Cristoph has recently unleashed his full debut artist album – Life Through a Different Lens, which has been garnering some rave reviews! At the risk of creating something spectacular, he set upon a vision to release a debut artist album, an album that truly captures the essence of ‘dusk till dawn clubbing’. The ‘Consequence of Society’ label boss recently sat down with us for his honest take on Life Through A Different Lens and the entire tentative creative process that he implemented to churn out the 18 tracks on the album.
He also opens up on his re-union with Jem Cooke after the chartbusting ‘Breathe’ (with Camelphat), the factors behind the origin of ‘Consequence of Society’ as a label, his fellow collaborators on the album, his long-time friend & accomplice Eric Prydz dropping ‘Call on Me’ after 21 years, and much more!
The Interview
Full debut artist album, finally, Chris! And no less than 18 tracks! I remember being a fan myself for close to a decade now. Hence, the curiosity arises about this significantly long wait time for fans like us for the debut album. Was it more of the timing, perfection or self-satisfaction about the end result that kept us (fans) waiting so long?
To be honest, it’s not what I would call a studio album. It’s a conceptual album project. If I’d be writing a studio album, I’m going to be writing more cinematic records. A conceptual approach is how I always pictured an album. But this showcases a lot of different forms of music that I am into, that I write, more to accompany the supplement of open to close tour. It is to give people an idea of what happens in an open to close set. 18 records I wrote across so many sub-genres to express the music that I play in these sets. It is a very challenging project because I got to take myself out of the normal way I produce. That’s why I decided on the name – ‘Life Through a Different Lens’.
I had designed a set in my mind first, and wrote each track accordingly. DJs often play in key, so every track had to fit in with the next one, which already condenses down how many records you can write. And as I said, it is a really interesting project. I felt that the open to close needed something more on what we had done on the last one, “how do I sell the same product again?“. You had to get people to buy into it, you expand out. If you look at modifications on a call or a telephone, there is something new each time it comes out. It is more about moving with the times, you cannot stay still, so that was the idea behind it. I just got into the groove and couldn’t stop writing and I was like, “Naah, I need to put in one more and another one in“, but then I ended up concluding 18 is enough!
There’s a mixed version coming with it as well which can be listened to in your car, in the gym, in your pre-party, after-party to get people up for the night. That’s obviously how I prefer listening to them. Obviously, you want those individual records to come out as you need them for Spotify, you need them on Beatport, you want DJs to explore. I prefer letting people listen to the mix as well, so that they are more likely to listen to an open to close set.
Right from ‘You Know What You Mean’ in 2013, which is your first EP if not mistaken, to the 2025 ‘Life Through a Different Lens’, how do you think the Cristoph sound has evolved over these years?
So, I’ve always looked at it, strangely enough, as a business plan. I always knew where I wanted to get to. I have always been the more melodic, progressive sound. I do like influences from the housy (house) world, from the techno world, not obviously the kind of techno that’s out there, just what I personally like. That’s what the name of my label, ‘Consequence of Society‘, actually represents.
And, it is the ‘consequence of the society‘ that I have been brought up in, which is why I like the music that I do. The ‘proggy’ (progressive) and melodic sound has always been quite niche to get into. You write these quality melodies and so, thought how could I best get into that world. I can write some of more broader sound, like a ‘housier’ (house) sound where it’s got a wider audience and start trying, get a fanbase, and then start taking them shift by shift into the world where I want to go into. So, if you listen, it has more of a melodic stab in there, have more of a rolling vocal which I still try and incorporate in most of my records to date. You can link both, that was the original plan: to get people to listen and slowly take them over rather than trying to start over as a completely new entity. Labels just wouldn’t take that risk.
It was quite difficult when I was putting music out as CJ Costigan. It did not get any kind of major label to kind of listen to more melodic, so I needed to build my name as an artist for those labels to actually sit up and take note of what I was doing. I am still trying to do that obviously and still getting more DJs to support the music, but now I am aware I have to keep building up on the fanbase. Make it more of a community rather than just a set of fans who like the music. I want people to engage with each other and align. For example, someone in India probably can speak to someone in the US about ‘how was Chris last night?. Yes, he is going to come to India next week.’ It would be amazing if I could build up a community where we could have people from all over the world coming together and make friendships and relationships that could last a lifetime, could bond over music that I have made!
Were 18 tracks always part of the initial plan when you decided to release the album? Or was it less initially and you decided probably fans like us deserve a bit more (after all that wait for a full-length album) and probably add a few more tracks as a bonus?
I think I had agreed internally with myself that I’d make it 12 tracks, just over an hour-long mix, like a showcase, maybe 3 tracks from each section. Then I just started getting into it and you start looking at it from a more DJ perspective. You think, “how would I DJ that“, and I would put in a big vocal. I would set it back down and take it in a direction which is more melodic. Then I would play a big, ‘hands in the air’ type record. Before I realized, I was 18 tracks deep and I was like ‘right, it got to end at some point’!
‘Paradise’ with Jem Cooke sounds fabulous! It is a universal testimonial that ‘Breathe’, your collab with Camelphat & Jem Cooke went on to become in the dance music world. Was there anything specific you had in mind, given the success of ‘Breathe’, when chalking out ‘Paradise’ with Jem this time?
Funny enough, it has kind of taken the same route as ‘Breathe’. ‘Breathe’ started completely different to what it became, and ‘Paradise’ has as well. ‘Breathe‘ was an edit of another track, and then what I thought was, let’s see what Jem could put on this. ‘Paradise’ was an edit of ‘Diamond Life’ which I made and played at Creamfields, years ago. I took the ‘Diamond Life’ vocal off, Jem sang on it, I kept tuning the track until it was set to complement Jem’s vocal more.
I think Jem’s vocal here is up there with ‘Breathe’, the way she has delivered it. ‘Paradise’ has such a great hook, the same as ‘Breathe’ had. It sticks in your mind, I can’t let my side of production let the vocal down. You always go back to those arpeggiating basslines. Hopefully, people can connect to that record. It is one of those tracks where you can sit out in the sun, looking up at the sunset, looking out at the sea.
How was the experience and subsequent creative process in collaborating with the likes of fellow producers (who are currently making waves as well) like Weska, Harry Diamond etc. on the album?
These are guys I speak to on a daily basis, we sit and talk about life in general. We sit and have a laugh in general about memes, GIFs, etc. It is a great friendship amongst us all. Same like the fanbase, I want to create a family, a community where I use DJs to basically build a record label. These are producers I got a great respect for who I love involving in the idea I am trying build with the label.
You see the likes of Afterlife, Drumcode for years, I feel they have done exactly the same. They have created this type of family where the line-ups are pretty much the same, but people turn up to see what they are doing. It is a big team effort helping them build. I want to keep working with them in the future to put good music out on the label. These are the guys I want to help build the brand.
Tracing your roots a bit, did it always help for the Chris we know today, belonging to a family of DJs and musicians? I mean as far as I know your father was a DJ (who always encouraged you to use a microphone, if I recall appropriately), and so was your brother. I also recall your mother & sister having a huge musical inclination as well.
Growing up amongst it all was quite fascinating. They could all be stacked in different rooms with a completely different sound in each room. You take inspiration from all of them as much as you can. My dad could have something on in his car, my mom could have something else in hers. My brother could have house music in his, my sister could have The Beatles or something in hers. You take influence and inspiration from every part of this variety. It helped broaden my vision.
If you do narrow down to a certain type of music, you just stick to that. I just do not want to be stuck to a tiny little sound, I want to be someone who plays across a wide spectrum, pulls in different influences. My family also helped expand my knowledge of what’s what and who’s who in the industry. I get great joy in listening to different types of music as well, and my family are exactly the same!
Anything specific post ‘Life Through a Different Lens’ you are excited about and looking ahead to in 2025 (any particular tour, gig, vacation, etc)?
I am particularly looking forward to the Open to Close tour. These long sets really test you, I am going into 6-7 weeks of it. Some of these sets are going to be between 7 or 10 hours long, it is not even 4 or 5. They are going to be really long. I have been trying to get my mind equipped with my body, back in the gym & training, dieting well so that I am in the zone. I had a few gigs leading up to it, which I cannot wait to do. But I am fully prepared to do these open to close sets.
Going on from that, I am having many calls about different markets who have started to show interest. I have got Japan coming where I have never been before, so that would be really exciting if we were able to finalize. Same goes for South Africa. The opportunity to get to see these places in the world, not just about DJing, grateful I am for being able to do this for a job, I cannot even put it in words. Traveling to a country, you do not get to see everything, but in time we will. For example, when I was in India, the guys hosting me wished I could have stayed back longer; they could have taken me to see the Taj Mahal! At some point, you’ve got to take these blessings.
With music, there are some remixes, those edits that I have been doing, people getting wind of them, I want to put them across as new releases. The whole ‘Life Through a Different Lens’, it has given me inspiration about different things to write. That’s what the actual doing the album has done. It gives something like an inside spark to write down new music that you feel rather than what you think people want. That is where you start writing the best music. If you just go into the studio and write from the heart and write what you’re feeling at that moment of time, then you could do some of your best work.
Hopefully, I get back down to Australia this year, I get back to India at the end of this year, there were talks about that. It just looks like a busy year and that’s exactly what I want to be. I am probably the worst person if I am not busy because I get so annoyed, I get bad with my team, I get really grumpy with everyone around. I am just somebody who thinks if I am not working and somebody else has taken that work, I am probably not as productive as I want to be to reach the goals which I promised my dad & my brother and stuff like that. That is an internal struggle, an internal battle that I have with myself.
That is just the nature of the beast, I guess!
BONUS QUESTION : And lastly, I definitely needed to ask you this! Your honest reaction to Eric Prydz, with whom you have a close & long-time friendship, dropping ‘Call on Me’ (the track that initially put him to global superstardom) after 21 years!
I am so happy! I spoke to Michael (Eric’s manager) the day after it was dropped. I got a text message from a friend when I was in London stating Eric had played ‘Call on Me’. It is a great record which kind of started off his career, so many people want to hear it. The fact that he has played it for the first time after 21 years, brilliant! Why not give the fans what they want? At the end of the day, we would be absolutely nothing without the fans. So why not give them what they want after some point? You do not have to do it week in and week out!
It’s great, it’s put a smile on everybody’s face, I saw it everywhere, it went viral! It has acted as a great sort of promotional tool for him, a great move! People were asking me if I knew he was going to do it. So many people are smiling about it, for you to ask me about it, just shows what it means to you as fans!
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