Category: Interviews

INTERVIEW: Shiny Toy Guns (2013)

Shiny Toy Guns are back.? Not just back with new music, but back to their starting lineup with original singer Carah Faye Charnow who rejoins the group.?? Signed to a new label, Five Seven Music, they released the album III late last year, previewed by two uniquely different songs – “Waiting Alone” and “Fading Listening.”? Moving away from the rock feel of their second album Season of Poison, III is more of a electronic-leaning album which has been embraced by their fans.? I spoke to Carah Faye and Jeremy Dawson when they stopped in Nashville on their recent Tour Odyssey with Dirty Heads.

RS: How does it feel to be touring as a whole group again?
Jeremy: Great, we are a band and that?s normally how we tour, what do you mean?

RS: I mean with the original lineup all together.
Carah Faye: It?s awesome
Jeremy: It?s the only way to go.

RS: Carah, is there anything weird about singing the songs that Sisely originally sang?
Carah Faye: No not at all, I just make them my own.
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INTERVIEW: Audien (2013)

Barely 21 years old, producer/DJ Audien is already a force to be reckoned with on the EDM scene. His first track “Rise and Shine” was picked up Ferry Corsten for release on his label.?? Support from Tiesto, Above & Beyond, Armin Van Buuren, and Hardwell quickly followed.? As one of the top 13 Freshman artists chosen by Elektro Magazine, he rocked their event at WMC this year and his touring schedule is quickly filling up. With solid productions and remixes, Audien definitely has a long and successful career ahead of him.?

DJ Ron Slomowicz: Where did the name Audien come from?
Audien: My friend came up with it; it is just a random word that stuck. I decided that I wanted to use it as an alias because I am not huge on my own name.

RS:? Rise and Shine was your first record that blew up, how did you get it to Ferry Corsten?
Audien: I sent it to the label and they saw something in it and picked it up and that was the very beginning.

RS: What did it mean to you to have Ferry Corsten play and endorse the record?
Audien: He is such an inspiration and it was a really big moment for me. He has always been an idol of mine and playing it was really big for me.
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INTERVIEW: Laidback Luke (2013)

Laidback Luke is an energetic character – something you get when you listen to his productions or see him perform live.? Take a listen to his recent track “Pogo” and that infectious joyous energy comes through.? Although he’s been producing tracks for twenty years, his work with the different members of the Swedish House Mafia in 2006/2007 really launched him into the stratosphere.? His solo tracks, as well as collaborations with everyone from Steve Aoki and Hardwell to Robyn and Sander Van Doorn, appear in the crates (or on the hard drives) of every big DJ around the world.? He launched his own label MixMash as a breeding ground for new talent, and having helped launch the careers of Avicii and Afrojack, you know that’s definitely a label to watch as well.? We caught up for a brief chat at WMC in March.

DJ Ron Slomowicz: Are you having a good conference?
Laidback Luke: Yes, it has been an amazing conference. Every year it seems to get bigger and better and I must say that it seems like a Dutch invasion as well.

RS: Well you have Dirty Dutch and Trance Superstars, what else do you see coming out of Amsterdam now?
Laidback Luke: Tons of stuff, we have Showtek coming up, those guys were a hardstyle before. We crashed Benny Benassi?s party at LIV?on Monday?and you would expect all the Italian DJs to be there but all the Dutch DJs were there, it?s crazy.
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