Q1. Congratulations on your "Aurora" release. Can you tell us more about it?
Thank you! The track started out with the main chord progression, I really wanted to get that change in emotion, in a cinematic way. So instead of doing the normal 3-4 chords then loop it, I wanted to have two sets, two different emotions, blending seamlessly back and forth. The mix with the funky bassline just happened, as I've been wanting to go back to more funky basslines for a while now, but it's never quite worked without sounding dated, but this time I really felt it added something fresh.
Q2. How is your 2017 so far?
Great! Phoenix, From The Ashes, Scared To Be Lonely Remix and Aurora, and it's just May, I've been really productive and inspired! I get tired quickly of sounds, and especially as "Future House" blew up as much as it did, I needed to seek inspiration in other areas, and found it in techno and funk.
Q3. What are your tour plans for the next few months? Any festivals /events lined up you can tell us about?
So this summer will be very special for me, as I just became a dad, so I'm going to spend alot of time with my 8 m.o. daughter and actually take some real time off for the first time in many years. But before that I'm playing MyLED in San Diego next weekend, and Tchami is headlining it so I'm really happy that I finally get to see him play aswell! I'm also doing some festivals in the late summer, and I have a new track I'm finishing up as we speak which I think will be a good summer tune :)
Q4. Are there any artists in particular you would love to collab with this year?
I think a Oliver Heldens, Tchami & Funkin Matt collab would sound dope.
Q5. Which track would be your favourite from your work and what inspired you to produce that track?
That's impossible to say, but the ones that's become classics in my catalogue are Elephant, Rapture, Phoenix & Aurora. They all have that combo of melody and sound aesthetics that makes them stand the test of time. The oldest track in my catalogue I still think sounds good enough for my sets is I Wish (Fool's Gold, 2012).
Q6. Can you pick 1 or 2 must plays in your sets and why?
The 4 mentioned above is must plays, Elephant and Rapture because they are fan favorites and Phoenix/Aurora because they are my personal favs at the moment!
Q7. Do you have any cool production tips you can share for aspiring producers looking to improve their skills?
Imagine your track as a visual space. Now place every single element in it's own place within that space, use reverb/delay and eq to place elements closer or farther away, Pan to open the middle and be careful to not have too much overlap between elements in frequencies. If you have a sound that is colliding with something else, then picking a new sound might be smarter that eq'ing something into oblivion.
Q8. Please leave a message for your fans in Japan.
I really hope to come and play a tour in Japan, it's #1 on my wishlist as I hear so much great about it! So hopefully I'll be there very soon! Until then, keep sending me demos and promos in social media, and thank you for all the support on my latest tracks!
