by Israel Gallegos

Raymundo Mendoza is a local DJ and techno recording artist who’s been on the scene for quite some time now. Mendoza’s style is minimal techno made with organic sounds and he is currently a contributing recording artist on LoMidHigh, a techno house label based in Copenhagen.

Mendoza joined LoMidHigh’s roster of artists this year. One of his tracks has already been featured on a compilation album released by the label.

“It’s gotten a really good response, which I find amusing. I mean, sometimes I think about it and I’m just some guy from El Paso Texas who is making some ass shake somewhere across the world,” Mendoza said.

Mendoza is working on many projects that will eventually be released by LoMidHigh.

“I have a remix coming out in a few months and I’m working on this experimental album that should come out in December,” Mendoza said.

His recent association with LoMidHigh has given some of Mendoza’s earlier work new life

“I’ve sent Daniel Lyons, who is the label owner of LoMidHigh, about 500 loops and 50 songs. I never felt that those loops and songs were ready for release either because of my sequencing or sound design,” Mendoza said. “We began talking and were listening to some of that older material, and it sounded fantastic. I got all the tracks and made them into about 5,000 individual loops and samples. I’m really excited about it because back then I had these good loops, but I was lacking in certain skills to really complete them in a way I felt represented me.”

Mendoza began making tracks in 2002 while he was living in Denver.

“I had picked up a copy of Reason and messed around with it,” Mendoza said. “Around 2004, I decided that I was going to make tracks till someone took me seriously, and I’ve been at it ever since.”

At age six, Mendoza was turned on to techno music from watching Beverly Hills Cop and hearing a track played in the movie called “Axel F.”

“I got my parents to buy the 45 record single at Sound Warehouse and that record went with me everywhere. I played the hell out of that track. I remember the breakdown especially,” Mendoza said. “On the weekends my mom would be cooking breakfast and I would be at the record player staring at the needle drop on the groove.”

In the early 90’s, Mendoza’s family moved to Detroit.

“I got to see the industrial revolution machine in action,” Mendoza said. “In the morning we would get on the freeway and head downtown. We would go over the Rouge River and I would look down at what looked like some industrial Mad Max shit and a disgusting river you would not want to ever take a swim in.”

The experience of living in the motor city changed Mendoza’s view of the world and made him appreciate El Paso a little more and provided the foundation for his future endeavors.

“Detroit can be a scary fucking place for a kid, people in El Paso are a bit isolated as to what living in a big city really is,” Mendoza said. “This was the early 90’s, so I can’t say how it is now, but at the time it was the murder capitol of the world.”

In 1999, Mendoza and his friends started a production crew called Labwerks. The crew hosted many parties across the city.

“There were a lot of really boring parties being done in clubs and none of that mystery was there,” Mendoza said. “We just got tired of it and just started trying to throw parties in obscure locations. The first Progression party stands out for me. We had like 1200 kids out in some enclosed garden outside of Horizon City.”

Despite his efforts with his production crew, Mendoza said that El Paso’s electronic scene is constantly lacking.

“The electronic scene here really doesn’t have a strong foundation. I remember hearing people, including me, saying how there wasn’t enough support and how people needed to support the local scene,” Mendoza said. “It didn’t help that we played records from everywhere else, when we did a party we paid a DJ or producer from some other city to play for 2 hours, and by the next day he/she got his money and took it to their scene. We supported their scene and forgot our own.”

Mendoza said El Paso hasn’t provided much inspiration for him as an artist, but it has given him a unique experience as a promoter, DJ and recording artist.

“The problem with El Paso is that it’s so laid back that you can quickly get stuck doing a whole lot of nothing,” Mendoza said. “I can say that living here has allowed me to cultivate my dreams into something real. Without El Paso it would not be happening, and I am grateful for that. El Paso is great because it’s small enough and if you’re determined enough, you can make things happen here.”

Mendoza said El Paso has to change its approach in supporting the arts.

“El Paso needs artists, it needs workshops and forums for kids to get together and make things happen for themselves,” Mendoza said.

You can download a free mix with Raymundo’s loops at www.lomidhigh.com.  The cover for the mix features Mendoza’s Yorkie, Mackie, frolicking at Album Park.

*Additional reporting by M. De Santiago