Hi Stewart! Exciting times are coming. You will be releasing an album called ‘Chapters of the Mind’ and perform an album showcase at Fatality. Tell us, how long have you been working on this album?
Hi! Thanks for having me. I’ve wanted to do an album for a long time but could never really bring myself to commit to it. I started album ideas multiple times over the past few years but only last year did I say to myself let’s do this!
I am excited to be able to do a showcase of my album at the upcoming Spoontech stage at Fatality, it’s going to be a heap of fun sharing all this new stuff with everyone.
What made you decide to start producing an album?
I have always liked the idea of being able to tell a story start to finish. I also have various inspirations and loves of different music so having the chance to unload a bunch of it in one go is something I have always wanted to do.
‘Chapters of the Mind’ gives you a bit more freedom to stretch your mind a bit more. I didn’t want it to just be a compilation of ‘Vazard’ tracks but a whole picture as one.
What’s the meaning of the album’s title, ‘Chapters of the Mind’?
The album is my mind in a nutshell, I wanted to give an insight into what music is to me from multiple angles. The 5 chapters I have chosen are Memory, Emotion, Perception, Adrenaline and Analysis
What was your take on this album? Did you set clear goals, wrote tracks according to the theme or did you use another approach?
I rarely have exact goals when I produce, usually I will just screw around with an idea in a blank project and see where I end up at the time. Usually I’ll end up starting with the idea of making a light uplifting track nearer to the start of the album and then accidentally make something much rougher that needs to go later. I didn’t really know what the album was going to sound like until I had already finished most of the tracks.
Next to your solo tracks there are also some collaborations on your album. How did you pick the artists for the collabs?
While there are so many artists I wanted to collab with, I think the ones who I’m collaborating with complement the theme of the album and all share a similar approach to music.
For people unfamiliar with your sound, how would you describe it?
I have no idea! I guess I always enjoy trying to create a feeling or an atmosphere but also making sure it has impact and drive.
Please take us on a trip down the album. In your own words, could you give a listening guide for people who want to know what they can expect from the album?
Hopefully the chapter names will give everyone a bit of an insight of what to expect. Some tracks have a lot of story and feeling behind them, some are just me having fun. I don’t think I can really pinpoint exactly what to expect but I think it’s safe to say you can expect Vazard….whatever that is!
‘Chapters of the Mind’ isn’t hardstyle only, it also explores other genres. Is it to show your diversity and ability to produce several genres or do they contribute to the story you want to tell with the album?
I have loved listening to lots of different music over the years so there was a large amount of influences I wanted to incorporate. Not only music, but themes from movies and video games also play a big part in a lot of my tracks as they do in my own life.
Where do draw your inspiration from and in what situations are you most receptive to inspiration?
I think I draw inspiration from music in general, from all things rhythmic or music that can convey a mood whether it be uplifting, dark or anxious. Some days l’m listening to massive progressive rock ballads, next day I’m listening to cheesy trap or industrial drum and bass. Soundtracks by those such as Hans Zimmer really get to me because the idea of connecting music to a situation/feeling/experience is one of my favourite things about music. All the artists on Spoontech amaze me with the stuff they are coming out with and motivates me in my own projects!
However I find my biggest drivers and inspirations come from those who I’m close to, especially since without my wife Rach and Ryan (Delete) in particular, I don’t think I would have taken the steps to not only produce an album but even create Spoontech in the first place.
The fact that you live in Australia means your performances in Europe are limited to a small amount per year. People really live up to your performances. What does this mean to you?
I still get surprised whenever I travel to Europe to perform. Since I am so far away from it all, it is still crazy to me that people on the other side of the world are listening to my music. So when I do get to come to Europe, it’s always an amazing experience not only because of the stages or the production but because of the people and the atmosphere they create.
Have you ever considered moving to The Netherlands, and what made you decide not to?
Yes I have definitely considered it and it was a hard decision to make however I am happy being able to savour each individual moment that I am there. I already have enough grateful and proud memories to keep me going a lifetime so any more is purely a bonus. Myself and Rach have built our lives and careers already in Australia and makes it much harder to let all that go.
Would you like to become a fulltime producer/DJ in the future or would you prefer to keep your job and keep producing/DJ’ing as a ‘sidejob’, as I understood is the situation now?
I know a lot of amazing DJ’s and producers have done this move and I am in awe of their courage. I would rather not have to worry about producing/DJ’ing turning into a job and having the pressure of not only using music as a creative outlet, but also having to ensure it sustains income to live.
Deadlines and expectations make me enjoy music less so I think it would have the potential to have a negative effect for me, which is just not really a risk I want to take in potentially de-stabilizing our lives in Australia for.
Spoontech has always been an underground force but proved itself a perfect breeding ground for artists, for example Warface and Delete started at the label. What is the secret behind the label’s success?
I think perhaps people can relate to the reasons and the drive behind the label. We aren’t really aiming for a mass takeover of the world, we just want to be a platform where fans can experience our artists unleashing their creative minds without expectation.
After all, we are all fans of music too – we just want to be able to share more of it to the world.
Next to the releases on ‘Chapters of the Mind’ and Spoontech’s releases, there must be more things coming up. Could you give us an idea of what we can expect from you and the label in the future?
I have no particular plans for after the album yet! However Spoontech is full steam ahead, some of the guys like Gijs and Rick have taken on new roles in the label and they are doing great things keeping the releases rolling and injecting so many cool new ideas.
I have recently taken a step back in the management of the label and handed over a lot of the leadership responsibilities to John from Main Concern. John has an awesome passion for driving the label so it was an easy choice for me to make!
I will still be involved but taking more of a back seat and letting John lead the crew that will take Spoontech into the future and beyond.
The one thing we’ve been wondering: Where does the name ‘Spoontech’ come from? Are you obsessed with spoons or something? :p
Haha well I had many ideas for the name and one of them was ‘Smashtech’ as well as ‘Spoontech’ and a few others, however myself and Ryan agreed that a Spoon for a mascot just seemed much more fun and less serious which kind of sums up the label so Spoontech stuck from there!
Finally, what is the one thing you want to share with people reading this article?
Unrelated to my album, I’d just like to encourage everyone to not worry about favourites or competitions and just enjoy all the music you can. There are no teams, no winners or losers – just multiple platforms and many artists all sharing their music. Nobody is right or wrong when it comes to creativity, it just is what it is.
