MOULLINEX

Interview

Friday is for “Flora”! We’re big fans of Lisbon-born, Munich-based producer and DJ Luis Clara Gomes, aka Moullinex, here at La.Ga.Sta. and we’re so excited that his debut album “Flora” is finally out today on Gomma Records. It has definitely been a long, long journey of “hard work, laughs and rollercoasters” and believe us when we say that “Flora” has been well worth the wait.

The album features his amazing previous singles “Sunflare””, Tear Club”, his super cover of “Maniac” with Peaches and a bunch of other feel-good new tracks, showcasing his ability to create music that everyone will love and dance to. Needless to say, “Darkest Night”, featuring the vocals from Iwona Skwarek of Rebeka, is one of our favorite songs of the year so far. Yes, he knows how to take our pain away.

We caught up with the ever-excellent Moullinex to talk about “Flora”, Discotexas, his musical influences, the “nu-disco” scene, and his favorite places to hang out in Lisbon.

Read our interview and make sure to stream his album “Flora” in its entirety below.

Hey Moullinex. Where are you up to at the moment?

This week I’m in Munich, which is like a second home. Besides making music I’m also working in science communication with the European Southern Observatory. They make very big telescopes, helping us to understand our universe better.

After two years in the making, your debut album “Flora” has been released. How do you feel that it’s finally out?

I still can’t really believe it. I was so used to the process of working, pausing, refining, that it feels like it hasn’t ended yet. But it’s really good to have it finally out for everyone to listen to.

Who is “Flora”?

“Flora” is honesty. To me it’s hopefully something beautiful but imperfect. Hopefully like someone you get to know very well – you know all its faults but in the end you’ll love it for what it is.

Which is your favorite track of the album and why?

I don’t have a clear favorite – or least favorite – but if I had to pick three they would be “Flora”, “Darkest Night” and “Tear Club”. These are the ones I have a bigger emotional attachment to. They always bring me to specific places or moments in time; of joy, sure, but also of discomfort…

What are your thoughts on “nu-disco” as a genre? Do you feel happy being called a “nu-disco” producer?

I’m happy being called a disco producer. I love the genre, the romantic notion of dance music, but I’m not sure about the “nu”. I get the genre, but it’s an umbrella for so many things. And it’s not “nu” at all, I mean. Metro Area’s 1-4 were released in the 2000s, like many other records that sounded similar, and they already had the foundations of what you can call “nu-disco” nowadays.

What’s your earliest musical memory?

My father did the music for theatre plays, so I would go too and look at performances from the backstage. This captivated me a lot: to understand how they worked, how they put a show together, all the elements. It was a trap!

When did making music become your job?

It never happened consciously, but I did shift my priorities from doing Neurology research to find space to follow music more and more. Maybe around 3 to 4 years ago the balance was changed.

Where do your musical influences come from?

I’ve got a lot of them. But I am obsessed with certain artists, periods or artists’ periods. To name some of them, Stevie Wonder, Marvin Gaye, Isaac Hayes, Roy Ayers, all the Motown stuff, Chic. Then you have all the space stuff like Pink Floyd, Tangerine Dream. From there I can make a connection to Ennio Morricone, Angelo Badalamenti, Giorgio Moroder and other Italian film composers. Which brings me full circle to Air, Amon Tobin and Aphex Twin, Daft Punk. I could do this exercise all day long!

How do you manage your time between producing music, co-running the Discotexas label and touring?

My recipe contains two ingredients: the help from really good friends – the talented people I work with – and doing only things I love. My own music has several guests on it, Discotexas is a shared project of love, like having a child. And touring is something I’ve always wanted to do.

What’s the best thing you’ve heard this year?

Tame Impala’s album “Lonerism” is amazing.

How do you chill out?

Cooking at home with friends. And watching three movies in a row. That’s bliss!

What are your top places to hang out in Lisbon?

The city has an amazing light, white architecture ending on the river so it’s good to be in higher places. The viewpoints around my neighborhood, Graça, are the best. I’d take you to lunch at Carvoaria a Jacto, go for a walk around Graça and Alfama, have dinner in Casanova and out for a drink at Lux.

What advice would you give to a young producer?

I feel like a “young producer” myself, and I have much more to learn than anything to teach. But musically speaking, I would tell them to find what comes naturally to them, and just trust it. And technically speaking, to spend all the money they have on speakers.

What are your three greatest loves in life?

Family, music, and discovery.

What are your plans for the future?

Now it’s time to take the album for a walk. To play it out with live and DJing too. I wanna record an album in record time with Xinobi, and then play it with The Discotexas Band.

If you weren’t a successful producer and DJ, what would you like to be?

I’m too scared of the idea of having to quit music to even contemplate other scenarios! But most likely you’d see me doing research in Neurology or Astronomy. I would definitely be learning something.