Interview with ATB

[OxyKon]

There are only a very few artists who can exert any real influence on the dance scene today – too many artists out there and seemingly endless output. Andre Tanneberger, however, has been making an impact for the past fifteen years. He may not have a secret recipe for success, but he is certainly one of those artists who succeed in defying categorization.

Hey Andre, really nice to talk to you again... How are you doing? Where are you reading this interview?

Hey guys, I’m just in Berlin for an interview day with more than 10 interviews about my new album “CONTACT” and just have a short break to answer your questions.

Crowd and places are your inspiration! How should you describe the last 3 years during the making of your ninth studio album called ”CONTACT” in a few words?

They were simply amazing. I discovered so many places I’ve never been before, as well as had fantastic tours from Asia to Europe and America. There are these magical moments when you stand in front of a crowd, celebrate with the people, everybody is in a good mood and you know this will be unforgettable. You travel back home and have the pictures and feelings of these moments still in mind. These are the moments which created the album.

”CONTACT” is the primary element of this album! Do you wanted to bring your personality with the traditional song writing process besides the people/fans/crowd?

Of course, but I think the influence of my personality is something you cannot break down to a single step of the production process. Even if it’s a first idea, which is often not more than a melody in my mind, the following songwriting, or the final production and mastering process. I’m doing all these steps by myself, and my personality is part of every step, so it influences the tracks this way.

In the second part of the album, we are completely moving to an other sound environment. Is this the other ATB personality? The real ATB Sound?

I love to show the people different aspects of who I am and what my music is all about. Of course most people know me as a dance artist, but ATB is simply more. My fans get to know me by this kind of music from another side and that is really important to me. This is an essential part of who I am.

I take the inspiration for these tracks, as well as for my dance, trance, and progressive productions, from the events all around the globe, where I play, as well as everyday situations. Most of these ideas develop when I come to rest after an event. Then I hear all the different melodies, which on the one hand calms me down, but on the other hand recalls the things that have happened during the last days in a complete and unique way. Most often this is the date of birth for my ambient tracks.

You have a certain love for voices! But in each album, you seems to develop it and to reinvent your musical character! We can see new discoveries axially, right?

Well, to work with new, surprising and outstanding voices is very important for me. I’ve always got my ears open to discover some- body new that I can present on my albums. For example one of the great new discoveries for me on this album is Boss and Swan.

I heard one of their tracks quite by chance on an in-flight movie soundtrack on the way back from Asia and spent the following days tracking them down. When I found out that their music had not actually been released, I spontaneously flew them in from Canada to Germany and we spent a week collaborating in the studio. They are brother and sister and unbelievably talented. What we came up with together is simply amazing.

”Face To Face” is also released now. A great collaboration with the band Stanfour. We can hear this more clubbing sound with big chords... Could you tell us a little bit more about this huge collaboration?

I listen to the radio a lot during the day, keeping track of the current music scene outside of the electronic music scene. So that’s how I know the Stanfour boys, who are also from Germany, and of course they had a hit with “Wishing you well”. We actually met at an event, which cut across different scenes and we started chatting. It was clear off the top that these guys were passionate about making music, and we were immediately on the same wavelength. I told them I was working on a new album and we decided then and there to produce a track together.

Within days we had created “Face to Face”, a fantastic song and the first single of the album. It was also one of the highlights of the ATB IN CONCERT Tour in the USA, which the Stanfour boys were also part of.

We know you are more than 20 years in the music Industry but are you not scared about this « pressure » sometimes? We see more and more producers feeling this kind of pressure.

Of course it’s much more different to work in today’s music business than in the beginning days. When I started to make music, there were just a handful of artists who played electronic music, as well as labels. Today nearly everybody has the possibility to make music and to spread it digitally as well as being a DJ. On the one hand this is very good as it shows how lively electronic music is, which makes the development of this music very fast, but on the other hand there’s a lag in quality.

What’s your biggest musical accomplishment when you look back in the past and all albums you did till now?

It’s always the latest one I produced.

Are you a fan of social media, do you think it’s massively important now?

Yes, of course. Social medias like Facebook, Twitter, or Google+ are very important for me. It gives me the possibility to get in contact with my fans worldwide, no matter where I am. For example, on Facebook I really like to ask my fans questions and have a discussion with them. It’s great to read all the comments from all over the world and to answer these comments. I also use it to share my worldwide experiences and to give the people a personal insight into my life.

What piece of equipment could you not live without (not necessarily DJ equipment)?

My mobile. Even if I’m on the road a lot it’s my direct connection to my family, doesn’t matter where I am.

Everyone’s got a hidden talent. What’s yours? Maybe a fabulous football player?

Not football, but I really like to play table tennis.

Your favorite application this year?

Last year I experienced the app “Tripit”. It’s a real cool app my agency and me used to coordinate my tours all over the world. I have all my flights, hotels, gigs and tour information with me on my mobile instead of taking it along with me on paper.

Furthermore, the app auto- matically shows me for example all flight delays, and if there are any last minute changes my management can change it in my tour schedule from Germany and I see it directly on my mobile on the other side of the world. This makes my traveling very easy.

We’re reaching the end of this interview; do you have a message to your fans?

ATB wouldn’t be ATB without my fans! Thank you all guys for your tremendous support and your trust in me along with my music during all these years! I’m really proud of such an amazing fan base!

Your opinion interest us and we would like to know it. When you visit our online pages, what are your first impressions?

Wow, just a couple of weeks to the Winter Music Conference.

Thank you very much Andre, for giving us some of your precious time. Speak to you soon…

Thank you guys!

Source: djnews.be