Vikas Kohli

In this interview, Qasim Virjee speaks with Vikas Kohli - the man responsible for mastering our debut 2 disc compilation release, 'Indian Electronica /volume 001.' Vikas is the owner-operator of Fatlabs; a production/sound studio just outside of Toronto, Canada.

You own a production and mastering studio but you're a musician as well - can you tell us about your music and how it relates to your studio work?

It all began with playing guitar and writing in bands. What I learnt from those days was to focus on tight compositions. You have to be relentless when going through a composition and weeding out filler parts and making sure every transition flows without a hiccup. I've always liked artists with edge and who took musical risks and I still listen intensely to what's going on in every genre and push the artists I work with to be ahead of the curve rather than imitate what's already out there.

Please elucidate on the work that you actually do - a lot of people reading this will likely never have stepped foot in a pro studio before...

What I do depends on what the artist needs. With some artists I compose alongside with them and with others I take a very traditional producer's role and help with arrangements, hiring session musicians, setting the sonic direction for the album and developing the artist's sound. With all the artists it's all about being an impartial opinion and editor for the songs --- because what I do is support the good ideas the artists bring into the studio.

Examples of artists you've worked with in the studio...

Well, there's been more than I can remember. Artists that are in the studio working on current projects include Mika Singh, Priya, The Responsibles, Zara, Zameer, The Brown Ties, Rebecca Nazareth, jsin, Matt Gerber, Eve of Exile, Polyester Heart Microphone Soul, EFTHEM, Jeska Fodor, Sokey, Peace Riot, Cranked, Floxy Blu, Ust. Irshad Khan, Noman Siddiqui, scribblepen.... and I'm now at risk of forgetting someone, so I'll apologize in advance and stop there.

Musicians can be pretty crazy people - especially when they're holed up in a studio working on an album; any anecdotes you'd like to share?

It's always nuts and lots of fun. We work 12 hours a day and it goes by fast. Priya throws things at me when she thinks I'm not looking, Mika will breakdance if you put a camera on him, and The Responsibles bring beer and portable TVs to watch the hockey game while they record. And then there was the hip-hop label whose artists were in and out of detention centres --- but in the studio, they always said "please" and "thank you" cause they appreciated what we were creating. It didn't hurt that each one of them charted on mainstream radio after coming to FatLabs.

What was it like to work on Indian Electronica vol. 001?

That was fun. Compilations are great snapshots of what's going on in a genre. With the IE discs, I got to have a hand tweaking the production of some very cool and cutting edge songs.

Upcoming projects you're working on in the 'Lab' you'd like to share?

Well, I'm off to India to finish working on Mika Singh's 5th album and first single video shoot. When I come back, I'll be wrapping up Priya's debut album. And The Responsibles are coming back for another CD this summer after the album I produced for them last year was nominated for Best Punk Album. And really, just keep an eye out for all the artists I mentioned before, because they're all doing some good shit. Rock'n'roll.

More info: http://www.fatlabs.com/