Exclusive artists to ‘Smash The House’, the Wolfpack hype continues to spread around the world like wildfire. Main stage sets at Tomorrowland 2012, tours of India, South America, Europe and beyond, and huge hits that include 'Miracle' and the 2013 Beatport #1 smash 'Turn It Up' Co-produced with mentors Dimitri Vegas & Like Mike and GTA. This has opened the duo up to a huge global audience that crosses not just borders, but continents and land masses. With their Tomorrowland Aftermovie Smash Hit 'Ocarina' on the way - 2013 is shaping up to be their biggest year yet, it seems that the rise of the Wolfpack has only just begun…
Are you curious to learn more about the Wolfpack duo? We requested an interview with them, and we are glad that they responded positively.
Enjoy their answers, and don’t miss their performance if they appear in a club near you as support acts to Dimitri Vegas & Like Mike.
Interview was written and conducted by Dimitri Kechagias, Music Journalist, Radio/DJ
Dimitri: First of all, it would be great for us to go back in time so you can tell us where and when you were born, and if you grew up within a family that has any connection with music or other arts?
Ruben/Wolfpack: I was born in Belgium 18th November 1983, in a typical loving family. Not really much to do with music, although we love to hear it together.
Steve/Wolfpack: Also born in Belgium 24-05-1983. Same here... not many artistic people in my family.
Dimitri: What kind of music were you listening to as teenagers, and when did you take the decision to get into producing and DJ’ing?
Ruben/Wolfpack: We kinda listened to everything from Dokter Dre till Danger Hardcore Team (DHT)
I started with DJ’ing in my early twenties.
Producing; we started to try a couple of years ago, and we are very lucky that we have so many great artists that support us.
Steve/Wolfpack: As a 14-year old kid, I started to help my uncle at wedding parties. My love for music started then.
Dimitri: Is it possible to pick the Top 5 artists/DJ’s that have inspired and influence your music productions and DJ’ing styles?
Wolfpack:
Dimitri Vegas and Like Mike
Steve Aoki
Swedish House Mafia
David Guetta
Avicii
Dimitri: Have you had any formal music training where you learnt how to produce EDM or you are 100% self-taught? Do you like watching YouTube video tutorials made by other artists explaining how they compose their tracks?
Wolfpack: Most of it we learnt by ourselves, hours and hours turning buttons and finding out new stuff. Of course YouTube video tutorials can be very useful indeed, but the best way of course is getting it from the source and learning from fellow artists.
Dimitri: When did you meet up and decide to create the project Wolfpack. How did you choose to name your project Wolfpack?
Wolfpack: The project Wolfpack started about 4 years ago. The name Wolfpack actually came from the movie "Hangover" where a bunch of friends stuck by each other no matter what. If you've seen the movie you would understand, we’ve been friends for almost 16 years and we always had each other’s back.
Dimitri: You are closely associated with Dimitri Vegas & Like Mike and their label ‘Smash The House’. Is it possible to tell us why you decide to contact them, and which one of your tracks was the one that attracted Dimitri & Like Mike’s attention, and how did you feel when they asked you to sign your first track on their label?
Wolfpack: We have known Dimitri and Mike since we were 14 years old as we lived in the same town. Three years ago we came second in a DJ contest which gave us a spot at Tomorrowland. Dimitri and Mike noticed our set, and gave us the awesome opportunity to sign us to "Smash the House". When we finished our first track ‘Rising Moon’, we asked Dimitri and Mike's opinion and 15 minutes later we were opening bottles of champagne. They even liked it so much that they played it the same night! The reaction of the crowd gave us spontaneously “Goosebumps”.
Dimitri: Your track ‘Miracle’ became a huge success all over the world and you sampled the classic ‘I need a Miracle’ vocal. How did the idea for this track come about and are you happy with Dimitri Vegas & Like Mike’s remix of it?
Wolfpack: Yes definitely a good classic; that’s why we thought it would be great to hear it on the dance floors again. We also had a good collaboration with Coco Star, and are very happy DVLM made that amazing remix of our track!
Dimitri: You reached the number 1 position with Dimitri Vegas & Like Mike and GTA with the huge ‘Turn It Up’ on Tiesto’s Musical Freedom. Would you like to tell us how the production of this track came about, and how did you feel when you saw it reaching the number 1 position on Beatport?
Wolfpack: The production of this track came from different artists working together, each putting their one vibe in the tune. The minute it hit number 1 we all celebrated!
Dimitri: Have you actually met up with Tiesto, and what is your opinion of him? Are any other big name DJ’s that you aspire to co-produce a track together with or maybe just meet them and tell them that you admire their work?
Wolfpack: Haven't met him yet, but it seems like a really cool guy.
We have a lot of collaborations and tracks in the pipeline with artist from all over the world; of course, there are still a lot of goals that have to be reached.
Dimitri: You’ve done a remix for some major pop stars. Which remix is your favourite, and which one was the hardest to complete and took you more time to finish, and why?
Wolfpack: Our Wakanda remix is the best till now in our eyes and also the most complicated. It took a many hours in the studio to complete! Why? Because we really wanted it to be very good, and I guess as an artist you always try to raise the bar.
Dimitri: You played at the Best Global Event ‘Tomorrowland’ in Belgium, and you rocked it. Can you recall how you felt when you performed at Tomorrowland for the first time, and if there is any on stage or backstage untold funny stories that you would like to share with us from that experience?
Wolfpack: We were very excited, also nervous, but at the end it was one of the best experiences in our lives.
The backstage of Tomorrowland is a place where you can meet a lot of interesting people and where we can relax.
We do recall Belgian celebrities somersaulting of tables in piles of pillows at the after-party on Sunday night, which was quite funny!!!
Dimitri: Are you going to prepare something special for your performance at Tomorrowland this year, or are you spontaneous and unprepared when you go on?
Wolfpack: We always love making new bootlegs and mashups: we like to come with a lot of good and new tracks, and then see what happens.
Dimitri: Tomorrowland is spreading its wings to the USA for the Tomorrowworld festival. Are you in favour on expanding into other territories, or do you prefer to keep Tomorrowland strictly as a Belgian thing, like Belgian Chocolate for instance?
Wolfpack: It’s too bad that so many people couldn't make it to the last editions that they just had to expand. Strictly Belgium, no not really. It’s all about the love for music!
Dimitri: Is it possible to describe for us the process of producing your music? From which sound element do you start when building a track?
Wolfpack: We usually start with a good melody, a fresh baseline formed by newly made sounds. Make a good kick, look for a nice build up with snappy percussions. Yeah that’s about it... You have a fire alarm electro track :)
Dimitri: In your productions, do you mainly use pre-existing samples from sound Libraries or do you produce 100% fresh sounds? Which sound library is your favourite and why?
Wolfpack: We make most of it by ourselves, or by layering samples. Most handy until now has been the vengeance packs.
Dimitri: Can you give us a brief list of equipment (software or hardware) that you use to produce your super fat smashing tunes?
Wolfpack: Cubase, Midi-Piano, PC, Yamaha mixing panel, Virus...
Dimitri: Do you have a friend or relative that you trust a lot who will give you feedback when you give them the chance to hear the tracks for the first time? If they don’t like it do you make changes or do you stick with your own belief?
Wolfpack: For one, we’ve always got each other, and if we both like it, we send it to Dimitri and Mike. We always trust their advice.
Dimitri: Would you like to pick up your best DJ sets so far? In which clubs and countries have you met the most expressive and up-for-it crowds?
Wolfpack: Belgium - Tomorrowland
Brazil - Kaballah
Dimitri: One of my favourite questions to all the DJ’s I interview is that one about self-reflection and self-criticism. Out of 10, with what score do you rate the various elements of your DJ performances and why?
Wolfpack:
a) Your mixing skills:
9/10 we can do it blindly but there's always room for improvement.
b) Your ability to choose the right track for the right occasion:
9/10 we usually just play our own style… Sometimes a bit softer, it all depends if we are the main event or not.
c) Your friendly attitude towards the fans that shake your hand while you perform and after?
9/10 We love talking and interacting with our fans although we can never reach everyone!
Dimitri: How many hours do you spend communicating with your fans through Facebook & Twitter? What is your opinion about artists who reveal too many details about their life in those social media in order to become more likeable to their fans?
Wolfpack: We spend hours a day on social media like facebook or twitter. We think it’s important to keep it about the music and mutual interests.
Dimitri: Do you believe that DJ’s should have their own radio shows to boost their career and are you thinking about starting your own radio show?
Wolfpack: We are going to start to do a radio show soon, and also many podcasts. Yes we believe that it’s a good way for people to enjoy and get to know our music!
Dimitri: Do you currently have another daytime job as well or are you making your living 100% as music producers and DJ’s?
Wolfpack: We have to travel too often to still have regular jobs.
Dimitri: Please tell us about the track ‘Ocarina’ that everybody is talking about, and why they predict that it’s going to become the absolute anthem of this summer?
Wolfpack: Well we had such a good responses to that track, everywhere we went people were singing it along as we played it even though it hasn't even been released. Someone cut it out of our Tomorrowland live set and posted it on YouTube, it now has 1,574,026 views! That’s crazy!!! We hope they all buy our track when it gets released... And that’s soon ;)
Dimitri: Last question; you can give some advice to young and aspiring producers who would love to become successful like you? What should they do and what should they avoid if they want to build a healthy and steady career?
Wolfpack: Keep being yourself and work hard!
Many thanks to Steve & Ruben aka Wolfpack for their incredible answers
Many thanks to Kat Baker, head of PR at GetinPr for arranging this great interview.
Many thanks to Paul at 1mix Radio for proofing the final version of this interview
You can read it on 1mix radio web site click here
Do not forget to check out Wolfpack if you attending Tomorrowland festival in July.
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