The sound of 2014. Dancefloor – get ready for a Typhoon
Interview : Dan Prince
Hey Julian welcome to DMCWORLD Magazine, where are you right now?
“Thanks! I’m in my studio at my parent’s house, in my hometown of Wageningen in The Netherlands.”
I have been in the Buzz Chart office and myself and Guy Garret agree if ever there was a perfect name (s) for a track out right now for an artist, ‘Typhoon/Storm’ is perfect for you! What an explosion of sound you have brought the world dude! Talk us through the EP…
“With the first track ‘Typhoon’ I wanted to create a feel-good vibe with a lot of energy. A track on which you can celebrate anything and party hard. I wanted the melody to have a little story line, and the bass line to have a heavy edge because I really like that. The second track ‘Storm’ has a bit darker vibe to it than ‘Typhoon’. It’s also a little bit more complex and dramatic. Had a lot of fun making this one!”
We have been chatting with a load of the headline DJs filling arenas at the moment…and they all agree you have the sound for 2014! Thoughts on that…?
“That’s sick! Really didn’t expect that to happen when I made the tracks. I combined the sounds I really liked and hoped to sound a bit refreshing, so hearing this is great!
Okay let’s kick back for a moment, and discover where this musical adventure began. Tell us about when you first started to appreciate music and the artists you were listening to…
“I grew up listening to all kinds of music, from hip-hop to dance music to movie scores. I was always a big fan of Tiësto’s music, but also rappers like Eminem and producers like Dr. Dre and Timbaland.”
When did a career in music first appeal to you?
“About 5/6 years ago I was only fantasizing about it and didn’t really tried to get out there (fortunately). And about 2 years ago I began to work on a serious career in music.”
Early DJ/producer inspirations?
“Deadmau5, Tiësto, Wolfgang Gartner, Dr Dre, Timbaland, Hans Zimmer…”
What were your early steps into making music?
“Playing around with FL studio and making hip-hop beats for fun 6 years ago. I tried to recreate my favorite songs, and also recreate every synth I liked of a song. I also played piano for one year and learned how melodies and song structures worked.”
What did your family think of your choice of career?
“A little bit concerned at first because I quit school, but fully supportive and always enthusiastic.”
What is the current top 10 you are spinning?
“In random order…
Julian Calor – Typhoon
Dada life – Born to Rage
Julian Calor – Storm
Nom de Strip – Techno Saturday
Mike Hawkings – Soldiers
Futuristic Polarbears – Back To Earth
Vicetone – Lowdown
Wolfgang Gartner – Piranha
Dyro – Black Smoke
Julian Calor – Space Dial
So let’s talk about your teaser video for ‘Typhoon’, shot at ADE with the World’s No. 1 DJ Hardwell spinning the tune and introducing you at his Revealed party…to thousands of f**king people! When did you discover you would be up on stage being introduced to the masses…and did you celebrate that night?
“That was a really sick night! I knew that maybe he would spin ‘Typhoon’, but I only knew like 15 minutes before it happened that I could join him on stage! I’ve never stood in front of so many people before so that was really cool. After that I went celebrating it with my friends in the crowd with a couple of drinks.”
Tell us about your studio set up?
“I use a Macbook Pro and with Beyerdynamic 990 Pro headphones. I make almost everything with my laptop and headphones. I have some studio monitors to, but only use them as reference and for DJing. My DAW is Ableton Live 9. Favorite plugins: Massive and Sylenth1.”
Okay some quick fires…
It may not be good for my image but Julian Calor really loves…
“Cartoons for children. That’s bad right?”
Not many people know this, but I am really good at…
“Sleeping.”
Everyone has 1, a guilty pleasure song we love but really shouldn’t. Mine is…
“Paul Stanley – Live To Win. Get’s me psyched haha…”
The last GREAT album I heard was…
“Damage Control by Mat Zo. A really great album.”
Where are some of the DJ shows you are REALLY looking forward to this summer?
“Looking forward to see the biggest names at Tomorrowland and Ultra, and of course Ibiza this year.”
Best piece of advice you have ever been given?
“Don’t always take advice from someone.”
Nice! When was the last time you stopped a DJ and asked him what he was playing…?
“I have never done that!”
And finally, what is coming out next from you studio wise…?
“Remixes!! And a lot of other new stuff, so stay tuned for that…”
http://www.facebook.com/JulianCalor
http://soundcloud.com/juliancalor
http://www.youtube.com/user/JulianCalor
https://twitter.com/JulianCalorDJ
