Hailing from one of the most famous cities in the UK, a place that is steeped in musical history, Liverpudlian trance artist AMOS & RIOT NIGHT aka David McClelland is one of the trance scenes rising talents.
In his adolescence, hearing trance for the first time on euro dance TV channels, he discovered the iconic sounds of Paul van Dyk, Armin van Buuren, Ferry Corsten and Above & Beyond. In his teens, as a young drummer in a metal band David discovered a great love for rhythm, add to that the melodic sounds of trance and it wasn't long until he was hooked on a genre and scene that would go on to shape his late teens, 20's and beyond.
After the digital era took full hold in the late 2000's, a new trance sound with an exciting wave of artists to go with it caught David's attention and led him even further down the trance path. Artists such as Sean Tyas, John O'Callaghan, Aly & Fila, John Askew, Activa, Daniel Kandi to name a few. His keen interest in this new sound soon became a creative urge, a want to learn production, it was time to dive in and make his take on this magical but even more driving modern trance sound.
As with many digital producers, DJing came later and the AMOS & RIOT NIGHT project was born in 2013 as the budding producer teamed up with Paul Holden (AMOS) who was David's (RIOT NIGHT) original studio collaborator and DJ partner. After a great 6 years as a duo, it was 2019 when he decided to go solo. David kept the A&RN name as it was already picking up pace in the trance scene with releases on labels such as Silent Shore, Defcon, Critical State and Extrema.
The AMOS & RIOT NIGHT sound can be described as a super fresh, uplifting, emotional and very much melody driven style, with loads of uptempo energy. A production focused sound, which is how David first met trance master Sean Tyas who has become a mentor in his production career, from feedbacking demos and championing A&RN tracks from early on, to releasing his tracks on his massive Regenerate label. Other labels David has unlocked since going solo are the impressive AVA White, Always Alive, High Voltage, Monster Tunes, GO Music, Deep In Thought, VII, Vandit, Subculture and the giant FSOE main label
DJ support is coming in from a who's who in the global scene with radio and live gig plays by Armin van Buuren, Aly & Fila, Paul van Dyk, John O'Callaghan, Sean Tyas, Giuseppe Ottaviani, Simon Patterson, Solarstone, Sneijder, John Askew, Will Atkinson (BBC RADIO 1), Mark Sherry, Jordan Suckley, Activa, Alex M.O.R.P.H., Manuel Le Saux, Craig Connelly, Daniel Kandi, Ferry Tayle, Paul Denton, Will Rees, Allen Watts, Greg Downey, Dan Stone and many more.
The proud achievements are coming in thick and fast for AMOS & RIOT NIGHT. From hearing his music being played at massive events such as Dreamstate, Luminosity, The Gallery @ Ministry of Sound and Gatecrasher, to the scouse spinner featuring on popular compilations by VII, FSOE 650, 10 Years of AVA and a collaboration feature with Manuel Le Saux for his album. Becoming a regular on Sean Tyas’ Regenerate label is also up there with his proudest moments.
DJ wise A&RN has picked up some great gigs so far with many more to come in 2021 and beyond. Playing to his home city crowd at Back To The Anthems, Gatecrasher @ Garlands and WeAreYou with names such as Judge Jules, Jan Johnston, Signum, Lost Witness, Sneijder, Shugz, David Rust, Liam Wilson. Already having made debuts in London @ Trance Sanctuary with Sean Tyas and Sam Jones, Ibiza @ Connected boat party with Andy Moor and even further afield his LA debut @ Intricacy.
Having already hit the top 10 on Beatport trance three times and with a string of new singles, collaborations, plus a debut artist album in early planning, AMOS & RIOT NIGHT has become a much-loved name around the scene with a rapidly growing artist profile, helping him climb through the ranks of global trance music.
The latest release of Amos & Riot Night is his collaboration with Lucy Star on FSOE. We are delighted that both artists have agreed to participate in this interview to discuss their collaboration. In this interview, Amos highlights his top three career accomplishments, including his performance at Luminosity and his collaboration with Paul van Dyk. His latest release, “Calling Out For You,” features Lucy’s vocals and explores the theme of pursuing one’s dreams in the music industry. The production process involves collaborating with the vocalist to ensure that their vocals are prominent before crafting the club mix.
Amos & Riot Night discusses the challenges of producing a track with a new singer, their preferred music composition tools, and upcoming gigs in 2025. They express their dissatisfaction with the current royalty handling system and emphasize the importance of proper registration for fair compensation. Additionally, they share their thoughts on music genres, the value of online masterclasses, and the impact of phone usage during DJ sets. We encourage you to read their insightful responses in this interview.
Dimitris: Hi there! Could you share with us your top three accomplishments or objectives that you are most proud of achieving in your career as an electronic music producer?
Amos & Riot Night: Recently, it would definitely be making my debut at Luminosity last year in Zandvoort. This was somewhere I'd wanted to play for a long long time since I first went over 10 years ago. To be playing at the Trance Mecca is unbelievable and words can't really describe how insane that whole experience was!
Working with Paul van Dyk last year on the Shine Ibiza anthem alongside Matt Noland was an incredible experience. After the huge success of our debut single together Lomond in 2021, we had no real intentions on doing any followups. That all changed when the team at Vandit reached out to us asking for new material from us both, so we made an early version on what became Shine Together Now. Paul absolutely loved it that he wanted to be a part of it, so how can we say no to that?
Still writing/producing after over a decade in the business is still a dream come true that I've not given up at this, even though I've come close so many times, closer than many realise. Something's always pulled me back in to just keep going at it.
Dimitris: Could you share the motivations that led you to pursue a career in DJing or producing electronic dance music?
Amos & Riot Night: I remember hearing a lot of earlier Trance tracks, not knowing the names of the records at all, and just being blown away by the sounds. It wasn't until years later that I found all of these tracks out by name. What led me to producing was an outlet of me always wanting to write/produce my own records.
At the time I was starting out, I was still playing drums in rock/metal bands, but I always wanted to do electronic music after getting my first Roland synth for my 15th birthday. When I then found out what the music was and who was producing the records, I then came to the conclusion that 'If these people can make records like this, so can I'. Here we are over a decade later and I'm still here.
Dimitris: Could you tell me about your latest release Calling Out For You on FSOE? I'm curious about what inspired you during its creation and would love to hear more about the thought process behind the track.
Amos & Riot Night : Me & Lucy initially connected via Instagram and we got talking about potentially working together on a record. When I first caught wind of some of Lucy's previous work, I really liked how relatable a lot of her lyrics can be. Tonally, I felt that her vocal style would work well for Trance, so we got together writing some ideas at the piano and going back & forth on the lyric writing, which is a first for me as I've never been involved in anything lyrically in the past. With Lucy being based in my home city, Liverpool, it just made sense for us to get together and write the song in person.
Lucy: David and I were inspired by the concept of chasing your dreams and encapsulating the emotional rollercoaster and challenges on the way. Specifically, this song is the music industry being notoriously hard to break into, I think it is a theme that a lot of people can relate to. I started out doing indie-folk style songs inspired by the likes of James Blunt, Paolo Nutini, Ed Sheeran, Taylor Swift etc. In the past few years, my sound has transitioned to more of an indie rock sound inspired by the likes of Hayley Williams and Florence + the Machine and Avril Lavigne. Prior to working with David, I had never written anything in the Trance genre. It’s a whole new world and I’m so excited and proud to be part of the Trance community now. David did a fantastic job with the production. I love how the vocals within Trance music are often very ethereal. David played me a lot of his favourite songs and I was inspired by the meaningful lyricism. The majority of my individual songs are centred around the topic of heartbreak and loss specifically in the context of a romantic relationship. I like to empower people to thrive after leaving a bad situation.
‘Calling Out For You’ is quite a different topic to my usual heartbreak anthem. I usually write my songs using the acoustic guitar and what I found really interesting working with David was the implementation of the piano. David found some really beautiful piano chords and together, we bounced ideas off of each other. This is the first time I’ve ever written a song with someone and it was an incredibly fun experience. We were very honest with each other if we didn’t think a certain lyric or certain melody quite fit. When we both agreed on the final version, we both got really excited because we were so on the same page, haha!
Amos & Riot Night: Yeah, I remember during the writing and the recording process I was genuinely beaming from ear to ear as I knew that it would be a special record! At that point, it was purely piano and vocals and I hadn't even thought about how to produce the club mix. I then knew that I had to make the vocal centre stage and for it to really stand out, rather than me going full throttle bosh, which is so easy to do let's be honest. Nowadays when I'm working on vocal records, the song really has to stand out its own right before being translated into a Trance track. A lot of the time, I find that so many Vocal Trance tracks don't stack up as songs on their own as the vocal is placed over the top of an already produced track.
Dimitris: Could you give me an idea of how long it usually takes to produce a track? Also, I’d love to hear a simplified overview of your production process.
Amos & Riot Night: When working on vocal records, nowadays I would write some basic chords on a piano getting an idea for what works for it being a song. I'd then send it to a vocalist/songwriter and see if they really like it, then start to work on the songwriting from there. Once that's absolutely nailed on and I get the vocal back, I'll then start to craft the club mix around that vocal. At least that way, there's no pressure on anyone needing to write to it being a Trance track, per se. I would much rather have the song speak for itself and stand on its own merit.
Dimitris: Could you share more about any specific technical challenges or obstacles you faced while producing that track? I'm really curious to hear about your experiences and how you overcame them!
Amos & Riot Night: I would say the challenge really was working with someone completely new to Trance as it is out of the comfort zone for singer/songwriters if they've never been involved in this or any other Dance music. I have to say Lucy absolutely smashed this out the park though!
Dimitris: I'm curious to know which music composition tools you like to use. Do you have a preference for certain software or hardware, and what makes them your favorites? Also, I've noticed a trend where more people are producing music with analogue equipment and minimizing digital software use. What do you think about this shift?
Amos & Riot Night: I've been working on Ableton now for over a decade, though it's only become my primary DAW of choice within the past 6 years. I don't own any hardware, so can't really comment on this as such.
Amos & Riot Night: Kicking off 2025 on home turf as I bid farewell to Evolution in Liverpool at Meraki, the brand that I setup 6 years ago, but we're going out with a bang. Sean Tyas will be headlining with a 3 hour set with Noonix opening proceedings and myself & Robbie Graham going B2B.
Buzzing to be coming back to Trance Sanctuary on March 22nd for their FSOE event, where I'll be playing their afterparty alongside James Dymond, Sean Mathews, Stowers & Cooper and Hamza. Main event is absolutely stacked too and it's a sellout!
Few more gigs lined up overseas, which hopefully I'll be able to share more about very soon!
Lucy: Absolutely! The dates are still to be confirmed but David and I will be playing at International Pop Overthrow festival in summer 2025. Very excited!
Amos & Riot Night: Yes, this will actually be the first time officially us performing our song together! It won't be as me DJing, however as this will be purely an acoustic/stripped back performance. Taking it right down to the very foundations.
Dimitris: Are you happy with how royalties are currently handled for your music, especially when it comes to streaming income? Do you think you’re getting a fair deal from streaming platforms, DJs playing your tracks at events, radio broadcasts, and retailers selling your music in physical and digital formats?
Amos & Riot Night: You want the honest answer? No. Simply put, I wouldn't survive on streaming alone. It would help if all producers registered their songs with their country's performance rights organisations (PROs) and for all DJs to register their tracklists each time they perform. That way, no one loses out. If anything, this really should be mandatory across the board.
Dimitris: Many producers and DJs offer online masterclasses or courses on music production and DJing. Do you think participating in these is crucial for improving your skills? Are you currently offering any courses or related services like ghost-producing or mastering? I’d love to hear more about what you’re up to!
Amos & Riot Night: Yes actually I've recently started doing production tuition with clients from worldwide. It's a first for me actually doing anything like this at a more serious level and I'm really enjoying sharing my knowledge with others as I know that people can truly learn. It's also a way of me giving back to the Trance community after over a decade of experience.
Dimitris: Can you tell us if your music fits into a specific genre like trance, house, or techno, or do you prefer to break the mold? Also, what do you think about artists mixing different styles to create something new and unique?
Amos & Riot Night: My music very much is Trance through and through, though of course there is room for experimentation if the project I'm working on absolutely calls for it. As for mixing different styles, as long as it all makes sense sonically and cohesively, then yeah I'm for that. I will say that I do find so many hybrid tracks just done for the sake of blending genres and it's not always executed well at all. There's definitely a time and a place for it, but it's got to be absolutely right.
Dimitris: Is making music your main job, and do you have the freedom to step away from it when needed? If not, what other work do you do to help support yourself?
Amos & Riot Night: Currently, no. I do still work fulltime externally, though I do like the job that I do and I've been in that field for around 6 years.
Dimitris: Do you think it's a good idea to limit constant photo or video-taking during DJ sets from fans, or are you okay with it?
Amos & Riot Night: There've been several videos circulating, particularly events with massive production where the focus is all on the visual aspect and everyone's not moving or dancing. Just looking purely through their phones for the entirety of the night. That's not a good look at all. I think it's this aspect that's brought about this 'resistance' to it. I know that certain big name DJs have been pushing this 'no phones' concept, which really should let people live in the moment. Some big clubs, even recently, have a 'no phone' policy as well.
Dimitris: What kind of venue do you enjoy more for your performances: intimate club settings or big festival stages? Also, are there any particular festivals or clubs where you dream of playing one day?
Amos & Riot Night: Both equally serve a purpose and I enjoy playing at both. However, I love playing at intimate venues as I can get really up close and personal with everyone who's there.
Thanks so much to David aka Amos & Riot Night and Lucy for their stunning answers.
Thanks to Stuart at FSOE for organizing this wonderful interview.
