News | CULTR - Part 2

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January 20, 2019

Nicky Romero Interview: New Music, Proudest Track & More

We sat down with Dutch artist and label owner Nicky Romero and chatted all things music! He teased some big collaborations, talked about staying with progressive house, proudest track, what would be his last show and more. Thanks for answering our questions Nicky!

You premiered your awesome collaboration with David Guetta at Tomorrowland, can you give us any details on when we might be able to expect that?

So I have a song coming with David Guetta, we’re trying to wrap it now. He’s focusing on his album; which is out. Hopefully we can give some more information soon but it might look like we’re going to put it out in the first quarter of next year. It’s called ‘Ring The Alarm’, it’s basically a club song, like what we used to do. He’s really my mentor from the earlier days, it’s so good to be back with him in the studio and actually wrap a song. It’s cool because people maybe expect more of a radio song but it’s really one of those club songs that he used to produce and like my track S.O.T.U. If you look at David’s new album he has some more club type songs and this new one fits in with his roster and mine, as people are shifting back to club music and not just Spotify.

What influences Nicky Romero music and what is signed on Protocol?

I’m getting influenced by everything, whenever there’s hype I’m trying to take all the best parts in and trying to apply it to my music without losing my identity. The same goes with Protocol, when we A&R and select the songs. We try to take in what the hype is in that moment without losing the signature of the label. That’s actually a serious task, I really don’t like to join a hype but take parts and apply it to the genre and sounds I like.

If you had only had one more show, what would be the event you would want to play?

Good question! If I only name one place I’d leave out so many good ones. I think either Japan or maybe Miami because Miami is really accessible for many counties, it’s like a centre-point.

You’re one of the progressive house legends and have continued to push the genre forward while many artists have shifted to pop and commercial sounds. Is this still your favourite genre to produce and play out?

I think progressive house never really left, it just goes up and down – it’s like a wave – hypes come and go. It’s been like that for the last two to three decades. It’s like fashion, the styles come and go and then a few years later it’s cool again. I think that’s the same with progressive house, if it has its peak it’ll be back. I resonate with that music a lot and I love the fact it’s so melodic and so epic. If I play live these are the songs that go off most.

Which Nicky Romero release are you most proud of?

There’s quite a few that I’m proud of, for this year, I’m really proud of ‘Paradise‘. I love ‘Be Somebody’ with Steve [Aoki] as well as ‘Bittersweet’, that’s probably my favourite of this year.

You collaborated with Steve Aoki on a single and you each did a remix of each other’s original. How did this overall collaboration come about?

Well, Steve has been a friend for a long time and we’ve been saying since our first show in South Africa we needed to do a song. It never really came to a point were we got to the studio until last year. I’ve always looked up to him in multiple angles actually. He’s been progressing his career in the past 10 years in so many different ways. He’s opened up a pizza place, he’s built this crazy label, he has his own couple of fashion lines and even his own skateboard brand I think. He’s a really great businessman. In terms of music, I think he’s done so many great things for the industry, next to that he’s really just an icon. I was like; “We really need to work on a song” and finally that became ‘Be Somebody’. He really loved the song when he worked on it and it got to the final result and I think we can be proud of what we have now.

Are there any Protocol artists we should keep an eye on?

There’s a lot of Protocol artists but one of them that I’m a big fan of is called Trilane – they have a song on Protocol called ‘Miss Out’ as well as our collab ‘Bittersweet’. That is one of my favourite songs of the year and they were really important on it. They’re really talented guys from Sweden. Raiden is awesome as well, Corey James – he’s putting out some great music and picking up some steam. Maximals is doing great, Teamworx from Israel as well. So many of them actually, but these are the ones that pop up now.

Have you got any projects coming soon you might want to drop some hints about?
Yeah, there is a song coming with W&W, there’s one coming with Afrojack, also the David Guetta one. There are also plenty of solo tracks and many remixes coming also!

Do you have any goals for 2019?

The most important goal is to get back to being as happy and healthy I was in the beginning of my career. I think we’re almost there! If you’re happy and healthy you get the best results, you’re most creative. Right now I think I’m in a really good place mentally, I’ve found the happiness in making music again which I probably didn’t have for two years. I think if I have these two things, all the other things will come also.

Listen to Nicky Romero’s latest single together with Olivia Holt

Ferry Corsten Interview: New Collabs, His Influences + More

Oliver Tryon

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January 11, 2019

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Ferry Corsten Interview: New Collabs, His Influences + More

We caught up with Trance legend Ferry Corsten to discuss the state of trance, a potential new album, how he stays creative having done 600 of his radio shows, how to keep a long-running label successful and some exciting upcoming collaborations.

You released blueprint last year, it included 17 tracks. How long did it take to produce them all?
I worked on Blueprint for a year and a half, there’s also touring so I bring all my studio stuff with me on the road. Touring slows things down a bit but yeah about a year and a half. I think a lot of the time besides actually producing the tracks was spent on the complexity of matching the songs with the story and the narration that accompanied the album.

Any potential of another album soon?
Not sure yet, I’m playing around with the idea in my head. Nothing complete yet!

You have a handful of alias, what made you create a new one?
Well a lot of the alias were a while back but really it was all a product of the time. I wasn’t touring so I was producing a lot faster and a lot more records then. My output was really high. Due to the touring and the development of my career, I haven’t touched them in a while. The only one that I would still be involved in is Gouryella. The alias’ give me a freedom to do something else. I just brought System F back for a one off show also. Other than that, the focus is really on Ferry Corsten – that’s the guy behind everything anyway!

You’ve done almost 600 of your countdown radio shows. How do you handle that and how do you make each radio show unique?
There is great new music out each week! Sometimes it’s hard, finding the time to record it all, especially whilst travelling – I have my mic with me and end up in an echochamber of a hotel room. Sometimes I build myself an igloo with pillows! I record the show every Monday, so it can be organised to be published by Wednesday.

You were born in Rotterdam, how has living in The Netherlands influenced your music and your musical career?
The diversity over here is really good, it’s a small country – therefore a tight knit community. When I started producing and getting into the scene in Rotterdam, hardstyle was massive. But really the key is the diversity, if you look at the countries around us, you’ve got Scandinavian Pop, the UK sound, German minimalistic sounds as well as like the Belgian/French ‘suave’. I think in a way, it all comes together here and that influences the Dutch sound in general.

Your label Flashover has been going for 13 years. How do you manage to be successful over a long time? Do you find yourself adapting to musical trends?
I guess it’s about trying to stay true to what we think is right in a sense. It’s easy to just go with the hype and go completely away from where the fans want you.

Tell us about your ‘UNITY’ collaborative project
It’s that one thing that always happens at festivals, I’m done playing and hanging out with the DJs that played before me. We always say “We should do a collab, I’ll call you next week” – it doesn’t happen. It’s always like “too busy” or “I forgot about it”, this and that. So this year I thought I would chase everyone for the collabs and make a project out of it.

Also, if you look at trance as a genre, although its big and although its got a massive following – it doesn’t have that core. I don’t mean that in a bad way but if you compare the core to what’s happening in EDM or the bass world, all those DJs are playing each other’s stuff. In the trance scene, the 140 [BPM] guys aren’t playing the 128 [BPM] guys – the gap is too big. So that’s what I’m trying to break with Unity. I’m doing collaborations with artist I wouldn’t usually to see what will happen and to merge these different types of trance.

Any projects happening at the moment and anything you can tease for 2019?
I actually just released my collab with Ilan Bluestone called ‘We’re Not Going Home’. I also have upcoming tracks together with Alpha 9, BT and a few more almost finished. So there’s a good lineup coming up. I also just finished my first film score, that’s worth mentioning – it’s called ‘Don’t Go’, it’s out already in the states, so that’s just a whole new world for me that I want to continue exploring.

Listen to Ferry Corsten’s latest collaboration together with ilan Bluestone ‘We’re Not Going Home‘ Stream/Download

EJ Interview: His Relationship with Formula-E, How the Persona Began, Future Plans + More

Interview

Oliver Tryon

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December 23, 2018

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EJ Interview: His Relationship with Formula-E, How the Persona Began, Future Plans + More

We sat down and had a beer with mysterious DJ and producer ‘EJ‘, known for being the brains and face of Formula E music, as well as enormous tracks such as ‘Fire In Your Heart‘, ‘One More Night‘ and countless others. We chat about his introduction to Formula E, how he came up with the persona and his future plans.

Where are you based?
Based in London!

How did you relationship begin with Formula E?
I was working at Ministry of Sound for 10 years and that’s where I originally met Formula-E. They wanted Ministry of Sound to come in and do all the after parties as well as their overall music strategy. Of course they thought Ministry would be good for that considering their history in dance music. Unfortunately that deal didn’t go ahead. At that time I was considering leaving Ministry of Sound, so I contacted them and said “I love what you’re doing, do you want me to come in for a meeting?” They needed a DJ to play the races, they needed someone to help with and produce the broadcast music as well as help all the music content overall. It was perfect timing, so that’s how my relationship started with Formula-E.

How did the EJ name and persona begin?
I really wanted to put my spin on things musically at Formula-E. What it came down to was me wanting a persona that would grow alongside the championship. So I created EJ and actually got referred to in the press as the bastard child of deadmau5 and Daft Punk! I began with house but always had a passion for trance, so when I decided to take the trance route with my music, I wanted an identity that stood out and was unique. The name came from mixing Formula-E and DJ, which resulted in Formula-EJ but that didn’t sound right so we ended up with EJ.

Do you have a favourite Formula-E driver?
I’ve got to go UK, so Sam Bird from Virgin. But you know what, there’s a lot of really good racers in there now. BMW is actually coming in this season and then Mercedes and Porsche coming next season. The championship is just getting bigger and bigger.

Could you describe your music in 2 words?
Overall, I’d say it’s Progressive Trance. I like to put a spin on the vocal stuff because I always love a vocal. But a lot of the stuff when I play the races, it’s quite unique what we do for that. We aim for energy during the race, the cars are racing around the track and there are speakers at all the grandstands. There’s 3 different parts to it, I DJ with the cars going around the track. Also an EJ show that’s on stage for the podium crowd, as well as all the after parties around town after the races. When I DJ during the races and when the cars are lining up and getting ready, it’s actually broadcast live on TV. It can be a little bit daunting because sometimes it’s 20 million live viewers. I’ve been DJing for 5 years but still definitely get nervous during those shows!

Your record ‘Fire In Your Heart’ is very powerful, what inspired it?
When I produce I make sure to think about how it’ll feel being played at the races, so it’s got to have a lot of energy. There is a funny story behind some of the lyrics, “fire in your heart, ice in your veins” is basically the polar opposites and I remember feeling frustrated at that time.

What’s happening for EJ in 2019?
Got loads of new music coming out, I’ve got hopefully another 2 releases on Garuda confirmed. I’m working on a compilation album on Garuda also, ranging from progressive sounds to trance. It’s going to be titled ‘Formula-E – The Soundtrack’ and it’ll be all the music I play on the racetrack. That’ll be releasing in December and will coincide with the launch of the new Formula-E season. I’m also working on something pretty special which’ll be out in Q3 2019, that is something that’s very close to my heart.

Listen to EJ’s latest release ‘Follow Me‘ + Stream/Download

Sophie Francis Interview: Not Giving Up, Dream Home, Favourite Events + More!

Oliver Tryon

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December 12, 2018

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Sophie Francis Interview: Not Giving Up, Dream Home, Favourite Events + More!

We caught up with young gun Sophie Francis at ADE and discussed all things dance music including what the hardest part of being an artist is, her dream collaboration, where she would live anywhere in the world, her new track ‘True Champions‘, transitioning from a big room sound and more.

You’ve been DJ’ing for a few years now, what was the hardest part when you were first learning?

Yes since I was 16, I’m 19 now. One of the most important factors is not giving up, things can get hard especially on the production side. In the beginning it’s especially hard, people say stupid things and you need to ignore them.

What was the earliest song you remember growing up?

I’ve grown up with a lot of different things, however in South Africa theres a group called Goldfish, that was my first live concert and I really loved it. The real first dance music that I listened and inspired me would have to be Showtek – back in their hardstyle days!

When you are starting a new track do you always start with a similar element?

It really depends on what track I’m making, for example with ‘Weekend Love’ it was the topline of the vocalist and then I started production around that. It depends on my mood, but usually I prefer to start with the break – but if I have inspiration for a drop, I’ll focus on that initially.

What is your favourite production of your own?

At the moment, it has to be ‘Weekend Love’, so far it’s my most developed track – maybe you can hear that! I’ve been focused a lot in the studio this year. I mainly love working on energetic tracks, I have one called ‘True Champion’ which is not out yet but I’ve put it on all my videos because I love the energy in it.

When will ‘True Champion’ come out?

We don’t know yet, we might want to have a Chinese rapper on it. Or not, it’s not fully finished yet so I can still go anywhere with it – I’m not sure yet. But I really love the energy in it.

You’ve played all over the globe, if you could choose one of those places to live where would it be?

I guess Tokyo, because I think you’d never get bored there. Every district, every street, there is something new to discover and I really love that.

What has been your favourite event to date?

I don’t really have one, what makes a good event is the energy of the people. But actually, I think the people who go to Ultra and Tomorrowland, they go there with the mentality to have the most epic day. So those normally I really love, I love the vibe there, the energy, the people.

If you could work with any artist past or present who would you choose?

Right now, it has to be Shawn Mendes. I’m super in love with his voice, for a few years now. His voice is so authentic and so special, I would love to work with him!

What inspired you to pursue a career in dance music?

What really inspired me to become a DJ/producer was actually a school project. I needed to do something were I learned new skills and interact with new people. I always really loved working with music, I felt that djing and producing you can interact with so many people, you can make or break their night with the music.

Your latest single ‘Weekend Love’s is awesome, what was the inspiration behind that?

I was actually at a Spinnin’ writing session and someone else was recording that track and I heard the lyrics and loved it. Most tracks now days are epic love songs or epic breakups – that sort of stuff. But these lyrics were about two single people and their love life. I thought it was super cool because it’s different and being single is fun! I heard the topline and straight away I envisioned this whole happy melodic almost folk style to the track.

You’ve transitioned from a big room styled production over the past year, what motivated you to try a new sound?

I love making whatever I feel like making. I’m not someone who says with one style, I love hardstyle, I love trap, I love pop. I really try to make what makes me happy. I’ve made a few trap tracks, even a few trap reworks of my own tracks. I’m also making hardstyle as well as more upcoming club tracks.

Have you got any new releases upcoming that you can give us a hint about?

I have three tracks upcoming on Spinnin’ but unfortunately I cannot say anything yet!

The track mentioned above as well as Sophie’s latest release ‘Weekend Love‘ is embed below

Sander van Doorn Interview: His Label, D.O.D Collab, His Average Day + More!

Interview

Oliver Tryon

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December 10, 2018

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Sander van Doorn Interview: His Label, D.O.D Collab, His Average Day + More!

We sat down with the legend Sander Van Doorn to discuss his latest music including his D.O.D collaboration, how he spends his average day – listening to hundreds of promo a week, his alternative alias ‘Purple Haze’ and more! Check out his latest remix embed at the end of article.

You’re label Doorn has been around for a while and is still doing very well. What’s the secret for a label to have success in the long term?

I think it’s all about the identity of the label, and the identity of the label is very broad genre wise. I don’t really mind if its very slow or fast or one particular genre, as long as its original and comes from the heart. Funny enough, a lot of the artist I’ve signed right now are all from Italy and they have a little bit more of a dark touch to their sound which works well for the label. I think it’s the combination of consistently releasing tracks that are originally produced which makes the label very strong.

What artists are you most proud to have signed?

You know the greatest thing about the label is the people that release tracks always come back to the label. They always enjoy realising stuff and I always take them on board to my different parties. Guys like Promise Land have always been loyal to the label as well as the newer guys like Bottai. They are really amazing, so for me its most important that people love coming back to the label.

You have an alias as Purple Haze, what inspired you to create it?

Yeah it’s been one and a half years since I revived the project that I started 12 years ago. I was brought back to it to have more of an outlet to produce more underground music, more of a darker sound – I also decided to make it a live act. It’s a side of me that I discovered, a different way of producing tracks. Sometimes you feel like doing something different in the studio. Overall it’s also creates more inspiration just in general for both names so for me it works out well.

You come back to the melodic progressive style with ‘No Words’, what inspired you to return to this sound?

I would say there was a time where the whole scene exploded, I had the tracks ‘Into The Light’, ‘Nothing Inside’ and ‘Love Is Darkness’. I always found tracks like these always had a special place for me personally, ‘No Words’ brings me back to those times – and it was a really good time! That’s why I decided to finish ‘No Words’ because I had already been working on it for a few years. I made like 5 different versions and I wasn’t happy with them and then all of a sudden I found the right way to finish the track, I’m happy how it turned out!

Your record ‘Nothing Inside’ from 2012 seems timeless. Do you still play it and do you remember producing it?

Yeah I remember it, for me it was a particularly hard project because the breakdown is a lower BPM then the actual climax. But I didn’t want people to be aware of that so it needed to feel very natural. But it still had it’s original tempo for the vocal as I didn’t want to speed it up because it wouldn’t sound right. Especially in Logic you don’t want to change your tempo on the project because it creates a nightmare! So it took a while to get it right, you’re always so busy in the process of producing the track that you actually don’t listen to the final result. But when it was finished and rendered, I listened to the whole track and I was like wow I’m really happy with this.

Your new track with D.O.D is awesome, it’s got D.O.D’s signature ‘future jack’ feel to it. Was his style an important factor is your decision to collaborate with him?

I’ve been playing his tracks for the last few years, I’m a big fan of his sound. When he came to me and said let’s do a collaboration, I really felt my sound and his sound would fit well! I particular love doing the whole baseline thing and with his jacking house sound. I actually played at the ‘D.O.D and Friends’ party with him! Overall though it felt very natural to do a collaboration with him.

As a label owner and an individual with two artist projects, how do you go about balancing your time?

I also do the radio show as well! So I’m working with new promo and demos, it’s a lot of music! Thankfully it gets filtered a bit for me, however I still get around 150 tracks a week – they’re either for the label or the radio show. It’s all about finding the time, producing a bit on this record then, listening to new demos after and playing my show later! Luckily now we have it covered and I can find time for everything.

What’s an average day for Sander Van Doorn look like?

Well I would get up and get a very strong cup of coffee, I usually go straight in to the studio, which I luckily have in my home. Just producing away. Tuesday for me is radio day so I get that done and with that comes promo day. It’s very dependent on what people send you. So when ever I get the chance, I spend time listening to promos – same goes with producing. But it really changes everyday obviously the weekends is all about the DJing.

Could you maybe drop some hints on some new music coming soon?

I have just released my remix for ‘Discopolis 2.0’, that one is on Armada. I also just released a remix for Frontliner’s track ‘I’m The Melodyman’, the was original is a hardstyle track. Actually my wife originally introduced me to hardstyle a few years ago and she was like; “listen to this because it’s really good music!” so I started listening to this particular genre. I found that the tracks they produce are very intelligently produced. I was listening to a lot of tracks and I came across ‘I’m The Melodyman’, it was the perfect track for me to remix. So I got in contact with Barry (Frontliner) and we actually just finished a collaboration as well! The funny thing is, it’s not hardstyle – it’s like a mix between us, we kind of created a new genre with this one! I’m always open and keen to listening to different genres of music because it inspires me.

Sander’s remix of Frontliner’s ‘I’m The Melodyman‘ is out now! Stream below

Henri PFR Interview: Robin Schulz Collab, His Name, Dream Vocalist + So Much More!

Interview

Oliver Tryon

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December 6, 2018

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Henri PFR Interview: Robin Schulz Collab, His Name, Dream Vocalist + So Much More!

We caught up with Dutch duo Sunnery James & Ryan Marciano in Amsterdam. We chatted about their label, how Steve Angello is a father figure, their latest music and their upcoming ‘Sexy By Nature‘ event. They’re really awesome guys, you can check out their latest release with Marc Volt below the interview.

You started learning music at age 6, what instruments did you learn first?
I first learned piano, it’s funny because I started with the academy so really classical music like Beethoven and Mozart. Then when I was twelve I decided to play piano on the computer, thanks to that I started making electronic music.

What was the first song that got you interested in Electronic music?
That’s a good question, maybe ‘Lord of Trance’ from Tiesto. I started listening to trance music. Also, in Belgium we have a DJ called DJ Furax, he’s quite famous – I remember, that kind of music brought me to another world actually. So I said that’s the music I want to make and thats what will give me the most sensation. That’s what I love in electronic music, you can have good feelings as well as sad music and all of that with a lot of energy.

Can you explain the reason behind the name Henri PFR?
It’s really simple, my real name is Henri Peiffer. I just removed the vowels in my last name to create PFR. However it’s annoying sometimes as people sometimes say my name as Henry and not Henri, and sometimes mistakes with PFR – mixing up the letters. So it’s really a complicated name, I’m not so happy with it.

How did your collaboration ‘Wave Goodbye’ with Robin Schulz come about?
I remember I was at a party in France at 3am and I received a message from Robin’s tour manager. He said he was at the airport with Robin Schulz and they were listening to my stuff. I thought it was a joke at the time, because I only had around 10k plays on that track. I couldn’t imagine a guy like Robin Schulz was listening to my music! I got him to send me a photo of him and Robin to prove it. Then Robin himself sent me positive messages and invited me to a party in Paris. At the party I showed him a track I was working on and he loved it so much he decided to collaborate with me on it. We worked on it via Skype as he was always touring around the world. It was really cool, for me he is one of my biggest inspirations and to make a track with an inspiration is a dream for a lot of people.

When working on a new song, what is the first part you focus on?
The main part for me is the lyrics, what you want to say in the song; then comes the chords. It really depends though, sometimes i focus on the drums, the sound design, the melody, it’s a hard question because it varies from track to track.

If you could work with any vocalist past or present who would you pick?
That’s another tough question, if I say one i will forget 10! But i think i will pick Mike Jagger from The Rolling Stones. My father is the biggest fan of The Rolling Stones in the world, if I say to him I did a track with Mike Jagger – he would be so proud. So I say Mike Jagger for my father!

What is your favourite studio snack?
It’s not good to say but I drink way too much Red Bull in the studio. The studio life is not very healthy at all, you stay really late and hardly eat. When I have an idea for a track, I can’t stop working until I’ve made it.

You started on Armada and have been signed with Sony since, how is it working with a major label?
It’s really cool, I’m really happy with Sony – it’s Sony Belgium so it’s a bit smaller but still has all the support from the major label. I’m not a little fish in a big ocean, because the label is still quite small. I have my place and I have the people who work with me and provide me with the big contacts.

What are some goals for yourself in 2019?
In the short time I want to continue making music and performing, basically continuing what I’m doing now. In the long term I’d love to become a movie composer.

You can listen to Henri PFR’s most recent release with close friend HIDDN below!

Julian Jordan Interview: Garrix Collab, Going B2B, His Next Goals + More

Interview

Oliver Tryon

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November 27, 2018

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Julian Jordan Interview: Garrix Collab, Going B2B, His Next Goals + More

We sat down with Julian Jordan at ADE, we talked about the upcoming Martin Garrix collaboration, as well as who his dream collaboration would be with. He also discussed what his future brings, he’ll be working closely with STMPD on multiple of his next releases. Julian Jordan has a lot of upcoming projects we are excited for, his future is looking very bright!

You can watch our video interview below or alternatively direct on Facebook here.

Kryder Interview: His Sunnies, Work-Life Balance, 2019 Goals + More

Interview

Oliver Tryon

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November 27, 2018

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Kryder Interview: His Sunnies, Work-Life Balance, 2019 Goals + More

We sat down with English DJ/Producer Chris Knight aka Kryder at ADE 2018 for an interview. Topics ranged from his Amsterdam experiences through the years, his goals for 2019, how he manages his non existent work life balance, his musical inspiration and much more!

C: How’s ADE been for you so far?
K: I just arrived last night actually. We went out and hooked up with Erick Morillo and watched him down at his party. That was sick, really sick. Good house music and good to catch up with everyone. Just played a Clubbing TV party this morning. That was pretty wild. Just literally rolled out of bed, straight onto the dance floor, so to speak. That was really cool.

C: Is that why you’re wearing the sunnies?
K: That’s exactly why. I’m feeling a lot of pain behind here.

C: So we need to get you some Panadol? That’s ADE for you isn’t it?
K: Yeah definitely. You’ve got to expect it. It’s super hectic and great. Absolutely great.

C: What’s your favourite part of ADE?
K: Probably the city, actually. Amsterdam. Absolutely love Amsterdam. I would probably live here if I could. It’s really sick. Amsterdam is good for DJs. The airport is amazing and there’s so many studios and music is everywhere here. So I think it is quite inspiring for DJs. That’s probably the only reason why I would love it. That I would love to live here. Nothing to do with weed and prostitutes.

C: This year has been huge for you. You’ve just released ‘Billionare’ and you’ve had a bunch of other global hits. How do you keep things fresh? How do you keep your sound fresh and groovy whilst still keeping to your signature tribal sound?
K: It’s just a consistent challenge with myself actually. I always try to up my game with every release or always try and stay true to what I genuinely love myself. But always try and take it a little bit out of my comfort zone and develop something fresh and sort of exciting that way.

C: What would you say is your greatest inspiration musically? How do you come up with an idea and how do you see it through?
K: It comes from travelling. I’ve spent a lot of time in South America and I really got involved in the latin side of things down there. And also a lot more not dance music inspired stuff. More folklore sort of stuff. I got really into that sort of side of stuff. Started sampling and working with those artists and actually fusing what they do with what I do. Had some really great results with that. Different instruments. I also love Asia as well. I get a lot of inspiration from Japan. Love visiting there. I also listen to a lot of film music. I love film scores. Like Hans Zimmer and these sort of composers. I’m inspired by that kind of stuff as well.

You’ve mentioned that you enjoy Japan. Is that your favourite country to tour or to go to?
K: I would honestly say yeah. I would say Tokyo’s definitely my favourite city and I always spend a few weeks there when I go. I’ve been going there every year for the last five years. I just love everything about Japan really. I love the culture, the food, everything really. I would live there if I could speak Japanese.

C: Are you trying to learn?
K: I can barely speak English!

C: In terms of work/life balance, is there such a thing? How do you keep a balance?
K: That’s a super interesting question. That’s an absolute struggle with this lifestyle. I mean, I’ve killed myself on multiple occasions. I’ve ended up in hospital, had lungs collapse on me mid tour, pneumonia, and all sorts of stuff. I’ve definitely taken a step back with regards to the touring side of stuff and actually looking more into the logistics of travelling. I used to say “yes” all the time to gigs in the summer. Sometimes I’d be playing 20 countries in a month. I actually played 18 countries in August just gone and I felt absolutely horrific after I came off that. Your body clock is all over the place. You’re so out of sync. You don’t eat well. You don’t exercise. You use alcohol to get you through and into the party mood sometimes as well which is such a bad way of doing things. I think it’s just about working with people that actually care for your health. That don’t just keep pushing you into the money pit all the time. I think that’s really important. I think getting a balance right is something that I would love to try and achieve. I still haven’t conquered that yet.

C: So it’s a work in progress? It’s definitely the team that surrounds you.
K: Yeah. I honestly think that’s it because you make… You can’t make all the decisions yourself. Sometimes you make bad decisions. Especially when you’re not thinking right. If you’ve done three gigs, no sleep, and someone says, “Oh! We’ve just got a last minute gig for you!” You know you should say no but then it’s like, “Oh well, it’s only a two hour flight. I can keep going.” And it doesn’t work out for you well in the end, unfortunately. I think that you definitely need to surround yourself with good people.

C: One of your very first gigs as Kryder, you opened for Tiesto in Ibiza. How was that? What was going through your mind before and during your set?
K: I was generally nervous and excited and feeling all sorts of wild things. I brought a ton of my friends with me to Ibiza and lived like a rockstar for a weekend. We stayed at the infamous Pikes Hotel and partied consistently for about 72 hours. It was absolutely wild. It was a great opportunity and I treated it as if I was never going to get another opportunity again. I played the best set I possibly could, partied really hard, just absolutely loving life and enjoying it. I was quite fortunate that sprung into a career after that.

C: You just concluded your label Sosumi and you started Kryteria. What brought about that change? What sort of artist/sound/music are you looking for?
K: Again, it’s kind of always pushing forwards. We did 100 releases with Sosumi and I thought it was time to call it a day. I didn’t know what direction to take it in and I didn’t know how to develop it. I hit a ceiling with it, so to speak. The idea was to team up with a much bigger label, Spinning Records, and get some help from them with their distribution channels. But also take what I loved about Sosumi and use a little bit of that to build a new platform and a new outlet for musicians and DJs and producers that I love as well. It’s about opportunities and moving the sound and what we do forward within the scene.

C: Can we talk about your boat party at ADE? How did you plan it?
K: Yeah! I’d love to! Again, it was really cool. I came over here and looked at a boat, filmed it all, put it up on Instagram and said, “Should we hire this for the boat party? 600 people, are we going to be able to sell it out?” And we sold it out over a month ago! And it’s really cool. I just invited people to play. Obviously we’ve got the guys from the label putting out a compilation called “God Save The Groove” so everyone who has produced a record is playing on that compilation. And then we’ve got a ton of friends and we’re setting sail on Saturday and can’t wait for it really.

C: Any goals for 2019?
K: Probably referring back to one of your previous questions, just to try and stay sober and balance my life a bit better.

You can listen to Kryder’s latest single out on Spinnin’ below

Sunnery James & Ryan Marciano Interview: Steve Angello, New Music, Their Label + More

Interview

Oliver Tryon

-

November 19, 2018

0

Sunnery James & Ryan Marciano Interview: Steve Angello, New Music, Their Label + More

We caught up with Dutch duo Sunnery James & Ryan Marciano in Amsterdam. We chatted about their label, how Steve Angello is a father figure, their latest music and their upcoming ‘Sexy By Nature‘ event. They’re really awesome guys, you can check out their latest release with Marc Volt below the interview.

How’s ADE been? What shows did you play?

We did our own label gathering on Wednesday, we invited some friends, it was like a pop-up store. We just wanted it to be a drink or two, but it turned into a big party, people jumping, screaming – it was fun! After that, we played at Oliver Heldens’ party unannounced. We got to play after Oliver and people were really surprised, fun gig. On Thursday we played at the 538 DJ hotel, doing an own showcase and then Saturday, we played at AMF, in the Amsterdam Arena. And last but not least on Sunday we had our own label party at Mad Fox, which was so much fun! Busy times!

You’ve got a pop-up party and a club night for your label. Is it the first time SONO is at ADE?

This year is our second time with SONO at ADE! Last year we were at Mad Fox as well but we organized it very last minute, so you can think of 2018 being the first proper year.

Your new label SONO is doing very well. What inspired you to create your own label?

We kept on getting promos from artists and they were not your typical EDM song, so they weren’t getting signed anywhere. We would play the music but not do much with it after that. Everyone would ask us “What is this track?”, so we decided to create the label to release them ourselves. We talked with Armada and started the label with them. Right now it’s taken off, we have so many promos!

What type of music or artists are you looking to sign?

A lot of people send tribal music with the beats and drums. But really, if you send us a track of what’s cool, what’s fresh we would listen to it. We aren’t genre specific, it’s more the sound and the arrangement. Of course, in our sets we play a lot of tribal sounds, but we also play techno and progressive, we play whatever sounds cool to us. If it’s different we will sign it, we love different music. With the label, we aren’t into signing artists on multi track deals, we want them to be free. Of course, if an artist wants to be with us for many tracks that’s great so we have a close connection.

You’ve got the ‘Sexy By Nature’ event on December 29th. Are you excited?

Yes! The 29th will be our New Year’s Eve. Normally it’s during ADE, last year we sold out 5000 tickets and it was amazing. 5000 people were still there at 5 o’clock in the morning! This year we had AMF, so we didn’t want people to choose where to see us, so we moved Sexy By Nature to Rotterdam on December 29th.

Who else is playing?

The legendary Erick Morillo, alongside Kungs, Vinny James and Marc Volt, with whom we just released a brand-new track: ‘In My Mind’. The second area will be hosted by ‘My Day My After’ with performances by Leroy Styles, Michel de Hey and Rancido.

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A post shared by SUNNERY JAMES (@sunneryjames) on Oct 20, 2018 at 5:12pm PDT

You recently released your collaboration with Tom Staar on Size Records. It’s not your first time on Size – what makes Size so special?

It’s Steve Angello. That guy basically gave us a chance internationally. We played together with Swedish House Mafia at Sensation in Amsterdam and he said we were amazing. Then Steve came to a show of ours on the beach and afterwards said he was blown away. He wanted us for the Swedish House Mafia Masquerade Hotel shows at Pacha Ibiza. The summer had already started so we didn’t think it would happen and we thought he was full of shit. But in the car 20 minutes later we received an email from Swedish House Mafia’s manager; Amy Thomson saying: “thanks Steve for the introduction, we need you guys for four dates blah blah blah…”. From then it went very fast, Eric Morillo was in Ibiza all the time and he loved our sets, so we played with him in New York, then Steve took us to LA and then everything started. Steve for us, well we are the same age but, he feels like a father. He literally gave us the opportunity and we are never going to forget that. These kind of moments in your career, you cannot ignore them. Tom Staar has a label and so do we, but when Steve asked for the track we have to say yes, it is Size Records!

So could we expect you to be supporting Swedish House Mafia on their upcoming shows?

I don’t know, it would be a big honor to play for them of course.

Is your track ‘Coffee Shop’ referring to Amsterdam coffee shops or normal coffee shops?

You tell me! That’s why we made it like that, it’s for your imagination. The Amsterdam Coffeeshops are not for us, since we only drink. But sometimes you do go into the coffee shops with your friends.

Your latest release ‘Born Again’ is pretty unique. What was the inspiration behind it?

It’s actually not so unique, 10 years ago Ricky L released the track ‘Born Again’, there was the Pastaboys remix and the Balearic Soul remix which was the big one. They emailed us 10 years later once the rights became free. They asked us if we wanted to release it again with our own version under our own name, we looked at each other and immediately said yes! We played the original track out so much that we are the ones who made the track big. The original was so good, so we only added some drums, rearranged and remastered it and here it is! We’re so happy people are jumping to it and that we are actually on the track.

‘You Are’, the collaboration with Armin Van Buuren was a great success. You released ‘You Are Too’, was that an alternative version of the initial production?

The thing is, it was just a joke actually. We play ‘You Are’ so many times and in the car, we decided we needed to make a different version just for the sets. We made the new melody with our mouths and then Armin sent back the melody the next day. Then two more phone calls and ‘You Are Too’ was done. After we started playing out, all the fans started screaming that they need it. We actually wanted to use that melody for something else, but after all the fans heard it, we had to put it out like that. It’s even going harder than the original version now actually!

Any collaborations or upcoming projects that you can give some hints on?

We just release a track, ‘In My Mind’ with Marc Volt. Marc is a really talented guy that we will be supporting on our label a lot.

What can we expect from Sunnery James & Ryan Marciano in 2019?

We are aiming for an amazing time spot at Tomorrowland and hoping to bring back the Sexy By Nature stage again. We hope to make time for more studio, we have so much inspiration – but we also have so many great upcoming shows, so it’s kind of hard to choose. I think our plan is to expand ‘Sexy By Nature’ – we have the radio show and now we make the party bigger, we hope for exclusive venues. But really, we hope to play all the big festivals where we can see all our fans!

You can listen to Sunnery James and Ryan Marciano’s banging new release with Marc Volt below!

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