INTERVIEW: Hamza Rahimtula

07/11/2023 19

Seattle’s Uniting Souls Music continues to make waves, with a run of eleven consecutive Beatport Top 10 releases. Their new Summer Soulstice 2023 Compilation hit #1 on the Beatport charts, and charted Top 10 across five genres including Deep House, Jackin’, Funky, Indie Dance and Electronica. The compilation consists of 14 new and original tracks, offering something for everyone, with new music from seasoned veterans and inspired newcomers, including the UK’s Greenbay Jackers (AKA Andrew Macari), New Delhi’s Hamza Rahimtula, label residents Jordan Strong, Jon Lee and D.Guti, and a solid roster of talented West Coast DJ/producers yearning to express their shared love of underground dance music.

We have had the pleasure of interviewing Hamza Rahimtula.

Tell us about your song “Randa” which is part of the new Summer Soulstice 2023 compilation on Uniting Souls Music.”

Randa is the first track I have finished in my new studio. I ended using some heavy duty analog gear to mix it down so this is a really special track for me. The concept was to have a deep house track with subtle African Vocals and West African influenced Blues Guitar Riffs. I wanted the kick and bass to hit hard on the floor but at the same time wanted the track to be musical so that it’s has a good balance between Cerebral & Physical Aural elements.

In some tracks I make the world music elements come to the fore front but here I decided to keep it subtle so that the deep house feel is still intact.

How would you describe the current state of deep house in India, and what has been your role as a purveyor of the genre?

House & Disco have finally entered the Indian Club Scene few years Ago. There were always people playing this genre independently but we formed a community and now there is a scene in many cities that support all shades of house music including deep house.

My role has been to educate people and expose them to House music through my releases and performances. I have playing in India since 2007 and always stuck to my genre despite the trends locally which have focused on harder forms of electronic music. Finally through my efforts and other Dj’s like myself here in the country, we have managed to put House Music on the Map. There is still a lot of work to do and we are staying focused and working hard to push the scene to its full potential.

If you are curious about House Music from India, feel free to check out Wind Horse Records & Dynamite Disco Club.

As for your studio, what is it currently made up of?

Genelec Ones

Roland System 8 Synth

TB3

TR8S

MC 707

Lots of Microphone’s like the U-87

Maselec MEA 2 (Analog)

Manley Vari Mu Compressor & Limmiter (Analog)

Dangerous 2 Bus + Analog Summing (Analog)

Lynx Aurora Digital to Analog Converter

We have a big live room to record musicians and a pretty sweet monitoring room which has a glass division that enables you to see from the monitoring room to the live room. We also have a third room which which we use to teach Dj’ing and Production. By the end of the year, we will also be Starting Mixing & Mastering services. If u interested in checking out our studio, feel free to visit

https://www.instagram.com/whrstudio/

What is the one instrument you would never get rid of, no matter what?

I am not attached to any instruments. I just can’t get rid of my Genelec Speakers and my Focal Headphones. These are my Saviours!! I can always count on them.

What was the last record store you visited? And what did you salvage from there?

Syncrophone in Paris.

These guys have a great store. They have a super House & Minimal Collection. They have a fully functional web site as well. Picked up some gems there. Here are some :

Glenn Underground – Afro Gente

Modern House Quintet – Merveille

UR Feat Aaron Carl – Hardlife

Felipe Gordon – Impresiones Acidas

Can you share any news about upcoming projects?

Working on an Ep for Sol Selectas.

Have 2 Singles coming out in August & October on Nervous Records

Have a new collab with Cantos coming out on Viva Recordings from Seattle

Buy the release:

https://www.beatport.com/release/summer-soulstice-2023-compilation/4157805

Label Links:

https://www.unitingsoulsmusic.com/