Flatlab is back and here to Stay, as the European-based duo continues to bring techno, new wave, and dance/pop with not one but two albums with their infectious mix of techno, new wave, dance, pop, and so forth that was the craze back in the 1980s: an era that was the rise of the Second British Invasion as well as the good old days of MTV.
What you have been doing since our last e-mail conservation?
R. Carteau: Well, a lot happened, as Believe Digital approached us and wanted to distribute our tracks. We therefore released our first digital EP, Stay in September 2010. We are now excited [with] our second EP, Spread it [it was released last Thursday].
Why did you decide to make digital EPs?
RC: It was a great opportunity, so we took it. Our work is now available on Itunes, Amazon, Beatport, Deezer, etc. Depending on the EP, we use the format in different ways. For the first EP, Stay, we had to speed up the releasing process as it included two different tracks. However, for Spread it, we decided to use the digital format in a more old-school way and release a radio edit with a dub version and a remix.
Out of these two EPs, what is your favorite song? If so, which one and why?
RC: Spread it is a favourite as it is more upbeat and comes with a great remix. We really tried to stick to the original Flatlab concept and release tracks influenced by both British & French electro scenes. We were also keen on quoting some of our influences in the lyrics – loud and clear.
Now, Early Day (from Stay EP), being more down-tempo and ambient, was also very interesting to do. It is different than what we usually work on and it will certainly influence our future releases.
Are your currently touring right now?
RC: No touring at the moment as we are currently focusing on releasing more tracks. However, we always have dates from time to time – mainly in Paris.
You’ve already made a name for yourself with the rest of us here at The Student Operated Press (SOP) and Newsblaze (NB). You’re starting to carve a niche for yourself in the European music scene, so is there any chance that Flatlab will successfully crossover to United States?
RC: A few online radios have already included us in their playlists and a few blogs like yours – Hypem, B-Electro, Electro Italia, Electropup to name a few – are now talking about us. It is also great to see previews of Spread it being spread out online days before its release date. Concerning North America, we were glad to see that the Canadian blog, ‘Raised on Indie’, features few of our tracks. Our Myspace also shows that the interest we receive from the States grows rapidly – especially in NY and California.
We suppose, you guys at the SOP and NB, must have done something good… Thanks!
You can hear Flatlab’s latest on MySpace: http://www.myspace.com/flatlabmusic
Or, on Facebook: http://www.facebook.com/#!/pages/FLATLAB/10344071843
