Artist of the Week: Markus Schulz

The many dark nights of 2009, in which Markus Schulz lit the souls of thousands with his proggy Coldharbour sound, almost belong to the past. Markus Schulz looks back on an eventful 2009. A year in which his Coldharbour label passed the 75th release, he got crowned to ‘Best American DJ’, re-claimed the 8th position in the DJ Mag Top 100 and revived his Dakota moniker. And that surely isn’t the end of his list of feats. While the final days of 2009 pass by, a star-studded 2010, filled with new highlights, awaits him. Time for a glance into the new and promising year with Markus Schulz himself.

Reinventing trance
Markus:”For me personally, I’ll remember it as the year I brought the Dakota project back. I wanted to do something deeper, something that explored further into house, techno and other electronic areas and the album provided the perfect vehicle for that. On a broader scale though musically, things have been exceptionally strong in 2009. Everything feels new at the moment, trance is reinventing itself; it has a really good mental attitude about it! That’s a very good thing to be able to say.”

There’s a lot to say about the year 2009. Especially if it involves the life of a superstar DJ and producer such as Markus. But while some might think it’s the Awards that matter most to him, it’s namely the music that puts a smile to his face. Markus:”Production-wise I think that largely comes back to Dakota. It’s been pretty incredible to see how ‘Thoughts Become Things’ was embraced by the fan base and actually expanded it further. Gig-wise, well that’s a little harder to say. Aside from Ibiza there have been lots of special places in their own way. ”

What made the floor move
The Global DJ Broadcast radioshow has had a splendid year. Besides an ever-growing amount of listeners, the show also gained success with the World Tour episodes. Every month, Markus would celebrate the multi-national character of the show with a live-broadcast from one of the many cities he visited. San Francisco, Budapest, St. Petersburg, Wroclaw and many other great cities he had his gigs in, were showcased into sound. Markus bundled some of the highlight tracks of these World Tour episodes onto his ‘Global DJ Broadcast World Tour – Best of 2009′ album. A concept that was welcomed by the trance scene and resulted in a special album. Markus:”A lot of people say of course that you see great differences between countries – that’s natural. I actually think that you see great differences just from going city to city and that was really something I wanted to reflect in some manner. The World Tour album is a great way for me to highlight the biggest and most special moments from those gigs. This year’s one was a direct relation to what tracks made the floor move hardest in the cities reflected on the cd.”

Though the Global DJ Broadcast has been more than successful in its current format, Markus doesn’t rule out any changes or new additions to the show. As long as it has purpose. Markus:”We’re always open to the idea of shifting things around and mixing things up, but we’d only do that if we saw a clear reason to do so. I think that the format of the actual show is very sound. It’s things that are going to come in next year to build on what the show is that are going to be different. I can’t say too much about that at the moment, but the groundwork for it has been laid for some time now.”

Rewiring the tracks
In the past year, two theme songs shattered into the many arena’s and clubs of this world. It was the big room sound of Markus that represented the Transmission event in Poland and the Evolution event in the Netherlands. Two massive parties, for which Markus created two suitable and outstanding tunes. ‘The New World’ and ‘Do You Dream’ didn’t only became the dancefloor’s favourite, but also rocked the global radiostations. The tracks shared the same, upfront, peak time moment sound. One that’ll surely be back in 2010, if it’s up to Markus. Markus:”Yes, I think so. It’s always nice to have those big, hands in the air moments in your sets and I like making the music for that myself. ”

A remix-pack of both tracks, with remixes by Ferry Corsten, Re-Ward and more, is currently making waves in the download charts. According to Markus, all remixers did a great job. Markus:”Absolutely! Ferry did a hell of a job on his mix. I’ve been really impressed with Wardt van der Harst’s material for a while and he did a great tough rewiring of the track. It has to be said though that the Miami/Los Angeles pair Tim Grube & Mike Hovsepian remix was pretty incredible too – they really took the ball and ran with it.”

The new clubbing Mecca: Las Vegas
Markus already created a seductive, dark Dakota track about the city, but in 2010 a full album will be putting Las Vegas in the spotlights Markus thinks it deserves. In sequence to Miami, Ibiza, Amsterdam and Toronto, the city of sin will inspire Markus’ new compilation album. Markus:”As I guess I hinted at earlier, Las Vegas has turned into something really special. The city has undergone a mini revolution in the last 4 years; one that’s been driven, as much as anything by the clubs. I don’t think it’s overreaching to say that it’s become a new clubbing Mecca. If you’re seriously minded about music and clubbing, it’s going to become a place you have to say you’ve tried. Come the next decade it’s going to be a rival to Ibiza – hedonism has never been in short supply there!”

By picking the city ‘where everything’s possible’, Markus did pick one that’s open for a diverse sound. So Markus, what does Las Vegas sound like to you? Markus:”Las Vegas has been a big part of my year. When it came time to pick the next city in the series, it was the first one that came to me. There is this vibe in Vegas that anything is possible. Like the cab driver can hit the million dollar jackpot and tomorrow be living like a king. I wanted to bring the bling bling, the over the top vibe that I feel every time I go to my compilation.” Markus is currently busy making the right selection of tracks and adding his own bit of producing-input. Markus:”Right now, I am working closely with some of the artists who’s tracks I will be featuring on the cd to bring about the sound I am looking for.”

The new Markus Schulz album
After a Dakota-minded year, 2010 will be all about coming back to his very self. A new album is in the making, with exciting collabs and a fresh sound. Markus:” Right now I’m keeping it under wraps. I will tell you I’ve got some amazing tracks going. I can hardly wait to get back in the studio and get some more of this inspiration out. I have felt this incredible creative vibe ever since I got going with Dakota and now I think I’m transferring it over to the new Markus Schulz album.”
Thought the Dakota project was a grand success, Markus does want to keep the alias and his Markus Schulz work separate. Markus:” That’s very much the reason for doing the two. Dakota gives me that avenue to explore deeper – I’ve always been about that. By the time the new album is out ‘Progression’ will have been released for close to three years and the people need a bit of the bigger room sound too.  ”

The new year and all its challenges
But before the new year with all its fresh releases hits in, there’s a few exciting things lined up for the final days of December 2009. Markus will close down the year in pretty crazy way, he says. Markus:” I’m playing Bulgaria and The Ukraine coming up to the holidays and then a couple of dates in Canada (Edmonton and Calgary) immediately after Christmas. I’ll be seeing the sun come up for the first time in 2010 in Los Angeles, where I’m playing the final set at Together As One. It’s always the biggest NYE event that takes place in the city every year, and it will be my first appearance at this event since 2005. NYE will be just that bit bigger this year I think! On the Global DJ Broadcast front we’ve just done Denver for the World Tour show of the month and I’m thinking that the Together As One set will likely be a great way to kick off the Broadcast in ’10.”

Markus won’t only kick off 2010 with a great episode of Global DJ Broadcast, he’ll also be holding himself to a few goals. And they’re definitely not the easiest ones. Markus:” I’ve got the Las Vegas cd, the new Markus Schulz album, some great releases lined up for Coldharbour and another busy year of gigs. I am really looking forward to the new year and all its challenges. I want to continue on the path I have started and see where it leads me.”

And to those that have been supporting him throughout the past year, Markus would like to say the following. Markus:”Thank you for an amazing 2009. I hope everyone is healthy, happy and successful in 2010.”

More info, check www.markusschulz.com or www.youtube.com/markusschulz .

Order ‘Global DJ Broadcast World Tour – Best of 2009′ on Astral Music.