Istanbul in the house! Massive new ‘Just Livid’ tune ripping it up
Interview:Dan Prince
Faruk welcome to DMCWORLD, where in the world are you today?
“Thanks for having me! I’m currently taking some time off with my family in my hometown of Istanbul.”
Well you have done it again, another seminal release – this time it’s ‘Just Livid’ doing the damage. Talk us through the sound and history of the track…
“My new single ‘Just Livid’ with ReOrder is my debut on Ferry Corsten’s label Flashover Recordings as well as the debut release on the new Flashover Trance label. Tibor (ReOrder) and I have been friends for years, I really admire his work so we’ve been talking about doing something together when both of our schedules allowed it to happen. His sound is more into the 138-140 Uplifting Pure Trance direction whereas I’m all about the Festival/Big Room Trance and the result is Just Livid, best of both worlds!”
When I told the Buzz Chart office I was interviewing you today they shouted out…”we love Faruk – his new tune is all about that lead hook on the chorus that takes you to another place mentally and physically”. Thoughts on that little comment?
“Well thank you, the love is mutual! I would have to agree, my lead hooks are the main element that drives my music and creates the impact you would want a Trance record to make, mentally and physically.”
Like many other big stars of dance music, you started your musical path by learning the piano. So, you walk into The Savoy Hotel in London and sit down at the piano. What piece of music do you play us to wow us…?
“I’m not nearly as good as I used to be with the piano, I wish I could. The one piece I would pick to wow you would be Scherzo No. 2 Op. 31 of Frederic Chopin. Dark and intense, just the way I like it!”
What did your friends at High School think when Van Dyk signed your first record to his Vandit label when you were 16?
“None of my friends at high school had any idea what this was all about, they were just happy I signed a music deal of some sort but had no clue how huge this actually was for me.”
You became fascinated by the label side of the record industry at an early age, soon teaming up with Joseph Areas from Miami to form the Arisa Audio label group. What was it about this area of the business that appealed to you in the first place?
“Joseph and I became friends way before we became partners and at the time I had ‘what I thought’ a really strong record that nobody wanted to sign. So whilst talking to Joseph about it, we thought, why the hell not? We can start our own brand to release and promote the music we think is good and means something. Around January 2008, Arisa Audio was born. With tons of effort and passion put into it, the label shortly became a genre favorite and kept growing. Our main focus at Arisa Audio nowadays is our latest brainchild, Metanoia Music, a brand new label that focuses on the more Housy/EDM sounds and it’s great to see it do so well!”
What are the biggest changes in the record industry you have noticed since you became a label boss?
“Well I’m not a veteran in the label business yet so I won’t be telling you about how sad it is that vinyl is no longer there or anything like that. What I did witness however, is the takeover of Streaming. Streaming is the future and will grow beyond the point of making digital sales irrelevant, especially for new artists.”
Who are some of the up and coming producers we should be looking out for coming out of Turkey?
“You should definitely keep an eye on Nurettin Colak, an extremely talented multi-genre producer, as well as upcoming Trance producer Arman Aydin and Sezer Uysal who has been making waves in Deep House for a while already.”
In an interview once, you claimed your biggest claim to fame was getting the Turkey name out there. There seems to be so much good music coming out of your home country right now, why has it taken so long?
“I sadly can’t say that there’s a lot of quality Electronic Dance Music coming from Turkey just yet, but I really hope it’s getting there. It’s taking a long time due to the fact that, as a culture, Electronic Dance Music does not exist in the country itself. Daytime radio shows no interest, I can’t name a single promoter dedicated to pushing the music, and the obvious lacking of quality music being made within Turkey. I’m just really proud to be in a position where I can open doors for the few but very talented people around me and keep pushing Turkey in the world of Electronic Dance Music.”
What is the current top 10 you are spinning?
“In no particular order…
Dash Berlin & Jay Cosmic feat. Collin McLoughlin – Here Tonight (Club Mix)
Andy Moor – Fade To Light (Joseph Areas Dirty Rock Mix)
Faruk Sabanci – Multitude
Ferry Corsten – Festival Crash
Cosmic Gate & Orjan Nilsen – Fair Game
MaRLo vs. Fisherman & Hawkins – Forces
Faruk Sabanci & ReOrder – Just Livid
David Gravell – Timebomb
Andrew Bayer – Bullet Catch
Qubicon feat. Laura V – Sad Eyes
What is the record that…
…reminds you of your childhood?
Robert Miles – Children.
…always gets you dancing?
Tiesto – Lethal Industry
…you wish you would have made?
Sasha – Xpander
It would be very easy to site people like Paul Van Dyk, Oaky and Armin as heroes or influences of yours. With that in mind, who do you think are some of the unsung heroes of the trance scene that you don’t think get the recognition they deserve?
“Not that they aren’t getting recognition, but extremely talented artists like Mark Sixma and Leon Bolier deserve so much more!”
It is your birthday. Who are the 3 DJs you ask to come and spin for you?
“Ha! Now that’s the toughest question of the day! How about the biggest B2B2B of all time with Armin, Ferry and Tiesto? J.”
Surprise us with an album in your collection we never thought you’d own…
“I actually have the entire Buddha Bar compilation series and I love it!”
Best ever festival experience?
“A State of Trance 600 – Den Bosch. I mean, WOW.”
Are you still a terrible cook dude?
“I’m the worst cook there is, I’m more of an eater in case you didn’t notice with that massive belly I have, haha!”
Where have some of the stand out gigs been for you recently?
“That’s always a tough pick and choose, but it was really special to play the first Armada Night of Turkey, also had a lot of fun playing in Germany after a long time, the In Search Of Sunrise show in Tunisia was a blast too!”
Who is going to win the World Cup?
“HOLLAND!!!”
And finally, what is coming out next from you studio wise?
“There’s so much in the pipeline that I can’t giveaway just yet! But expect more instrumental bangers, collaborations with some of my favorite producers as well as a vocal track with a singer I’ve always wanted to work with. Productive times!”
