Jordan Suckley: "It's been intense for the past year." (Interview)

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Jordan Suckley has been someone to watch out for within the trance scene for the past few years thanks to his unbending style of darker trance vibes. Now with his own record label, his non-stop touring schedule, Jordan has released the first Damaged Records compilation mix with 38 tracks mixed by himself and Mark Sherry. Jordan digs deep into the crates for this compilation as many of these producers featured in Damaged Records Volume 01 have barely 500 Soundcloud followers! It's a rare treat to have someone as established as Jordan Suckley to take a risk on brand new producers and is not afraid to find true trance gems. 

In this interview I talked to Jordan about his new mix compilation, his views on the current trance scene, and his thoughts on how trance music will move forward as 2015 rolls on. Enjoy: 

How's life with Jordan Suckley over the past year?

It's pretty good, it's been intense for the past year. Non-stop touring.

Damaged Records seems to be growing quite nicely. How's that journey been?

I didn't really plan on starting my own label, but it was my manager kind of convinced me to give it a go. I'm really surprised at how well it has done as it has come out as 13th best selling trance label on Beatport. It's the highest new entry for new record labels. I'm surprised at how well things have gone.

Congratulations, what's your secret?

It's just about picking the right tracks, doing the right promotions and getting the right support. There isn't any special formula as things just kind of click together.

Tell me about the new mix compilation series, Damaged Records Volume One.

We are going to do a yearly compilation and for the first one I got Mark Sherry on board. He has a good contrasting style to my own because I play a little darker with the psy-trance and tech-trance elements. Mark still does tech-trance but he also does techno. The compilation is a nice mixture of two different styles. My CD is the sound that you hear me playing in clubs around the world. It's nice to have an actual physical CD of that stuff.

How deep did you dig to find these gems? Some of these featured artists have less than 500 Soundcloud followers.

I dig deep. I do a lot of search on beatport, and I get sent a lot of tracks to my Damaged email address and use them as exclusives. Since I have a record label I get sent hundreds of promos all the time. I get sent a lot of bad stuff but there are some gems in there.

"Rather than doing a beautiful compilation that you play at your wedding, this compilation is what I play in the clubs."

You picked Mark Sherry to do the 2nd CD – what's your connection with Mark?

Mark is one of my favourite producers, he's so talented and has been around the scene for a long time as well. He's a reputable name and one of the remixes he did for the label was one of the biggest selling tracks we've put out so it's only right to have him on board for this.

This CD goes hard as its full of powerful tracks.

Yes it's all of the stuff I play in the clubs. Rather than doing a beautiful compilation that you play at your wedding, this compilation is what I play in the clubs. This is what the label is about. I just put up what I like on the CD and I hope people like it.

What's your view on the trance scene in 2015?

It's amazing, never been better! I always think that the scene is only as strong as the number of good producers out there. There are many producers always making quality stuff. As long as there are good producers making tracks then the scene will keep on thriving. I'm playing gigs in loads of random places that I thought I never would have been able to play at before So that's a good sign.

Can you name some next level artists that we should look out for in the trance scene this year?

The next one I'm pushing is a guy called Sam Jones, he has a few tracks on my label and I'll be working on a collaboration with him at some point. He's from Wales, he likes tech-trance and has worked on tracks for Mental Asylum and Kearnage. He's got quite a few good bits coming out as well. He's definitely the next talent.

How do you keep your sound fresh and interesting for you?

In the last 6-8 months I have refreshed my sound a bit by adding different elements. Trance is so broad that just as long as it has a trancey rift in there, you can add anything in the breakdown like a bit of techno, psy-trance, or a normal trance bassline. It's different with every track but I like to bring in elements from different styles of music.

What's next for the trance sound?

I think more people are going to do sound design with unique bass sounds and leads. The production techniques will change with more individual sounds.

What can fans expect from Jordan Suckley in 2015? Tours, releases?

I've just done a remix of Tiesto, which will come out in July. I've got a collaboration with Paul Van Dyk for this next Politics of Dancing album. I've done a remix with Heatbeat that's coming out on Armada. I've got a new vocal track with Erica Curran coming out on Damaged. I've got a couple more originals in the works. Touring wise I'm going to Australia next week and in May I'm going on a North American tour – but I'm pretty much booked up until September.

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My thanks to Jordan Suckley for this interview. If you want to pick up Damaged Records Volume 01 2 disc compilation featuring 38 tracks mixed by Jordan and Mark Sherry, click here to buy it now via iTunes. 

Tracklist: 

Mix 01 - Jordan Suckley

01. Royal Flush – Humanity
02. Royal Flush vs Freedom Fighters - Walter White 
03. Shekinah - Get Out Your Self
04. Future Disciple - The Mayans Are Coming Back (Original Mix) 
05. Microsis - Anno Machina 
06. The Technicians - Re:sample (Original Mix)
07. Thomas Datt - Prana Flow (Original Mix) 
08. Allen & Envy - Coherent (Johnny Yono Remix) 
09. Jordan Suckley - Droid (Original Mix)
10. Future Antics - Twisted (Original Mix)
11. Kriess Guyte - Galactic (Original Mix)
12. Jordan Suckley - Elation (Original Mix) 
13. Jordan Suckley - Medic (Original Mix) 
14. Sam Jones - No Angel (Original Mix)
15. Jordan Suckley - Who Cares? (Original Mix)
16. Sam Jones & Will Rees - Oversight (Original Mix)
17. Tangle - Sahara (A.R.D.I. Remix) 
18. Daniel Skyver featuring Cat Martin - No One Else (Original Mix)
19. Reverse - Ultima (Original Mix)

Mix 02 - Mark Sherry 

01. Mark Sherry & Dr Willis - Here Come The Drums (Pedro Delgardo & Dualitik Remix) 
02. Mario Piu- The Code (Original Mix) 
03. Shelley - Talk About Drums (Original Mix) 
04. Alex Di Stefano - Ironclad (Spektre Remix) 
05. The Reactivitz - Techno Is Of The Essence (Alex Di Stefano Remix) 
06. Alex Di Stefano - No Pain, No Gain (Original Mix) 
07. Jamie Walker - Rojo (Original Mix) 
08. Ikorus - Nine Lives (Original Mix) 
09. Max Graham - The Evil ID (Mark Sherry Remix) 
10. Markus Schulz - Remember This (Mark Sherry Remix)
11. The Space Brothers & Mark Sherry - Let It Come (Outburst Vocal Mix) 
12. Mark Sherry & Clare Stagg - How Can I (Solis & Sean Truby Remix)
13. Alex Di Stefano - I’ve Got the Power (Original Mix) 
14. Corti Organ - Narrow (Original Mix) 
15. Mark Sherry - Vengeance (Tempo Giusto Remix) 
16. Mark Sherry - Vengeance (Lostly presents Audio Militia Remix) 
17. Mark Sherry - The Pillars Of Creation (Original Mix) 
18. Kaimo K - Mayhem (Original Mix)
19. Sam Jones & Rhys Thomas - The End (Original Mix)

Hottest tracks of the week (April 20th - 26th)

Here's this week's selection of the hottest tracks hand-picked by the biggest radio shows and charts in the land. I know that it's hard to keep up with so many EDM shows on a weekly basis so let this list help you out and keep you up to date on the hottest tracks in the land, enjoy:  

#1 on the Beatport top 100: 

#1 on Hypem:

Above & Beyond's Group Therapy Radio "Record Of The Week":

Pete Tong's "Essential New Tune":

DRUM & BASS

Friction's "Friction Fire":

BIG ROOM

Hardwell On Air "Demo of the Week":

W&W's Mainstage Podcast "Smash Of The Week": 

Nicky Romero's Protocol Radio #1:

Nicky Romero's Protocol Radio #2:

TRANCE

A State of Trance  "Tune Of The Week": 

Cosmic Gate's Wake Your Mind Radio "Big Bang":  

HARDSTYLE

Kutski's Keeping The Rave Alive "Hardest Record In The World":

Rain Man beyond Krewella: "I've been doing what really inspires me"

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2015 is the year of renewal, refocus, and emergence of Rain Man. Formerly as part of Krewella, Kris Trindl (aka Rain Man) has spent the last several months hard at work in the studio to establish his own sound as a solo act. Choosing to go back to his roots by creating music with metal and industrial influences, Rain Man released a powerful track with Grammy winning Sirah called "Visionary" which gives us a preview of what is to come from this talented producer.

EDM Canada managed to talk to Rain Man in an exclusive interview that talks about his latest releases, new projects, views on the scene and so much more. This interview is an absolute must-read for all bass fans out there as I believe Rain Man will be someone to watch in 2015 and beyond. Enjoy:

The past year has been a testing time, but it seems like the clouds are lifting. Is 2015 a happier time for Rain Man, where are you at right now?

Rain Man: I'm totally stoked right now. I've gotten some new management and I think we're on the same page a little bit more. My new manager is Brandon from Red Light and he sort of gets me. He understands where I come from, what inspires me, what I'm interested in, and what I'm not interested in. When you're in a group with 3 people, you do what the majority says. But now I get to make all of the decisions creatively, artistically, and make decisions on shows I want to play, or don't want to play.

It's been great. It's been inspiring to make new tracks by going back to my roots with a little bit of metal and industrial. That's just been awesome. So I've been doing what really inspires me. When I wake up in the morning I head straight to the computer and just go at it.

I'm reaching out to vocalists that I am inspired by and we're just doing tracks.

"We pull[ed] a palm tree out of L.A., drove it out to the desert, and we lit it on fire."

You've now released “Visionary” with Sirah and you had a track with this new trio Hunter Square. Are you kind of experimenting right now? Or are you now just a solo artist?

That Hunter Square remix we put out was for the track “Falling In Love Will Kill You” with Gerard Way, and my friend Matt, who was one of the singers on that track, was one of the first people in Chicago hear my records when I was 19 years old.

He loved my first productions and back then he was in a popular band called Kill Hannah. Last summer we reconnected after 5 years. We worked on a Wrongchilde remix which was sort of a product of just sitting together and making a tune. And now the outcome of our work together will be two upcoming singles under Rain Man.

So I'm focusing on the Rain Man thing and Matt will be featured as a vocalists on two of my upcoming records. We've already shot a video for one of them actually. The video is awesome as we pull a palm tree out of L.A., drove it out to the desert, and we lit it on fire. We did a bunch of crazy antics. The video is done and we're just waiting on finalizing the record. We're going to call it “Earthquake”.

Will it be signed by Buygore?

I think so. We'll talk to them to see if they're interested in putting it out. Those guys are so cool and so down to earth. We came to them with “Visionary” and asked if they liked the record. They said yes and within a week we put it out. No bullshit, no problems. So the first thing I'm going to do is go to them with this next one and ask if they want to put this one out. I hope they dig it.

Tell me about your “Visionary” track featuring Sirah.

Like I said before, I got together with my friend Matt in the summer and we were working together 2-3 times a week. Around November I had this beat and asked Matt if she knew of any vocalists and asked me if I knew Sirah. I was like YES, of course I do! So Matt texted her that day and after she heard the record she said yes.

We got in the studio in December and it was an interesting time for me because I had no manager or booking agent. She understood what I was going through and that's how the lyrics for “Visionary” was created.

So you have “Visionary”, which is out now, and two new tracks with Matt - is that right?

Yep, and I have two new tracks with this reggae singer called Rootsman, and 2 club tracks with no vocals. So I have 6 in total that I'm working on right now.

Are you releasing them all one at a time?

I think so. When you release a project then you have to be very prepared. With Madeon, he waited 3-4 years before putting out his first album. I think it's smart to put out singles until you put out your debut album. That's what I'm going to do.

Tell me about your relationship with Buygore.

Borgore's label Buygore is managed by some people over at Red Light. In January I signed with Brandon from Red Light and when I played “Visionary”, he asked me what I wanted to do with it. He told me we could bring it to any label but we decided to bring it over to Buygore, who were two doors down from his office. They said yes and 7 days later it came out. After that Borgore invited me to play at his new mansion in L.A., and later at the Buygore Miami party.

Everyone is so cool over at Buygore, and it's not everyday that it only takes 7 days for your record to come out with all of the contracts signed. When I went to Miami for the party, I brought my girlfriend with me and hung out with the team, ate with them, and went to shows together and they are really good people. In my experience in the music industry, this is not easy to find.

I found your WMC Mix to be pretty sick. Do you plan on creating a radio show?

I was thinking about it but it's a lot of work. I put a lot of dedication into my mixes because I want to make sure that the song flows into the next song and it's gotta be ridiculous. It's got to get me excited. To do a mix every week might be too much. I'm kind of a hater because I don't think there's enough sick tunes to make a mix every week.

What is Rain Man up to in 2015?

I have a couple of records on the way with two music videos that have already been shot but aren't released. 5 days ago we did a shoot for “Visionary” that features me, Sirah, and Borgore mobbing. We have a black panther in the shoot so it's pretty epic. I have that video and the other video I did with Matt for “Earthquake”.

I'm going to play some spot dates just like what I'm doing now with dates in Chicago, and L.A. But by the Fall we are going on a full tour. So I definitely want the fans to know that because I have a lot of requests to do shows. I have a couple of underground guys that I want to bring along to help them and give them a bit of a push.

Is this tour going to be a solo thing or part of a larger Buygore tour?

It's going to be a solo tour. I love Buygore and I want to keep on putting out records with them. But they didn't sign me as a producer so I wouldn't say that I'm a part of their movement. I'm just a dude putting out records with them.

How do you see the scene today?

A year or two ago I would have been much more skeptical than now. I didn't know how anyone was going to get the notoriety they need to break out in the scene. At that time I didn't know of anybody that was going to take it to the next level. But now it's crazy. Everybody knows that Jauz is next level. Ghaslty is opening up for me in Chicago and he's next level. They're doing Future House. Everybody knows that Snails is killing the game. I think bass music is bigger than they've ever been. It's ready.

I was on Soundcloud yesterday and saw that Flosstradamus has 4.8 million followers on Soundcloud. Everybody talks about this bubble bursting and there's no way. I don't think it's true. Bass music is here and it's here to stay. It blows my mind how many new producers keep killing it.

Everyone is focused on what's new but no matter what bloggers want to put out there, guys like Flosstradamus aren't going anywhere. Bass music isn't going anywhere. People are turning 18 every day and people are getting exposed to this music every day. That's why Flosstradamus has 4.8 million followers because new people are checking out their music for the first time every single day.

"Without confidence and standing up for yourself – I think you're just playing a losing game."

Who's up and coming in the bass scene, who are some people that we need to look out for?

Jauz and Ghastly. There's something about their sound. When we look back at let's say Moombahthon, we now know that was just hype. But the way Jauz and Ghastly DJ's is ridiculous. Ghastly is for me at the Mid in Chicago, and he's a really tough act to follow. The only other act I can think of is marshmello, and I don't necessarily like his records but people are losing their shit to his sound.

You were in Krewella, and now you are finding your footing as a solo artist. Do you have any tips for up and coming producers trying to find their way in the music business in 2015?

When you're an up and coming artist you worry that you're not good enough. They ask if they are not good enough, that they're some bullshit bedroom producer who might get 3 likes on their Instagram posts or whatever. The most important thing is to believe in yourself. To believe that you have what it takes and believe that your music is good enough. Because that's what we ever did. We made the music and it was the best job that WE can do, and hoped that people will like it.

Confidence is important.

Without confidence and standing up for yourself – I think you're just playing a losing game.

I know you have a ton of fans up here - when are you coming to Canada?

Dude I can not wait. Canada is fucking awesome for bass music. Every time I've been there it's been such a pleasure. I just was announced as part of the Veld line up this year, so I'll be coming at the beginning of August! It's going to be my debut festival so its really special to me. 

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My thanks to Rain Man for this interview and I'm stoked to hear what's coming up for him for the rest of the year. Make sure to check out his Soundcloud page as I'm sure we'll be hearing a lot of new material from him in the near future. 

Rain Man will be making his solo festival debut this August as part of the Veld Music Festival lineup in Toronto. For tickets, click here. 

Digital Dreams just got a whole lot better with these recent lineup additions

Yesterday the Digital Dreams Music Festival, set to take place on June 27th - 28th in Toronto, got a lot more interesting with a few key lineup additions. The most notable is that Porter Robinson will be bringing his live show to Ontario Place this summer. Recently playing at Coachella infront of massive crowds, Porter has honed his live show thanks to his solo tour last year and he's now ready to bring it to a festival stage. 

Gramatik has a unique style that will stand out from the rest and he has a lot of new tracks to show off thanks to his recently released album. Other additions include Monstercat's Pegboard Nerds, Toronto's own Carlo Lio and Greg Gow. 

Tickets are still available for Digital Dreams - for more information click below: 

Listen to Adventure Club's Superheroes Anonymous 6: Road To Red Rocks mix

Adventure Club released another edition of their superheroes anonymous mix which has already been played 84 thousand times over the past 24 hours. It begins with a bit of future house love and then it swings into their more traditional melodic bass style, enjoy: 

Adventure Club will be playing two shows at New City Gas in Montreal next week, one on Friday night and the other one on Saturday. 

(VIA TSS)