Metronome #063: Leftwing & Kody

Insomniac’s Metronome series features mixes from some of today’s fastest-rising electronic stars, as well as championed legends. It takes listeners deep across a wide range of genres, movements, cultures, producers, artists and sounds that make up the diverse world of electronic music.

There are usually a ton of timestamps to burn through in telling the story of how a musical match was made, but things are pretty straightforward in Leftwing & Kody’s case. You had two DJs who were booked on the same night and perfectly vibed off each other’s selections. That alone was the catalyst needed to conjoin the minds of Chris and Jon. No fuss or fairy dust.

But the real magic came from the aftermath of this casual encounter at a club, which led to an in-demand duo bolstered on a deep knowledge of UK underground and a holdfast on newly emerging influences. Now four years strong in the scene, using the “newcomer” identifier is just bad form at this point. Yet the hype they’re holding on to makes it seem as though they’ve just shown up on our doorstep. Everyone who is anyone is rinsing their records, which have found homes on renowned imprints such as Hot Creations, Knee Deep in Sound, Suara, VIVa MUSiC and their own Lost Records. They’ve continually clubbed heads with their weighty, high-spirited grooves, and they still have so much air to catch in the process.

As Leftwing & Kody keep gliding on their way to greatness, we’ve managed to get the gents to give our Metronome series a go. In this installment, we can hear their rich musical heritage in action with a live recorded set from their recent gig at Café D’Anvers in Antwerp, Belgium.

The lead cut “Go Back” from your new four-tracker has been getting a lot of love from a few of the big names.
Yeah, we are overwhelmed by the support we’ve been getting so far on this EP. We sent the track to Hot Since 82 on Friday, and on Saturday night there were videos on the internet of him playing “Go Back” in Australia!

Are there any artists who have worked your stuff into their mixes/sets and took you completely by surprise?
The biggest one would be Carl Cox playing one of our early tracks, “Lost,” at DC10. We really didn’t expect to hear him play it, purely because Carl is more known as a techno DJ.

Last summer, Jon was lucky enough to catch Nic Fanciulli playing our track “Mad Hot” at DC10 for Paradise; that was a great moment for us.

Of the four tunes featured in the Utopia EP, which do you feel the strongest connection with, and why?
That’s like asking to pick a favorite child!

You’ve chosen your own imprint Lost Records to issue the two-tracker. What factors do you consider when deciding whether to release through your own label or on an external one?
When the tracks have something special, that’s when we tend to use Lost Records. It always feels that little bit more exciting putting out your own music on your own record label. Plus, we are in complete control with the music from start to finish.

You guys came up rather quickly, seemingly overnight, and are now in a position to bring up new upstarts with little to no recognition. Whom are you currently championing at the moment?
Yeah, it seems like we did show up overnight, but really, we had been working in the scene for a long time before the Leftwing & Kody project blew up. We are finding that’s generally the case for artists in this scene. Overnight success is a rare thing; although it does happen, it isn’t as often as it seems.

People we are championing at the moment are Latmun—he’s going to be doing massive things this year (including an EP on Lost Records in the summer). Electronic Youth and Toucàn have just turned in some great remixes for Lost. We decide that in 2016, we were gonna give some up-and-comers a shot at remixing on the EPs that we have lined up. We know what it’s like to be starting up and how difficult it is to get recognition, so we are glad we are able to use Lost as a way of showcasing fresh talent.

Do you have any hacks to share with the newcomers or common pitfalls of those who are barely entering the industry?
Try and stay grounded. The worst is when people believe their own hype and start to get carried away with their egos, etc. The majority of people we have met on our journey have been solid, down-to-earth guys and girls, and these are the people we tend to work with and keep in touch with. So just be nice, and treat people the way you would expect to be treated. Patience is a massive factor (and sometimes we are still guilty of not having enough patience), understanding that there are a lot of people in this business and that it simply isn’t feasible to give feedback instantly to music or demos they send.

I read an interview in which you mentioned being on a serious health tip. How do you make your conscious lifestyle work while touring heavily?
We try and stay health-conscious during the week, hitting the gym and eating well, because it’s very hard to do these things on the road. So at the weekend, there’s some bad food and alcohol (SHOCKER!). But having things in moderation over two days at the weekend, and then being good during the week, tends to be a good balance.

What are the biggest temptations you face while on the road, and how do you overcome them?
Eating terrible foods is the worst temptation. We try and overcome them by thinking about how much extra work you’d have to do in the gym the following week. But this never, ever works!

Chris (Kody), when asked what you would be doing if music wasn’t in the picture, you’ve mentioned a passion for directing films. Where does this interest come from, and who are some of the greats in your eyes?
I love how directors can take words from a page and turn them into something visual. It’s an amazing skill. I’ve been interested in films from a young age. I grew up in Canada, so going to the drive-in theaters was a big part of my childhood. The greats for me would be Stanley Kubrick, Quentin Tarantino and Christopher Nolan, for sure.

Jon (Leftwing), your alternate life would have been as an author. Do you get much writing in on the side, and/or what topics are you interested in covering?
I don’t do much writing, to be honest. With music and my other interests, it’s really hard to find time. But if I were to, it would definitely be about meditation/qigong stuff, as I spend most of my spare time practicing and reading books of that vein.

Share some words on the mix you’ve put together for us. Do any of the tracks or transitions stand out to you?
This is a live mix from one of our shows at Café D’Anvers in Antwerp a few weeks ago. The atmosphere was electric, and there was one particular mix that worked really well at the one-hour mark. I remember the transition of those two tracks being particularly good, ‘cause I slapped Jon on the back—it was that good.

What are your biggest goals for the rest of 2016?
Just to keep up the hard work. We consider ourselves to be in a very privileged position, so we want to not take that for granted. So, keep working hard in the studio, keep creating the music, and also take the label to the next level (whatever that may be).

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