Adam Marshall is a DJ/producer who hails from Toronto, Canada, But now resides in the Mecca of electronic music; Berlin. Adam is at the head of his Record, label New Kanada which has been gaining much momentum over the last few months by steady dropping, stellar releases from acclaimed artist like, Seuil, Basic Soul Unit, The mole and rising stars, Murr, and The Mole. This month we’ll be highlighting New Kanada by conducting a few Q&A’s with some of its current key players. We kick it off with none other than the man himself.

•        Please introduce yourself.

         Adam Marshall.

•        Growing up, what was your dream job?

         Archaeologists, working somewhere close to a beach.

•        What kind of sacrifices did you have to make to get to where you

         are now?

          I sacrificed the white picket fence ideal. I will never have this.

•        Are you content with your current position?

         Yes, very fortunate and happy.

•       Being that Detroit is just a mere stones throw from your hometown of

        Toronto; how much influence would you say that had on the early days of

         your career?

         Detroit and Chicago and NYC all had an equal influence on me in my

         formative years.  Each had a certain something going on that was hard to

         put your finger on – but very apparent.  Toronto channeled all three of

         these cities into a pretty good mixture that was quite unique for North

         America at that time.

•        Are you satisfied with the present state of electronic music?

         I am.  Things have gone back underground (in a sense), and there is so

         much good music coming out I don’t have enough money to buy it all.

•        They say that “necessity is the mother of all invention”; was

          that the case when you started your first label New Kanada?

           When NK started, I – personally – wasn’t into a lot of the stuff coming

           out…. But everything moves in a 7 year cycle, so I guess NK was the

           reaction to the bottom curve of the cycle.

•        What’s behind the name (New Kanda)?  Are you trying to make a

          statement with the name?

         The first time I went to Tokyo, I stayed in a hotel called Hotel New

        Kanada.   The name stayed with me.  The fact that it’s how the German’s

        say Canada is also a bonus.

•        What are some of the headaches that come with running a label?

         Pressing vinyl in the USA is generally a big headache.  Everything that

         can go wrong, will go wrong.  And then you need to ship it out of the

         country to sell any of it.  Why do I still press here – I ask myself that

         question all the time.

•        What is your most beloved piece of gear?

         Korg MS20.

•        What gets your creativity flowing?

         Green tea.

•        Can you tell us what kind of work goes into making an Adam

          Marshall track?

          Little bit of chaos, sprinkled with some luck, and the top with a little dirt.

•        What other sounds influence you then + now?

        I like music from all genre’s as long as it’s good.  The Internet has

        opened me up to so many other styles of music it’s amazing.  I’ve been

        listening to tons of old African and South East Asian music lately.

        Honest Jon’s is one of my favorite re-issue labels.

•        What is it like for you to find new artiste? Is it a constant

         search or the old adage “if you build it they will come”? How'd you

         stumble across Murr?

        Murr was an old, old friend from my record store days.  We both used to

        work in the HipHop (aka Urban) section of a major downtown music store. Amid the chaos, we

        became friends. I usually just let the talent find me.  Now that the label is a little more well known,I’m 

        happily surprised by the great music I get sent. Though, it’s rare for me to release anything that is not

        from someone I know personally.

•        You’ve started a second label; KUJI, can you tell us a bit about

          that project? (Does KUJI stand for something)

          No, KUJI just sounded like a good name. My old label was called Killer, and you can see I like my             ‘K’s. KUJI is sort of a sub for special projects that would not fit on NK.

•        Do you receive change with open arms or are you reluctant and stuck in your ways?

         Open arms – bring it on!

•        What are your views on the digital format, and digital dj'ing as a whole?

         I have no problem with digital, but I will use vinyl because it sounds

         better on big systems. Electronic music sounds so much better when it’s

         warm and round.

•        What did you first start-off with; DJ’ing or producing?

          Djing.

•        Do you favor one over the other?

         Not now no.  I enjoy both equally, but differently.

•        You along with Mike Shannon and Jeremy Caulfield are said to have

          been key to the shaping of electronic music in Toronto in the 90’s, how

          has the scene in T Dot changed since then?

         I haven’t been back to T.O. for a while, so I cant comment that much…  but

         I do know there is a lot of new talent coming up through Toronto these

        days, in all styles of music.  Guys like Polmo Polpo, Eygyptrixx, Azari &

        I'II are all doing amazing stuff.

•        Berlin has become a haven for creativity, do you see yourself

         settling down, and going for the long haul in that city?

         Berlin is a great place to live – for the quality of life, and also the

        opportunities.  I don’t know what the future will hold but I’m happy here

        now.

•        Poutine or Currywurst?

          Neither.

•       Best venue in North America to perform?

        I think Francois K’s Deep Space night at Cielo would be pretty dope – but have never been.

•        What can we expect from you + New Kanada in the coming months?

        The next release (NK25) is by me and an artist named Milosh (from K7! /

         Plug Research)... Here is a link to the video of this release: Vimeo 

        We also have an EPs ready by Turkey’s Tolga Fidan, Murr, and myself.

•        If you were able to take a time machine to travel back to any

         random point in history. In what era would you want to land in? Why?

         1920’s. Not sure. Maybe the women.

•        Where do you hope to retire when you’re old and grey?

          Soemwhere  sunny.

•        What would you say to the unsung heroes that are in their bedrooms day in day out 

         banging out gems and have yet to be recognized?

          Three words: D I Y