About four years out from its inception, Perfect Driver is one of the most prominent upcoming house music labels in the electronic music sphere today. Founder and Big-Boss Matthew Anthony has solidified his personal strain of house music into an imprint boasting a talented roster of artists including Billy Kenny, Landis LaPace, Mark Starr, Sage Armstrong, Wood Holly and many more.
Following the official release of its first label compilation album of the year, Miami Drivers 2016, the Los Angeles-based record label is quickly making a strong impression in the house music scene.
During Miami Music Week last month, we got a chance to sit down with Matthew Anthony to discuss the origin of Perfect Driver and where the label intends on going in the future.
Check it out below, and enjoy.
Where did This Ain’t Bristol and Perfect Driver originally start and where did you guys both get inspired to collaborate and host events during MMW together?
Matthew Anthony: While I launched Perfect Driver in Los Angeles about 4.5 years ago, This Ain’t Bristol is a newer record label run by a few artists including Maximono, Billy Kenny and one behind the scenes gentleman named Benski who, I believe, does more of the party side of things in their home-base of Hanover, Germany.
Last year, I noticed a label putting out some of the same type of music that I was putting out on Perfect Driver, and I thought wow, this label is pretty cool. They had been supporting my artists, and I started following them and keeping track of what they were doing.
Then I met Billy at the Dirtybird Campout and he seemed great. We met again at HARD DOTD so we just started becoming friends and realizing whom each other was and how PD and TAB are like-minded record labels.
We started hanging out and just clicked; I really like him. He has a lot of positive energy and is a great dude who is super approachable. Someone at This Ain’t Bristol suggested we do a Miami party and I knew I had to do it because I can’t do it by myself since I’m the only one running Perfect Driver. It’s been great having two record labels coming together for two parties at the 1 Hotel and the Dream Hotel.
When and how did RVDIOVCTIVE come into the mix with Perfect Driver?
Matthew Anthony: Basically, we were looking for someone to help us out with the second party. They helped book the artists along with our friends at AM Only, specifically Aaron Helisek, so we are super grateful for their teamwork.
Where do you see Perfect Driver going over the course of the next year?
Matthew Anthony: We’ve done a few local (Los Angeles) Space Yacht parties. We’ve done two already, and more are in the works. After that we’re going to start planning some parties in San Diego and up and down the west coast. There are several compilations coming out this year, too, including a Perfect Driver Swerve Volume 3 Compilation, which is always a crowd favorite.
Why do you feel Perfect Driver varies from other labels out there in the industry?
Matthew Anthony: We don’t like to take things too seriously and I take a relaxed approach to signing music in terms of genres. I don’t limit ourselves to tech-house or bass house music – we’re putting out all sorts of stuff that I personally enjoy. I’m a fan of filtered kicks in breakdowns and I love to keep the people dancing, so we’re straying away from long breaks and builds.
As far as MMW goes, how are you guys going about Miami?
Matthew Anthony: This has been something I’ve wanted to do since 2012, so now I can cross it off my to-do list. I’m super proud of what we’ve done and super proud of my teams, Devon with RVDIOVCTIVE, Aaron with AM Only, Zac at the 1 Hotel and the folks at the Dream Hotels nationwide.
Favorite releases of the year thus far off the top of your head?
Matthew Anthony: I love the Treasure Fingers track called “Felony.” That just came out on March 11th.
Can we expect a potential Pyscho Disco collab in the future?
Matthew Anthony: Maybe. Who knows? I am not opposed to that at all! I love that label.
Are there any upcoming releases that we can look forward to?
Matthew Anthony: For the first time ever, we’ve never done this before, but we are putting out a Perfect Deeper compilation, which is obviously going to be a little more deep than our other compilations. It’s partly being curated by my friend and A&R guru Radha Koliartsky – she’s amazing.
Lastly, is there anything else you’d like to mention about Perfect Driver?
Matthew Anthony: As we grow we would like to reach more people with our music. We’re looking for enthusiastic, talented team members to help us with graphic design, social media, animation and general operations to help monetize our music. Currently, the label isn’t making much. I definitely need help and am always looking for community assistance.
That concludes our interview, but we’d like to thank Matthew very much for his time!