the atmosphere is awesome but the sound is usually lacking whereas in Berlin you’ll have parties like Strip Bed, in the basement of an old swimming pool house, literally in a boiler room, but with a Funktion One sound system. Shit like that – sound quality is better, atmosphere is better, you can actually see DJs experiment and get to play their own music instead of the whole opener, headliner, closer formula that often characterizes American nightlife.
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How has your style evolved since you first started making music, and do you think it’s changed since you moved? I didn't come from a musical background and when I first started, I didn't have the skill set to sit down and be able to make a track exactly how I wanted it to sound. From the beginning, things have been experimental and I have just been trying to figure out which direction I was going to go in. With my first EP, I gravitated to a more chilled out, spiritual, Middle Eastern sound. Normally, I do tend to gravitate towards minimal techno, as my DJ sets exemplify. I think my future releases will reflect this as well. I’m still deciding whether I will release my harder tracks under a different moniker.
Moving to Berlin has definitely influenced me. I’m finding that there is a lot more dub techno in record shops here compared to New York and I'm finding myself buying tons of dub. Inevitably, I started working on an Abu Ashley dub techno album and I’m about half way done, so hopefully that will be coming out sometime next year.
What has been the most gratifying moment in your career so far? Definitely picking up my record and being able to physically hold something I had created.
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What are some dream gigs? Berghain, of course, and some rave in Serbia with a bunch of topless Europeans. Exit festival in Serbia.
What is your studio set up like? I can’t work with a computer at all. I hate it. So that’s why I’m going broke buying a bunch of equipment. I have friends who only use a computer and nothing else, not even a midi controller, and I completely envy them. For drums, I usually use samples. I don’t have a drum machine but I’m waiting for the Elektron Analog Rytm to come in the mail. I have my Juno 106, my Tetra and my Mopho which connect together, giving me a Prophet 5 sort of, a x0xb0x and a reel to reel. I had a Moog Minitar (which I got rid of pretty quickly because it was a faulty device). I only use one plug-in. I have Ableton Push as my sequencer but clicking on a computer for eight hours a day drives me insane, which is why I need this equipment. Although, this isn't even that much compared to real gear nerds who've been collecting for years!
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Tell us a bit about the mix you made for us. It's actually a collection of tracks that I listen to when I'm hanging out alone after clubbing in Berghain or in a dark room somewhere, doing devil knows what for 15+ hours. I realized these tracks all blend together, so I figured I'd share my own come-down playlist with everyone. I actually made this last night at about 5am. I wanted to be in the right state of mind while recording. I thought about taking a bunch of unmentionables to transport back to the club, but my mixing would have probably been really terrible.
What is on the horizon for Abu Ashley? I have a bunch of records coming out soon. I’ve been making a ton of music since I moved to Germany. Even though it’s only been a short amount of time, I already feel the difference. Especially in my hometown, I’ll work for a little bit and then I'll fuck off for a bit and hang out, but in Berlin I’m much more focused. I’ll go out to an awesome party, feel inspired, and go home and work in the studio right after. I’m working on a dub techno album that I made almost exclusively in Berlin. Dub techno is making a comeback.
Mix Tracklist:
Dead Heat - The Damn
Recondite - Stems (Into the Dew Mix)
Abu Ashley - ????????
Area - Bourbon Skies (Vakula Remix)
Marcos Cabral - 24 Hour Flight
Move D - Your Personal Healer
Ron Size - Hot Stuff (Galcher Lustwerk Edit)
Twins - Love Runs Deep
Abu Ashley - Asmaa (Alexi Delano Remix)
Four Tet - Sing
PillowTalk - Meet Me In The Dark
Elissa - Ajmal Ihssass
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