DA Exclusive: Jeremy Olander announces Vivrant imprint, sets tone with full ‘lo-fi’ set streamOlander 2

DA Exclusive: Jeremy Olander announces Vivrant imprint, sets tone with full ‘lo-fi’ set stream

All signs point to Jeremy Olander surpassing the ranks of being just another Swedish dance protégé. With landmarks as varied as an Essential Mix alongside Eric Prydz to launching the lo-fi concept in his homeland of Stockholm, the past 12 months have seen the progressive titan unravel an exciting agenda for both sides of his musical career that lands very much on his own terms.

Now, Olander is ready to announce plans for Vivrant, an imprint that will add to a streak of independence from the versatile producer for 2015. Geared towards rallying likeminded artists and opening the door to those, Olander told us during a recent interview in Stockholm that there was no better time to fill the void on his own terms.=:

“I’m at the stage now though where I want to have my own thing. A place where I can help other artists to release their music as well as my own stuff and just build the whole operation from the ground up. There aren’t many other people that are in the same position as me right now in terms of sound. Being in the middle of the spectrum makes it hard for me to find a good label to call home sometimes. Pryda has historically one of the few labels that could accommodate the void for progressive that lies in between underground and commercial accessibility.”

Coming from an artist who has rallied consistent work with Pryda Friends as well as a recent debut for microCastle and a forthcoming stint of original and remixed work for Suara, one would assume that Jeremy Olander has his pick of the bunch where labels are concerned. His take somewhat contrasts this notion, pointing to an awkward void that, however promising, his own ambition is to fuel and nurture for the coming years.

“There’s no one here. It’s pretty lonely in this space,” laughs Olander. “I’m sure there are other artists out there that have the same musical ambitions and thoughts, but there aren’t many labels that they are going to be able to associate themselves with so they explore different styles instead. If you go to an underground label and have a record that sounds like it’s in the middle, they aren’t going to accept you. It’s not as many purists in the commercial world. There needs to be a balance on both sides. It’s a good place to be in definitely. It gives me an opportunity to show people that there is room to dig deeper into the whole sound.”

Lo-fi, then, is the perfect accompaniment to Olander’s independent sweep. Following a successful kick-start of the concept in Stockholm, the growth of the concept looks slated to follow the heartfelt footsteps of Vivrant – opening doors and levelling the playing field away from the festival stages. As fans patiently await his forthcoming remix for Dosem and a subsequent original on Suara, plans for a global unwinding of the lo-fi concept look sure to take his ‘music-first’ mindset towards new and uncharted territory.

“It’s nice to show people that discovered the music in the last 3-4 years how it used to be done and since I think I have some fans that fall into that category I think it’s my duty to do that. The timing is perfect to take the concept globally. Europe is really thriving with independent underground events and in the US they are growing so open minded. We’re going to start off with 3-4 shows in the late fall in EU and then take it to the US. It’s going to be a lot of work but we’re very excited about it and have a number of venues scouted that really do justice to the ethos of the concept.”

Jeremy Olander North American Tour Summer 2015

FRI, 10 JUL – Rumour, Philadelphia, PA
SAT, 11 JUL – Beta, Denver, CO
THU, 16 JUL – TBA , Washington D.C.
FRI, 17 JUL – Bijou, Boston, MA
SAT, 18 JUL – Kingdom, Austin, TX
SUN, 19 JUL – Output, NYC, NY
FRI, 24 JUL – Spy Bar, Chicago, Ill
SAT, 25 JUL – Audio, San Francisco, CA
FRI, JUL 31 – Secret Show, Los Angeles, CA
SAT, AUG 1 – Exchange, Los Angeles, CA
SAT, AUG 8 – CODA, Toronto, ON

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