Paul Van Dyk: 'What They Trance, I call Danceable Bullshit'

Paul Van Dyk: 'What They Trance, I call Danceable Bullshit' (interview)
Staying in a room with a view of Kuala Lumpur's Twin Towers skyscraper, Paul Van Dyk met up with Mezz correspondent Angie Ng last week, following a triumphant debut gig in Malaysia's capital city. Over 4000 people attended his sold out show, which saw hundreds queuing from 8pm to catch the East German DJ. Despite this, trance's number one jock remained humble about his venerated position. "There are some DJs who behave like superstars and I sometimes get called one. But I don't think I am," said Paul. "I just make my music, I love doing it and I still remember when I started DJing, how the DJ was a freak in a corner playing music, while other people were having fun. When people recognise me, I consider it as an honour."

Mezz : You're sometimes labelled the 'king of trance', how would you describe your musical style -
Paul Van Dyk: "As electronic dance music. I don't have anything against those who label me 'trance', it's just that so many people have different definitions for it. Some of the music they call trance, I call (laughing)… danceable bullshit. Obviously, I don't want to be the leader of stuff like ATB [('9am ('til I come)'], because that's not my kind of music at all. I don't play that music: I play music which has elements of,.., house, techno, breakbeat and drum& bass, with some trancey elements."

Mezz: I understand you're involved in Westbam's latest Mayday record, '10 in 01', how closely do you remain connected with the German scene-
Paul Van Dyk: "Very closely connected, because Berlin is my hometown and Germany my home country. We do our own parties in Berlin and I go to some of the clubs from time to time in Germany, and hang out with Westbam who's a really good friend of mine."

Mezz : Here in Malaysia, we tend to hear about the UK scene more than Germany's, how do the two compare -
Paul Van Dyk: "I never try to actually, you cannot really compare these things. For example, Berlin is different from Frankfurt, and London is different from Manchester or Liverpool, maybe even more different than Germany is from the UK. I wouldn't even know how to present an overview, such as a typical characteristic of German clubbing 'cos it's so different from Munich to Berlin or Frankfurt. It's very diverse, so I never really try, you just have to adjust yourself, be flexible and go with the flow."

Mezz : Did you feel you were noticeably more driven than your peers to become a DJ-
Paul Van Dyk: "In the beginning I never wanted to be one. I made some mixed tapes so that my friends and I had something to listen to in the car and they passed them on to promoters which was actually how I got my very first DJ booking. Because I've always listened to music, I have my own ideas and my own style, so all the magazines in Berlin suddenly wanted to interview me because I played so differently from everyone else. One of the journalists was Cosmic Baby who had his own studio, so I went off with him, became good friends and we made our first record. Through those circumstances, I got pointed towards the direction of what I'm doing now. The first time I went into the studio, was the moment when I realized that, this is what I want to do, to work on music that I can call my own."

Mezz : I asked Timo Maas about his production work and he said he tries out all his new productions on his audiences before sending them to record labels, do you do the same thing-
Paul Van Dyk: "Yeah I do but there is actually one big difference, I'm making my own music myself. With all due respect to the people who make the Timo Maas music, he doesn't actually do it himself. So, I don't really need to try and see if it's a Paul Van Dyk track or not. It will be because I made it myself."

Mezz: Have you ever asked for anybody's autograph-
Paul Van Dyk: "Never, not even when I was a kid. I grew up in a communist< Tags

• PVD