Lou Berlinger aka Slow Dimension is a French DJ, Live performer and has been producing and Djing for 20 years. Her sound is a combination between drone, synthetic, dubby, melancholic and deep techno. We already saw her presenting her Live at different festivals such as Astropolis, also a label on which she recently signed the track “Tesla”. This authentic artist speaks about her projects including a new Live and a book about electronic music. 

Where do you come from? 
I come from different places but mainly Paris and Britany (22), I spent most of my holidays on a small island in Greece where I was conceived, lived in Paris, London and a touch of Buenos Aires. Music was very important in my childhood because my brother mainly taught me about UK synth pop music, psychedelic rock and 90s garage, I was mainly into new and cold wave with a touch of trip hop.

Do you remember how you discovered electronic music? 
I discovered electronic music when I was 14 years old, I went with my brother to a Chemical Brothers concert and I was listening to Jean Michel Jarre's Oxygen, my first crush! I started to collect vinyls from the Kompakt label and never stopped digging new wave, krautrock or concrete music. Also, electroclash music was a big influence for me; and groups such as: Fad Gadget, Depeche Mode, Tangerine Dream, tears for Fears, OMD, Yazoo, Duran Duran, Kate Bush, Alan Parsons Project, Primal Scream were a big part of my vinyl Collection

Your first approach to Djing? 
One of my friends left two MK2 and an Ecler mixer in my student flat for about one year, he taught me how to mix with two identical vinyls and I remember it was a Strictly Rhythm Aly-us: Follow me, a really hard track to mix with a long orchestral intro, vocals and some real shuffle.Before that, I used to play selecta in my Student Union warehouse at Goldsmiths college on friday nights.

Your main music influences? 
I was a big fan of the Brighton scene, all the Hacienda movement in Manchester and Sheffield with Warp records. Then, I discovered the UR movement in Detroit in the mid 90s, Daft Punk in France followed by Chloé, Cardini and Sextoy. 

The first record you bought? 
I cannot remember but to name a few: "In a Silent Way" by Miles Davis, "Love in us all" by Pharoah Sanders, "Endtroducing" by DJ Shadow, "Mezzanine" by Massive Attack.

What kind of gear do you use for production? 
I use a M.A.O sequencer, an Apollo Twin II sound card, a UC33 as a mixer connected to my main midi clock Jomox Xbase888, then quadra through midi to my synth (Blofeld, SE02, MX61, Volca Bass...) and a Boss RE-202 pedal, a replica of the famous Space Echo with the Touché pedal.

If I tell you Apnea Label? 
Apnea is a super French label led by Alexandre de Charrin a.k.a Le Code and I was honoured to release one of my tracks for him.

What about your Live performance? 
Slow Dimension is my main project now as I fell in love with Dub Techno more than a decade ago and it is focused on Live Machine. I like to record a track and directly transpose it in my live session. Currently I am trying to resample some really good 90s tracks into Dubby grooves. I am exploring Drones and Max for Live.

Which track best represents you today? 
"Tesla", released on the Various Astropolis Label, not only because I am proud of their mastering and festival but also being alongside other great artists was a real honour.

What is a good track in 3 words? 
A good track is one that makes your heart beat and makes you have goosebumps! If you have bumblebees in your stomach, even better!

A ritual before a gig? 
Before a gig, I like the unknown... the surprise and the magic of the public and the scene. I like to wander around the venue, hear how it sounds and feel the vibe!

Any tips for digging in Buenos Aires? 
Buenos Aires is a huge city and has some import export legislation which has strict policies, the tax fees are very high if you import vinyls from abroad! Local labels such as ZZK Records, Playground have managed to develop their one distribution and only one record store is still in place; El Agujerito since 1968 which goes from tango, jazz to house and some techno, otherwise Exiles Records.

If you could live in another period…
Hum, it's a tricky question and not easy to answer: maybe, I would live in the 50s at the time of the first experiments of electronic music and Sérialism.

Your projects? 
For the moment I am working on my live and some podcasts, my new demo is on its way. Also, I am writing a book as a side project on electronic music.

Your top 5 New Releases? 
- Nicolas Barnes "Liquide Echo Voice"
- Roger Gerressen "The first Android Church of Claude Shannon"
- Federsen feat. OHM "Ion Track"
- Denise Rabe "The Wolf and the Crane"
- Luna Ludmila "Maybe Tomorrow"
- Steve O' Sullivan vs Fletcher "Fresh Looping"

Your top 5 oldies? 
- Tears for Fears "The seeds of Love"
- David Bowie "Moonage Daydream"
- Kate Bush "Moving"
- Jeff Mills "The Bells" (Orchestral version @ Pont du Gard)
- Sheila "Spacer"
- King Tubby "Dub with a View"

Interviewed by Sabrina Bouzidi / Photo by Ligiea.