Interview with XDR    ( 28.06.2008 - 18:00 GMT UTC )



    1. I know that You and Your mate Richard van Willegen, both well known as Xijaro, have made a bootleg of Coldplay vs Sander van Doorn, called "Pura Violeta" which was aired/broadcasted on BBC Radio 1, on Judge Jules`s show, but what actually made You two, to create such an awesome bootleg of the vocalist Chris Martin and his group and also the well known Dutch Dj and producer, Sander van Doorn ?

    XDR: Well, the idea originally came from a good friend of mine, B.E.N. He has been a happy supporter of my mashups and suggested to me the idea of doing something with the new Coldplay track "Violet Hill". When I heard the track I agreed that it would be great for a bootleg and went on to search for something that fitted with it and eventually came to "Pura Violeta". I actually did the mashup on my own by the way. Richard is more my production partner, he doesn't make any mashups.


    2. Few days ago, You have added on the TranceSound.net forum, one amazing mashup of Nelly Furtado vs Degrees of motion called "Say what You want right now" again made along Your friend, as Xijaro of course. My question, is, what is really behind the reason to expand Your productions, as in bootlegs and mashups not just to EDM only, but international music, different genres, different styles ?

    XDR: Well I personally enjoy many different kinds of music and I see no reason to limit my work to one thing. If I have an idea for something different I will try it. In this case the vocals of Nelly Furtado turned out to fit perfectly to this instrumental.

    3. Once I have been told, it was the first time when I have heard the terms "bootleg and mashup" back in 2000 I reckon, that real Djs should be able to create something like this, and this is what Djing normally stands for, not just a simple fade in, fade out, while mixing, or else compressing several tone banks into a software device, such as Reason or Ableton, what do You have to say about that, being one of the most well known person when it comes to bootlegs and mashups ?

    XDR: Well, to me mashups and bootlegs have long been a part of my DJ sets. They add something extra to just regularly mixing other people's tracks. Especially with Ableton it's very easy to make your own edits of tracks so you can shape them just the way you like. Armin van Buuren's weekly show, A State of Trance mega mixes have been sort of an inspiration to me for making mashups. For me and I think many other Djs making your own tracks, mashups and edits feels like a very logical addition to DJing and almost inevitable. But everyone should know for him/herself what to do or not to do. There are no limitations or boundaries.

    4. I almost know all Your creations since I`m a big fan of Your mashups/bootlegs that You have made before, either way as XDR, either way as Xijaro along Richard van Willegen. But can You please share the name of the best mashup/bootleg You ever made, that You love the most ? It has to be one and only out of so many, I reckon. Something like, give me Your TOP5 at least.

    XDR: Obviously from the technical aspect, I consider my more recent work better than the earlier stuff, but yeah, there are a few that I have enjoyed/played more than others. Latest stuff it is always an updated of Your own skill. For example: Armin van Buuren vs. Randy Katana - Pump it louder (XiJaro Mash up). I have played that a lot on my radio show and it also got support from the likes of Judge Jules (on BBC Radio 1) and Agnelli & Nelson, it is also one of the mashups that I have actually updated a couple of times. I am a bit obsessive when it comes to quality, so whenever I learn something new I feel compelled to go back and update the outdated stuff. Some other favorites: First State vs. Martin Roth - Your Own Shockwaves (XiJaro Mashup), Britney vs. Lolo - Someday I Will Understand Why (XiJaro Mashup), Fred Baker vs. The Prodigy - Black My Bitch Out (XiJaro Smack Up), Perry O'Neill feat. Everything But The Girl - Five Fathoms Saga (XiJaro Mashup) and one mashup that's been associated with me: Starkillers vs. Yilmaz Altanhan - 80's Discoteka (Aafik Mashup - XiJaro Rework). I don't think I actually deserve any credit for this one, all I did was redo it in nearly exactly the same way, which resulted in a better sounding track. Aafik loved it though and so did many others.


    5. Several people from certain TOP EDM portals, they try to gather people as many as they can, I can`t give names of those EDM portals of course, but they are really against bootlegs/mashups, saying that this way You or anyone involved in this, including me (I have done once a mashup, which I still love it the most), they are saying we spoil 2 or 3 tracks instead of advertising the original version, we make it even worse, creating "things" like this. What`s Your comment regarding this ?

    XDR: I think mashups can indeed harm the reputation of a good track, especially if it is played during the same time as the originals, but a good mashup can potentially also help it (like for example with Schulz's Perspective Space). I think it kind of depends on the scale at which the mashup is supported/played how much this really matters. I also had a request once to stop supporting/sharing a particular mashup, which I agreed with. It was an understandable request. Furthermore I made some mashups for a friend a few months back who has asked me not to play them anywhere until later this year so they wouldn't interfere with the originals. So yes I do think those EDM portals have a point there, and I will try to be more considerate of their wishes.


    6. I know that You are in charge of the radio show called "Sunset Excitement" that is aired on Sense FM, and other syndicated radio stations worldwide, such as Party107 FM, ETN FM, AfterHours (AH) FM, but talking about this, what are Your goals regarding the show and can You also give us further details about the show please ?

    XDR: "Sunset Excitement" for me has been a very enjoyable way to showcase my DJ sets to people all around the world. It originally started when I was asked by Alutech (Party107 Resident DJ) to do a guestmix for his radio show. That turned out really well and resulted in the owner of the station asking me to do my own radio show (that was in the summer of 2005). I have done this show for nearly 3 years now and the support has been growing and growing. My goal with the show is to let people enjoy the great dance music that I myself, I am enjoying a lot, and I intend to keep doing this for as long as I can.


    7. What are Your influences and inspired by ? What makes You create such awesome bootlegs/mashups ?

    XDR: As I mentioned earlier the mega mixes (and mashups) that Armin van Buuren does in his A State of Trance radio show have been an inspiration for me and of course also all the great tracks that get made by people all over the world. I try not to mess up the original tracks too much with my mashups. But the mashups are just for fun and mostly just for my personal use in sets, so I hope people will not feel offended by what I do.


    8. Despite the fact that You might be the one of the best "mashuper" out there, and also a great Dj too, but are You into anything like producing nowadays ?

    XDR: Yeah, me and my friend Richard have been working on productions for over 2 years now I think. It started off pretty silly with not so much dedication (at least not from my side) so for a long time we didn't have anything worthy of playing. But last year we did two remixes for the label "Amplified Digital". DJ Ampz liked them and had them released which we are quite happy with. However I soon felt we could do much better and right now we are working on a couple of tracks that are of much better quality (or at least that's my opinion). We hope to have them done in the coming two months so we can finally let them be heard by the public. I am also working with a German friend to produce a vocal track to which he wrote the lyrics. He has asked a friend and his band to records the song, which we will then eventually turn into a dance track. So we are quite busy with producing (even though it might not seem that way) and things are looking pretty exciting. We hope to be able to feature the tracks soon in our sets.


    9. MySpace... Everyone got one these days, everyone is listed there as well. I reckon it`s the perfect place to see millions of people that share the same dream, MUSIC! What advice do You have for artists trying to make a name of themselves, trying to get deals Online ?

    XDR: Well, as you say MySpace is a great way to meet people with the same passion for music. Also there are lot's of forums and communities where people share their music and knowledge. The Internet definitely allows you to get in contact with many great people and that's a good step-up for the needed connections when you want to present your music. If you present yourself in a good way and really have something to offer I think there will always be people with interest. I have experienced that myself.


    10. Anyone else have You ever worked with before, beside as Xijaro, creating any mashups before and if there are any upcoming projects, that You would love to share with us, being the first to know ?

    XDR: I have worked with/and helped several friends with their mashups: Aafik, Solid Syn, Config, Dark Memoria, B.E.N. It is always nice to pass on the things I have learned to others and to learn from them. As far as upcoming projects, the new productions are what I am most excited about. There is 3 instrumentals I am trying to finish. Richard is working on a new track as well as one that has been long over-due (which turned out to be really hard to finish for us). There's the vocal track, called 'Tell Me' with the German band that we're gonna do. I also have some ideas for bootleg remixes (Dire Straits, some movie scores) that I want to make. In other words we have our hands full.


    11. Can You please share some names with us, any international Djs, producers, overall worldwide artists, that gives You their full support so far ?

    XDR: Big supporters have been Judge Jules (he has played around 5-6 mashups from me on his BBC Radio 1 show (some multiple times) and his sets, B.E.N. (came to me out of nowhere asking for all my mashups, and we have been friends ever since) and Kaeno (he plays many of mashups in his sets in some of the biggest clubs in the United States). Also many more DJ's and producers have shown support for our work: Judge Jules, B.E.N., Kaeno, Airwave, Agnelli & Nelson, Mike Foyle, Arctic Quest, Manuel Le Saux, Les Hemstock (Hemstock & Jennings), DJ Ernesto (Ernesto vs Bastian), Bobina, Pedro Del Mar, Aerium, Adam White, and the list goes on. I have not have contact with everyone of them, but I have seen my tracks popping in various of their tracklists. Getting played on BBC Radio 1 attracts the attention of quite some people, I can tell you that.


    12. Before we wrap this awesome exclusive interview, please write down a few lines, for anyone reading this interview, specially the TranceSound.net members or anyone that loves mashups/bootlegs ?

    XDR: Alright, I hope you enjoyed reading this interview and that I gave you some insight into my work. If you are interested please feel free to go check out our website official website or our MySpace profile too. You can find all information on our weekly radio show "Sunset Excitement" there as well as the mashups we get asked about so much. If you have anymore questions feel free to send them to info at xijaro dot com or ask them on the TranceSound.net forum.


    Interview made by Cosmin Lukacs (TranceSound admin/founder)




Links:

Xijaro official website
Xijaro @ MySpace
Cosmin Lukacs official website
Cosmin Lukacs @ MySpace