Detroit's export Ataxia is comprised of duo Ted Krisko and Eric Hanna. Going against the grain in the city that gave birth to techno with the sound of deep house, these two have been forging a new path in the city's nightlife whether it be playing their cultivated music selections at TV Bar or educating Movement Festival crowds with their sound. Welcomed with open arms by the Culprit family in Los Angeles, Ataxia is just about to release their EP "No.6" on Culprit Records on Monday, August 5th. With delightful vocal work done by Cari Golden and Clarian of Footprintz, the EP is a culmination of all their hard work and dreams combined to create these gems. Although you can't get your hands on the release until Monday, they've prepared an exclusive mix for our aural enjoyment. Be prepared to sit back and float away into your own dreams as they show us theirs via melodies, beats, and a few words.
Where did you guys come up with the name Ataxia? There's a medical definition, but we didn't think it stemmed from there… Ted: We were sitting around with a thesaurus, trying out some things, looking for a word that had a great meaning and wasn’t an obvious cliché. Ataxia really was a perfect word, given the aspect of the medical definition that includes “involuntary loss of muscle control”…I pictured people getting loose, catching a buzz and dancing to our music. It made perfect sense then, and does to this day!
Let's talk Detroit for a hot second. A lot of people don't understand this wonderful city with rich musical history and its current underground scene. Many think that by simply attending Movement once a year, they get it. When you're traveling, how do you explain Detroit to people who are unfamiliar in two sentences. Ted: Detroit is a really strange scene to be from, as it's undoubtedly one of the toughest places in the world. To truly understand the city, and gain perspective on why it’s creative output is so high, it’s important to have someone familiar with its infrastructure and its techno heritage show you around in a car on a tour of Detroit if possible!
Eric: Seasick, stretched thin and strung out. We’re still managing to turn the party up.
Do you foresee yourselves moving from Detroit? Is there a place you've both dreamt of living in? Ted: Detroit will always be the place we call our home! Though, there are plenty of places that we could see ourselves relocating to as we continue further down the path of the life of a musician. We have had visions and have spoke of living in London and Berlin, where so many of our friends live and make music. NYC is another place where I am vastly intrigued by. Mexico would be a beautiful place to live in the wintertime…we shall see where the wind carries us throughout this journey!
Do the two of you often travel together? What is the dynamic between you guys? Ted: We travel together for most gigs, though I frequently like to extend my stay in many places with great energy where I have friends. Eric and I joke around, A LOT! Our relationship is based on lots of laughs, and a ton of ball busting, so to speak. Musically, we see eye to eye and trust each other both in the studio and in the DJ booth, so there is much harmony to our partnership!
Eric: Ted brings a lot to the table on the business and seriousness side of things, i.e. Interviews, talking, more talking, and talking. This comes in handy most of the time because, I feel like I’m floating through a room of holes and don't ever want to talk to anyone. Bah, besides Pulse radio of course! Ha.
You've mentioned in an interview with MyBeatfix that you're going to revive your live set up. Tell us what comprised your live set up before? What spurred you to move onto DJ sets? Ted: Our previous setup included an Allen & Heath Xone 4D, Xone 92, various drum machines, an array of synths, midi controllers, and effects boxes, with two computers sequenced together. After Movement 2011, which was our last live PA, we decided to focus on our DJ sets for the time being, as it was becoming so risky gigging locally in Detroit with that much equipment to manage on a gig to gig basis. Car break in’s are common here, and we’ve previously been victims of robbery loading out after a gig, so we wanted to make things simpler and more compact.
Eric: That previous setup was a disaster. This 2014 live rig is going to bring us back to the fundamentals of musicianship. I need to play some bass, and I’m certain Ted would love to play some guitar.
You have a big release on Monday, August 5th with vocalists Clarian and Cari Golden - your No. 6 EP. It's a beautiful release, really well done - do you mind telling us the story behind it? Ted: Our friend Jozif had been playing and charting our music since last year, so I continued sending him stuff that we finished in the studio. He thought that the music was sounding really great for release, and asked us to sketch out an EP idea for him to pitch to Andrei, Culprit’s label manager. At the same time, our other good friends Safeword (the duo of Clint Stewart and Marc Smith) who had been doing a remix for the A1, sent the music to Justin Sloe from Droog.
Both Justin and Andrei enjoyed the music, and with the stellar vocal work from both Clarian and Cari Golden, it really felt like a natural fit all around. Andrei brought an additional remix to the table from Luca C & Brigante, which is receiving much praise! We are extremely pleased with their version of “The No. 6”, our song with Clarian. Additionally, as a digital bonus, we had Dan Wagner from our New Agenda crew in Detroit do a remix of “Love On”, which is our collaboration with Cari Golden. Dan is really talented and we are stoked to have him on our first EP, and very glad to have Culprit be so supportive of new up and coming talent!
Where can we find Ataxia next? Are there any gigs or festivals coming up that you'd like to highlight? Ted: As far as a gig to highlight, we will be playing the Culprit Sessions rooftop pool party at The Standard, in downtown LA next Sunday, August 11th! We really can’t wait to play this, as it’s got the reputation as being the hottest party series in the US. Sharing the bill with friends like Droog, Inxec and Tone of Arc is really proper for Ataxia’s California debut!
The next festival appearance for Ataxia will be at Burning Man! Very honored to be included in the Nexus Stage programming, which will be graced with performances by Richie Hawtin, Dubfire & more…this will be a life changing experience needless to say, and there is so much energy and excitement over this, as it’s way more than just a gig!
The next gig is in Miami this coming weekend at Gavana Garden in the Design District for a Sunday day party, playing a special sundown set on a beautiful outdoor patio!
What frame of mind where you in when you were mixing this lovely exclusive mix for us? Daydreaming.