Floex among nominees for Best New Act at Andel music awards

The Czech equivalent of the Grammys, the Andel music awards, are taking place on Thursday night. One of the nominees in the Best New Act category is Floex, which is the name that 24-year-old Tomas Dvorak records under. Tomas recorded most of his down-tempo electronic CD Pocustone in his bedroom, would you believe. He told my colleague Ian Willoughby why.

"It's more intimate contact - you are closer to the music. And of course I cant' afford a normal studio, but it's fine for me."

You are playing at Prague's Akropolis on March 16 - what is your line-up?

"I hope it will be a special concert because Akropolis is always the top for us. We tried to bring something new. We'll have projections. I think we've found a slightly different concept because every song will be done by a different person, so there will be people like directors, and graphic designers, web designers, motion designers. And also we went to a primary school and we asked the children to paint some pictures for us so there will be something low tech and high tech."

What instruments will you have - what do you play yourself?

"I play the clarinet. I think on the album it holds the album together. And also we have a drummer and double bassist, Petr Tichy. And I play samples and effects and so on."

Do you have a day job?

"No, because I attend school."

What do you study?

"The Academy of Visual Arts, study of new media. I have always been interested in the connections between different medias, like music and visual arts, but not only this."

You've been nominated for the award for Best New Act at the Czech Grammys, the Andel awards. How optimistic are that you will win? Do you care?

"I don't care about it so much. But I'm happy about it. The academy changed fortunately in the last one or two years. I think if I'd released the album maybe two years ago I probably wouldn't be there. They want to change the academy now. The old people remain but new people come - I think that's the reason I am there, nominated too."

And that Floex concert at Prague's Akropolis theatre takes place the Saturday after next, on March 16. By the way, you can download some of Floex's music for free at www.floex.cz.