As two of the biggest up-and-coming producers coming out of Paris, Arno Cost and Norman Doray, have had their hands full as of late. Whether it’s producing new tracks or playing gigs around the world, the two young Parisians seem to love what they do.
Known as Le Monde when they play together, Cost and Doray have been influenced by some of the best in dance music, Daft Punk and Bob Sinclar. The inspiration shows as their tracks shift from sexy house to more upbeat and punchy electro grooves.
Before their return to Miami for a night of music at SET, Clubplanet caught up with the duo to chat about their musical chemistry, their thoughts on the Tecktonik dance movement in France, and what the future holds in store.
Clubplanet: What have you guys been up to lately?
Norman Doray: We’ve been working on a new track, a lot of new remixes and new productions and getting ready for the shows.
CP: Can you describe the electronic music scene there compared to how it is in America?
Norman Doray: It’s very strange now. Not before, but now because in Paris people that used to listen to a lot of electronic music don’t anymore. At the start of electronic music a lot of people would listen to country or pop music, and maybe even trance, but not really house, the music that we currently do. But now in Paris, it’s a little bit strange, the people stay at home and don’t want to go in to the clubs because they have a problem with the smoking ban, so it’s a little hard for DJs and for clubbing. But it’s okay.
CP: How long has that been going on for?
Norman Doray: For one year.
CP: And it’s still an issue?
Norman Doray: Yes, French people are very stubborn, they won’t accept a big change like that in one year. It will take a long time to change their minds.
CP: What are some of your favorite places to play?
Norman Doray: We used to be residents at Queen and now we’re residents at the main club in Paris called MixClub.
CP: What are some of your favorite places to play around the world?
Arno Cost: That’s extremely new for us, because we used to play just in France, but now because some of our big tracks like Apocalypse we started to travel a lot and we now play in different countries and cities. We just got back from India, which was very nice. We used to play in the U.K. and we’ve played in Miami too. We went to South Korea in September and that was really massive.
CP: What’s it like for you guys to play in Miami?
Arno Cost: It was such a difference. It’s different from a lot of other cities in the USA. People there know electronic music, and they want to hear electronic music and dance all night.
CP: How did you guys get into music?
Norman Doray: We got into electronic music four or five years ago when we met. Then we decided to play music together and produce music together so we met in Paris and started producing music.
CP: What are some of your different musical influences?
Arno Cost: Normally it’s more funky disco house music When I was a child I listened things like Frank Sinatra and then as I got older I listened to French stuff like Bob Sinclair.
CP: I was recently in Paris in January, and I found out about this whole new thing they call Tecktonik. How do you guys feel about that?
Norman Doray: (laughs) It’s a new really really silly thing. Before Tecktonik clubbing in Paris was massive really, a lot of people in the clubs, a lot of people wanting to spend good nights, people were really in a really good mood.
Arno Cost: That’s a big issue now, it’s killing the clubbing. People don’t want to go to the clubs anymore because there are Tecktonik people, and we don’t like Tectonic people. It’s ridiculous!
CP: What’s the best part about working with each other?
Norman Doray: We like to play together, there is a good energy, and people like it. They wanna see two DJs at the same time. It’s different and we like it.
CP: How would you describe the way each of you compliment each other’s style musically?
Norman Doray: We just try to do something different. Maybe Arno is more clubby house music, and maybe sometimes I try to be more progressive than that.
CP: Who are some producers out there that you admire, and maybe would want to work with as well?
Norman Doray: A lot. (laughs) We are friends with a lot of producers. We really like Axwell. He’s a friend now. Maybe in the future we would want to work with him. Maybe Eric Prydz too.
Arno Cost: Yea that would be cool. He’s a really good producer and we like his music. It’s very melodic music. It’s not for clubs that play pop music or just beats like minimal sometimes is. We want to work with producers who really like melodies and house music.
CP: What are your plans for the remainder of the year?
Arno Cost: We are working on a project with two new tracks in the works. I’ve just made a track and Norman also made a track that will be released in the next month.
CP: How do you feel about your upcoming show at SET in Miami?
Norman Doray: We like to be in touch with the fans, with the people, with the girls. (laughs) We can’t wait to play in Miami because it’s such a big place and the fans have been anticipating the show.
