ITW : Blue Hour, Reimagining his debut album ‘Selva’, Through a Remix Compilation

With years of experience performing at key venues and major cities worldwide, Luke, aka Blue Hour, has established himself as a respected figure in the electronic music scene.

As the founder of Blue Hour Music and its sub-labels, as well as co-founder of positivesource, Luke has built an influential family of imprints known for their diverse, inspiring, and reliable output, earning recognition across multiple scenes.

Earlier this year, Blue Hour released his debut album Selva, a record steeped in the imagery of lost and forgotten worlds. Now, rather than let that world stand still, Blue Hour opens it up, inviting a handpicked crew of fresh talent to step inside and make it their own. The result is a remix companion that reimagines Selva through fresh eyes and ears. Each remix artist brings their own sonic fingerprint to the source material, some peeling back the original’s dense atmospherics to expose skeletal rhythms underneath, others pushing further into the album’s dreamlike haze. What emerges isn’t a simple tribute, but a genuine dialogue: new talents in conversation with an album that was already asking questions about memory, erosion, and what gets left behind when a world disappears.

In this interview, we sit down with Luke to discuss the creative process behind Selva, the ideas that shaped the album and its subsequent reinterpretation, and the perspectives brought by the artists involved in the remix project. We also explore his approach to running a label, fostering collaboration, and maintaining a distinct artistic vision across his work as a producer, DJ and label head.

You’ve been developing Blue Hour for more than a decade, both as an artist and as a label platform. Looking back at where the project started in 2013, what do you feel has changed the most, and what has remained untouched? 

Yes, time has flown by, it’s hard to quantify just how many years have passed since it all began. I think what’s changed the most is the expansion beyond my own output by welcoming others onto the label. It became a platform bigger than just a place to self-release my own music, the musical range broadened and there have been moments where things shifted toward specific areas sonically. This is something that evolved naturally over time. Collaboration became important to me also, both as a way to stay connected within the industry and as a way to keep things interesting and progressive for myself.

What hasn’t changed is that Blue Hour is still fundamentally the space where I’ve released most of my own original music. That’s stayed true even with everything else happening around it.

What hasn’t changed is that Blue Hour is still fundamentally the space where I’ve released most of my own original music. That’s stayed true even with everything else happening around it, it’s still very much my home and this year made that clear with the release of my debut LP Selva and the focus and space I gave that project and its connecting parts such as the remixes.

Growing up between Brighton and Bristol before moving to Berlin, Blue Hour was exposed to distinct musical environments, each shaped by its own history and culture. These different places have contributed to his musical development, raising the question of how their influences continue to shape his approach to electronic music today.

When I lived in Brighton, Drum & Bass and Jungle were what I immersed myself in. The city had a really strong scene and community with club nights throughout the month such as Carbon, Devotion and Hospitality. Those early experiences shaped me massively although Drum & Bass/Jungle isn’t a style I’ve leant into heavily with my own production specifically. There’s the odd track/remix here or there that aligns with that world but it’s not an area I’ve spent much time exploring directly. The atmosphere, attitude and feeling are more present than the sound itself I guess.

I then moved to Bristol for university where I studied Graphic Design and started integrating into the scene there. Dubstep was creeping into nightlife at the time and there was a lot of excitement around welcoming something new genre wise. Gradually, as my ear turned toward that world, I began to discover Bristol’s localised sound which felt quite different from the more traditional London sound. Bristol’s connection to Berlin was also really strong and it was around this period that I visited Berlin for the first time. Musically, I kept moving deeper into a sound I felt myself align with more strongly with and Berlin is ultimately where I ended up because of it.

With Selva, I didn’t realise until afterward completing the record how much my time in Brighton and Bristol had influenced the album subconsciously besides Berlin. Certain tracks and drum programming are rhythmically in a similar way to the Dubstep-Techno hybrids I liked and theres even hints of old Jungle productions I liked too. There’s a mood and energy that echoes the music thats shaped me over my life, it’s a very nuanced and personal thing I guess but thats something that surfaced with my album.

You’ve now released more than 50 records on vinyl through the label. What have you learned about building a catalogue over that scale? At this stage, what makes a record feel like a “Blue Hour record” to you? 

We’re coming up to 55 releases now. That breaks down as 33 in the main catalogue, 5 Blue Hour Remixed records, 3 collaborative records (Fast Forward, UTE and Parallax Deep Edits), the Omni 10-year anniversary record, my album and the upcoming remixes would make it 44 soon. Then outside the main catalogue there’s Positive Source, After Hour and Eachnewhour which adds another 11. So 55 in total once the remixes land, unless I’ve missed something.

I think the main thing I’ve learned with the label is to trust my gut instinct and be open-minded to taking risks with music that truly resonates with me.

Keeping things diverse and flexible has also helped to maintain a certain element of unpredictability with the output. And as mentioned earlier having a finger on the pulse of things with the wider scene helps too.

With regards to what makes a record feel like a Blue Hour record, it’s really quite simple. It’s reflective of what resonates with me musically and I try not to have too many limitations on how things flow from one thing to the other. I want things to be fluid and chop and change without feeling too rigid in style or approach.

Selva marks your first full-length album. What made this the right moment to move from individual releases towards a complete body of work, and what did the album format allow you to explore that you couldn’t through your previous releases? 

I always wanted to achieve completing an album, but never set a real intention around doing it, including with Selva. It just happened. I think this is quite typical of my general approach to music, it can’t really be forced, it has to reveal itself to some degree. Of course, we can make efforts to engage with making music, but through this process, concepts and ideas start to form, rather than a plan being laid out in front of you to follow. I feel this approach is the most authentic and it’s how the depth shows up.

It took some time, but after releasing many EPs over the years, the right moment aligned for Selva to come forward and take focus. The writing process allowed me to follow my intuition and let a story unravel and guide me. It was about a voyage into the jungle of some kind, one of discovery and mysticism. With EPs, concepts have appeared in similar ways, but not as strongly or with as clear a vision and expansiveness. I think that’s only really possible with a body of work as long as an album to be honest, and that’s what makes them so special but also so challenging to create.

Selva feels less like a collection of tracks and more like a world with its own internal logic. At what point did you realise you were making an album rather than simply producing another series of tracks? 

It got to a point where I had five tracks working really well together, and they gave me the impression that a strong narrative had formed. I noticed it didn’t sound like an EP anymore.

There was more drama in it, and it felt cinematic in some way. At that point, I began to realise that there was actually something greater going on, and it should be expanded. That’s the point where I decided the concept was worthy of an album, and it gave me the motivation to fill in the gaps and give more detail to the story.

You spent periods working from tropical locations while developing the record. How did changing your physical environment affect the way you listened, produced and made decisions in the studio? 

This happened more out of coincidence, to be honest, but changing your environment always helps motivate you with new experiences and shakes things up from the usual day to day. I think the biggest factor was producing the LP almost entirely on headphones, which gave me the freedom to be mobile, but more importantly, really allowed me to immerse myself in that conceptual world and lose myself within it. I think this also helped define the atmosphere of the record through the choice of effects and ambience, giving it cohesion.

Alongside the album, you’re now presenting a remix release featuring Hidden Passage remixed by AgainstMe, Lost Beneath the Leaves by Downside, Portal by Connor Wall, Submerged by Isabel Soto and The Chase by Casual Treatment. Why these five artists? Did you select them primarily based on their sound, their relationship to Blue Hour, or because you felt they could reveal something hidden inside those particular tracks? How did these collaborations start? 

I’m always looking to find new ways of expanding the musical orbit surrounding the label with new faces and these were all artists who caught my ear around the time I was conceiving the remix project. Each one came into the picture differently. I came across Downside through his record on Fuse, discovered Connor Wall through various releases and then in person in Berlin, felt inspired by Isabel Soto through a particular track on Segment Records and I’ve known Casual Treatment‘s production for a while now and he rented my studio for a time. AgainstMe I discovered after catching him play at Saule once. Turns out he’s pretty much a neighbour so we’ve stayed in touch since.

What drew me to each of them wasn’t just the sound. It was that they’re proactive with their own projects and hold themselves to a high standard. Rather than assigning tracks myself, I gave each of them a few options from the record to choose from and let them pick whichever one spoke to them. I think that’s part of why the results feel so natural. Nobody was working against the grain of a track they’d been handed. They gravitated toward the one they already heard something in, which probably explains why each remix feels like it’s genuinely revealing a different side of the original rather than just reworking it.

Sonically, I think they ended up complementing each other really well while each bringing their own approach and strengths to the table. The outcome feels cohesive to me in terms of creative vision, while still adding a real diversity and flair across the five tracks. I’ve been playing all of them regularly and enjoying how people react. There’s a real range here, from heady and introspective to properly energetic, and each track has found its place, especially in longer sets. I can’t wait to get this record out into the world and see where they take it from here and hopefully find more ways to work together down the line.

These remixes bring five different interpretations of material that originally belonged to the same album world. When you hand one of your tracks to another artist, how much freedom do you want them to have to dismantle the original idea? 

Complete freedom is somewhat nuanced I guess so I would be lying if I said I didn’t stick my head into the feedback process sometimes when I feel it’s genuinely going to help create a better end result. That’s not always necessary though and with this particular project it varied. A hands off approach is also totally usual sometimes too.

I do think dialog is important. It could start with a suggestion to work in a style similar to an original track of theirs that I like, just to offer an area of focus as a starting point. Something simple like “I really liked what you did with X track and could imagine something similar working well here.” Other than that maybe some mix or arrangement feedback if it’s even needed. I have been known to sit with people from time to time with a bit more focus and intensity too, thats generally more when it comes to EP’s though.

I have a deep curiosity with music and I like to share and communicate that. I think everyone is working towards the same thing for the greater good and I’m open to that process. I hope others feel my openness benefits them in some way too as a learning process together.

There’s also something interesting about turning an album into a second conversation through remixes. Do you see this release as an extension of Selva, or almost as a reinterpretation of the album’s original narrative? 

It’s both. One part is an extension, an opportunity to revisit the project and maybe introduce it to new listeners through a secondary point of entry. The other part is inviting new artists to continue the story with their own vision and reimagine the material in their own way. I’ve really enjoyed working closely with others, building new connections and creating something we can all be proud of together. There’s something special about forming new relationships through art, music and shared experience.

After more than 50 vinyl releases, a decade of Blue Hour, Positive Source, countless collaborations and now your first full-length album, what still feels unexplored to you? 

Performing live is probably the biggest unexplored area for me. It’s something I think about from time to time, but to make it happen I’d need to rethink my studio workflow entirely probably, which feels quite disruptive although it could bring new insights and changes for the better.

Another area is collaborating more directly in the studio. Aside from Simon, with whom I made music as Tracing Xircles, I haven’t shared a studio setting with anyone else to create original music together. It’s something I’d like to do more of going forward.

Beyond that, I’d love to make an ambient album one day and I’m also interested in releasing music on other labels, ones that align with my sound and could introduce me to new audiences.

Explore Blue Hour’s discography and discover Selva on Bandcamp.