Herr van Dyk has been on top of the DJ game for over a decade spinning in front of monster crowds around the world, remixing tracks for huge names, making his own music, running a radio show and lending his support to peace and justice around the world through his association with children’s charities, Amnesty International, Dance 4 Life, Greenpeace and Unicef. We caught up with the superhero DJ on his tour stop in Nashville yesterday.
BPM – How’s the tour been so far?
PvD – Very good, thank you very much.
BPM – I usually cover video games so I’ll be skewing things a little in that direction. You composed music for the Mexican film Zurdo back in 2003 and have just recently created the music for EA’s Grand Slam Tennis. How do those creative processes differ?
PvD – When you score a movie you see the picture in front of you and see how the actors portray the scene and the feel that comes across , and you make music to support that feel. While making music for a game you’re very much in a virtual world. I remember when I made the music for the Wimbeldon Arena, the US Open and French Open, all I could do was imagine what it would feel and sound like. Each would be a very different surrounding and is going to feel different so the music supports that.
BPM – I read that you hadn’t gotten a chance to play Grand Slam Tennis as you don’t have a Wii on the tour bus. Do you have any game systems on the bus?
PvD – No, actually we don’t. I was looking forward to kicking some butt on the court. I have some games on my iPod Touch that I’ve been playing on the bus. Air Traffic Control, Azkend, Need For Speed, Real Racing and F.A.S.T. are some of my favorites. I also play some brain training and trivia games.
BPM – You’ve also just released an iPod app for DJs, appropriately named PvD DJ App.
PvD – Yes, I always say that electronic music is about breaking boundaries and using the latest technology. This iPhone app is part of the next step in the development of how electronic music is received and presented. I think it works very well.
BPM – Do you hope to score more movies or video games in the future?
PvD – It really depends on the project and the timing. I’m really busy writing songs for my next album. If something really interesting came along I might take a break from that, but otherwise the album is my main focus right now.
BPM – Do you have a planned release date for the album?
PvD – It’s kind of early to say, but it will be next year.
BPM – You’ve remixed tons of artists’ work and recorded with some big names. Is there anyone you’d like to work with you haven’t had the chance to yet?
PvD – I don’t have a list in my head that I have to tick off. Usually I have the idea [for a collaboration] when writing a song. There will be a shadow of a voice that I think “well, that person could sing it” and then I write the song with them in mind. There are a lot of people I really like. I’m a big fan of Linkin Park and it would be really cool to do something with Chester [Bennington], having him sing on one of my tracks could be really cool. But the ideas usually come in the process of making the music.
BPM – You’ve just done the music for a tennis game, which may not be the first type of game people would think of for your style of music. What type of game would you imagine your music accompanying if you had the choice?
PvD - I actually think my music fits quite well with the energy and enthusiasm you have in a sports game. If I made a game to accompany my music it would probably be a modern day thriller with mystical qualities. I would like to bring the tension and energy of my music more to the forefront which can’t really be done in a sports game.
BPM – You also have a weekly radio show. How do you find the time with all the touring, recording and scoring?
PvD – I have a mobile system with me on tour so we can upload my parts to the server. Then my team can go in and get the individual markets’ trailers and everything together. But the music, the mixing and the talking… that’s all me.
BPM – So it’s not really Paul Van Dyk the DJ as much as Paul Van Dyk the team these days?
PvD – It’s always been the team. If you read interviews going years and years back I always refer to what I do as “us”. We do so many things, without having the strong support from the team it wouldn’t be possible. While there are things I do like making the music where I do it myself, it’s always been about the team effort.
BPM – Today you’re in Nashville and you’ve been getting to some smaller markets across the US. Has that been an enjoyable change for you?
PvD – I was somewhat afraid to see how it would be, for example, on a Monday night in Albequerque. I’ve never been there and it’s not the ideal day for a club night. But I’ve been totally overwhelmed with the crowd reaction and the outcome of the tour so far. Everything has been absolutely phenomenal. I’m very thankful to everyone who’s been coming out to see me on this tour and I’m pretty sure it’s not the last time I’ll visit these places. They honestly haven’t felt small, they’ve felt like full on large events. The people know about the music, they’re having a great time, it just shows you how global electronic music is. It doesn’t matter if you’re in New York, London, Berlin or if you’re in Albequerque or Oklahoma City. You find the people that love the music and everyone has a great time.
BPM – You just did the Electric Daisy Carnival in Denver. How do you think that will compare to the EDC in Los Angeles this weekend?
PvD – Well, it obviously a different scale of event. I think it’s the 13th time they’re putting it on in Los Angeles, so in terms of the infrastructure they’re much more familiar with the layout and production. It was a really cool event in Denver and I’m looking forward to EDC in LA. It’s one of the biggest events for electronic music in the world and it’s very special. I remember last year driving into the event on a golf cart and saw the amount of people and was like “holy shit”. It was really impressive.
_________
Paul will be at the Lizard Lounge in Dallas tonight, in Houston at Bar Rio tomorrow and headlining the Kinetic Field stage at Electric Daisy Carnival in LA this Saturday. Check his website for tour dates across Europe this summer. Paul is also the artist I alluded to yesterday who has worked with Hans Zimmer. He remixed the Dark Knight theme last year. It’s totally random that Linkin Park has now appeared in two of my posts in a row. But hey, those kids know how to write a pop tune.
Many thanks to Paul for his time. Now go see him live and buy his iPhone/iPod app!
