My Favorite Robot

No-one can argue that 2010 has not been a big year for MFR. Often referred to by their full name, My Favorite Robot, this Torontonian duo have expertly ridden the wave of runaway Canadian success in the past 12 months. Great friends and colleagues of the Art Department boys and James Teej, MFR have been responsible for some of the darkest, sexiest and most interesting music released, played and produced anywhere in recent times. To coincide with their fresh new podcast for Pulse, Jared sat down with Carlos Hawthorn to talk all things futuristic.
                                      
Listen to MFR's brand new podcast for Pulse HERE

Pulse: Hey there, happy new year and all that! How are you and where are you? MFR: Doing great man! Just back from a My Favorite Robot Label event at the BPM Festival in Playa del Carmen, Mexico with label faves Kenny Glasgow, James Teej, Jonny Cruz, & Nitin. Needless to say it was jokes all week and a great time. Looking forward to being back there next year!

Looking back on 2010, what are your fondest memories? I don’t think we can pick out just one. Overall we’ll be taking very positive vibes from 2010 which saw the steady growth of the label, and the people in our immediate crew blow up internationally, namely James Teej and the Art Department boys. If 2011 wasn’t going to be even bigger, I’d be disappointed to see 2010 go in the books.

The label put out a hell of a lot of music last year (I counted over 7 pages on Beatport..) Was this at all planned? What do you think made it such a prolific year for MFR Records? It was definitely our strategy to keep the pedal to the metal and release a lot of good music this past year. Of course the quality control had to still be in line and we would never sacrifice quality for quantity but it was important for us to make a statement about what we are bringing to the table. We are very happy that people have been digging our vision and we have lots of great music in the vault for 2011.

Not to mention that it's been a big year for Canadian electronic music in general. Have you noticed any changes in the local scenes as a result? There’s no doubt that on the home front there are a lot more people that have taken notice of what we’ve been up to on the international scene, which is a nice feeling. I think that trend will continue and we intend on turning a few more heads locally in Toronto and Montreal this year.

How do you guys split your time between your solo projects and the label? Is the label the core focus of both your time? We manage. We’re robots. No sleep? No sweat!

"I don’t feel any divide at all between the Canada and the US when it comes to music. As a matter of fact, I think the two scenes compliment each other very well."

The label has done a lot to support Canadian talent, did you set up the label with the intention of pushing local, Canadian artists? Do you think this is important? Yes for sure that was 100% the vision with MFR, although it can also be said that the intention was to push our own music and that of our crew. I felt like we needed an outlet that was free from the boundaries and constraints that can be there when trying to sign your music to other labels. As the label grew, it felt right to nurture it as a good outlet to push grassroots Canadian talent to an international audience. The label now has artists from all over the world but the overall vision of where we came from still remains and we still plan on pushing grassroots music that we feel needs to be heard. 

Do you feel there is any unity between the scenes/artists in Canada and the USA? Does it feel homely and easy playing across the border? Yes, now more than ever I’d say. With all the great music coming out of North America these days, great labels like W+L, Culprit, No.19, MFR, Turbo, and all the fresh Canadian & American talent such as Seth Troxler, Art Department, Azari & III, James Teej, Lee Foss, etc killing it at the moment, it really feels like there is a huge momentum and unity. I don’t feel any divide at all between the Canada and the US when it comes to music. As a matter of fact, I think the two scenes compliment each other very well.

Tell us about the podcast you've prepared for us. What was the thinking/method behind it? We had a lot of fun making this mix. We wanted it to be a true reflection of our style and visits lots of areas of electronic dance music that we love. It’s a journey into the deeper realms of moody electronic house. Hope you like!

What are MFR's plans for 2011?  We’ll be pressing our first vinyl releases this year, which for us is a necessary step to do right by the people who are buying and playing our music. James Teej’s Fundamental Remixed EP will be in stores in early February so look for that 12”! We are very thankful for our new distribution contract that is just in its infancy with 3 and we’re looking for our music to branch out even further this year.

We have EPs coming down the pike from Murphy Jax, Sasse, Nitin, Dead Seal, James Teej, Jonny Cruz, Sid LeRock, & Phonogenic, a second artist album from My Favorite Robot which we feel is a great evolution from our debut We Come In Pieces LP, and remixes from Michael J Collins, Jori Hulkkonen, Adultnapper, Burnt Island Casuals, Art Department, Matt Walsh’s Clouded Vision project, & Dance Disorder with certainly more to come 

Best gift from Santa this year? The laser beam eye modification that we’ve been wanting for years!

And finally, let us in on your new years resolutions. To put a Robot in every home.

Carlos Hawthorn

Podcast Tracklisting
1) The Model - Sontag feat. My Favorite Robot – My Favorite Robot Records
2) Runaway – The Fire Below (The Revenge Bassline Dub) – On The Prowl
3) Bishop Morocco – Last Year’s Disco Guitar (Sid LeRock Remix) – Hand Drawn Dracula
4) Stefano E Bene, Hard Ton – Why Your Love (Snuff Crew Remix) – Compost Disco
5) My Favorite Robot – Birthday Song (Mike Mind Remix) – My Favorite Robot Records
6) Donnacha Costello – Hey, Dummy – Poker Flat
7) Daniel Maloso, Rebolledo – Colt Seavers – Comeme
8) Diskjokke – Taft Raver – Full Pupp
9) Monoblock, Pussyselektor – Wonky Tonk Dirty Edit (Ivan Smagghe Remix) – Meant Records
10) Emerson Todd & Jonny Cruz – Sunkiss – My Favorite Robot Records
11) Patrice Baumel – Lovers – Trouw
12) Daze Deten – Discotro – My Favorite Robot Records
13) Superpitcher – Black Magic - Kompakt
14) Legowelt – Bayville Cove – Clone West Coast
15) Gregorythme – Megagigatera – Cityfox Ltd.