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 The man who is known as Stian Labahaa in real life and who has mixed the latest edition of the In Trance We Trust Nordic compilation agreed to take part in an exclusive interview with i:Vibes. We talk about all things related to the release of the ITWT CD, as well as lots of other interesting subjects... Head in for a read!
i:Vibes: Without knowing who you are, this interview would be a lot less interesting. So please, introduce yourself!
A: My name is Stian Labahaa. I was born in Kirkenes 29 years ago.
Kirkenes is a small city far, far away up north in Norway. I live next to the border to Russia. At winter time it's up to minus 50 degrees and for 4 months it's night here, no sun at all. During summer it's 4 months with no night at all. So far in my life I have been a really active guy. I've been arranging a lot of party's .
I love music, it's my hobby and also my living bread. I have a Record store and used to be the owner of a club in Kirkenes. For 17 years I've been a dj. I've been playing next to big Names like Tiesto, Cor Fijneman, Mark Norman, Phynn And Progression.
These days I really focus at the dj'ing and I hope to bring some tunes to all of you out there.
i:Vibes: Judging from your Myspace blog, you’ve been spinning music since the tender age of 13. How has your style evolved since the very beginning? How would you describe the style you bring forward in DJ sets today?
A: At the time I started as a dj there were no CD’s. So in the record stores there was a lot of 12 inch vinyls to look through. Actually the beat was kind of the same as these days. I played a lot of Italian style Disco. I Remember New Order, Tecnotronic, Lazerdance and off course a lot of European tracks. Today I play what I call Quality trance. I love to start out with some vocal tracks and build it up to a little more Progressive tunes. And I’m not afraid to give the crowd a few classics.
i:Vibes: What is it that grabs you when listening to trance? In other words, why would you prefer it over other styles of electronic dance music?
A: Trance music makes me happy. It gives me energy. And because of the "take -off" in almost all trance tracks, it never gets boring.
i:Vibes: You were one of the first to bring Tiësto and other Black Hole DJ’s to Norway.
Back in ’99, how did the Norwegian crowd react to the fairly new and upcoming thing trance was back then?
A: Ohh... People all over Norway went mad on trance music. There was a party on every corner for a while. And the record stores threw out trance cd's. Combined to house, the trance music was much more commercial. So there were A LOT of parties.
i:Vibes: How would you compare the Scandinavian trance scene with the one in the Western parts of Europe? How do people react? Who do you feel are the most prominent artists in Scandinavia at the moment?
A: Some years ago Scandinavian trance scenes were really good. But because of the small number of people in Norway you can notice when people get tired of parties. In west Europe people go mad every weekend on a big number of clubs and different happenings. But these days the trance scene is slowly building up again. Because of the down periode in Scandinavia NO dj has put us on the map. My release is the first in years. The guys that used to play a lot all over is gone. I really hope that we'll soon be back again.
i:Vibes: You have recently mixed and compiled the second edition of ITWT Nordic.
Your mix is following up on famous earlier ITWT compilations by the likes of Misja Helsloot, Cor Fijneman, Johan Gielen and Phynn. How does it make you feel to be included in this list?
A: It's an honour. I'm so grateful. My biggest dream since the first ITWT album was to be included as one of the lucky ones to release it. But it used to be unreachable. Now that I’m one of the lucky ones to mix this great compilation series I hope that my cd and live shows will be in the same quality that all my colleagues have proved.
i:Vibes: Included is what seems to be your debut production called ‘High Pressure’. Can you give us some inside information about it? How did the production proceed, is it going to be remixed?
A: High Pressure is my first track ever, it's made for this album. And it's what I call a truly ITWT track. High Pressure is produced by DJ SL and my co-producer Orjan.
Orjan is a very talented producer, he did a number of really nice tracks, one to mention is 'Arctic Globe' which is also included at my In Trance We Trust album.
But I feel that without playing drums since I was a kid, and without being a dj for such a long time, the studio time would have been a lot more difficult. I really hope that 'High Pressure' will be remixed. I've been talking about it with Cor Fijneman. And we will see peoples reaction to the track. And who knows? Maybe there will be a remix by Cor Fijneman?
i:Vibes: How exactly did you come up with the track listing? Was it a not too hard job and did you just pick your favourite records at the moment, or did it involve more headaches?
A: I feel that I was really lucky. At the time I went to mix the album there were a lot of good tracks at Black Hole and other labels. I got a big number of unreleased tracks.
And I think the hardest thing to do was to delete a lot of really good tracks from the tracklist.
i:Vibes: A mix compilation usually tries to take its listener onto a journey. How would you describe the journey on ITWT Nordic 2?
A: The journey will start up with really modern vocal trance music. Then it will bring us back to the really happy trance melodies that we can find on the earlier ITWT albums. In the end on this journey it will be a rocket trip to the moon.
i:Vibes: To promote the release of the CD, you will be touring together with Phynn. Will you be attending many clubs? Please tell us more!
A: There are now 12 gigs in 3 weeks. But before the tour starts I hope it will be about 15 gigs. But I will take part in Tiesto's Norwegian tour after the ITWT tour.
Hopefully we will do a lot of radio gigs as well to promote this album.
i:Vibes: You run your own record store in Kirkenes. It seems like a lot of stores are suffering from increasing mp3 downloads these days (be it legal or illegal). Are you also experiencing this?
A: Sure.. All of the records stores are suffering from this. But we have to sell other products to fill in the lost sales. Films, computer games etc. etc.
i:Vibes: Are you still a vinyl maniac when it comes to spinning records during a set, or are your preferences slowly shifting towards CD’s as well these days? Do you think new records will still be released on black plastic in say, five years?
A: Yes!!!! I'm a vinyl fan. That's one thing I hope will last forever. I play a lot of vinyl. Only not released on vinyl tracks I play on cd. Of course we got nice cd players these days. But still I swear to the vinyl. I guess in 5 years I will still play the vinyl. It won't disappear.
i:Vibes: Suppose someone initiates a discussion with you about the degenerative state trance is in at the moment. To spice things up a bit, he or she might even state that trance is almost dead. What would be your main arguments in convincing your partner in conversation that trance is definitely still doing fine?
A: I would like to ask the person to join the Love Parade in Berlin with 1 million other trance loving people :-).
i:Vibes: Next to mixing ITWT Nordic 2, what is the one thing that still sits in your memory concerning your musical career?
A: That I will have to prove that I'm good enough for this release. And to join other Black Hole dj's around the globe. I really have to work really hard.
i:Vibes: DJ SL seems to be ready for the future. What do you hope to accomplish in the coming years?
A: I will do everything to show my skills to the people. I have to work really hard to reach out. I hope that my name will be at some of the big venues outside of Norway the coming years. And I hope to do some good studio work. The main thing is becoming known outside of Scandinavia. Some of you dj's out there have to like my coming tracks :-).
i:Vibes: Thanks for taking the time to answer the questions!
A: It's really my pleasure!!
In Trance We Trust Nordic Edition Xtra 2 mixed by DJ SL will be available from the beginning of September. Here's the tracklisting to complete the picture:
01. Matt Darey Presents Li Kwan - Point Zero (Benya 2006 Mix)
02. Johan Gielen - Physical Overdrive (Original 12” Mix)
03. Progression - Loving Memories
04. Mesh - Aftertouch (Octagen Remix)
05. DJ SL - High Pressure
06. Above & Beyond - Alone Tonight
07. Javier & Finjemaen - Sweet Talk
08. Super8 & P.O.S. Present Aalto - 5
09. Kimito Lopez - Nostalgia
10. T4L - Maximus
11. Midway - Cobra (Outback Remix)
12. Ekon - Existence (C-Quence Remix)
13. Ronald Van Gelderen - This Way (Rank 1 Remix)
14. Solid Haze Vs. Milez - Reduxed
15. Orjan - Arctic Globe
16. Phynn - Oslo Summerparade Theme
We would like to thank DJ SL and Hugo at Black Hole Recordings for making this interview possible.
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