About
STOOR is a unique operation within the modern electronic music landscape. What started out as a subterranean studio in the heart of Rotterdam has grown into a multi-layered vehicle for musical, visual and technological experimentation, from epic live events to a record label and media platform.
Celebrated Dutch techno pioneer Jochem Paap — aka Speedy J — conceived STOOR as a literal laboratory for novice and veteran electronic artists. After opening the doors to a basement space that used to serve as a government facility, he equipped it with his extensive collection of drum machines, synthesisers and processing gear. STOOR was unique from the start thanks to the inclusion of an in-house vinyl cutting lathe, which allowed the team to produce limited-run records immediately during the productive run of studio sessions taking place beneath the city streets.
When the pandemic created global upheaval, Paap and his team responded quickly with the next phase in STOOR's evolution — the Stay Home Soundsystem and the Knob Twiddlers Hangout. The Stay Home Soundsystem was an innovative step forward in the field of remote jamming, allowing a high-profile cast of techno legends to directly connect their studios from anywhere in the world and create improvised machine music together, in real time, all piped through STOOR, given a distinctive visual treatment and beamed out to the world for a shared techno experience at a time when dancefloor unity felt very far away. The Knob Twiddlers Hangout similarly brought together expert names from across electronic music to go deep on the details of music production and performance, making the most of everyone's availability while busy touring schedules were out of the question.
STOOR's streaming era served a vital purpose during an uncertain time, but it also laid the groundwork for a celebratory return to the live arena when lockdown restrictions were lifted. Amsterdam Dance Event 2021 heralded the debut of STOOR Live, bringing the collaborative, improvised audio-visual concept to the grand setting of Paradiso in electrifying, visceral form. That first edition, with Paap joined by Surgeon, Sterac, Lady Starlight and Colin Benders, set in motion STOOR as it stands today — an ever-evolving, many-limbed machine at the forefront of electronic music innovation.
Alongside the headline nature of STOOR events, the team wanted to use their infrastructure to elevate emergent talent, leading to the growth in tandem of the Pink Noise Foundation. Featuring an even wider set of artists devoted to making all forms of electronic music, Pink Noise moved from online to IRL to host the second room at STOOR live events, and even took over its own space at Groningen-based Paradigm Festival.
Meanwhile STOOR's recorded output progressed from the limited lathe cut 12"s of the early days to more focused releases including Speedy & Steve (a collaboration between Paap and Steve Rachmad), Multiples (a collaboration with Surgeon) and Stay Home Soundsystem Compilation, which gathered together standout moments from the many hours of live jams captured during the fruitful online and in-person studio sessions.
Prizing experimentation and risk-taking above commercial appeal and inspiring an attentive, open-minded dialogue between audience and artists at every level, STOOR presses forwards with the enthusiasm of a new entry into the electronic music world, backed up by the expertise and experience of a team with deep roots running right back to the dawn of techno.
Words by Oli Warwick
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