Earlier this month, Arty threw down an incredible show at Foundation Nightclub, full of throwbacks and euphoric electro. From fire opening sets by Paul Oswald and Johnny Monsoon until the Russian star himself finished his set, the crowd was vibing, and everyone was in a stellar mood. It was definitely one of the best shows I’ve been to at Foundation.
During the second opener’s set, I stood over by the back stairs and waited for Arty’s tour manager to come down.
“Watch your head”, his manager told me.
I’m a pretty tall guy, and backstage at Foundation is surprisingly really small.
Arty was sitting on the couch with his headphones in, deep in thought with what looked like a new track in the works.
“Arty….hey, Arty, he’s here for the interview.” His manager tapped on Arty’s computer.
I felt bad for interrupting his work, but he took out his headphones and smiled, and we shook hands.
Even though this was my fourth interview with an artist that I’ve listened to for years, I was still a bit nervous on the inside. It’s rare to see such a talented artist in person, especially one who’s music had such an impact on me.
“Alright”, I said, “let’s get this started!”
ARTY Interviews With RMR
RMR: A lot of people who got into dance music in the early 2010’s know ARTY as a trance name, and these days you reserve your all trance experiences for your alias ALPHA 9. What inspired the transition into new genres, and what made you want to bring back a pure trance experience?
ARTY: Personally, I wanted to explore myself a little bit more and try new things. Making trance music is sometimes challenging. Making house music is also challenging, because it’s a completely different approach, with new instruments, and distinct vibe. But making pop music is even harder, because it’s a completely different genre with new rules. That felt like a challenge for me, so I decided that I wanted to explore it all. Last year while writing the music, I was working on top-lines, and I really began to love songwriting. I started to put effort into what I actually say to people, not just with the melody, but with the words as well. And I slowly started to shift…not just to pop music, but trying other genres as well, like indie and indie pop too. I just found myself being comfortable making all types of music. However, I also realized how much I missed making trance music. It was just a spontaneous idea to bring ALPHA 9 back. It’s great to get back and produce trance again, give it to myself and give it to the people who were really asking for those vibes. But at the same time, I can push myself further as ARTY, and try whatever the fuck I want to try.
RMR: Is ALPHA 9 going to be a short project or is it going to continue?
ARTY: It’s not a short project, it’s going to be continuous with frequent releases with more music coming out soon! I’m just gonna keep going, I don’t see myself stopping trance because I love to produce trance and progressive, that’s for sure. No matter how much I grow as an artist, I will never leave my roots and forget about my fans from day one.
RMR: You’ve played here in Seattle a few times, the one I remember most was your performance closing out Lucky 2016 on the Anjunabeats stage. How does Seattle’s music scene compare to the rest of the world, and what’s your favorite thing about coming through Seattle?
ARTY: People love trance music and love dance music in general here. I think I really enjoy Seattle as, I would say, it is one of my favorite cities to play in North America, that’s for sure. The people really respect what you do, they really respect your approach in terms of what you’re gonna play for them, they love all kinds of music. And I think the connection between the fans and the artists is really strong, and the city is beautiful itself too. It’s just full of benefits coming here, I really enjoy playing this city.
https://www.instagram.com/p/BY2djuXg7aA/?taken-by=ndwiggins01
RMR: Do you have an all-time favorite city or venue? Where are the craziest crowds?
ARTY: All over the world. There’s no one place that stands out because you surprise yourself all the time getting into all of these random cities that you’ve never been to before in South America, Australia, in Asia…All the sudden you’re playing in South Korea and the crowd is just amazing! The shows are sold out and all the people are loving the music you play for them. I think it’s all about the connection between DJ, producer, musician, and the crowd and how they react to certain types of music that you’re playing, what they expect and what they don’t expect, what kind of vibe you wanna give to them. If all of these come along together in a really good way, it’s just gonna happen every time, regardless of where you’re playing. It’s not about just about one place or one venue, because there’s a lot of amazing venues all over the world, but what makes the show great is not the venue, it’s the people who are in the crowd.
RMR: Let’s talk about your newest release on Martin Garrix’s label, “Supposed To Be”. What inspired the track?
ARTY: The song is really emotional and personal. It’s not just about the fact that it’s pop music, it’s more about the song’s message. I think we spent about six months producing it, there’s been so much work behind it. It’s not the same track people would expect me to release under ARTY, but at the same time I love this song, I love the message, it’s really inspiring and really personal. From the comments I’m reading on social media, a lot of people are having attachment to the song which is why I made it. I’m really happy with it! And everyone is loving it.
RMR: Do you have any dream collaborations you haven’t done yet?
ARTY: The Weeknd. He’s amazing. I think he’s one of the best singers! I really like his voice and his last two albums were incredible as well!
RMR: What tips can you give to producers and DJs?
ARTY: Just be super honest with the music you’re making. Again, this goes back to the question with ARTY and ALPHA 9. I 100% was trying to be honest with my fans and deliver the message. I didn’t shift towards a certain type of music because of the opportunities there, I did it because I really wanted to challenge myself and find new ways to explore myself as a person and as an artist. When you’re honest and when you’re passionate about something, it’s just a matter of time before all the pieces come together, and you’ll see the result when you really believe in yourself and what you’re doing.
Once the interview was over, I thanked Arty personally for an autographed picture I received about five years ago. It was something so small from him but it was a really big deal for me.
I never had something autographed before in my life, and here was one of my favorite artists signing something with my name on it! I still have it in my room, with many more posters and pictures that I’ve had signed over the last year or so. There are so many artists I wish I could thank in person for the small things that they’ve done, whether it be autographed pictures or retweets or likes on social media, so it felt really great to thank Arty in person for that.
