We recently sat down with one of the legends of Electronic music for a chat.
Paul van Dyk has been a towering figure in the Electronic music scene for literal decades. His distinctive blend of genres and the different countless anthems he released during the golden era of Trance captured the hearts of millions worldwide, including the heart of who’s writing this piece.
Van Dyk’s journey began in the early 1990s when he started experimenting with production in his hometown of Berlin. His early work was heavily influenced by the evolving Techno scene, but he soon developed a unique sound that incorporated elements of Trance and House music, leading to defining records such as ‘For An Angel‘, ‘Nothing But You‘, and ‘Time Of Our Lives‘.
His influence on the music world extends far beyond his own craft. He has mentored countless young DJs and producers, and his work has inspired a new generation of artists. He’s also come up with a handful of concepts for his DJ sets. And that’s where his path crossed ours.
Not long ago, we had the chance to catch up with him before one of his VENTURE X sets, and we had a very interesting chat about topics such as Ibiza, the VENTURE X idea, and even what he thinks of the use of cell phones at shows. Keep reading to find out all the details of our exclusive interview with Paul van Dyk.
The Interview
(Please note, the bolded text represents a question, while the paragraph(s) following it represent Paul’s answers.)
Well, first of all, thank you for being here. So, let’s talk a bit about SHINE, your Ibiza residency. You have officially completed the first half of shows. What’s your balance on this year’s season so far? Did you have any expectations going in? And if so, were they fulfilled?
Well, my expectations are always great. And SHINE always lives up to it. It’s a very music-oriented event. People really come to listen to the music, to let go, to enjoy themselves. So, yeah, it’s phenomenal. It’s really exciting in a way, and the first half was fairly good. Obviously, the whole of Europe right now has a bit of a problem in terms of events, because first we had the Eurocup, and then we had the Olympics. So a lot of people also went to these places. Now that everything is over, everybody says Ibiza is going to be even better, with more traffic. So, let’s see how we go. I’m looking forward to being back in two weeks. And I’m playing a six-hour set. That’s always really special for me. So, I’m looking forward to that.
That’s great to hear. Well, as someone who has gone to play there year after year, how would you describe the Ibiza nightlife to someone who has never been there? What makes it so special? And is it as special as, say, 20 years ago?
Well, I wish I could say it is as special as 20 years ago. 20 years ago, and even 10 years ago, people who were kind of enjoying life, enjoying Electronic music, artists, in a positive way “crazy” people, they all went to Ibiza in the summer to celebrate life. And with the passing of time, around half of the island became more, I would say, kind of like a rich people’s playground. It became very, very expensive in parts of it. If you look at clubs like Hï (Ibiza) and Ushuaïa, as an example, and the stuff that’s going on there, you’ll see that’s just more like normal Pop music that’s being presented. So it’s not about music culture in that area. But you still find, you know, if you look at DC10, if you look at Eden, you still find the venues and the clubs where it’s all about the music, where it all revolves around what Ibiza is about. And besides all that, Ibiza is just a beautiful Mediterranean island. You should visit it if you can.
Great. Now, tonight you’re presenting VENTURE X, a fairly new project of yours focused on Techno and Progressive rather than just Trance. We’d love to hear it from you. What does VENTURE X mean to you? Why did you decide to create it? And just out of curiosity, why is it called that way?
Well, I’ll start with the name. A “venture”, as in, you venture somewhere. It’s almost like an adventure. And the X stands for “destination unknown”. So, I start with a clear idea, with a clear approach to where I want to go. And then I end up somewhere else. The thing is, you know, obviously in places like Chile or Argentina where I just come every once in a while, people want me to play ‘For An Angel’ and that kind of stuff. And at the end of the day, I’m here so that we create good memories, together. So, I’m pretty sure at the end of this show I will play some Trance as well because that’s what people who come to see me expect me to do somehow. But it will be a deeper, more proggy, techy approach to begin with and a different layout to start in, rather than just diving in straightforward. VENTURE X gives me the ability to explore different things. I mean, it’s like when I learned DJing. I turned to Electronic music at a time when it was just Electronic music. It wasn’t called Trance, Techno, this and this and this. So as a DJ, you just pick the music that inspired you and that you play. And that’s what I do with VENTURE X. I play things that I think are absolutely worth playing because they’re substantial, they’re good, and not just being stuck to one genre.
Thank you. Now, I bet you’ve seen changes over the years in how Trance and other genres you are part of are consumed. Are there any changes that you can recall right off your head? Something that perhaps you had to learn to work around during these years?
Well, the biggest, most extreme thing, obviously, the DJ was the freak in the corner while everyone else had fun back when I started. And then throughout the rise in popularity of Electronic music, people started running interviews with the DJs. Then came production, big stages, big festivals. Things have changed. And a lot of my colleagues have changed their approach to the music as well. What I can strongly say for me, from an artistical approach, is I have a very straightforward passion for Electronic music. And I do exactly what I think Electronic music should sound like, not just now, but also in four or five years. And I’ve seen throughout my career, many, many times, that something that I touch, something that I create now is popular later down the line, say, five years into the future, because others are picking it up and doing things with it. That’s some of the changes I’ve seen. And then something else, when, let’s say, big marketing corporations came in, they created products rather than artists. That changed a lot as well because, if you have multi-million-dollar companies promoting one individual and one certain sound, it has some sort of impact in one way or the other.
Thank you. Would you say longer tracks, those that tell a story and take you on a journey, are becoming harder and harder to introduce to the market in today’s era of short attention spans, as they’re calling it?
Well, it kind of is. Obviously, we live in the times of TikTok, so, you know, everything becomes shorter and shorter. At the same time, John 00 Fleming and I made a track together and called it ‘Against the Algorithm’ [still an ID] because there’s no way to shorten it. It is 11 minutes long and you have to listen to the 11 minutes, or leave it. And that’s also an artistic approach. There’s no way to shorten the sound. You need the journey, you need the layout of the music, you need to feel that drive of that piece of music. And if you don’t, then well, don’t. Listen to something else. All I’m doing is offering something, and you’re invited to join it, and you’re invited to enjoy it. Well, if you don’t, then don’t. Just listen to something else.
Exactly. Thank you. On to another topic, we talked with Ferry Corsten a few months ago and he introduced the concept of “Template Trance” or “Template Tracks”, if you will. This, referring to the amount of songs that basically sound the same today in the industry because of presets, sample packs, and so on. So, what’s your take on it? Do you feel these Template Tracks, as he calls them, are an issue in modern Dance music?
I have no idea what he’s talking about. I’m not using templates and I’m not playing music of artists who are using templates. Luckily enough, maybe the A&R team around me is really, really good and they’re sorting the shit out so I’m not listening to crap. But I don’t know what he’s talking about.
Thanks. Now, if you could go back, let’s say, 30 years in time and meet your past self, what would you tell him? Like, was there anything Paul of the past worried about much more than what was really necessary?
I probably would say something crazy like, “That one day you finished your noodle soup, you shouldn’t have because it was good”. [laughter]
And on that same note, let’s suppose there’s someone in our audience who truly admires you, looks up to you and all you’ve done as an all-round artist all these years. What would be the one piece of advice you would tell them to achieve success?
Don’t seek it. Whatever you do, do it with all your heart, with all your passion, with all your enthusiasm. And at the end of the day it’s like, without wanting to sound anyhow self-centred, when I’m in the studio, I make the music so it satisfies me, first of all. Because, here [at the club] or in a different scenario, I’m standing in front of people that have maybe never heard that piece of music I’m playing. And I need to bring across that it’s worth something, that it really means something. And I can only do that if I think so, if I did something that really convinced me. And so, my advice is just to do exactly what you want to do. Don’t copy your hero, don’t copy anyone else, because these people already exist. Do your own thing.
Thank you. This is a hot topic now. Phones? No phones? Some phones? Which side of the clubbing debate are you on?
Look, I think everyone should be allowed to do what they want to do. If you want to use your phone and record whatever you do, just do it. My advice is just like, if you have a good DJ in front of you, just close your eyes and follow the journey. Being there in the moment is much more important than maybe, back to the TikTok topic, having a 10-second clip to share. But at the end of the day, everybody should be able and allowed to do what they want to do. So I’m not in any way restricting anything.
And finally. As a veteran, not only of Trance, but the entirety of Dance music, much like an esteemed football player goes on to become a coach of new minds, do you consider yourself a coach as much as, or maybe even more than, a music producer these days? Which part do you wish to play in today’s scene?
Look, I’m not over-exaggerating my own position. I’m just doing whatever I want to do. And I’m in the lucky position that still, on a global scale, everywhere people sort of seem to enjoy what I do and still invite me to come and play for them. That makes me the happiest artist in the world. But if somebody wants to learn, somehow, from how I do things, what I do, fair enough. But I also don’t put myself on the podium and say, “So go, I have to teach you”. I don’t do that. I play my music. If you listen to it, if you have an open heart, you can soak it in. You know what I want to achieve with my music, because you’re going to feel it. But it doesn’t make any sense to talk about music, because you only end up talking about musical examples. You’re never going to do anything original. You can only actually play it and make it. And so therefore, whatever it is, if I’m still travelling around in 10 years or not, I will probably always make music, because it’s almost one of the languages I speak. It’s my way of communicating. That’s what I enjoy about this.
Well, that’s a wrap then. Thank you so much for your time. Looking forward to tonight!
Thank you, too.
Final Words
If I had a time machine, I don’t know how I’d explain the Felipe from 2005, who was into cars and loved the Need For Speed Underground 2 game, that he’d eventually not only meet the artist behind his favourite song of the soundtrack, but also talk with him about a bunch of things he wouldn’t even have comprehended back then.
But that’s life. And that’s a wrap for this article. Thank you so much to Paul and the entire team behind who arranged this one. It was not only a bucket list item for me, but most importantly, it was another opportunity to read the thoughts and visions of a legendary artist outside of his sets. We’re often listening to the speech-deprived words of a producer through their craft, so actually reading what he has to say is always interesting.
Stay tuned for more.