For their third work, The Sun & The Neon Light, Booka Shade have taken a step away from the dance floor for a more complete album experience. Touching on a variety of contemporary styles, from country to down-tempo, and adding rich orchestrations and ethereal textures, the music finds a middle ground between electronic club music and traditional songwriting structures. The successful format for "Body Language and "Mandarine Girl could have been easily replicated for a second Movements with universal accolades but certainly that kind of album wouldnt have satisfied the German duos creative intentions by this measurement. The moods are more sombre and introverted than previously, which is largely due to the expressive instrumentation and as such, suit the more intricate arrangements. Singles such as the happy-go-lucky "Charlotte or the skittering "Karma Car are more danceable affairs, but on most tracks, with their wide-ranging sonic palette, Booka Shade look to establish themselves beyond the clubs as electronic musicians over dance producers with more developed compositions. And despite a few tracks such as "Outskirts and "Duke that fall somewhere in between, they get this just about right.
How do you balance your tours, writing an album, production for other artists and taking care of a label, and which do you see as your main focus?
Arno Kammermeier: Its partly about good time management and the rest is just killing yourself! We have had to cut the amount of production we do for M.A.N.D.Y and other artists, which is sad but the Booka Shade album and the live show are what we feel the most passionate about. But we will be going back into the studio soon with M.A.N.D.Y. for the Get Physical 100th release.
Has the touring affected the way you write music?
We wrote this album over 15 months of touring for the Movements album and it is about the glorification and condemnation of nightlife. Being on the road all the time is not always an enjoyable experience and "Comacabana is a song that reflects that. We were in Rio de Janeiro at our hotel overlooking the Copacabana, with so many happy people below, but this was not how we felt at all. "Karma Car is about when we were supposed to go to Toronto but got stuck in New York in a snowstorm. On the way to the airport the taxi broke down at the side of the road and we were worried but the driver told us to wait a few minutes and by luck the car started again. We put this down to his good karma! There is an experience behind all of our songs.
(Get Physical)How do you balance your tours, writing an album, production for other artists and taking care of a label, and which do you see as your main focus?
Arno Kammermeier: Its partly about good time management and the rest is just killing yourself! We have had to cut the amount of production we do for M.A.N.D.Y and other artists, which is sad but the Booka Shade album and the live show are what we feel the most passionate about. But we will be going back into the studio soon with M.A.N.D.Y. for the Get Physical 100th release.
Has the touring affected the way you write music?
We wrote this album over 15 months of touring for the Movements album and it is about the glorification and condemnation of nightlife. Being on the road all the time is not always an enjoyable experience and "Comacabana is a song that reflects that. We were in Rio de Janeiro at our hotel overlooking the Copacabana, with so many happy people below, but this was not how we felt at all. "Karma Car is about when we were supposed to go to Toronto but got stuck in New York in a snowstorm. On the way to the airport the taxi broke down at the side of the road and we were worried but the driver told us to wait a few minutes and by luck the car started again. We put this down to his good karma! There is an experience behind all of our songs.