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 With the new artist collection from Leon Bolier about to hit the stores in a matter of days we've had a little sneak preview of this exciting new LP from Leon. It's shaping up a good one so we went to find out more...
A major force in second dawn of The Netherlands’ dance music, Leon Bolier is one of the most creative studio minds at work in the country today. Through his now widely-known ‘trance with a twist’ auditory ethos, he determinedly broke the mould of pre-millennium euphoric trance – rebuilding it with a never-heard-before sound-set. Taking the natural next-step, Bolier has long since brought the music from the studio to the people. Behind a pair of CDJs, he is a force of nature, delivering one sound-quaking performance after another. Playing hundreds of nights, and in front of hundreds of thousands of clubbers, this mission culminated in Leon debuting on DJ Magazine’s Top 100 chart in the autumn of 2008.
After the success of his debut artist album 'Pictures' Leon has been pushing out one fine release after the other and played a few very big tour dates over the past year. 'Streamlined' the compilation showcased what he can do when he has a selection of his favourite tracks lying around the mixing desk and was a very well polished release. He has been working very hard though over the past few months to perfect his next artist album, a double disc edition featuring over 20 brand new tracks. He likes to call this 'Phamtasma' and after hearing a sneak preview we went to find out more from the man himself.
i:Vibes: Leon thanks for taking some time to talk to i:Vibes.nu. How has your summer been? What was your nicest 2010 summer memory?
Leon: The best gig I had this summer was at the Tiësto Kaleidoscope world tour in Gdansk, Poland – massive crowd that went nuts from beginning to end. Besides I played some more great gigs of course, like Judgement Sundays, Tomorrowland Belgium, Luminosity Beach Festival and more. I just returned from Montreal, Canada, the people there really know how to party too! Apart from that, in between the gigs I broke my leg on Ibiza – you can imagine that gives kind of a hassle when flying around and DJing!
i:Vibes: You released your debut album Pictures in 2008. When looking back at this work, what was the most positive experience that you had in the last two years concerning the album?
Leon: That must be the massive amount of positive feedback. It’s really great to see that, when you put a lot of work in something like a double CD album, it’s being appreciated by the people it’s aimed to.
i:Vibes: You are about to release your second album entitled Phantasma. Why did you choose to name your album this? Does the name have a specific meaning to you?
Leon: One of the meanings of the word Phantasma is ‘something that exists in perception only’ or something like that, and besides that it relates to a fantasy world. The track titles relate to the music, and the artwork in the album refer to the track titles as well… find out for yourself!
i:Vibes: What was your goal with Phantasma? What did you want to do differently than what you did with Pictures?
Leon: First of all I wanted to improve the production quality – to show a technically more defined and clear sound. Other than that I wanted to show some tracks that reflect a more matured sound, and last but not least I wanted to offer the fans tracks that relate to my older work as well – since I know they like to hear follow ups to tracks like Poseidon etc.
i:Vibes: Phantasma is a double album with seven collaborations including Marcus Schössow, Sied van Riel and Roger Shah. Is it almost impossible now a days to make an album without inviting other producers to help?
Leon: No that’s not impossible. The reason I collaborated with those producers is just that it was and is fun being around those guys, and it’s just fun producing tracks together. Besides, it might offer something extra for the people buying the album anyway.
i:Vibes: How long did the production time of Phantasma take? What was the most difficult thing that you experienced in this process in getting the desired result?
Leon: I started producing it in September last year, when I produced the track Shimamoto – which was the first single to be taken off the album. The most difficult thing for me is (whether its about producing albums, singles or mixing compilations) to let go: deciding when something is finished, and then worrying when you send the whole package to the record label that you might regret not including something else, or including something that’s already there. I really find it hard to tell myself ‘now this is 100% finished’.
i:Vibes: Lets talk about CD 1. What was your goal with CD 1? What kind of a journey do you want the listener to take here?
Leon: Actually both CDs aim for the same kind of a journey, the music has to take you ‘up and down the hills’ and even though CD2 takes of in a bit darker way the aim was the same. The reason I made 2 CDs again was because I want to offer the buyer some value for money.
i:Vibes: You produced “Dark Star with Sied Van Riel. What happens when 2 Dutch men meet in the studio? What made this collaboration so unique?
Leon: Sied and me have become friends over the past years – and we share a certain amount of easy going and bullshit humour. Being around in the studio with him always means: having fun, and at the same time producing music – and the both of us are very determined in what we want to hear in a Bolier vs. Van Riel collaboration. It should showcase both of us as an artist, and when we finished the track we really felt that was what happened!
i:Vibes: Who could forget the forceful vocals of Fischer on the 2008 Thrillseekers track “Last Time”. What attracted you to working with the lovely Fischer on “By your side”??
Leon: I was talking to the Vast Vision guys who released a massive hit with Fisher’s vocals last year (Everything), and at the same time I was looking for a great vocalist for a track I already had finished. Then I just asked them for Fisher’s contact details and went from there – it was really great working with Kathy Fisher and Ron Wasserman (who provides the ideas for lyrics etc.), and within 1 or 2 weeks the result was there.
i:Vibes: “War of the worlds” is an interesting track. How did you get the idea with the title and using the famous radio sample?
Leon: I wanted to produce a track that kind of reflected the old school progressive feel like Harry Lemon (Lemon8) used to produce back in 2002/2003 – with long delays, deep basses etc. A cool vocal sample would be nice I thought and then I sampled the War of the Worlds play indeed – so the track title came after the track.
i:Vibes: Marcus Schössow has made a name for himself in the last few years. On 2099, you both look into the future. How do you see the trance world in 2099?
Leon: I think electronic music is here to stay – it’s hard to look into the future, but electronic music never has been conventional, so of course I think new technical possibilities will help enhance the music, the way its performed and the way its produced. To look 79 years ahead would be a bit too much though.
i:Vibes: On “Off road”, you worked together with Joint Operations Centre and when listening to the track it is pretty much the sound I would of suspected. What do you respect most about John O Callaghan when he is at work in the studio?
Leon: John knows what he wants, and he knows how to express what he wants the end result to sound like. The same goes for me, so, even though we produced this track over the internet, it was an easy process of sending back and forth, and finishing the track pretty fast.
Besides I really respect the way he thinks of making stuff for the dance floor, and the way it should be produced to have a great crowd reaction.
i:Vibes: On “Substitute”, you feature Dutch vocalist Marieke de Kruijff that you discovered. Is there a funny story as to how you found her or the usual hearing one of her demos?
Leon: Marieke and I have a mutual friend, that’s how we met. Funny thing was tho, that my friend already told her a couple of years back that we should work together, and just when I was producing the album I got an email by her telling me how much she regretted that she never contacted me back in the days, and that it might be too late for her now – well it wasn’t !
i:Vibes: “Eden” is a very beautiful track that you produced together with current trance Balearic superstar Roger Shah. The typical Shah guitar sounds are not present. Did you guys actually make this in the studio or were sound files sent back and fourth? How did the production of this track look like? Shah made the atmosphere and you for the harder beats?
Leon: This one was made over the internet as well – the first time Roger and me really had a good chat was in Eden, Ibiza last year – hence the title. We both worked on the chord progression and the melodies, and then went on producing our own version. In Roger’s version you can find the typical Shah guitar sounds, though I included guitar sounds as well.. maybe those are Bolier guitar sounds ;)
i:Vibes: You start CD 2 with “The Attic”. Sound wise how did you want to tackle this track best? One never knows really what might be in the attic?
Leon: Nope, the attic refers to something different: the dark chords played in this track remind me of an old weird man you use to see in (horror) movies, playing his big organ – you know, those kind of cheesy movie scenes. I imagined a man like that, playing his organ in the attic.
i:Vibes: “Shimamoto is a stellar track with peak time sounds. What was the most difficult thing that you had to do to get this track perfect to your taste?
Leon: The most difficult thing was to include the typical Japanese atmosphere sounds in the song, make them fit in the harmonies without being disturbing. Production of that track went pretty smooth though, I must say!
i:Vibes: You produced “Saturn” with Dutch duo W&W who have taken the trance scene by storm recently. Can they make the next step as duo. What makes their sound so unique in 2010?
Leon: W&W focus on peak time tracks, and they do that really well. I always tell them: when I’m playing somewhere and I need to get the crowd going, I pick one of their tracks. That’s what those tracks are made for: make the dance floor go crazy. They know that they’re doing, so yep, I definitely think they can make the next step as a duo.
i:Vibes: “The sweetest lie” sounds more like a Shah track with the guitar, but you also incorporate the Bolier sound that we all know and love. Was this a track that took a longer time than usual or was this a track that you banged out quickly in the studio?
Leon: This track actually took me the longest time to produce. Not because of the guitar or whatever, but because, while working on the track with Alana, we constantly changed tiny bits of the vocal lines – then I changed the track underneath, and so on. In the end I’m very happy with the result!
i:Vibes: You produced “Fly back to her” with the magnificent Joop. What were the duties on this track for Leon Bolier and Joop?
Leon: Back in 2009 I was at Joop’s place and we started playing around with some melodies, while Joop was working on some beats to go along. I filmed a bit in his studio, put it up on my YouTube channel, and people have been asking about this track ever since, so we decided to finish this one and put it on the album, glad we did.
i:Vibes: What would you like the listeners to remember the most from Phantasma?
Leon: The music!
i:Vibes: When will you make your Djing debut in the Technoclub of Talla 2XLC in Frankfurt, Germany? It has been more than overdue that you make a visit.(I am pretty sure you have not played there, but correct me if I am wrong)
Leon: That’s up to Talla! I’ve met him a couple of months back and he was talking about getting me over to Technoclub so lets see what happens.
:: Leon Bolier's 'Phantasma' is out on the 30th August!
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