cyanghost109
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Registered: 27.Mar.06 |
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Hey guys! I don't know how many Airwave Fans there are here, but thought some of you would be interested. In march, there was an interview done on him! I thought he'd left, but turns out I was wrong!
http://www.trancefix.nl/showthread.php?267785-Airwave-Interview-March-2012&p=1444791#post1444791
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1. Hey Laurent! What’s up about you music-wise?
Hey, I released Atlas Winds and Chiricahua, a new Airwave two-tracker last month and it got raving reviews overall. I got a lot of support from the cool artists in my scene, which is always a good sign. Recently I did a lot of remixes too, many of them are coming up or have just been released, my remix of « Souds are Deeply on Surface », a track by Michael & Levan and Stiven Rivic, will do a lot of damage, Suffused's « Year 2008 » was also a very good thing. And most recently I remixed Art of Trance, a legendary project on the infamous Platipus label, with their track « Praxia » and it's a great one. That's only the first things that come to mind. Besides that my new Airwave album is finally getting its final shape. I suggest though that your readers visit my webiste (http://airwave-music.com or http://djairwave.com) for the latest info and tracks, as there is so much. The mean machine is back. Next single will be available in a few weeks only.
2. A month ago it was unveiled that you and John 00 Fleming are together launching the label L*C*D. How did the idea about the label come to life and what is the objective behind its creation?
That label was born mainly because, besides the good sound of trance and progresssive, coming back, there's a huge gap in the market left by people who forgot the roots of electronic music. Back when we were working on some tracks together and when we listened to the first album tracks that I did almost 2 years ago, well, it was clear that we didn't know where to place them on the market. You can take all those « famous » Electronic labels made by dj's on the market today, all they put out has become quite generic, is lacking low-end, is lacking edge too, and most importantly, it's lacking soul. It's become very important for both John and I that everything that comes out on this joint brand has one. We want to go out of the original boundaries of Dance music too, but we want to keep this connection with our roots. Ours reside in the great underground uk scene of the 90's.
3. In retrospection, at the beginning of your career your productions were characterized by strong trance leads (Fire & Ice, Cloud 69, Green Martian), then you shifted towards the massive progressive sound (Nova, Lolo). What’s new in your sound now and how does it differ from your previous periods?
I think you got it all wrong. Fire & Ice is an exception as we were almost first with some other Belgian and Dutch dj's to come up with this more commercial sound in the mid-90's. But my roots reside in the good uk and psychedelic trance sound. I made those records back then because it was new, but Jurgen and myself also have this feeling, you know, that everything after 2001 in that uplifting trance genre became very generic. I've always been more of a Whoop/Bedrock/Deconstruction freak and before that EyeQ and MFS, and of course the good Bonzai releases, but so-called Trance labels today don't inspire me much. I'm not saying that they're bad, it's just a very personal feeling. So I'm going back again to those progressive roots, but I don't want to cut ties with melody, and this new sound is mid 90's all the way. I have nothing against good fanfare riffs and supersaws, it's just that the way most people do it today doesn't inspire me much.
4. Recently, the legend Paul Oakenfold explained that one-two years ago he withdrew from the trance scene because “trance music became boring and everything sounded the same”. You also had a similar period a while ago. What was the reason?
I think I somehow answered the question with my answers above. This is clear that Trance is facing its biggest challenge since it was born in 1991-92. I have a personal view but it won't please many, still it's the truth, what most people call trance today is music that becomes a radio hit the second you put vocals on it. Easy going music that doesn't have a typical club format. While the TRUE trance sound hasn't disappeared, it's been classified under psy-trance, psy-progressive and many other subgenres. Listen to Cosmic Baby's first album and tell me what it has in common with Trance hits of the Day... Nothing, zero, nada. Some Supermarket Jesuses came with smiles, lies (as Chris Corner tends to sing), and Trance lost its substance, its market is now in the hands of a few people, and trance lost its soul, its story behind the track, its movement, its progression. It's not the first time, it's not the last one. I'm extremely confident now as we're all finding new balance into our personal lives and that will help move things forward.
5.How are things going for you DJ-wise? Do you have any upcoming gigs you’d like to announce?
There is an exclusive gig on june 2nd in Manchester courtesy of Plasma Future, it will be a tribute set of mine, featuring the very best music I've done till now under my several monikers. I think everyone in the area should come. At the end of June there's the Luminosity Beach Festival, where I will focus more on new material but won't forget my hits nonetheless ! A few more coming up in may and june, but I'd like to have them confirmed first.
6. What is the strangest track request you’ve received, while playing?
Good question. Lolo : Teddybear's Escape maybe ?
7. And what have been the most memorable parties so far in your career?
It's always difficult to choose. For personal experience I'd say back in 2002 my tour with Slinky in Japan, my 2006 gig in Japan with Landscape, then my 2 gigs at Dopler, Bratislava, and also my 2005 and 2009 gigs in Toronto. Memorable moments. Most importantly for the « Insiders », my 2 gigs at Tomorrowland, probably, and the 2004 gig at Sportpaleis with Illusion, a live set in front of 10 000 people.
8. Tell us something about the club scene in Belgium. Are there enough parties and scope for further development of the music you’re playing?
Honestly, everyone keeps blaming everyone for not doing the right things in Belgium, so it looks like there's no scene. Personally I'm looking for a full residency as a TRANCE jock in BRUSSELS right now. And you know why ? Because my generation used to drive for hours to visit Flanders' finest clubs and nothing inside it was happening. It's about time now, I want to invest time, money, and invite my best dj-friends to play with me in my home city. More info on that later, you will see.
9. Nowadays you can notice constant fusion of different styles. What do you think about trance producers who use elements from music like dubstep, which is all the rage now? Is it possible to create a good combination of each and every style or are there things that just don’t go together?
If done with a taste and if done well most importantly, then I think it's important in the evolution of electronic music in general. Music stands on one single rule : NO RULES, just physical happenings.
10. Are there DJs/producers you’d like to work with on future productions?
I'm currently working with heroes of mine, so I can't complain : Astropilot, Philippe Van Mullem, John 00 Fleming, and there are many more to come. Many other wonderboys turned the collab down after months on it, and now are doing crap music. It's not about the names, it's about the final result. I can't see any point making music with people because they're at the top. All you do is make them stronger than they really are and they are the ones going away with the « success » after all. I'm a musician working with musicians, not a douche, so what's in a name after all...
11. Until recently, making remixes of old rock bands like R.E.M , Pink Floyd, Depeche Mode was very popular. Now EDM producers show interest in remixing tracks from the 90s and even from the beginning of the past decade – Sonique, Technotronic, ect. Do you find this a positive development and can we expect something like that from you?
I have mixed opinions. Like I said, the fact is that if you are trying to profile yourself through some big name dj's and artists Today, you will hit the wall 9 out of 10 times. Think you're going back to your roots by doing this ? Think again... In fact you might just try to be successful because you're not self-confident enough and come up without that sample or riff or hook. Music needs to renew its faces, Roots are important, but they're organic food for your soul, and not a dummy bag of prepared potatoes you can just eat out of the bag. I have no problem citing my roots and reference today, and wish I had the same self-confidence 10 years back.
12. What do you plan for summer 2012, what can we expect from Airwave?
Album release guys, it's coming and it's going to hit VERY hard. I spent an extra year on it, I invested almost 15000 euros in it. As usual it won't please many, but you can be sure that as usual, I put my whole heart it there, this time even more.
Thank you for taking the time to do this interview! All the best!
Thanks for the opportunity always good to do this !! |
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