Aerium (Ten Questions with...) Exclusive Interview
1. What is trance music to you?
A means of colouring and escaping the real world around me. Music and by extension art cannot change the world directly I believe, but it can soften it. Make it more beautiful. And Trance very much does that for me.
My life is currently too full to visit clubs or events regularly, so this is a sideline remark/ observation, but there appears to be a bit of a revival where Trance much like Pop isn’t as much of a “dirty word” so to speak as it used to. Techno dj’s spinning old trance records in their sets, the advent of Melodic Techno (which in my view is just another word for Trance or a subgenre there of), there’s a clear underground scene next to established scene from the early 2000’s, which is its own way is still very much thriving with big dj’s and international events. So i’m actually quite positive in a way.
3. What are your goals in producing trance music?
For the longest time I had “release a vinyl” as a bucketlist item as well as starting my own label/brand, but since the last one is tagged in 2025 and the first one 3 times in this season, I’m out of clear goals hah. I suppose playing at a (big) event once might be cool target to set, I have to polish my virtually non-existent skills behind a set of decks first. (working on that)
4. Who was your inspiration to start producing trance music?
There’s multiple but probably the most influential has to be Chicane.
5. Which song are you most proud of and why?
Thats a really good question and I don’t have a singular answer.
There are songs I am more satisfied with then others in terms of what I wanted them to be vs how they turned out, Both musically as well as technically. Couple of examples are Undalatus Asperatus, Moonflower, Sol, Mind Beaches, The White Isle and the next one on Electronic Architecture.
6. Will your future releases be collaborations with other artists? Are you more into solo productions?
Both, I like working with others as it always creates rounded, unique tracks with that extra pair of ears and creative input. But I also like to just make my own stuff late at night & precisely how I want them to be.
7. What inspires you to create trance music?
I draw from a lot of sources, The Ocean is a big one, Nature in general, Philosophy, Fantasy, Art, Other Artists, People in my life, etc.
8. What hardware and software do you use to create trance music?
Computers:
Lenovo Y500, HP Zbook Fury
DAW: Cubase 13 Artist (not going too list the myriad of plugin’s & virtual instruments or tools if you don’t mind)
Monitors: ESI N’ear 05 speakers
Headphones: Sennheiser Hd25
External Soundcard: M-Audio M-Track 2x2M
Mic: AKG P120
External Instruments: Korg X5d, Korg Triton Le 61, Access Virus Ti2 Polar, a beaten up Acoustic guitar, pots, pans & my Iphone for sampling stuff outside.
9. How do you perceive the influence of social media on the career development of a trance artist?
It can certainly be an effective tool. We’re seeing this happen across the board with various young talent and their rise on say: TikTok or other platforms. I’ve seen in micro recently with Julian, who actually got ASOT support, not by me sending out email promo’s but by them picking it up from his Instagram...That said I think being in the right place at the right time with the right people, so “In the scene IRL” if you will, is probably still the best way to kick off a career, although you still probably can’t get around social media these days, should you want too.
10. Finally, what would you like to say to your fans?
Honestly and genuinely, Thank you 🙏
Kind regards,
Leander Rispens a.k.a. Aerium
Owner: Aerium Audio
LINKS:
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