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Carlotek’s latest offering Uplifter recently landed on the MEGAO imprint as a collaborative project alongside vocalist Charlie Fawcus Deighton. We caught up with the main man to take a deep dive into his established career so far whilst taking a look into the creative process behind the track.
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MI4L – “Uplifter” has such a powerful and dynamic energy—can you walk us through the creative process behind the track? What inspired its sound and structure?

Carlotek – Thanks, I was listening to quite a bit of Euphoric House and Happy hardcore when I wrote the track, so I guess it was a mixture of listening to these two genres that influenced me into writing this track.

MI4L – How did your years on the dancefloor as a clubber influence the way you approached producing “Uplifter”?

Carlotek – I’ve been going out clubbing for a while, so you get a feel on the genres that you are writing. When to go to a breakdown, or when to build up to a drop.

MI4L – You’ve had support from some heavyweight names like Dubfire and Slam—did any of their feedback shape the final version of “Uplifter” or your recent work?

Carlotek – Well mostly, the feedback that they give you is whether they like it or not. But I have had some useful tips over the years.

MI4L – The name “Uplifter” suggests a particular emotional or physical effect on the listener. What kind of experience were you aiming to create on the dancefloor with this track?

Carlotek – The idea with this track is to take the club’s energy up a step. So the vibe changes from a warm up to a main room thing.

MI4L – With over 20 years in the scene, how do you keep your sound fresh and evolving, especially in today’s fast-paced electronic music landscape?

Carlotek – Well I try to keep in touch by listening to the latest tracks on Beatport and Traxsource. I also go out clubbing a fair bit, so you get to see what tunes are going off and others that aren’t.

MI4L – You’ve released music on a range of respected labels—how do you choose where to release your tracks, and how did your relationship with your latest label come about?

Carlotek – It would be great if I could pick and choose which labels to release on, but unfortunately it doesn’t work like that. With this last release Mega O got in touch with me randomly over email, stating that they’d like to do a release, so I thought it would be the perfect opportunity to release “Uplifter”.

MI4L – Xlr8r described your sound as a “sleek workout”—do you consciously aim for that functional, late-night energy, or is that something that emerges naturally from your process?

Carlotek – I think that a lot of the tracks that I like are peak time tracks, so I think they influenced me when writing my own tracks. But I do aim for the peak time crowd when I write House and Techno.

MI4L – You’ve played iconic venues like Fabric and Ministry of Sound—how does performing in those spaces influence the kind of music you produce?

Carlotek – It was a pleasure to play in those venues and I think it influences any DJ who plays there. I think that playing at those venues helped me to read the crowd.

MI4L – Your tracks have been played on BBC Radio 1 and 1Xtra—what does that kind of mainstream recognition mean to you as an artist who came up through the underground?

Carlotek – It meant a lot to get played on Radio 1, having heard a lot of music from Kiss, Radio 1 and Passion FM. I was chuffed when I saw that they’d been playing “Donna”.

MI4L – Looking ahead, are there any collaborations, projects, or sonic directions you’re particularly excited about?

Carlotek – I’m looking to do some remixes and possibly some EPs on some Deep/ Tech house labels soon.

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