Feature: D-Nox & Beckers [Interview + Podcast] Born out of a shared vision of musical inspiration, the duo of D-Nox & Beckers has, over the last 10 years, firmly entrenched itself into the landscape of the worldwide electronic community. Working as a perfect fusion of studio expertise and an impeccable dancefloor touch, this creative combination of Christian "D-Nox" Wedekind and Frank Beckers has become a an unfailing source of massive grooves which have successfully infected (infiltrated?) all corners of the globe. With more than a quarter century of combined DJing and producing experience between them, D-Nox & Beckers effectively merge a seasoned musical grounding with a dynamic creative spark that never fails in its ability to adapt to the ever-changing vista of electronic dance music. Hey Guys, thanks for joining us today, Tell us a bit about yourself, how did you discover electronic music and what led you down the path of wanting to be a DJ and producer? What were some of your early inspirations? Beckers: Read More
Feature: D-Formation [Interview + Premiere] Hi Dimas, thanks for joining us today, tell us a bit about yourself, where are you living and how long have you been producing music and DJing? Hi and thanks for having me on your great Progressive Austronaut! I live in Madrid, Spain and since I remember myself I have always been dedicated to the music. As a DJ I started at the age of 15, this means that I have been playing for almost 30 years. As a producer I started not much later, I think about 4 years later I started making my first tracks or at least I tried hahahaha How did you discover electronic music and what led you down the path of wanting to be a DJ and producer? Where do your early influences lie? Actually I have always liked the music but thanks to my brother I become interested in the DJing and the electronic music. He was already a DJ at that moment and I quickly decided what I want to do for the next years, which finally ends up in being my life. My influences when I started were very varied, I loved Funky, Hi Read More
Feature: Victor Ruiz [Interview + Podcast] From the depths of the Brazilian electronic music scene – specifically São Paulo – emerges a frank and authentic artist. The integrity and certainty when throwing down Victor Ruiz beats makes it easy to know that he’s landed in a DJ booth. They say that his techno sound has finally found it’s more seductive side. “From Brazil with love” read the title of that interview where he caught the attention with his qualities always supporting super fresh sounds, with fewer grooves. From then on he has been compared to artists like Maceo Plex. Over time Victor Ruiz has grown, not only his production skills but also in his sets, a breath of fresh air to the listener. Hi Victor, thanks for joining us today, how are you and where in the world are you at the moment? I’m fine thanks! How are you? I’m home, in São Paulo, about to go to my boxing class. We are doing great, thanks for asking! 2017 had to be your busiest and most successful year to date, looking back on it Read More
Feature: Nick Muir [Interview + Podcast] Nick Muir is a producer and DJ of the highest order, he is also a musician and composer, and is widely recognised as one scene’s most respected creative mavericks. To mark the release of his new solo project on Bedrock, John Digweed’s long time studio partner has created this exclusive podcast mix for Progressive Astronaut, and we also caught up with the great man to find out what he’s up to… Hi Nick, its an honour to have you here at Progressive Astronaut. Your podcast mix features a superb selection of exciting new music. How are you feeling about the electronic music scene at the moment? How inspired are you by what you’re hearing? Thanks for having me! I think that in many ways this is a golden era for electronic music. When I first started out in my music career electronic music was kind of on the sidelines, but now it is absolutely front and centre of the musical landscape. The tools we have available are mind-blowing and because these means of production are so ac Read More
Feature: Oliver Schories [Interview + Premiere] Hi Oliver, thanks for joining us, how are you and where in the world are you today? Hey, thanks for having me. It’s Monday and I’m at home today, in Hamburg. Tell us about your record collection, where do some of your early influences lie? My early influences in terms of electronic music lie definitely with The Prodigy in the early 90’s. I remember I didn’t even have a CD-Player at that time and needed to ask a friend of mine to copy the 'Experience' album on tape for me. Must have been 1993 or 94. Your new album 'Blitzbahn' is sceduled to been released on your own SOSO imprint, you must be quite excited. Tell us how it began to take shape? Was there an initial goal of writing an album? I have been releasing only a very small number of EPs and Remixes in the last couple of years so that the album is basically a collection of productions. There was no initial goal of writing this specific album, it’s more that it took shape over the time. How did you end up wi Read More
Feature: Britta Arnold, Unders, Noraj Cue and their brand new label Happy Camper Records [Interview + Podcast] Good morning Campers! How are we all and what’s new? Happy Campers : We’re doing fine thank you! Still buzzed from the first release which also launched the label on Jan 19th! We’re very pleased by all the love and support we received from all directions! Meanwhile were working on the new release which is coming up on March 9th. Which will be featuring an original by ‘Jake The Rapper’ with remixes by ‘dOP’, ‘Iorie’ and ‘Signal Flow & Pattern Drama’ Won’t be spoiling more on this one, as you’ll be able to hear it soon! In daily life, we're touring a lot, getting to meet some amazing humans all over the planet and spending all remaining time in the studio. What’s the story behind the label, how did you get together to start the project? Jaron: I would love to pass on the mic to Duncan and Britta to tell that story. Because I always wanted to have a label at some point but not really thought of really having one, until I got asked by Duncan & Brit Read More
Feature: Squire [Interview] Squire is a very talented artist hailing from Barcelona, Spain who we’ve taken notice of over at PA due to his recent releases on highly thought of labels like Smoke N’ Mirrors, Bar 25 Music, and Flying Circus Recordings. We sat down with him recently to discuss what first started his love for electronic music, his Barcelona roots, and his plans for 2018... Hey Squire, great to meet you! We're big fans of your work at PA :) Thank you very much! nice to meet you too How has 2018 been treating you so far? It has started so well… I’ve been playing in some nice venues in the US and finished almost all my music release schedule for 2018 already so yeah very much looking forward for what is about to come..this is the year!! :) What do you hope it brings, in terms of gigs, labels etc? Do you have goals and targets? Well, it has been 3 years of hard work in the studio and I can finally say I have now reached the sound I wanted and get in my own sounding after all these yea Read More
Feature: Jonathan Kaspar [Interview + Premiere] Hi Jonathan, thanks for joining us today, tell us a bit about yourself, where are you living and how long have you been producing music and DJing? Hey, thank you! I’m based in Cologne, Germany, DJing since ten years and producing music since roughly four years. Having followed your music for several years one would note your productions are stylistically diverse and shift narratives with great regularity. It’s a key factor in making them not only a compelling listen but also great for the dance floor. Where do your influences lie? I think the diversity in my music belongs to my way of producing, as most of the time I start with a sample, which then sometimes leads to the direction of the whole track. But in general, I see a certain handwriting in each track I did release so fare, even if there is a wider range. That keeps it exciting for me and that’s exactly the way I like. How much of an influence is music outside the electronic world? A big one! Since I’m also usin Read More
Feature: Chus & Ceballos [Interview] Electronic music is your passion, it is also your profession and the bond that you two share, when and how did you discover this music style that has become such an important part in your lives?Chus: Music has been part of my live since i was very young because from an early age i would listen to my father's record collection. He was into the classic Disco Sound so i've growd up listening to bands like 'Earth Wind & Fire, Chicago, Chaka Khan, Donna Summer, Barry White or The Jacksons' to name but a few. I Have fond memories of this music, when i had 14 years old i would take my father's tape recordings on cassette and edit them by cut and pasting, then i started to scratch his vinyl records! So you could say they were my first DJ experience and the beginning of all of this. A few years later, in the early 90’s, i had the chance to travel to Portugal as a resident DJ of a very popular Club in Algarve, Kadoc, and there was where my love for House Music began. I was Read More
Feature: Budakid [Interview + Premiere] Hi Kevin, thanks for joining us today, tell us a bit about yourself, how old are you, where are you living and how long have you been producing music and DJing? Hey astronaut ☺ Thanks for having me this month. My name is Kevin Huizing and I make music as Budakid. At the moment I’m living in Berlin, but I was living in the Netherlands until last year. I started producing twelve years ago, at the age of fourteen and gradually I started getting more into DJ’ing as well. How did you discover electronic music and what led you down the path of wanting to be a DJ and producer? Where do your early influences lie? I started at a drum fanfare back in the day. I played there for almost 7 years, I think, and then later I discovered a way to produce music all by myself. At the age of fourteen I already went clubbing (which sounds a lot cooler than it was… haha) and that inspired me a lot to try and make electronic music myself. I still know the guy who was playing tech-house/minimal tra Read More