Berlin-based veteran Till Von Sein is back on the ever impressive Suol imprint this month with a four track collection of supreme groovers in the ‘Forever’ EP. In addition to sharing an exclusive from the release with the WWD family, he’s taken five to chat with us as we look forward to another busy year for this talented grafter.
WWD: Thanks for taking the time to chat, happy new year!
Historically you’ve been a busy man involved in a lot of different areas. How has your focus developed both musically and personally over the last twelve months?
I had a crazy 2015, playing 100 + shows worldwide, working on an album and on top of that my girlfriend lived in Shanghai, which is a decent 15 hour flight from Berlin 😉 so, I tried to not play that many shows in 2016 and rather spend some time in Berlin, work on music and hang with my girl (who moved back in the meantime) and friends instead and go to shows or sports events etc. I really needed that feeling of having a private life again. I had way more fun in the studio and worked on so many new projects.
WWD: How did you spend your New Year’s Eve?
I travelled to Finland and spend NYE in the world-famous Lappeenranta. lol 😉
no wifi, just books and old tv shows on my computer. I fell asleep at 10 pm or so. My last 3 months were exhausting so this was the perfect reset, fresh start into a new year trip.
WWD: 2017, what do you hope to make of it?
As mentioned before I worked hard in the studio in the second half of 2016 and now I’m super stoked to release all this music.
but first it’s a 6 week break in South Africa now on my agenda with my family. it’s an annual trip for me since years and the best possible way to recharge those batteries.
WWD: In your eyes, what does electronic music need most to stay interesting in 2017?
Diversity. These days I have the feeling quite a few producers are disoriented and don’t know what they really want to express with their output and just jump on trend after trend after trend. I mean: how uninspiring is it if you go to a club and it all sounds the same for like 5 hours straight.
WWD: You’re starting the year with a return to Suol. What can you tell us about your relationship with the label?
I’ve been close with them ever since day one. I really like working with people who I can trust and who do a professional job. I had too many experiences in the past where it ends up stressing me out because the guys running the label have their head everywhere else but not focused on what they’re supposed to do. and it’s a cool crew. I love Meggy, she is this sorta home girl everybody dreams of. Larse is the perfect guy you can talk about “boys” stuff with, like football and music for days. Same with Johnjon, and the guys in the office are just super down to earth lovely people.
WWD: As for the release, can you share the story behind its production?
The last 3-4 years I worked on a lot of different music, from r n b to downbeat to house music and back. Right now I love working on straight house music and I tried to create a record that represents what I DJ when I play in clubs even though I never really play my own music 😉
I started most of those joints a while ago and finished them together with Tigerskin in his Studio. he helped me a lot in the last years with mixing and recording and now we work more and more together as a team on my music. I’m super stoked every single time I work with him on something new as he is such a weird dude who has ideas I would never ever even dream of 😉 we tried to keep an organic vibe mixed tons of samples with 808s and SH101 and even live recorded played guitar by the maestro.
WWD: This is a topic that intrigues us at the moment – the lasting value of a track or a composition in electronic music seems to be diminishing by the second in terms of listener consumption. Is there any solution to reverse the process or re-creating that value in the eyes of the end listener?
Well if you put out tool track after tool track of course nobody gives a …. 3 days after that. in the end, it always comes down to what you really want to express with your music. if you put your heart and soul into it and try to create something timeless and emotional, then people will listen to that again and again.
WWD: What’s the next big project you have in your eye-line?
Right now I’m in the process of starting my own label. but pssst 😉
WWD: Music wise, what else can we expect from you in the coming months?
I have 2 more EPs lined up til summer, 3 more remixes in February and March and after that I will work on a Collab EP with Meggy.
Till Von Sein’s upcoming EP ‘Forever’ dropping on Suol on 20th January.