Dresden DJ and producer Purple Disco Machine has enjoyed great success with his hits “Hypnotized,” “Fireworks,” and “In The Dark.” Last year, he won a Grammy for his remix of the song “About Damn Time” by US singer Lizzo. Now the new album “Paradise” is out – the third from Purple Disco Machine.
Tino Piontek, the DJ’s real name, had been thinking about the title for a long time. It then became the concept for the whole album.
“Then I thought about what paradise – or my paradises – are,” Piontek told the German Press Agency. “One of them is my hometown of Dresden and of course my studio – places where you just feel comfortable, where you can be who you are.” Certain situations, family, home are also part of it. “That’s also a feeling you have.”
The album ultimately became the soundtrack of these feelings and places. He thought about the sound for a long time. The goal: to reinvent himself without losing himself.
As is often the case, he found inspiration in the music of the 70s and 80s. Piontek chose sounds from old songs that had accompanied him for a long time. “I then got hold of the synthesizers that were used to create the sounds back then and tried to revive them,” he says.
“I simply invite everyone to my paradise”
The album title eventually gave rise to another idea: “I simply invite everyone to my paradise.” For the first time, a Purple Disco Machine record was created entirely in the Dresden studio that Piontek set up in 2019.
It feels like a second home: there is a lot of wood in the building, gold and platinum records hang above a comfortable sofa in the entrance area, and the Grammy trophy has also found a place. Of course, the record collection is not to be missed.
Piontek says he never really warmed to other studios. “Here I am much more creative and free, I can be much more myself,” explains the 44-year-old. You can hear that in the album.
Matt Johnson, keyboardist and producer of the British band Jamiroquai, was the first person Piontek brought to Dresden. Piontek had already worked with Johnson on the last album, and he is now involved in almost every song on “Paradise”.
The numerous featured guests include the British band Metronomy and the Canadian-American duo Chromeo. Sophie and the Giants, with whom the hit “Hypnotized” was created, are also back. For the first time, Piontek also brought in a permanent band to provide the common thread throughout the album.
The Dresden native not only made music with his guests, he also acted as a city guide for them. “Everyone loved it somehow. Many had either no idea of the city or had completely different ideas about it,” he says. It was a nice experience to bring people into his comfort zone and make music with them there.
In October, Piontek will embark on a live tour of Europe with “Paradise,” a new project that will see him embark on. For the first time, he will be on the road with a mixture of DJ set and band – with the musicians he already worked with on the album.
The 44-year-old prefers the really big shows. “The more people, the better. This intimacy is almost a bit too personal for me,” he says. With 200 spectators, you get direct feedback from everyone. “With 80,000 people, it’s easy, you see the first four rows – and those are usually the hardcore fans.” The rest is just a sea of people where you can no longer see personal emotions.
Rejection of Taylor Swift “no big deal”
Piontek has already released disco remixes of some of the biggest hits with artists such as Lizzo, Elton John and Britney Spears. However, he turned down one of the world’s biggest stars: the management of US pop singer Taylor Swift had asked him to do a remix. For Piontek, it was “no big deal” to turn down the request. It was only afterwards that the issue was blown up in the media, says Piontek.
He doesn’t believe that Swift herself even knew about the request. Her label reacted with irritation, saying that no one had ever turned her down, Piontek recalls. But the offer simply came at the wrong time. “I was fully into the album process and didn’t want to interrupt it to make some quick money on the side.”
“I hope the bubble doesn’t burst at some point”
Piontek is not confident about his success. Many people work long and hard to get an appearance at the world-famous Coachella festival, but for him it almost comes easily. “Sometimes you feel guilty and think: ‘I hope the bubble doesn’t burst at some point and people realize that he can’t really do anything.'”
He is still surprised about his Grammy win. The music award is considered the highest honor in the music world. Similar to the Oscars in the film industry, the approximately 13,000 members of the Recording Academy – representatives of the music industry, including musicians, labels and journalists – decide on the winners.
“That’s why I was so surprised. It wasn’t a fan vote, but people from the industry who voted for me,” says Piontek. He wouldn’t have traveled to the awards ceremony in Los Angeles if his wife hadn’t convinced him to. Now he’s a member of the jury himself – an honor, says the Dresden native.
© dpa-infocom, dpa:240923-930-240428/1
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