The boys from Amsterdam bring us one of the tunes of the summer
Interview : Dan Prince
Peter, Ariaan welcome to DMCWORLD – where in the world are you right now?
“Amsterdam baby!”
Well you have done it again, sent dancefloors around the world crazy thanks to your music. This time around it’s the sound of your new Anjunebeats EP title track ‘Deep In My Soul’ that is doing all the damage, please talk us through the sound and history of the 3 track EP…
“We’ve always just been doing our own thing. Trying to evolve our sound, always looking for better ways to entertain and stimulate. Currently you could say we’re in a ‘less is more’ phase. – and ‘Deep in my Soul’ is a great example of that concept.”
We were in the crowd at the Radio1 party at Privilige in Ibiza when Pete Tong dropped ‘Deep In My Soul’ during his back to back set with Sasha. Unbelievable scenes, that must have been quite a moment for you as Sasha is in your own words…“Sasha was and is still the man”…?
“We’ve never been very gifted at marketing ourselves, we’ve just focused on the music. It’s nice to see that even in today’s market, music can still do the talking. And to get some love from people we respect and look up to in the industry, is a nice affirmation.”
Okay let’s rewind for a moment. You have been involved in the dance scene since 2000/2001, Aad with Cyber Records and Peter at Sadie in Amsterdam. You met though 4 years later when the idea of 16BL was first dreamt up – surely in that four year gap you both knew of each other in that small Dutch city?
“Well no, we didn’t meet. Yes Amsterdam is a small city, but it’s not that small hehehe. Knowing about roughly 800,000 people is a tall order for normal, non autistic folk!”
What were those early studio sessions like, did you fall into a groove quite quickly…
“Well we basically didn’t have a clue what we were doing. We both loved music and had been (semi out of control) hobbyists for most our lives. The fact that our music was picked up quite quickly was more luck than skill. But we sure had a lot of fun and very loud speakers (eastlakes) that made our ears hurt after a while. So there is a tip for all producers: never get monitors that still sound clear and crisp at the pain barrier of your ears. Don’t do it!!”
You quite happily recognize pop music as playing a big part in your musical upbringing. Who are some of the bands that spring to mind when you think of GREAT pop music?
“Fleetwood Mac, Creedence Clearwater Revival, the Cure, Simon & Garfunkel, some Pink Floyd and of course Taylor Dayne!! Tell it to my heart…”
Love this quote from you guys; “We’re here to glorify the music, not to glorify ourselves”. Was that a dig at other producers from around the world who you think are in it for the lifestyle and not the music, or just how it is for 16BL?
“Music is a powerful, beautiful thing that has played an important role at many times in the history of humanity. If a marketing avalanche and twitter wars and meatsuits are needed to sell music, then the music itself must be pretty meaningless. Because good, inspired music moves people. I’d rather see people in the industry spend more time on improving the quality of the music they put out. Because music is art and not a piece of chewing gum.”
It ís that time of year again, the annual DJ Top100. I interviewed Arthur Baker this week, he remarked “there are too many DJs and genres for a realistic competition, it needs to split”. What are your thoughts on that – do you actually give a shit?
“I’m just not intelligent enough to even understand the distinction between certain genres anymore. We started out in progressive, but now progressive is EDM and the style that used to be called progressive really doesn’t have a name anymore. While I could understand why progressive was called progressive back in the early 2000s, now there isn’t really anything progressive about the style that is called progressive.”
“A good DJ set is like a conversation with the crowd.” Discuss.
“The function of the DJ is to try to bring the best possible experience to crowds every time and everywhere. The DJ has a certain taste and the crowd wants to hear a certain thing. So the DJ needs to start a conversation to give the people what they want to hear, and still infuse that with his own style and own taste.”
True or false : Your manager used to ban you from restaurants because you made too much mess?
“False. Restaurants used to ban my manager because he was too clean.”
The latest studio toy you treated yourself to?
“A bass-triangle.”
What is the worst job you have ever had?
“Making cardboard boxes when I was 15.”
Favourite tune of the summer of 2014?
“Coldplay – ‘Magic’.”
A recent quote from a certain superstar DJ : “I believe true DJing is actually an art, but it’s a dying art, as everyone is pushing the sync button. It ís a real shame when you see a DJ plug his laptop in and call this DJing. Music will always evolve but sometimes not in the best way.” What are your thoughts on that?
“In the end I don’t want to judge any way of DJ-ing. If hitting the sync button still results in great parties and a good time for everyone, then why not? I don’t judge the method, only the result. When we went from vinyl to CDs at the beginning, everybody looked at you funny when you didn’t bring vinyl. Then we went from CDs to memory sticks, then from memory sticks to laptops and DJ-software, then to some DJs just pressing play and acting as if they were DJing. But that’s progress, can’t stop it and it’s even also pointless being bitter about it.”
The Forbes DJ Rich List with DJs earning over $20m a year. Opinion…?
“That’s supply and demand, is that wrong?”
Something you said back in 2009…“Europeans are much more closed, and this also translates into the parties.” You still sticking with that thought?
“Sure, compared to the warmer countries. No one will deny there is a difference between a crowd here in Amsterdam or in Brazil for instance.”
What is the record that…
…reminds you of your childhood?
Sergei Prokovief – Peter and the Wolf
Reminds you of being broken hearted?
Vicente Amigo – Ciudad de las Ideas
You wish you would have made?
George Michael – Last Christmas
Paris Hilton earning $200,000 a gig at Amnesia in Ibiza. Thoughts?
“Let’s focus instead on the people that do good around the world and get practically nothing for it. They deserve the attention and press.”
And finally, what is coming out next from you studio wise?
“We’re working on some remixes of some 16BL classics and have new material ready which you will hear from us soon!
http://www.twitter.com/16bl
http://www.youtube.com/16bitlolitas
http://www.soundcloud.com/16bitlolitas
