Interview: TENH In 5 Questions

TENH, an enigmatic and unpredictable collaboration created by this newly-formed Berlin-based producer duo. Individually known within the global techno and house community for their contributions as DJs and producers, this new alliance is reminiscent and inspired by the nostalgic sounds of Fat Boy Slim and Moby paired with distinctive, genre-bending indie electronica and drum and bass. We sat down with the duo for a quick chat about their new project, their new single BALOS, and the future of the project. 

Hey guys, thanks for joining us. You have both succeeded individually as solo artists; what drew you to start the TENH project, and what do you each bring to the table?

Thanks for having us. Well, the key initial reason starting TENH was the pandemic and the resulting travel limitations. We’ve both used the ‘lockdown’ time to sit in the studio and enjoy making music together. We’ve known each other for years but never really had the chance to spend time together making music.

We immediately enjoyed experimenting and combining our tastes in music. As we have the same kind of workflow and work ethic, we came up with very satisfying results quickly. The mindset of trying new things and not limiting ourselves with useless ‘no-go’s’ created a big momentum of joy and since then we appreciate every minute we have time to spend making music together.

You have a very refreshing and current sonic blueprint. Are there any specific influences that contribute to this?

Thank you very much for the nice words. We both love artists like Fatboy Slim, The Prodigy, Fred Again, Skrillex but also Burial and Flying Lotus. So pretty much the UK side of music. As a matter of fact, we bring our backgrounds into the game which are Techno, House, Drum n’ Bass, Garage and other electronic genres.

As mentioned, before we really try to not limit ourselves with anything. this probably leads to the ‘refreshing’ sound – even for ourselves 🙂

What can you tell us about your latest single, “BALOS”, with film composer, producer, and lecturer Martin Todsharow?

‘BALOS’ is our ode to summer. The track really nails our idea of a summer track. Housy, light melodies, continuously grooving, Floating vocals.

Martin Todsharow is a long-term friend and also loves collaborating just like us. The joy we had in the studio is unbeatable. Martin came up with some guitar riffs and the vocals. We started building a playback around those elements and then finished the track in two funny and alcohol-fueled night shifts.

You previously collaborated with Delhia de France. How was your experience working together, and what did she bring to your “SKINH” release?

Delhia de France is an amazing artist with a very specific and outstanding voice. And not just the voice is outstanding but also her approach of writing and performing melodies/lyrics. We knew Delhia from her recent collabs with Adriatique and others and are very happy about our song ‘SKINH’ with her.

Lastly, what is on the horizon for TENH?

We have plenty of more collaborations in the making that will be released on UNFUG recordings, our own label. Besides that we‘re working on some releases for other labels, which we don‘t want to mention at the moment.

Time is very limited at the moment unfortunately due to summer festival season. There are still so many unfinished songs in the studio which we urgently want to finalize and release.

One really big project with Bjurman is our key focus for end of this year.

And then one last big step for this will be our live-setup which we will start preparing soon.

‘BALOS’ out now. Grab it here.