Contributing Writer
Last seen on Unlearn with their remix of Double Drop, Mike Ivy & Craig Leo return to the label with a new slice of tech house goodness, Tell Me. We caught up with them both to get the lowdown.
Brooklyn-born talent Mike Ivy has been a player within New York’s house scene for ten years with a wealth of solo and collaborative output that has seen him work with house hero Todd Terry and land on prestigious labels such as Nervous, Subliminal and Dopewax.
Now he reunites with his regular production partner, Canadian DJ/producer Craig Leo, who has turned the ears of Roger Sanchez, Jamie Jones and Erick Morillo since his production debut in 2021.
How did you first get into dance music, and where and when?
Mike Ivy: In my late teens, early 20’s in NYC A friend of mine was a DJ and he kind of got me into the music, showing all these tracks and its vibe, just pulled me right in. Then going out to some of those iconic clubs in NYC now I got to truly feel that sound.
Craig Leo: I first got into dance music when I was about 18 years old. I was living in Ottawa, Canada and traveling back and fourth from Montreal almost every weekend to catch DJs like Josh Wink, David Tort, Alex Kenji, Chus and Ceballos and so many more play at Circus, Stereo, Beachclub, Red Lite and more. Soon after I went out and bought Cubase and started my electronic music producing journey.
How much impact does your local town, landscape and musical history have on your sound?
Mike Ivy: I come from NYC born and raised in Brooklyn, so that NY sound was everywhere, DJs Like Danny Tenaglia, Victor Calderone, Roger Sanchez, Eric Morillo, Junior Vasquez, Peter Rauhofer and the list goes on… Seeing them and hearing what and how they play was a huge influence on me. And then later Carl Cox and Chus & Ceballos many of the overseas DJs started coming in and getting to hear some of that sound as well was a big impact on my sound.
Craig Leo: Ottawa has been growing in the dance scene quite a bit since I first got into it. So many great artists emerging with strong sounds and clubs bringing in incredible talent.
I grew up listening to so many different kinds of music that it opened my mind up to liking more and I feel the more I grow, the more I try to incorporate my roots into my music.
Do you find yourself especially drawn to music from specific countries or cities?
Mike Ivy: I find myself gravitating to drums and a percussive sound as well as that swing drum from house records always pull me in. I wouldn’t say a specific country or cities, but more drawn to a vibe of some of the music.
Craig Leo: I’ve always been very drawn to raw percussion sounds and drum rhythms from different parts of the world, anything with a groove.
What’s the best gig you ever played?
Mike Ivy: I have to say in Porto, Portugal the name is escaping me at the moment, but it was a barge on the river that they turned into a club. The vibe and people in that room that night was magical, hard to explain the feeling other than pure magic.
Craig Leo: Without a doubt I would say opening up for Chus and Ceballos in my hometown club, City at Night. It was one of those nights that you remember forever because the vibe was just so perfect. The club was jammed and it was dark and sweaty and intimate. They showed up a bit late so we had to turn it up a notch by the end of the opening set. By far the best feeling I’ve ever felt playing a show so far.
Tell us about the new single on Unlearn – what inspired it?
Mike Ivy: Craig sent me this idea and said what do think about this one? I loved what I heard and wanted to get on it right away. It had this hypnotic vocal that sets the mood for the track, Craig had some great melodic synth parts and we just made sure the drums gave it the push to hit hard in the clubs.
Craig Leo: We wanted to follow up on our previous remix we did for Steve with a melodic track that hits hard and is fit for the dancefloor. The vocal we used has a very atmospheric vibe to it, so we tried to accentuate that as much as possible.
How did the collab work on this one? Do you both do everything, or do you specialize in specific aspects of production?
Mike Ivy: Craig had the idea for the track, sent me over the stems and we go back and forth till we are both happy with what we have. I am not a musician so all the musical parts are all Craig. we both arrange and add or take away parts as we see fit. I will usually do the mixing and mastering for the track. It is great to work with a super talented guy like Craig, we have good chemistry together and similar taste in music. Watch out for this guy his is doing big things.
Craig Leo: I had sent Mike the idea laid out but not complete. He will usually take the parts and mix them into a session and from there we can go back and fourth on what we need to add or take away. Mike’s a killer on the drums and I’ll usually fill in the melodic sections and leads. It is easy to finish projects with him, once we have the right parts it’s out the door.
How important is it to evolve with each new tune or do you like to try and nail a signature sound?
Mike Ivy: I think tracks evolve naturally as we work on them. I don’t think we try to nail a sound just more of a vibe that we feel works best for the track. We do have similar taste in music which always makes a collaboration easy to work on.
Craig Leo: I think we both just love to make good sounding music, and whatever comes of that is great. Mike and I have very similar taste in what we are looking for which makes it easy for us to collaborate so often. In general I do believe we naturally evolve from track to track, whether that being style or content, but I also believe the first track we released together is just as good as the most recent, as our hearts are in every piece of work.
Do you ever get writer’s block? And if so how do you push past it?
Mike Ivy: Yes all the time, for me I walk away from it for a day or so maybe listen to other tracks or even podcasts and see if I get any inspiration from there.
Craig Leo: Yes I do, and I find the best way to get out of it is to reach out to people you can trust and get their thoughts or opinions on your work. Since meeting Mike a few years ago, he has always been a reliable source and solid friend to check in on and bounce ideas off of.
What’s next for you? What else are you working on?
Mike Ivy: We recently finished up a remix for DJ Dove. We also have another track that is just about done and ready to go. Always have stuff brewing so look out for other tracks from us as well as solo projects.
Craig Leo: There are always many projects on the go. We are working on a new one together which I really enjoy so far, as well as a number of solo projects for myself and other collaborations. I have been very focused on the studio this year but looking forward to playing out alot more in the future.
Mike Ivy & Craig Leo ‘Tell Me’ is out now on Unlearn – listen & buy