Holland callling! They make babies, know their vino and produce damn good music!
“Wow is it that long ? All of us were just growing up listening to and buying music, other kids played football or played computer games. But anyway, from buying we went to playing out, first in small local clubs, from alternative to pop, soul music etc. everything really. And it just grew and grew. And then came house and techno, before that the birth of hiphop, and through the samples that were used discovering jazz, funk, etc. again…”
What DJs were you giving to props to in the early days, who inspired you and what big clubs saw you jumping around in?
“It wasn’t about one particular DJ but the whole sizzling atmosphere of something special happening…DJing and spinning records people had never heard the like of before, everything was new, exciting; you just had to be part of it. Errr, there was music in the air?”
A few years ago BBC Online described your music as “like a lost master from the Stax vaults. It’s that good.” What did you think about that comment?
“Ha ha it has been a while since then! It fitted the picture perfectly at that time, lots of funk, soul, jazz and of course samples from those musical areas. But since the release of the Boogie Angst album our sound has continued to develop, more electronic, sometimes more poppy, ‘real’ songs… We definitely have grown and broadened but it is still all Kraak & Smaak we think. We also like to stay informed of all the new stuff that’s happening, it brings new ideas and keeps it fresh.”
Mark it has been reported that thanks to your record shop you once owned the biggest record collection in Holland. Is that true?
“Absolutely! Downstairs at our Leiden studio is a warehouse with 100,000s of records which draws crowds of vinyl diggers every weekend from all over Europe. Collections are still offered all the time, very good ones too – and so Mark’s private stash is also still growing exponentially. And don’t forget all that sampling material we have to work our way through every time…”
What is the current top 10 you are spinning?
“In no particular order…”
1. Kraak & Smaak – Hold Back Love (Lovebirds remix)
2. Solomun – Clouddancer (Kraak & Smaak remix)
3. TODD TERJE – INSPECTOR NORSE (Original Mix)
4. DJ T and TENSNAKE – AROUND THE HOUSE (DJ T.’s 2011 Edit)
5. ROB MELLO, MATT TOLFREY, CECILE – FANTASIZE FEAT. CECILE (Matt Tolfrey Remix)
6. Smoove & Turrell – In Deep (Kraak & Smaak remix)
7. Maceo Plex – Under the Sheets (original mix)
8. A1 BASSLINE – WHY DO YOU (Original Mix)
9. MO’ HORIZONS, GYPSY BROWN – LIFE IS A TRIP (Mo’ Horizons Mix)
10. &ME – GLACED (Original Mix)
11. Sander Kleinenberg – Chemically (Kraak & Smaak remix)
Tell us about your studio set up…
“We use a Mac pro with Steinberg Cubase 6, a MOTU soundcard and Universal Audio uad-2 solo and all UAD plugins. Other important plugins we use are the Arturia collection, the Oddity, Philarmonik and Ik multimedia CSR reverbs. So we do the mixing in the box for now but we recently bought a Euphonix cs2000, so in 2012 will be all about analogue mixing. Gear-wise we have a range of analogue synths like the minimoog, a Jupiter 8 , an ARP Oddysey, a Clavinet, a Solina, a Fender Rhodes, etc. Plus we use a Neumann U87 mic for vocals and an API A2D for A/D conversion. For recording drums and grand piano we go to other studios. And of course an SL1200 for the sampling of records.”
What is each other’s forte in the studio, who brings what to the table?
“You could roughly say that Oscar brings in musicality and musical ideas. Mark the samples, DJ ideas, people to work with and Wim samples and a bit of structure.”
‘Let’s Go Back’ was an anthem for many last summer. At which outdoor gig did you enjoy playing this the most?
“As for DJing there was this great party at the Fleda club in Brno, Czech Republic. We took our live MC and singer along to add some extra flavour (he sings the tracks in our live band) and people broke down the place entirely. At the famous Exit festival in Novi Sad, where we played with our live band, the reception was excellent too.”
Your fabulous Electric Hustle album isn’t finished yet though! The year has begun with the outing of the marvellous ‘Hold Back Love’ with some great remixes. Talk us through the track and the reworks…
“Yeah, really looking forward to that release! It’s originally a mid-tempo nu-disco kinda track with Lex Empress on vocals, one of the gems on the album. Proper remixes too, with Lovebirds (one of the stars of 2011 for us), Canadian brother-in-arms Neighbour and Italian house-producers on the rise Analog People in a Digital World. We already got very good DJ and radio feedback and support in for all the mixes, so fingers crossed for a good public reception too.”
What can we expect from a live show from Kraak and Smaak in 2012?
“A very dynamic show with lots of energy coming from the stage; reworkings of older tracks, remixes, new stuff from Electric Hustle…plus a great light show. K&S live works as easily in small basements as on big stages. Check out this clip from last year’s Exit festival: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MxMqljP2E6Q
You are DJing at the Leidse Jazz Week this weekend, what’s all that about?
“It’s quite a big local hometown thing, yearly organised, with national and international live and DJ sets, jazz flavoured taking place all over town in clubs, outdoor stages (even in one of the canals!) etc. Here and there a bit corny but there is absolutely cool stuff to be seen and includes a traditional pub crawl. And of course it’s great to play in your hometown once in a while, so we recommend dropping by the LVC club if you’re in the neighbourhood, it will be packed and good fun.”
What is the finest record you have ever played to a dancefloor?
“Aww man, you’re killing us, that’s so difficult to choose. But if there was a moment of absolute bliss, it would be the first time we spun our first ever 12” in public, with Money in the Bag on it. It just felt very proud.”
Outside of your home country, which territory gives you the best reception around the globe?
“The USA, countries in Eastern-Europe…especially in the latter region where the enthusiasm is still overwhelming, real fan-like. That vibe sometimes seems to be missing in Western-European countries. Maybe that has to do with the fact that over here you can see international acts perform almost every day, which may turn people a bit blasé.”
Not many people know this, but Kraak and Smaak are really good at…?
“Choosing wines, remembering the right directions, making babies, squashing, forgetting stuff all the time, making coffee, ehhh.”
Electronic music is booming around the world again. America is smashing it but the Dutch scene is second to none for DJs and live artists right now. What do you put this down to?
“Jeez… the only thing we could think of is that apparently Dutch dance and electronic music producers and DJs have always been very much internationally orientated. There is no big home market for music here, maybe that makes a difference? Or perhaps that good ‘ole trade and commerce mentality of the Dutch to give a cliché answer? But there is of course a strong tradition here in dance music, right from the beginning of house music in the late 1980s and it seems that we are on ‘up’ wave again.”
You have remixed some mighty artists – Moby, Maxwell, Sam Sparro, Jamiroquai and Fedde Le Grand to name but a few…what re-work are you most proudest of?
“Yeah, it’s quite a list if you think about it. The Moby one we were very proud of recently, and Aretha Franklin’s Think; they really fitted well, and especially with the latter one, it was difficult to make it original and interesting. Also looking forward to the release of our remixes for Smoove & Turrell (In Deep) and for Solomun, a heavy acid dancefloor rework of Cloud Dancer. Both great and out soon!”
So we come back to yours after the club, what is the Kraak and Smaak Back To Mine Top 10 you spin us chill to?
Nick Cave -& Warren Ellis – The Proposition (OST)
Gill Scott-Heron and Jamie XX – I am new here
Nancy Sinatra & Lee Hazlewood – Nancy & Lee
Serge Gainsbourg – Histoire de Melody Nelson
Philip Glass – The Hours (OST)
Isaac Hayes – Moonlight Lovin (Ménage a Trois)
Angelo Badalamenti – Mulholland Drive (OST)
Willie Dixon – The Chess box
Nicolas Jaar – Space is only noise
Whitest Boys Alive – Rules
What is coming next studio wise in 2012 from you three – how are you doing with a new album?
“The idea is to drop a remix compilation during Spring and start releasing new EPs every couple of months very soon after – and work our way to the next album with those tracks as a basis. Plus a brand new Kraak Beats Vol. 2 with tasty beats for the dancefloors out there. There is new material a plenty and in between doing shows we already have teamed up with some new vocalists – among them Get Cape. Wear Cape. Fly, Stee Downes – and we’re hooking up with John Turrell (of Smoove & Turrell) pretty soon again. Criss-crossing all of this we are DJing and playing live all over Europe this year.”