‘Quake’ – one of the biggest EDM tunes of the summer – DMC’s Matt Caldwell checks in…
Stefano Pain & Alex Guesta Interview – DMC Exclusive
By Matt Caldwell
They’ve smashed out one of the summer’s biggest EDM hits, found a home with Hardwell’s dynamic Revealed Recordings and picked up a case full of global supporters along the way. Stefano Pain & Alex Guesta started the summer with big plans and now we’ve sat down with them to look back on their summer mission. With dance music hero Marco V on board with their production escapades, there was only ever one outcome – a global dance floor hit. In a summer with so many big releases, it took something special to stand out and this trio delivered just that.
DMC got the details this week and found out what’s up next for the ‘Quake’ instigators.
Hi guys, thanks for talking to us today – let’s jump right in and talk about the ‘Quake’ release. The single has picked up some serious heat this summer, how did you all come together for this project?
“‘Quake’ was born as the follow-up of our track ‘Ran Tam Tam’ first released on Stefano Pain’s label, Bootylicious, and was then licensed to Armada and re-released on Pilot 6 (Armada). In 2012 and 2013, ‘Ran Tam Tam’ was supported by the Swedish House Mafia during their world tour and by other international DJs such as Tiesto, David Guetta, Armin Van Buuren, Nicky Romero, Hardwell, Paul Oakenfold, Fedde Le Grand, Bob Sinclar, Dirty South, Thomas Gold, Bingo Players, Dannic, Dyro, Deniz Koyu, Chukie, Gregor Salto, Eddie Thoneik, Daddy’s Groove, Promise Land and many others.”
How did you work on the track? Did you all work together or individually online?
“‘Quake’ was a collaboration between Alex Guesta, Stefano Pain and Marco V. We started together with the idea, and then we finished the track online with Marco V on board.”
The release was picked up by Hardwell’s Revealed Recordings, a notoriously tough label to impress. How did you guys get Hardwell’s backing on the release?
“We knew that the sounds fitted Hardwell’s musical direction so we sent it to him. After testing it on the dance floor, we received his proposal to collaborate with Revealed Recordings.”
Did you have a plan and objective when writing the track or was it all free-flowing creativity?
“We wanted to keep the same style and sounds of ‘Ran Tam Tam’ and then the creativity kicked in.”
Alex Guesta & Stefano Pain – Ran Tam Tam
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-yTQp4KCoZI
How would you describe that style which you’ve been releasing recently?
“It’s a progressive house style with tribal rhythms in addition to lots of synth work and plenty of Dutch vibes.”
The track has picked up some huge supporters this summer. What are you guys most proud of regarding the release?
“Yes, we got a huge support from many big DJs such as Hardwell, David Guetta, Afrojack, Nicky Romero, Thomas Gold, Deniz Koyu, Swanky Tunes, Dannic, Dyro, W&W, Dimitri Vegas & Like Mike, Firebeatz, Mikael Weermets, Jesse Voorn, Promise Land and many others. We are very proud that the track got all of this support and some really great feedback from many top DJs, as well as all the nice words from the public and press.”
Can we expect to see you all back on Revealed soon?
“We are very pleased with Revealed’s work. In our opinion, it is one of the biggest progressive house labels at the moment so we will enjoy continuing our collaboration with them into the future.”
They are no doubt a shining example of a well-managed label in the EDM world. There does however seem to be a lot of labels around that are not so reliable? How do you think this hurts artists?
“The market today is full of small labels, but it was like that also during the vinyl’s era, every big label had some sub-labels. The success of a label depends on the quality of its releases. In the past you had artists growing up with a single label, today it’s easy to see three releases on three different labels.”
Marco is a legend in the dance music world. What’s he like to work with creatively?
“Our collaboration got an additional value from Marco’s experience. We will keep working together in the future. With Marco we found immediately the right feeling and we shared the same ideas on the sound we were searching for. Of course his experience and background made the collaboration much easier.”
Let’s talk production regarding the release. Talk us through your studio setup?
“We worked in different studios. We used Logic and the sounds were created with external synths.”
Are there any synths, FX or plug-ins that got heavy usage making ‘Quake’?
The external synths used for tracks are Virus and Nord Lead.
2013 is turning into a competition to make the biggest kick-drum in the world – what are your top tech-tips for getting the most out of your bass drums?
“A twisted bass to cover all frequencies! Most of the latest productions are characterized by a large use of Hard Style sounds. The importance of it becomes crucial, because if combined with the right sound of a synth or a drum – it makes your track complete. You don’t need much else in the construction of the groove when it’s done correctly.”
What’s up next for you guys in the studio?
“We have a new project coming soon – Alex Guesta & Stefano Pain vs Yan Kings – Bring That Noize – and many other cool things that we will reveal in the months ahead.”
Are you also touring into the autumn?
“After a great summer we are planning our winter tour that will cover different countries. We played in Italy, Spain, Ibiza, Egypt, Russia and Czech Republic. A lot of big news is coming this fall, stay tuned!”
What are your top five tracks of 2013 so far?
Marco V vs Alex Guesta & Stefano Pain – Quake
Hardwell & Dyro feat Bright Lights – Never Say Goodbye
Martin Garrix – Animals
Axwell – Center Of Universe
Alex Guesta & Stefano Pain – Ran Tam Tam
Thanks guys!
“Thank you DMC and we’ll see you soon!”
You can check out ‘Quake’ now on Revealed’s YouTube page:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XCIdOLwgRE4
Stefano Pain & Alex Guesta Online:
