| Interview with Kuffdam and Plant ( 18.01.2007 - 12:20 GMT UTC )
1. How did you two start out and how did your career progress ?
Kuffdam: Well from my side, I have been been into dance music for about 15 years now. I really got started with production after meeting a like minded guy at a local club and really learning the ropes of production and DJ’ing from him. This would have been around 1994 and around that same time I started to teach myself to DJ. With regards working with Plant, I think we started working together around 2001 after meeting on the web. Plant got in touch with me after I had been on a short trip to Cyprus to DJ and we just hit it off in terms of music taste and ideas. Since then really Kuffdam & Plant just seems to have grown for us and hopefully will continue to for a while yet.
Plant: I am into production since late 90’s, I started the whole thing just as a hobby, but response from people was overwhelming. Back then I had my own web site on mp3.com, numerous times I found my productions residing at no 1 places in the various charts, however when mp3.com had closed down, I met Kuffdam, we talked about some ideas, we tried a few things and there we are!
2. Has your first love musically always been trance ?
Kuffdam: To be honest the answer is simply no. I’m the kinda person that floats between all kinds of music. I’ve always been a big rock fan and also a big metal fan. As a hobby I collect Metallica records and I have been doing this since about 1990 so its almost taking over a room at home now. My tastes in music always changes depending on my mood, I love bands like Oasis, The Stone Roses, Pink Floyd, just anything that can give you a feeling…. Its hard to describe… just a real enjoyment. I get that from dance music which is why I love making it, going clubbing and of course DJ’ing. Dance music events are just as much of a buzz to attend as they are to play at.
Plant: Well, this is a funny question, since the more people I get to know in the scene, the more I realise that most of trance fans and producers actually use to be or are…rock fans, just like me! Off course the question is not about what I liked first, but what I loved and I dare to say Trance is the only music I really loved.
3. Where do you source your music from (as a Dj) ?
Kuffdam: Originally when I was buying vinyl I would get it from local stores like 23rd Precinct in Glasgow which is one of the only good record stores still running that I shopped at. As for now most of the tracks I DJ with are either sent to me as promo’s from labels and artists or I shop for them from places like VONYC and Beatport.
Plant: I used to buy records from different shops in my home town and from the internet. Now when I want to buy e-tracks, I also go on Beatport, Vonyc and some other e-shops.
4. Was it difficult producing music together without actually meeting one another ?
Kuffdam: Well since we have started working together in the studio over the last year or so I can actually fully see how hard it was to work over the web. Now its far easier to share ideas and be much more spontaneous. When we first started out we just developed an idea on our own and then would send it over the web for the other to listen to and again they could expand on it…. I can’t say it was bad working over the web because so many of the tracks we have released were done this way including Summer Dream, Dream Makers and Seduction.
Plant: Our first productions, which were made by exchanging files on the web, indeed were very successful, but actually harder to be produced than we actually hoped to. Putting down the main ideas and elements is easy and quick, but the “fine tuning” and the “small stuff” were giving us some hard time. Some times Kuffdam or I would come to an idea for a track while the other one was working on it, after the file was back to me or John, idea was simply gone, or would not fit anymore. Being in the same room proves to be more productive, especially when it comes to spontaneous ideas. Still, we use the internet a lot, but now the tracks are finished only when we meet.
5. What's the most memorable venue you've played at (to Kuffdam) ?
Kuffdam: In terms of the venue and the history behind it, Eden in Ibiza. We played there in 2006 and we both loved it, its just an amazing venue and Ibiza it’s a stunning party island. I really love playing in Cyprus, we have played there so many times and we have a great following there which makes it extra special. I also have to give a special mention to The Gallery in London, the place is amazing and everyone from the promoters to the crowd are just mad for clubbing. It’s well worth a visit.
6. What is the most unlikely place you have heard one of your tracks ?
Kuffdam – Well I didn’t actually hear it as such but I did get a statement through recently from PRS which handles the writes to where your music has been played and it listed several Keep Fit classes in the UK using the track…. When I read that I kinda laughed out loud….. Its not exactly where we thought Summer Dream would be banging out….
Plant: Well, actually I should not be surprised, but I heard Summer Dream here on a local radio station called …Rock FM - Cyprus. I guess I’m a local hero or so eh?
7. Tell us something about the new single 'The Ones We Loved'.
Kuffdam: I guess it has to be one of our favourite productions. Working with Terry Ferminal on the vocal was a real pleasure. Terry is a real long term friend of mine and the lyrics were written about our friendship, our close friends and our life of partying really. Its got a real close meaning for a small group of our own friends but it seems to be able to translate the message of good friends to anyone that listens. The track was also one of the first that we did together in a studio rather than over the web so I think it shows how we could progress in terms of production styles.
Plant: When I first listened to the vocals Terry Ferminal did, I felt sad, really sad! They had a different effect on me, since I didn’t know the guys, my mind went straight to clubbing! Where are all the people gone? The scene seems to get smaller and smaller, I see this track as a call to the clubbers around the world to return to the dance floors and to the good time we all have in the club.
8. How has the success of 'Summer Dream' influenced your productions thereafter ?
Kuffdam: For me I don’t think it has really. We always try to come up with new, fresh ideas and sounds for every track and we stick to that. Summer Dream was just one of our tracks and its not something we plan to try to copy or recreate just for an extra few sales. We wrote it, we love it and now its on to the next project.
Plant: It did not influence the production style of ours, since we like to produce many different styles of trance. Surely it helped us to become famous on the trance scene, we always play that in our live gigs, we love it, people love it! However, this is the track that has put us on Vandit Records lists. I think this is the most important release of us – ever.
9. Did that success prove to be a hindrance in as far as branching out and experimenting with newer styles ?
Kuffdam: Not in the slightest, we are just stuck to working on ideas that make us happy and that we think we would love to hear in a club. There is no set formula when we start a new track, just a series of ideas and plenty of conversation bouncing back and forth between us. One thing Summer Dream did do for us was to open the door to Vandit Records and our deal there. Since that track we have been proud to work with the label and release 2 more tracks.
Plant: Not at all! What’s “The Ones We Loved” got to do with Summer Dream? The success of that or any other track of ours does not stop us to experiment with different styles and we never think of comparing new productions with summer dream.
10. Tell us about your upcoming releases.
Kuffdam: Well we have just finished a remix for Gabriel & Dresden called Dangerous Power which we love. Its got a wicked vocal which really attracted us to the track. You can buy that now so get shopping…. We have a new track called Maziko due out on Backlash Muzik in February, it’s a real banging track that we have been playing in our live show for a while. Apart from that, we are back in the studio now working on a few new things…. But we can’t say much more than that for now lol…..
11. To Kuffdam: Tell us about your radio show on di.fm, 'Club Damage'.
Kuffdam: I’m really proud The Damage Show, its got a great following of about 5000 listeners each month and the feedback has been amazing. I try to vary the guests each month from people that I know in the business like Mark Sherry, Andy Bagguley to the new up and coming guys like Frase and Cliffy Burrows which I think keeps it fresh and lets the listeners hear some of the amazing DJ’s in the UK and beyond. In February 2007 I will celebrate the 2 year anniversary of the show and I will play the full 2 hours with some special giveaway prizes so make sure you tune in. 2007 has also seen me start the Club Damage Sessions with VONYC radio, that’s a show going out 4 times a year and the next 2 hour mix will be April so keep an eye for it. Oh yeah and one last thing…. I now have a Pod Damage podcast which you can check out on our forum at www.kuffdamandplant.net
12. What's your advice for aspiring producers on how to produce a good trance track ?
Kuffdam: There’s no right and wrong way to write music, if you like it then that’s what should count. Just do what you enjoy and don’t be afraid to send it to labels, you just never know who might want to sign up your work….
Plant: When I was 6 I was listening to music, when I was 12 I bought me my first HI FI, when I was 16 I’ve played my first record in the club, when I was 17 I made my own first song, I never cared of who liked it, I always loved it, today I’m working for Vandit, keep walking…erm producing!
13. Do you enjoy partying as much as playing/producing music ?
Kuffdam: Absolutely….
Plant: Is that a trick question? What do I get if I answer it right?
14. What do you think about the actual trance music scene and the future of it ?
Kuffdam: Trance has clearly gone through the major highs of the late 90’s and early 2000 stage where the radio, tv and media hyped it so much the general public became bored of it…. But now its simply gone back to the level of people that love the music, going clubbing and enjoying a good night out…. Which if the way I like it…..
Plant: …furthermore to what Kuffdam says, I generally do not think of this issue much, all I now is that when we play or I go clubbing, we see people dancing and enjoying themselves. We do what we do for those people.
15. What are the highlights in your career so far ?
Kuffdam: Signing for Vandit and having Paul van Dyk remix our tune…. That’s a real highlight for me…. I also love the travelling, getting to play cool places I thought I would never visit like Lebanon and Doha in the Middle East… Simply amazing places and great people….
Plant: Having Paul van Dyk introducing me to 12.000 in Lebanon! Definitely!
16. Was it ever awkward at all to starting out with the duo, as a band ?
Kuffdam: It was something new to me anyway, I have always been used to playing on my own as a DJ so moving to also doing the live show and having someone else alongside me was different lol. The cool part is getting to share the experience of the event together and also the buzz of playing our material that we wrote…. Seeing the crowd react feels great when you can both enjoy it.
Plant: I produced and performed with other people before so it was not new to me, but it is definitely different. Already from the beginning everything went down smoothly: Our first release was playlisted by PVD, the first gig we played together went down flawless but it’s not just because we were lucky. We have worked out a way to smoothly overcome any disagreements, we are very hard criticising each other’s ideas and work, but at the end of it we come up with common ideas and we stick to those no matter what.
17. In a word... How would You describe Your life right at this very moment in the context of Your life to date ?
Kuffdam: In a single word…. Exciting…. I’m really enjoying what we are doing right now…. Its hard to explain… I would never have imagined that I would be releasing tracks and working with one of the worlds biggest trance labels…. Its what I love and to be part of it just makes it really special….
Plant: Interesting! What’s next ?
18. What are Your feelings on playing live, anyway, are You at home on the stage, or do You prefer the creative confines of the studio or writing retreat ?
Kuffdam: I love playing live, getting out and really hearing your tracks they way you intended them to is what keeps me going. The studio can be fun but its also long days when we get going and in the end when you have a finished track you just count the days till you can play the track live, just to see if its gonna sound and get the reaction you had worked hard for……
Plant: I love playing live, I love the people dancing to our tunes, I love meeting other fellow producers and DJs. I also love it when a track is finished, can’t wait to see that on a release and play it to the people!
19. Which equipments do you use for producing ?
Kuffdam: We have always really just worked on Reason for the production… Tracks like Summer Dream and Dream Makers were totally worked on with Reason. Its an amazing piece of kit if you put the time in to learn it. We also use Cubase for mastering and some sounds and of course we love Ableton, we use that in the studio as well as live and for the last year I have been DJ’ing on it at my gigs.
Plant: Basically we use Reason, but Cubase is a crucial element for our productions too. I use it to sample sounds from my hardware and software synthesizers and create our own unique Reason Refills. Ableton Live is also a tool we use a lot, it’s got some fantastic effect devices!
21. When producing a particular track, what role do each of you play ?
Kuffdam: Plant is great at the real technical things, re-wiring instruments for sounds on Reason for example, he understands my ideas perfectly and is amazing at getting them down on the actual programme. All of our tracks are a real combination of 2 minds…. For many years we worked separate and we never had a single track released then we meet and suddenly everything just clicks so I believe that we simply need each other to make it all work…. Despite being in different countries we have become great friends and we share very similar ideas on music which has helped us develop our sound and style.
Plant: Kuffdam says it …almost all! But there is something that must be said: I fully trust Kuffdam to judge our work. He is the one with the 12 year long DJ-ing experience, he is the one who decides if a track is good enough for release or not!
22. How do you handle creative differences ?
Kuffdam: Hahahahaha we don’t have any…. Joking… Really I have found the best way we get over this is to try the idea…. There is no such thing as a bad idea…. Everything is worth trying…. You can always go back if it doesn’t work.
Plant: We have mouths, ears and eyes – for the internet- which we use to in a praxis commonly known as discussion! We see any creative difference right from the beginning when they arise, we discuss them, find a solution and as I said before, we stick to that solution, no matter what!
Thanks for taking Your time for this interview and good luck woth Your feature projects tho
Kuffdam and Plant: Thanks for speaking to us guys and a big hello to all the people at the site.. seeya soon..
Interview made by Cosmin Lukacs aka Dj K8oard (TranceSound.net admin/founder)
Links:
Kuffdam and Plant official website
Kuffdam and Plant @ MySpace
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