i:Vibes has had the opportunity to speak with rising Polish trance hero, Adam Nickey. Read on to find out about his views on trance, what makes him tick and what we can expect to hear from him in the near future...
For many years, Trance in Europe has been ruled by countries like Holland, England, Germany or Belgium, however in the last years, trance has spread so rapidly that other less known trance countries like Poland are making a small mark in trance. Adam Nickey is from Poland and is slowly making a name for himself on the European scene. He was born in 1982 as Sebastian Adam Wichary in southern Poland and first became infected with music in 1997. Soon after he made amateur cassettes and gave them to his friends. Before Adam Nickey was born, he produced tracks as Kai Del Noi. In 2004 he produced “Back to Africa, which never got a full release, but had a lot of acclaim in his native land. Soon after he released an album “The Dream”, which did not become a success, but he continued to keep his interest for furthering his music career. His next step was too refine his sound and he did just that with tracks like “Beyond Doubt”(which was tune of week ASOT) and 'Andromedia' With continued success making upscale tracks, he was able to strengthen his own self confidence, which led to his new artist name. In 2005 came his new artist name Adam Nickey and he soon became known as a producer who could create magical melodies as well as incorporating progressive beats. His first two works “Perfect Destiny” and “Forgotten Island” started the groundwork of his own innovative sound. Labels soon became aware of his outstanding talent. In the last few years, he has worked with labels such as Conspiracy Records, Deep Blue Records and Anjunabeats. In 2006 came his break through as he produced “Never gone”. It was released on Anjunabeats and featured on the Anjunabeats Volume 5. His latest track is 'Letting Go', which is released on Deep Blue Records. Top class DJs such as Above & Beyond, Armin Van Buuren, ATB, Solarstone, Ronski Speed ,Agnelli & Nelson, Ferry Corsten, Kyau Vs. Albert , Tiesto , Paul Van Dyk ,Johan Gielen , Alex M.O.R.P.H., Woody van Eyden, Talla 2XLC, Activa, Aly & Fila, Ian Beets, Pedro Del Mar, Progression, Matt Hardwick, Mark Eteson and more have supported his tracks. The future looks bright for him and i:Vibes wanted to know more about him.
i:vibes: Hi Sebastian, how are you? Thanks for taking some time. Its getting colder now, so can we anticipate that you will not be taking a winter nap, but will be working hard in the studio?
A: Hi to everyone. I’m great , Thank you. Definitely the autumn and the winter is the best time for me for music production. My best tracks have been created in the autumn time. I hope this year will be no different... so yes, I spend a lot of time in my studio at the moment creating new tracks.
i:vibes: You are from Poland. What was your childhood like and how did you come to love Trance music?
A: Yes , I was born in Poland and I’m living here. My childhood was ordinary and I was an ordinary boy. Sometimes it’s really hard to say why I started to be interested in trance music. It wasn't popular here. I didn’t have an internet connection so I listened to radio or TV and the music there. Jean Michael Jarre and his electronic sounds fascinated me. Anyway I tried to simulate that and played all the melodies which I heard around me. I remember my first computer - a Commodore C64. The sound was horrible but for me it was heaven (hahahah!). Next I bought Music 98 and later Music 2000 for Playstation. It was the start of fun in making music.
i:vibes: What was the first trance track you heard that gave you your first goose bumps?
A: It's hard to say. One of the early tracks which fascinated me was Paul Van Dyk – For an angel or BT - Flaming June.
i:vibes: Who were your early musical inspirations?
A: At the beginning every electronic sound was my inspiration. But for real the first person who had influence on me was ATB. I was trying to achieve sounds like him. That was a great start and still today I’m a fan of ATB’s music.
i:vibes: What is your school background? Did you go to university?
A: I was always keen on electronics and I started studing in this direction. My profession is Technician of electronics with main specialization in computer systems. In the past I was working in this occupation for a while.
i:vibes: Do you have a fulltime job, or is music paying your bills?
A: At the moment music is what I’m focusing on. That’s my passion and the job. What could be better than making what you really want and like to do. I hope that nothing changes it.
i:vibes: You started producing tracks as Kai Del Noi, then went to Adam Nickey. Both are artist names. Do they have any meaning at all for you? Or were they just picked out of a hat?
A: The different nicknames are some kind of separation between different styles. The Kai Del Noi is uplifting trance and more energetic sounds.The Adam Nickey is combination between uplifting trance and progressive sounds. Today mostly I’m working as Nickey. Listen to the 'Letting Go' and 'Beyond Doubt' - positively different styles. Anyway two different nicknames could be helpful to release tracks on various labels.
i:vibes: You produced an album 'The Dream' some years ago. How has your trance sound developed and changed from then until today.
A: That’s right, actually it was my first Trance album released here in Poland in that time. The budget was small but the reaction was really great. Up to this time a lot of people have remembered me from that album. After 'The Dream' I was trying to do something more... like worldwide. I've grown up as an artist. I think I've made a huge step forward.
i:vibes: As Kai Del Noi, you produced some gems like 'Beyond Doubt' or 'Andromeda', What did you learn the most producing these tracks for you to refine your sound as Adam Nickey?
A: The time which I spent on 'Andromeda' and 'Beyond Doubt' production was priceless. Adam Nickey was based on those production's experience. I don’t like stagnation so I considered making the next step forward. So I created new sounds and I made my first track under Adam Nickey 'Perfect Destiny'. Today it is hard to make something original but 'Perfect Destiny' still sounded fresh.
i:vibes: Nowadays, there are kids that are 16 or 17 like Evbointh, Alex Arestegui, Breakfast or Endre (some years ago) that became famous very quickly after producing a big track. Why do you think it took you so long to gain acclaim from the trance community?
A: When I was 16-17 years old I didn’t think about being a music producer. In this age I started making music on Playstation and I made it just for fun. I had only 2 MB RAM and the quality was really pure!!! Do you know what I mean? Also the internet as a main source of informations wasn't available like it is today. In 2002 I started making music on PC and from this time everything changed. Today almost everyone has a PC and internet connection at home. It helps a lot in work. That’s the main reason why it took me so long. To be honest I don’t regret it. I had time to grow up.
i:vibes: How would you describe your sound? When you're in the studio, what is the most important thing you want to accomplish every day?
A: Difficult question because it’s hard to describe my sounds. I could describe it as sensual, serious, mysterious with a bit of sweetness (hahaha!). Simply the Adam Nickey sound.
i:vibes: When you have a dry spell in the studio, what do you do to get motivated and find that right sound?
A: It depends on mood. Sometimes a nice day could be the inspiration to making music. Most of time I spend on looking for and making the good sounds which I want to use. Sometimes I discover a sound by accident. Maybe it's funny but it’s the truth. If nothing comes out... simply turn off the PC.
i:vibes: Do you have a certain way as to how you produce a track? Some producers find a bassline or melody first. What do you do? How important is the atmosphere?
A: There is no certain way to make the track. Every project is different but when I really have great fun with it ... that’s a good sign for me. Usually I start with the main melody but sometimes I prefer to make bassline and pads first. They are the most important things on the track in my opinion. When the track is almost ready I focus on the atmosphere. As you noticed the atmosphere is a very important part of my tracks. When something goes wrong it's better to take a small break or start to do something else.
i:vibes: What studio equipment do you have and which piece of equipment besides your PC could you not live without?
A: My base is the PC and FL Studio 7 with the support of many VST instruments. For several years I was working only with software and still I love working with them. I also have one of the classic synths - a Roland JP 8000 and a second MIDI keybord. The JP 8000 still is the best for me. It makes really massive leads or pads. I'm also working only on headphones without any monitors. The MIDI controller is the most important to me.
i:vibes: I love 'Never gone' I think it was the most listened to track on the Anjunabeats Vol. 5 for me. How did you go about producing this track? Was it a tune that you banged out in a day or did it take longer?
A: Thank you! My pleasure. First of all I have to say that I spend a lot of time on a track. This time was no different. I was working on it for about 3 months. Sometimes I have to leave the demo for a while. After few days I go back to it again and I start working with a head full of new ideas. I'm not sure if the track is good when I send it to the labels.
i:vibes: What were you doing when you heard that Anjunabeats wanted to sign 'Never gone'? How happy were you?
A: Of course I was happy especially after the great reactions when the track was played as ID on one of TATW shows. For me the most important thing is to release the track and get to listeners all around the world. I hope it’s not my last track which appears on this label.
i:vibes: If you're in a club and you hear 'Never Gone', what is the first thing you think about?
A: It was worth spending a lot of time working on it. That’s a small piece of me. When you see that people have fun with your music... It's a really great feeling.
i:vibes: Your current release is 'Letting Go' out on Deep Blue Records. What can we expect from this track and how have the reactions been?
A: That’s right. This track was created in cooperation with Tiff Lacey. She is very talented and she has a very specific voice. This time I prepared several versions by myself like Original Mix , Kai Del Noi Mix , Caracas Mix, Radio and the Dub versions. I think that everyone could find something for oneself on this release. Until now the reactions have been great. The track gets support from Ferry Corsten, Above & Beyond, Markus Schulz, ATB, Super8 & Tab, Mark Pledger and many more. The start was splendid.
i:vibes: What other releases can we expect from you in the future?
A: Currently I’m working on my new tracks. Two tracks are ready but I'm still not sure where they will be released. I’m looking for new sounds which definitely you'll hear very soon. It will be very melodic stuff and sometimes a bit dark. Keep an eyes open. We also can’t forget about the remixes which I've recently made. I’m talking about remixes for ATB, Mike Koglin, Krivi and others. It will be a good piece of trance and progressive.
i:vibes: If you could be locked away in the studio with a DJ, which one would you choose and why?
A: There are so many talented producers and it’s a really difficult question. I think it could be ATB. And why? This man loves music like me. He does a really great job. He puts a lot of his heart into music and you can hear on this in his tracks.
i:vibes: Talk a little about the Polish Trance scene. You have been into music since 1997. What changes have taken place in Poland since 1997 and where do you see the scene going to?
A: The Polish Trance scene has made a huge step forward. Even here the internet was big part of this progress. Still we haven't had any real labels where we can release trance music. That’s why a lot of artists try to release music overseas. But regarding the big events I have to say that that Poland has made big progress. We have had Sensation White for two years. Almost every month there is one trance event somewhere in Poland and that’s the good side of it. Everything is on good path but it needs time.
i:vibes: Many critics have stated that trance is dead? Innovative tracks are being less and less produced, however for years the top three DJs at DJ Mag 100 have been trance DJs. Something must be right, but how do you see the long term issue of trance. Where is it headed? Is it going in a healthy direction?
A: Can’t agree with that. Trance music is developing like other styles of music. It’s a normal process. Maybe there is too much of an electro influence at the moment. It’s hard to be innovative today but that’s problem of all music genres, not only trance music. I’m not the teller but I think that everything is going on in a good way and I’m not saying that because of the top three DJs in the Top 100. On the other hand we can’t stop progress. The show must go on.
i:vibes: What are your long term goals as a producer? Would youever like to start a label?
A: Of course I want to produce the music as long as possible. That’s the main purpose at the moment. What the future brings? We will see. I've never thought about starting a label. Look around, there are thousands of small labels. There's no sense in being one of them. Maybe in the far future... I don't know.
i:vibes: What young DJs/producers would you like to see making a big breakthrough in 2008?
A: Super8 & DJ Tab are some of the producers who deserve to be on the top in 2008.
i:vibes: What are your current five favorite tracks?
A: Simple, Just look on my radio show! ;) Every month I play my favourite tracks.
i:vibes: What are your five all time favorite tracks?
A: Paul Van Dyk – For an Angel Madonna - What It Feels Like For A Girl ATB - Marrakesh Coldplay – Fix You Sasha - Xpander
i:vibes: What are your hobbies?
A: I spend a lot of time on music and all things connected with it. Besides this I have a normal life. The day has only 24h and it’s hard to find time for something else but in the free time I do have I like playing video games, watching TV series like Prison Break or Heroes and meeting with my friends if it’s possible.
i:vibes: Thanks for the talk. Good luck in the future. Can´t wait to hear new tracks!!!
A: Thank you, it's a pleasure!!
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