Pals, amigos, musical mates... Luca C and Ali Love bring us Infinity Ink and an array of blinding releases hot off the turn tables. Here Hannah Davies catches up with the unique duo who have achieved critical acclaim as both solo artists and as a united front. With Ali producing two artist albums and providing the vocals for various artists such as The Chemical brothers and Luca, having recently co-written and produced one of Jamie Jones' tracks for his latest albums their talents are endless.
Luca C tells us about the duo's summer plans as they decide to settle in Ibiza for the season; telling us all about their future releases and upcoming gigs. Headlining at venues such as DC10 and Sankeys the pair are clearly living the underground dream and are bound to be bringing some hooky tracks to the White Isle this summer.
So, why did you guys choose to form Infinity Ink, what are you all about and how would you describe your sound?
Ali and I have known each other for a long time, over 10 years and we've always made music together. I've been co-writing some of his solo material and he's guested on a few of my tracks with Brigante. With Infinity Ink, it's the first time that we have our own proper project together. Our sound is an amalgamation of different influences electronic and more rock/band orientated. We've both been playing instruments since a young age so everything we do tends to be very musical, we approach the writing process from a songwriting point of view rather than a DJ/producer one.
Your Crosstown Rebels record 'Infinity' was featured as Pete Tong's essential tune and he has even mentioned you guys as 'ones to watch' in an interview recently which is pretty cool. Tell us how it feels to have recognition and support from artists such as Pete?
Pete Tong is a very influential and respected figure in dance music so we feel honoured to have his support.
'Infinity' is a real combination of underground and garage with some really strong bouncy bass lines and the catchy vocals from Ali are almost hypnotic, where did you want to take the listener with the track and what was the inspiration behind it?
The track came together very quickly, it was really just a jam, I had the beat and Ali free styles over it for 30 minutes; then I picked the best bits, it took about 1 hour to put together.
Todd Edwards provided a remix for your EP and added a faster pace and slightly futuristic edge to the track, why did you choose him to remix it?
Todd Edwards is one of my favourite electronic producers, a huge influence on many modern artists such as Daft Punk and the whole 90's french scene. When we were asked to choose a remixer I just mentioned his name - not thinking that it would have happened, then Damian Lazarus made it happen. Todd told us that he loved the track so much that even though he was really busy at the time he had to find the time to do it and we absolutely love what he came up with.
The EP is also available on Vinyl, so that leads us to the big question... vinyl or digital? Which do you prefer and why?
We love vinyl, but I'm not against CD's or whatever... I think it's about what you play not about which format it comes in.
You performed in Miami at Get Lost and dropped the track, how was it received and do you think the live vocals from Ali add something different/special to your sets?
'Infinity' always gets a great response, in Miami it was particularly well received. I think a live element always adds something special to a DJ set.
You've been working on some material with Jamie Jones, can you tell us a bit about that?
We've been working on a very special project with Jamie Jones and Lee Foss, you will hear more news soon.
Have you got any other forthcoming releases or news that you can tell us about?
Ali has a solo album coming out on Crosstown rebels after the summer, I have an EP coming out on Southern Fried with Brigante featuring Robert Owens, a collaboration track with Jamie Jones on his new album and a collaboration with James What on no.19.
What else do you have lined up for the summer? Will we be seeing you in Ibiza? If so, when and where and what should we expect from you?
Ali and I have moved to Ibiza for the season, I'm going to be resident at the Hot Creations party in DC10 as Infinity Ink and by myself, there's also going be Infinity Ink shows at Sankeys and various after parties and various gigs around Europe, in August we'll be touring America with Infinity Ink.
What is the best world stage that you could imagine or have played at?
When I was playing in my old band 'Cazals' we opened for Daft Punk on their Japanese 'Alive' tour, it was pretty special - the shows were all sold out with a minimum of 20.000 people per show. I'm really looking forward to playing at DC10 this summer as it's probably my favourite club in Europe, I'd also love to play at Eleven in Tokyo.
Finally, how do you make sure you connect with a crowd and how does it feel when people are loving your music?
It's one of the best feelings as a musician, we connect with the crowd by making sure that the music we play tells a story both lyrically and musically.
Infinity Ink 'Infinity' out now on Crosstown Rebels crosstownrebels.com
