EDM’s most fabulous farmer churns out an absolute monster. ‘Steamy Chicken’ gets everyone rocking…
Interview : Dan Prince
Erol welcome to DMCWORLD, where in the world are you right now?
“Hey Dan! Recovering from the flu on my couch in Leerdam.”
Ouch! We featured your magnificent ‘Steamy Chicken’ tune in our Unsigned Buzz Chart back in October, well lo and behold Deal Records snapped it up and will be bringing it on January 27th. The track has been absolutely hammered by the likes of Hardwell, Ferry Corsten, Steve Aoki and Chuckie…you must be overjoyed with these past few months especially with your collab with Jasper Dietze also doing so well?
“Oh yes! It’s such a great feeling if DJ/producers who I look up to support my music. My collab with Jasper Dietze ‘Bit Storm’ and ‘Steamy Chicken’ were made a couple of months ago. It’s really nice to see that both tracks are picked up by big labels.”
Tell us the history of ‘Steamy Chicken’, when did you cook it up?
“I’ve made ‘Steamy Chicken’ in the beginning of August on my laptop in my garden. Every choice I’ve made worked almost straight away. The whole track was finished in 4 hours. Mixed it in my studio which took another 4-5 hours.”
Last year saw you team up with Ryan Sauvage and release the fabulous ‘Oink’ and let’s not forget ‘Fried Sheep’ and ‘Bacon Moo’…so Erol…pigs, sheep, cows, chickens…what’s with the farmyard vibe dude?
“Haha! The city where our parents come from is one big farm landscape full of sheep, cows and chickens. The only thing we hear when we walk outside is the sounds of these animals. And we didn’t want “normal” names for our tracks so it was kind of obvious for us.”
Okay let’s rewind for a moment. You hail from the city of Utrecht, the fourth largest city in The Netherlands…what is the club scene like in your home city?
“The club scene in Utrecht is great for everyone in my opinion. There are a lot of student bar’s, café’s with live music, and clubs were there are all kinds of theme nights with so many different styles of music.”
Who were the first producers/artists that grabbed your attention when you were younger that turned you towards dance music?
“The first dance music material I’ve listened to was a mix compilation by Chuckie. I only listened to hip-hop before that, so I really was fascinated about dance music.”
Was a career in music always the long term plan or was this something you started as a hobby and fell into?
“It started out as a hobby when a classmate introduced me to FL Studio. I have made so much stuff in my college hours. It sounds all like shit when I listen to it now, but it was so much fun to make.”
What did your family think of your choice of life career?
“They didn’t support me in the very beginning because I had to finish my school first. But they changed their minds when they saw how much fun I have in producing and playing music.”
What was your first break in the music industry?
“My first break for me was three years ago when I won a competition in the 538 demo duel. One of the biggest radio stations (Radio 538) in Holland played my music. That meant a lot to me.”
What is the current top 10 you are spinning?
Steamy Chicken
Twerk Anthem
Satisfaction (Jewelz & Scott Sparks bootleg)
Wake Me Up (Jay Hardway bootleg)
Fried Sheep
Bit Storm
Booyah (Lucky Date remix)
Tsunami (Jay Cosmic remix)
NRG
The Spark (TMH Kuduro Bootleg)
It’s your birthday – who are the 3 DJs you invite to play and which singer dead or alive do you ask to sing you Happy Birthday?
“My top 3 DJs would be…Axwell, Armin van Buuren and Chuckie. The singer I would ask is…Beyonce!”
Away from dance music, who are the artists you are listening to right now?
“I have been listening to a lot of J Dilla and Snakehips lately. The music they made/make is so relaxing. Really loving the hip-hop/funky style beats with some old skool sampled vocals on it.”
What is the best piece of advice you have ever been given?
“Don’t rush anything. When the time is right, it’ll happen.”
Who would you dream collab be?
“A collab with Axwell.”
Tell us about your studio set up?
“My studio set up is not much but I can do everything with it. 2x KRK RP 5 and a macbook pro from early 2011 with logic pro 9 and many 3th party plugins. Oo and some books that serve as monitor stands for my speakers haha!”
And finally, what is coming out next from you studio wise…?
“My track ‘Fried Sheep’ is going to be released next month as a free download on my Facebook page. I’ve worked on a lot of solo stuff, which isn’t signed to any label yet. Still not 100% happy with everything but it’s getting there!”
