‘Tears of Gold’ – the latest piece of sheer class from one of the dancefloor kings
Interview : Dan Prince
“When I get asked proper questions, I like to take the time out and give proper answers rather than all this superficial bullshit” – our kinda producer! The Dutch supremo gets stuck in…
Hey Patrick welcome to DMCWORLD, where in the world are you today?
“Thanks for having me! Just back in London prepping for my Global Gathering debut this Friday in the Hangar!
http://globalgathering.com/line-up-friday/
A huge new tune from you coming out on your own Color Code Music that has already smashed the Buzz Chart and has had plenty of big name support and all over Radio 1. Talk us through the sound and history of ‘Tears Of Gold’…
“Well, it’s actually one of the first records where I have been very actively involved in writing the lyrics of the track as well. I wrote the chorus last year, but needed to turn it into a whole song, so decided to hook up again with my good friends ‘The Saviors’, who I wrote a track called ‘Live For the Moment’ with last year. We generally write the basic chords and lyrics together and I then take this away and write a full track around it. I wanted to do something different vocal wise, so got introduced by Mark Hartley (glowing in the dark vocals – former DMC Buzz chart No. 1) to Rebecca White, who provided some beautiful haunting vocals, which really make the record in my opinion!”
Buy link : http://www.beatport.com/release/tears-of-gold/1331393
Your first big break in the music industry came via winning the Best New DJ Award at Danssalon in Endhoven where Fedde Le Grand and Marco V were residents at the time. Out of 300 other DJs you were the only guy playing CDs – something you were ridiculed about at the time. So, you must feel good at how technology has progressed with you – but also, what are your thoughts on the resurgence of vinyl?
“Yeah, this was back in 2001 when ‘cdj’s’ were a big ‘no no’. Everyone told me it was ‘not done’ and when I played at clubs, I’d never tell in advance that I’d play with cd’s as it was frowned upon. Winning this competition was a big ‘f**k you’ for me to those people and just confirmed to me that it doesn’t matter what you play with – it’s about what music you play, when you play it and how you play it! I started playing with cd’s mainly because I was intrigued with this new technology, but also because I couldn’t afford buying lots of vinyl – I was a poor student hehe – I guess that’s why you see so many DJs play with laptop these days as well… I have always been keen on trying new things – Back in 2008 I played for several years with M-Audio torq, because then it was ahead of its time as it had VST fx integration, which I thought was really cool. Now I play with CDJ’s again, but also use the Maschine as part of my set up to bring a bit of live element and performance into my set. Don’t get me wrong I love vinyl as well – as soon as I started making a bit of money, I was buying vinyl as well and for me it’s the most fun to mix with – it’s just not practical to travel with around the world. I think the reason it’s coming back again is because people like ‘limited edition’/exclusive stuff when everything is widely available – whether its music/clothes/art etc. Also, I guess some people might think it gives you ‘credibility’…all I know is that a dancefloor full of people just want to be entertained and hear good music and have a great night – that’s our job at the end of the day.”
You started your musical life as a DJ and then progressed to producing. It is impossible for a wanna be DJ to break into the scene in 2014 without a big record behind them. Is that a good or a bad thing in your opinion?
“Yeah, I see myself as a DJ and then producer, because when I started DJs were famous for being a great DJ. This also explained why I only started producing back in 2008, because before that I didn’t really consider it as an option. Now a lot of ‘DJs’ are famous for being great producers or having amazing engineers/ghost producers rather than for being great DJs…I think you can still get high up without it, but then you’d need to do something different and unique that people purely book you for your act. However, to get to the absolute top, you definitely need big hits to back you up, because you need to reach a wider audience outside of the clubs, who wants to come and see you play/buy your music. That’s just the way it is whether you’re a DJ, singer, band – it’s all about creating demand for yourself..:”
Your first encounter with dance music came via some mixtapes your friend stole off his big brother – can you recall the genres of music on those tape that got you hooked?
“ Yeah, I still have those tapes from 1989 hehe – was a mixture of house, techno and some Italo house – at that time it was the techno that grabbed me quite a lot.”
A great weekend for you last weekend in the Far East, what were some of your take home memories from that little trip?
”It’s often random, fun stuff! For instance, at Volar in Hong Kong, halfway during my set I heard a trombone player improvising along to my music, before I knew it, someone pushed him in the DJ booth and was playing alongside my set – I like these kind of random and fun situations.”
Wow! We were in the crowd for your recent Ministry of Sound set in London town. Has this seminal club still got the best sound system in the world?
“Ah cool – yeah, this is where I hold my residency – great to be part of such an institution. Well, I haven’t been to every club in the world, so can’t 100% confirm it, but to me the sound system is amazing and it’s a joy to be able to play on it and to listen to other DJs play wicked music.”
You left Holland at the age of 17 because you were bored with it and also because London was where it was at for clubbing at the time. What is the best and worst thing about living in London – and other than your family, what do you miss the most about your home country?
“Best thing about London is – you can’t get bored here – if you want, there is always new stuff to do and new things to discover. Worst thing – housing/living standards – coming from Holland where the living standard is generally pretty high – living in London you basically need a lot of money to be able to live in a decent area, in a normal size flat/house, which is probably achievable for 10% of the people here…. Other than friends and family, I’d say I miss some of the food and candy – so when I do get back to see them, I obviously stock up as much as I can.”
A quote from Faithless’s Sister Bliss this week…”I think people will become bored with the stock crude generic sounds of EDM and the artists themselves may be somewhat musically bankrupt (David Guetta even admitted as such in a recent interview) as there is only so much touring you can do before it impacts on studio time and having space to think creatively.” Thoughts on that?
“I think this is relevant to any sub genre of dance music. Over the years you have seen different styles reach its maximum saturation point and return to ‘the background’. The only difference is that ‘EDM’ has reached a much wider commercial audience than any other dance genre previously. It has happened to Trance, Funky House, Electro House, Minimal etc etc – sub genres come and go. The main issue is that these saturation points are hit much quicker than ‘back in the day’ as people can create a copy of a big track and get live in the stores within a couple of weeks (in theory). When music was sold mainly physically – it took much longer for a subgenre to become popular, let along reach a point where everyone started copying each other and reach that saturation point. Any DJ/Producer needs a balance between travelling and spending time in the studio – we’re not robots – hence why some major names only release several releases a year, but make sure these are really big tracks. I guess for some other DJs this is the reason why they use ghost producers – they think more about ‘the brand’ and have different people involved looking after different responsibilities to keep their brand at the top – whether that is producing music, marketing, licensing etc. It’s more the ‘pop music’ approach rather than the DIY approach, which is what made dance music so popular in the first place.”
“When remixing a track, I generally only use the acapella and then create a new track around it.” Discuss…
“That’s 9 out of 10 times how I make remixes – I generally try to even avoid hearing the original track – the vocal needs to inspire me. It gives you the freedom to be creative and also really give it your own touch.”
What is the record that…
…reminds you of your childhood?
“Chic – ‘Freak Out’ – my mum always use to play disco in her car – actually very thankful for that – set me up for the 4/4 beat.”
…always gets you on the dancefloor?
“Soul 2 Soul – Back To Life’.”
…reminds you of being broken hearted?
“Womack & Womack – Teardrops’.”
…you wish you’d have made?
“Angie Stone – ‘Wish I Didn’t Miss You’.”
You don’t drink, take drugs or smoke…vitamins are your hit! Was there any point in your career where you felt uncomfortable spinning tunes to thousands of kids obviously off their knackers?
“No, I don’t know any better – I have always gone to clubs and parties sober. As long as people are enjoying themselves, having fun and are not harming anyone else, I think it’s all good (as long as they don’t over do it!). I do remember back in 2002, I used to play at after parties in The Egg in London from 6-10am – the kind of crowd in front of me then were clearly on a different planet than I was, but I knew that if I played music that made me want to dance, these people would go nuts hehe…”
Your finest ever piece of production – and don’t say the next one?
“Hmmm there hasn’t been one, otherwise I might as well quit now – job done hehe . As a song, I’m pretty happy with ‘Glowing in the Dark’ – just a feel good, fun track – not too serious and sing-a-long.”
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’s 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?
“The ‘beatmatching’ element of DJing has definitely changed and has been simplified, which means that skill is disappearing. That said, technology has opened a wide range of possibilities to add more to your set than just ‘mixing’: the problem is a lot of DJs chose not to explore these options either because they are too lazy or just can’t do it. Instead they play hit after hit for an hour and ‘job done’. When you talk about the ‘art’ of DJing – it’s about what music you chose to play, when you play it on the night and how you play your tracks to your audience – no laptop or technology can help you with that – it takes experience. Look, for instance, at weddings, DJs don’t beatmatch – but a good DJ knows when to play what tracks at what time of the night and how to entertain the crowd to make sure that everyone is on the dancefloor and having a great night – that’s the ‘art’ bit that not everyone can do.”
Best ever festival experience?
“Glastonbury 2000 – It was my first summer in the UK and my best friend dragged me along – never heard of the festival before myself – saw so many great acts: from ‘The Wailers’ to David Bowie to Leftism – nothing has ever come close since.”
And finally, what is coming out next from you studio wise – you’ve just been finishing a new remix we hear? What else…
“Yeah, I’ve just done a remix for Cr2 records, which should be coming out later this month. My next main one is ‘Come Closer’ on Ferry Corsten’s ‘Flashover recordings’ – Tiesto & David Guetta both played it on their radio show last weekend and I think it has some crossover potential. Release date will be early September I think…”
