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tranceUNITED:
Hi guys, thanks for taking time to do this interview. How is your summer going? Are you busy in the studio?
Stuart:
Summer is going good; we just kicked off our comeback trail with an amazing gig in Poland, at the Sunrise Festival. We are always busy in the studio
tranceUNITED:
Why did you release so little after the fantastic 1998 track?
Stuart:
Ah, various reasons! there were problems within the structure of Binary Finary, I decided to pull out at an early stage as I felt that it would ultimately damage how I approach music. This conversation needs to be done over a few glasses of fine German beer!!!
tranceUNITED:
I read you guys broke up? What was the reason and how did you find each other again after the long break-up?
Stuart:
Unfortunately people in the group were pulling in different directions, wanting the glory for themselves… I decided to pull out completely and Matt did as well further down the line. The name Binary Finary carried on being used, unfortunately this was by a member who had been sacked, and so even though the name was being used, it wasn’t the real Binary Finary. The track ‘niterider’ had nothing to do with either myself or Matt… It’s not a Binary Finary song…
We both met up again whilst I was travelling in Australia, I got a cryptic email from Matt and we started talking again… It was only a matter of time before we got music going again… We both feel that there are far less destructive forces in Binary Finary now, there are only positives…
tranceUNITED:
How did you guys meet?
Stuart:
We met in a music shop in Portsmouth in the South of England… I went into a music shop looking for some equipment and the guy behind the counter was Matt… He showed me a brochure of a keyboard that the music shop didn’t have stock of, and he offered to show me how it sounded by going round his house… I took a friend over and we sat and listened to the keyboard and the rest is history…
Matt:
I was a pretty open minded musician and really liked Stuarts’ style of dreamlike melody and saw great times ahead in writing.
tranceUNITED:
What were your musical inspirations as you were growing up?
Stuart:
Mine were various, Ozric Tentacles, Grooverider, Orbital, The Orb etc… If I had to choose one artist to take with me to a desert island, it would be The Ozrics…
Matt:
Mine are Eat Static, FSOL, Orbital, David Byrne, Peter Gabriel and just about any other 80’s pop.
tranceUNITED:
Do you guys have any professional music training?
Stuart:
Absolutely not… I can’t even read music, I work by frequencies… If I like the sound and groove, I work from there…
Matt:
I’ve done small engineering courses, tape-op work in studios and many years in music shops.
tranceUNITED:
1998 was an incredible track that changed trance. Did you ever expect the track to get as big as it did?
Stuart:
We realised the track was special, but never thought it would get to where it did… To be honest it was heaven and hell… We all felt we had created something that we could build upon, However it ended up with us taking a backseat until now…
tranceUNITED:
It is a while back, but you guys probaly remember producing 1998. Was it one of those fast numbers, or did this track time to produce? Do you remember how you came up with the sounds?
Stuart:
The track took about 3 hours over 2 days to write and then took 18hrs to mix including the dodgy rushed B-side. The main leadline sound in the original was a Saw that is unique to Yamaha Workstations/keyboards – It had taken months to get the right sound…. Constant tweaking…
tranceUNITED:
There were many remixes produced. What is your favorite remix and why?
Stuart:
For me it’s the PVD remix… He just took it up to another level…
Matt:
For me has to be the Gouryella, if I was a DJ, I would want this version for big parties J
tranceUNITED:
Paul van Dyk realized early on that 1998 was brilliant. Do you think his two remixes 1998 and 1999, was a additional factor for the track becoming so big?
Stuart:
Absolutely, what PVD did was to create a sound that was just huge… He really squeezed the best out of the track…
tranceUNITED:
How do share responsibilities in the studio. Who does what and how do you go about producing a track?
Stuart:
We live about 4 hours away from each other, but with the internet we are connected constantly… We can easily interchange ideas and sounds at the click of a mouse button, which makes the distance no problem… We do get together and jam, and when we do something always emerges that’s awesome…
tranceUNITED:
What do you prefer using hardware or software?
Stuart:
Both… J I love the portability of software, you can just take a computer and be writing at home, the next day on a train, the next in a studio the other side of the world… Fantastic, but also the hands on approach to hardware is great… So both!
tranceUNITED:
This interview is for tranceUNITED.com What do you think about our website? We have many young producers as members. What advice can you give them for writing and producing?
Stuart:
I think any website that brings people together to discuss common ground is fantastic. In creating the website you have brought thousands of people together.
If I was to give one piece of advice, it would be to write for yourself… If you get pleasure in writing and listening to your music, then that is amazing… If anything follows then its a bonus…
tranceUNITED:
Do you only produce trance or do you like to experiment with other music styles?
Stuart:
Anything and everything! J We both write various styles of music… We don’t start a song with a genre in mind, we just get on and write and see how it turns out…
tranceUNITED:
What German DJs/Producers do you like the most?
Stuart:
We played with Kai Tracid at the Sunrise Festival in Poland. I have to say I really like his approach to music… Very professional, very dedicated, and extremely easy to get on with.
tranceUNITED:
What producer will make a name in the next six months?
Blimey, you asking us if we have ESP? It’ very difficult to tell… Over here in London the scene seems a bit stagnated… Michael Splint (Denmark) has some great talent and incredible songs… I would love to see him get bigger and bigger over the next few months… His attitude and talent deserves it…
tranceUNITED:
You have a new track coming called “Difference” with Jose Amnesia. Why after being away for so long did it happen that he was the chosen one for the new track? Can you explain a little the musical makeup of “Difference”?
Stuart:
I knew Jose through my Fiancé, so it was just a casual conversation one day whilst I was in Australia… I sent him over a track called ‘Fake’ which he loved.. He produced a fantastic remix of it… I then sent over ‘Difference’ and what came back was just a whole new level…
The basis of the track was written in just 4 hours… It was the first track I started to write in Australia… I had basically been waiting for my equipment to be shipped over from the UK… I had 5 weeks with no way of writing anything, so by the time it arrived I just went crazy… Difference is the result…
tranceUNITED:
Jose Amnesia has produced classic tracks like “Eternal” or “second day”. Would you guys consider remixing one of his tracks?
Stuart:
If he lets us, YES!!! Absolutely classic tracks…
tranceUNITED:
What else can we expect for the future? Are you thinking of releasing an album?
Stuart:
We have the material, we just need the record company to sign it… It’s not been easy getting material signed… Enhanced Recordings came along to sign Difference and I have been very impressed by them… Very easy to work with and very professional… hopefully we’ll get some more tracks out soon…
tranceUNITED:
Do you guys DJ or play live? If so tell us a little about your style and what people could expect from you at a gig?
Stuart:
We play live using Ableton, Reason & Reaktor... it’s something quite new for us, but it allows us to perform the set with a twist… We can basically adjust everything on the fly to give the crowd what they want… It will take time to perfect the act, but then everything does! J
tranceUNITED:
What do you support classic vinyl or the new technology with CDs and final Scratch?
Stuart:
It’s always nice to see the DJ’s using Vinyl, but I can understand the move to Final Scratch and CD’s, like us moving more to software than hardware… It makes life easier on the move, but also allows you to bring certain newer elements to the performance…
Using Ableton, I can now see why certain DJ’s use it… They can create a much more enhanced set… Although maybe vinyl is still the artform, the skills are just transferred into a different medium, allowing the Ableton user to literally create whatever they feel like…
tranceUNITED:
Trance is very progressive now. Where do you think the sound will head in the future? Will your future releases be influcenced by the current trend?
Stuart:
Some of the progressive music is outstanding… I feel that music works in cycles, so maybe the old raw trance sound might re-emerge… I certainly hope so, as our style tends to lean more towards that…
We don’t write for the current trends, we write what we feel sounds great at the time… I personally get enjoyment from writing music and would not want to be forced to write a certain way or to a certain genre…
tranceUNITED:
What are your hobbies?
Stuart:
Music, music, music and music! J in between, eating, the odd drink and playing pool..
tranceUNITED:
If you were stranded on a island and could only have 3 records, which would you bring?
Stuart:
Oops already answered this… I would have to say the Ozrics… But hey we are in the digital age now, surely it should be ‘If stranded on an island, which records would you use to fill up your ipod’?
I heard Greece 2000 and Gamemaster this past weekend out live in Poland… Forgot just how awesome they are played out live! Amazing…
Matt:
Ehm… DJ Die – Siren // Eat Static – Implant // Speedy J – Patterns ‘The remix’
tranceUNITED:
Thanks for the interview and good luck for the future.
Stuart:
Thank you, we are very keen to play in and return to Germany, as I sampled some beer in Berlin recently and I have to say I am very eager to come back… Although Matt will have a different opinion, as his hangover the next day can testify to! See you soon!!!
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