INTERVIEW: Umo returns with Trece for OpenTheNext

In an electronic landscape often driven by speed and saturation, UMO positions “Trece” in a more deliberate space — slower in tempo, but not in intensity. Framed as low BPM dancefloor rather than downtempo, the release challenges conventional ideas of energy, structure and function within club music. Built on reduction, precision and physical response, it reflects a broader approach where each element is intentional and every decision is shaped by its impact on the whole. In this conversation, UMO unpacks the thinking behind “Trece”, its connection to slow rave, and how dancefloor dynamics continue to redefine the production process.

“Trece” is described as low BPM dancefloor rather than downtempo. What defines that distinction in your approach?

It’s not about tempo, it’s about function.

Downtempo often leans towards passive listening. Here, everything is built for the dancefloor, even at a slower pace. There’s direction, tension and a clear physical response.

Lower BPM doesn’t mean less intensity. It reorganises how energy is distributed.

The EP revolves around reduction and precision. How do you decide what to remove and what to keep?

By its impact on the whole.

If an element doesn’t change the perception of the structure, it doesn’t belong. Reduction is not about minimalism as an aesthetic, but about keeping only what is necessary.

Each sound needs to justify its presence.

You frame slow rave as a reconstruction of 90s rave. What elements are being reinterpreted rather than preserved?

The energy is preserved, not the form.

The early 90s rave had a strong collective dynamic. That intention remains, but the structure is reworked — slower tempos, less density, more space and contrast between sections.

It’s not about recreating the past, but translating it into a different configuration.

These tracks were developed through live testing. How does real dancefloor feedback reshape the production process?

It shifts everything from abstraction to response.

In the studio, decisions are conceptual. On the dancefloor, they become physical. You see how long a structure holds, when a transition lands, when something feels unnecessary.

That feedback refines timing and proportion in a way the studio can’t.

There’s a strong sense of controlled tension and minimal evolution. How do you maintain engagement with such limited elements?

Through movement and contrast.

The tracks don’t rely on constant layering, but on shifts — changes in rhythm, density, or direction. Different sections interact and create progression without needing to follow a linear pattern.

Engagement comes from how the structure evolves, not from repetition.

OpenTheNext operates outside algorithmic dynamics and avoids high output. How does that context affect your creative decisions?

It removes urgency.

There’s no need to produce constantly, so each release has to make sense within the catalogue. That changes the process — it’s less about output and more about contribution.

The pace defines the quality of decisions.

You’ve said this release is part of a larger system. What role does “Trece” play within that structure?

It’s a refinement.

“Trece” moves further into controlled transitions and structural variation, but stays within the same language developed in previous releases. It doesn’t break the system, it adjusts it.

Each release adds a variation. The system is the continuity between them.

BUY

lv5v-y9f3

q988-79v4

f2n2-5zza

wxa5-7tk7

ee9g-v7zv

br2n-g599

allm-uugz

8ep6-vqf6

6vk8-h4jv

ufyt-5at8

vauy-723n

965y-vhlj

n37z-6e5y

ma5n-kubr

g96v-kq4l

Link:

👉 https://openthenext.bandcamp.com/yum