Droid Behavior: Satisfaction Guaranteed
For several years, Droid Behavior has been at the forefront of the Los Angeles techno movement. As promoters, they’ve hosted various monthly parties and events at underground spots and notable clubs, supporting locals like minimal techno DJ/producer John Tejada and hosting the debut engagements for international celebrated artists like Matthew Dear, Modeselekor, Speedy J, Surgeon, Dan Bell, and Apparat.

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Beginning as an agency for Vidal and Vangelis Vargas (Acid Circus) and Mohamed Espinosa (Drumcell) to fill LA’s techno void, Droid Behavior has rightfully earned recognition and admiration by helping to take digital mixing to another level by consistently delivering kick-ass events and intense, energetic live performances. From extensive event promotion and production to the online magazine dnode and quality releases of the Droid Recordings label, the individuals behind Droid Behavior have helped to create a growing social network of talented DJ’s, promoters, producers, and music enthusiasts that support and encourage each other rather than compete.

Vidal and Vangelis took some time out for an interview that helps dish out the details of their success and should help get you pumped for their future. Be sure to check out their podcasts as well, you won’t be disappointed! 

For those not aware of you, please give us a brief introduction into who you are, where you come from and your sound?
Vidal: Acid Circus is comprised of brothers Vangelis and Vidal Vargas.  Along with Moe Espinosa (Drumcell) we co-founded Droid Behavior. We started off as a mailing list to keep music fans in the know with techno and underground related events, then soon developed Droid into one of LA’s pioneering record labels and event production groups.

You work together. How do you split your duty during producing the track?  Do you have disagreements sometimes?
Vangelis: We tend to work independently when producing tracks.  We each develop, sequence, and compose most tracks on our own and then take each others input and tweak the track accordingly. Many times I tend
to put the final touches on the actual mix of both of our tracks.  We are brutally honest when it comes to giving feedback on each other’s music, and although at times we butt heads, in the end we value each other’s opinions enough to change something if need be.  After working so closely with each other for the past nine years, our techniques and style have filtered into each others’ productions enough to create a defined sound for Acid Circus.

Vidal: Yes, we all definitely have to work together…..it’s kind of impossible not to since we all created Droid together.  I handle a lot of the street/online marketing for events, record releases, and tours.  I also split production and performance duties with my brother Vangelis as Acid Circus.  Event production is split between all three of us and of course our loyal trusting friends who volunteer their blood sweat and tears for the cause of good music.

The record label is almost exclusively handled by Mohamed. He has the final say on which tracks will make it to vinyl or digital releases. He also maintains relationships with our distributor, PR rep, mastering house, vinyl cutter, etc. All three of us have our input on the releases though, since many times we are the ones producing or remixing them.  There are differences of opinions sometimes, but we try to handle things democratically between the three of us.

How long does it normally take to make a track and where do you get your inspiration?
Vidal: Sometimes….too long! It takes a while to finally mix down the songs properly and add finishing touches. The basic ideas and rough sequencing come quick though. Maybe after we shuffle the sound in our studio a bit we will get a clearer picture of our final mix downs much quicker. Two weeks to two years is a safe number for each project.

Vangelis: We draw most of our inspiration from spontaneity and creativity that was present in much of the techno and house releases throughout the 90s. It’s increasingly rarer these days to find other producers that share our vision and the vibe that we try to invoke in dancers.

You’ve self produced countless one off events and collaborations with some of the biggest names in techno music. What were some of your favorite events and what’s next for Droid?
The whole Interface series is our personal pride and joy. We are coming up on the 23rd installment in October. Besides Interface we have been involved with countless other events from collaboration loft parties to Hollywood club nights. We are very proud of our debuts shows with Modeselektor, Speedy J, Surgeon and Vexx’d to the LA night life. The production levels and music at these events were monumental to say the least…especially when we set off fire works at the Droid 5 year.

What has been your biggest/best/most memorable moment in 2008?
Receiving all the press this year in XLR8R, LA WEEKLY, and KCET has definitely been a highlight for all of us. Receiving recognition for all the hard work is always nice. Also moving our event production outside of the warehouse and into the elements of nature was amazing.

Which producers are doing it for you at the moment and are there any that we should be keeping an eye on for the future?
Dustin Zahn, Kyle Gieger, Donk Boys, Xtrak, and of course droids Acid Circus, Audio Injection, and Drumcell. Auralism, Billy Dallessandro, Elon… too many to name really!

What do you listen to at home?
Vidal: I watch videos on Mexican MTV.  In the car its lots of hip hop, rap, and R&B, NIN, ebm, The Clash, Softcell, Depeche Mode, Bad Boy Bill mixes, and of course, all the recordings from past Droid events.  People should check out the Droid podcast for many of those archives.

Vangelis: Indie rock, Droid podcast archives, deep stuff from labels like Chain Reaction, Styrax, Delsin, Modern Love, Warp, Rephlex, etc. Oh, and a bit of classical too (Debussy, Part).

You are down for a number of nights in the coming months. What events are you especially looking forward to playing at?
Dominican Republic. Besides playing in Mexico, this will be our first international booking and the second gig there will be a pool party with bikini people so what’s not to like?  Also, there is talk of some San Francisco Love Fest after gigs, so that should be exciting.

When can we expect the next issue of dnode zine?
Unfortunately, dnode is no longer a print zine. Keeping with the digital world, Bijan now handles dnode as individual articles that get archived on the droid podcast for all subscribers to download. Along with interviews, articles, and flyers, we also archive many DJ sets and live sets from past droid events on the podcast.

Droid Behavior has achieved a strong word of mouth reputation thanks to constant events, independent press, and the record label. What are you planning for 2009?
MORE MORE MORE MORE!!!

Links:
Droid Behavior website
Droid Behavior podcast
Acid Circus on MySpace
Drumcell on MySpace
Driod Behavior on MySpace