Andrew Senior (Ten Questions with...) Exclusive Interview & Guest Mix
Andrew Senior is an English trance music producer who is associated with Premier League Recordings. This is where you can see his great productions and remixes. Andrew shared some points about his work. I invite you to an interview conducted only for Visions Of Trance.
1. What is trance music to you?
For me, Energy & Emotion. Trance is so diverse though, I feel there’s something for everyone.
2. How do you perceive the state of the current trance music scene?
I don’t tend to scrutinise it to too much to be honest. I think the DJ’s and Fans that are out there week in week out could answer this better than me. I get the impression it’s absolutely fine though, Trance has a great following and community on both sides, Fans and DJ’s/Producers. I love being a little part of the community in my own humble way, there’s a consistent flow of great music being released and I’ve got to know some great people, who I now class as friends/colleagues, just through doing what I Iove to do and communicating with like-minded people. From my point of view, the Trance Music Scene is a positive place that appears to be doing just fine.
3. What are your goals in producing trance music?
To improve with each project that I start/take on and having predominantly being a remixer since my early days, I want to do more originals now and get to the level where I know I need to be. I’ve returned to music fairly recently after a LONG spell away and the game has changed, MASSIVELY! I’m knocking on a bit now and when I first started the internet was new! I struggled on my own to get to a ‘reasonable’ level back then but had a few vinyl releases. That was my goal when I started out, Vinyl Releases. I managed to achieve that and thought that I was making good ground, then the whole digital age landed and I became a bit disillusioned, unmotivated. I had also fallen into doing a style of music that I didn’t enjoy just to get releases. So, I packed it in and concentrated on my ‘Real Job’ and life in general.
My goals when starting up again recently were simply to get some of those digital releases that I wasn’t too optimistic about back in the early days. The goal posts always move though which is great, little steps and if you hit a goal, happy days, set yourself a new one! If not, keep working, after all its fun right!?
So, my current goals: Improve & more originals.
4. Who was your inspiration to start producing trance music?
My early inspirations were the 90’s Rave scene, listening to Leeds pirate radio station Dream FM when I was just 13 years old & DJ’s such as Steve Luigi, Stu Allan, Vertigo, Carl Cox. The artists/producers like Dream Frequency, K-Klass, Praga Khan, The Prodigy. Then came the Happy Hardcore scene which I fell in love with. At 16 I set my sights on being a Hardcore DJ, taking inspiration from Force & Styles, Dougal, Slipmatt, DJ Sy, Brisk. By the time I was 18 I was DJ’ing around the country at places like Club Kinetic & Reality. THEN CAME THE TRANCE! I think I bought the first Euphoria CD in 1999 and I was hooked! Paul Van Dyk, BT, Agnelli & Nelson, Mike Koglin…. Just look at that CD, that’s what got me into Trance. Then, I just listened to anything & everything, I’ve never really been one for homing in on one artist/band etc. A good track is a good track, sometimes you might hear fantastic track and never hear from that artist again. Sometimes you’ll fall in love with a track, check out the other work by the artist and not really enjoy anything else. I have to mention Rank 1 –Airwave, Lost Witness – 7 Colours & Chicane – Saltwater though, they were three tracks that had an impact on me. In 1995 ‘Grace – Not Over Yet’ I was hearing a lot at Ark in Leeds (A regular rave event held at Leeds University) and I remember that track made me think ‘’Ooh, this a bit different/dreamy’’ That could possibly be the first Trance track that caught my attention (Is it Trance though?)
5. Which song are you most proud of and why?
To date, it is without question ‘Nth Factor feat Luscjo – Wings of Hope (Andrew Senior’s Blue Sky Remix) on Premier League Recordings. This track is just ‘me’. There was no plan, no pre-saved arrangement, no template… I just threw out the rule book and let the music take me on a journey. It’s a Trance/Breaks Hybrid kind of deal, 10 minutes long and I really enjoyed making it. Everything just flowed and the end result was ‘’Where did that come from!?’’. It was really well received by the original artists and label boss Marco Svarda too which was awesome because when I sent it I was a bit worried, however their reactions were far better than I could have imagined.
6. Will your future releases be collaborations with other artists? Are you more into solo productions?
I’ve recently done a collaboration with Jake & Almo, Josie Sandfeld called ‘Never Give In. It’s my first proper collaboration although I class remixing as collaborating. When remixing for someone you always have the original artist’s vision in their track and you have to create a version with your vision that meets their requirements/expectations. So, you have to liaise with them more often than not and be flexible and open to constructive criticism. Sometimes you nail it and never speak to them, sometimes you need to work together to get to the end result. I love remixing! However, going forward I will be more focused on solo projects.
The love of the genre and the process of being creative and ending up with something that you can be proud of. I’ve always had a bit of a creative side but I can’t draw, I can’t sing and I can just about make a bit of Dance Music, so that’s what I do.
8. What hardware and software do you use to create trance music?
Originally when I first started, I had a Roland JP-8080, Virus C and a Novation Nova (Desktop). These days I’m ‘In The Box’ with just a few Midi Controllers: A Behringer X-Touch One so that I have a Fader & Jog Wheel. A Novation Launchkey 37 do that I have a few keys & Mod Wheel when I need them and a PreSonus Atom that has some nice Rotary Knobs and various buttons that control Studio One. I mainly use Studio One but having being a user of Cubase for many years I do sometimes jump in there just for a change. As for Synths: Spire, Dune 3.5, Viper & Sylenth1 are my ‘Go To’ synths.
9. How do you perceive the influence of social media on the career development of a trance artist?
Urrrgh! Social Media. I’m not a fan and if I didn’t do music, I wouldn’t have any of it. I think for the young, aspiring DJ’s & Producers that want to make a career for themselves, it’s a must. I think if you know how to use it, it will be very beneficial for career development. Music isn’t a career for me though, the only point in my life where I thought it might be was when I was a young lad driving around the country DJ’ing. I got to a point where I had to make choice, try to make a career of it or get a proper job. This was before the ‘Superstar DJ’ and ‘Social Media’. I decided it wasn’t going to be a career for me. Maybe if we had Social Media back then things would have been different but I don’t have any regrets, I just have fantastic memories! I would recommend any young, ambitious, aspiring DJ and/or Producer to embrace Social Media, Learn It and use it for all the right reasons.
10. Finally, what would you like to say to your fans?
Thanks for keeping me cool in the Summer! I don’t think I have any really and I’m not going to get above my station and pretend that I do. Maybe one day I’ll drop a big track that creates a bit of a buzz and I’ll bag a few! Being more of a remixer and not DJ’ing or putting out originals regularly, you don’t tend to gain a fan base. Having said that, people do buy my tracks/remixes and I would expect that they are DJ’s and to those guys that do, I’d just say thank you, it makes it all worthwhile and it’s always very much appreciated. I do what I do simply because I love doing it and to think that a few people like what I do is amazing…and that’s enough for me.
https://m.soundcloud.com/visionsoftrance/andrew-senior-guest-mix-visions-of-trance-sessions-047
Tracklist
1. Richard Durand, Sarah De Warren – Mad of Stone (Extended Mix) – Black Hole
2. Carl Daylim, T'eira – Here & Now (DJ T.H. Extended Mix) - Ablazing
3. DJ T.H. & Natalie Gioia – Euphoria (Extended Mix) – Interplay
4. Inversed – Everything (Original Mix) - One Forty
5. Artena – Let Me Fall (Original Mix) - One Forty
6. Will Atkinson – Seventh Heaven (Alex Di Stefano Remix) - VII
7. ID – ID - Signed
8. Greg Downey & Bo Bruce - These Hands I Hold (Sean Tyas Remix) - Perfecto
9. 1st In Line – Oxygen (Extended Mix) – Pure Trance Neon
10. Asteroid – Catharsis (Original Mix) – Regenerate
11. Kayan Code, Lyd14 – Ignite feat. Lyd14 (Extended Mix) - Regenerate
