If you’ve been excited about Above & Beyond member Paavo Siljamäki and his recent solo P.O.S musical journey lately, you’re going to love this one. The Finnish artist took his fly-away beats to the place he currently calls home, a beautiful house bordering a lake in the middle of the Nordic country, and played a set on his personal pier.

Something Paavo has mentioned time and time again is how Nature not only inspires him in a musical aspect but also how it has helped him regain meaning in his life. And so it’s only fitting that he blended the most prominent aspects of his career — music and landscapes — to record something quite like this.

“There’s something about being closer with nature that is really healing – and very inspiring.“

-Paavo Siljamäki (P.O.S)

The ‘Deeper Tales’ DJ Set

Of course, Paavo’s latest showcase is not without a reason, as it comes just after releasing his first-ever solo album, Deeper Tales, and, even more recently, a follow-up EP, the Deeper Tales Companion EP. So, you could say the set is a way of symbolically ending the first of many chapters to come in the modern P.O.S story.

Along the set, you’ll find songs that belong to the album, such as ‘Is It OK?‘, ‘Good People‘, and ‘We Will Get Through This‘. You’ll also find the three tracks belonging to the recent EP: ‘Rangiroa Feels‘, ‘5 Minute Buildup‘, and ‘Whacky Tribal‘. Also also, there are a lot of unreleased Paavo goodies scattered across the entire hour-and-fourty-four-minute-long journey. I’m talking the mighty ‘My Mind Is F*cked‘, the A&B-supported ‘Automatic‘, and his remix of Lakou Mizik and Joseph Ray‘s ‘Ogou (Pran Ka Mwen)‘. Those I can name, because there are around ten brand-new P.O.S IDs to listen to. Marvellous.

Nature: Lakes, Forests, And Other Stunning Views

As we’ve been accustomed to, no set recorded outside a club or festival is complete without proper aerial takes. Even I used drone recording when doing my latest Organic House set. Paavo, of course, didn’t disappoint, and paired his already otherworldly music with heavenly takes from high up.

Enjoy the best takes of the impressive lake behind the artist, and the beautiful summer nature that surrounded the whole happening of the set. Finland sure looks breathtaking in this set. It’s an artistic composition from start to finish.

Watch Paavo’s Set

Click the video above to give Paavo’s excellent ‘Deeper Tales’ DJ set a listen, or click here to go directly to YouTube. If one thing is clear, is that the P.O.S project is in full swing, and we’ll continue getting little gifts like this one. Or rather, small moments like this.

The post P.O.S Records ‘Deeper Tales’ DJ Set From Finland Following Album And EP appeared first on EDMTunes.

Those who open Spotify first thing in the morning — or past midnight before going to bed — might have found a surprise waiting for them. That’s how I want to paint it, because that’s how it happened to me. A little Anjunabeats logo on a fuchsia background and an indigo frame. And when I stopped to understand whose release it was, I read: ‘P.O.S – Deeper Tales Companion EP‘.

Ladies and gentlemen, we find ourselves in front of a surprise Paavo Siljamäki EP. Titled the Deeper Tales Companion EP, this new belter adds three tracks to Paavo’s extensive discography. Judging by the name, it’s likely these tracks were intended to be a part of his debut solo album Deeper Tales, yet ended up being cut from it for various reasons.

Companion?

This is not the first time the “Companion” bit has been used, since back in 2019, Above & Beyond — of which a third of its members are Paavo — unveiled the Common Ground Companion EP, a compilation of three tracks described as the spiritual successors to A&B’s year-prior studio album, Common Ground. The release contained the tracks ‘Flying By Candlelight‘ featuring the returning voice of Marty Longstaff after his appearance on ‘Tightrope‘, the instrumental banger ‘Distorted Truth‘, and ‘There’s Only You‘, a tune that once again saw the trio joining forces with legendary singer and songwriter Zoë Johnston.

Deeper Tales Companion EP

From point to point, P.O.S’ new EP is just over 21 minutes long. Three brand-new songs make the cut, and only in their extended form — what a blessing! ‘Rangiroa Feels‘, ‘5 Minute Buildup‘, and ‘Whacky Tribal‘, in that order, bring the EP to life. If these tracks don’t feel entirely foreign to you, great job, you’ve done your homework: all of them were a part of Paavo’s ASOT 1133 Guestmix, along with some still-unreleased music we’re excited to see more of in the future — ‘My Mind Is F*cked‘, I’m looking at you.

‘Rangiroa Feels’

If you’re a fan of the old Trance sound, you’ll like this one. At a steady pace of 124 BPM, enjoy analogue plucks, sparkly textures reminiscent of the break in Mat Zo’s 2009 remix for Activa’s subalias Solar Movement ‘Eclipse’, and Paavo’s iconic shaker rolls. Pair that with Progressive Trance percussion, piano, emotion, and a vocal sample that feels pulled from a time capsule, and you have yourself a lovely track which, upon listening, you realise couldn’t have been crafted by anyone else.

‘5 Minute Buildup’

Borrowing samples such as snare, crashes, and fills from ‘Let You Go‘, ‘5 Minute Buildup’ tells a progressive story, much like the title itself leads you to believe. The main drop is a part of that 5-minute buildup, though, with Paavo making clever use of tension all throughout the track, adding and taking away as needed, but ultimately painting an eternally raising tune, which finally resolves towards the outro. It’s a concept I hadn’t heard of, and I like it for a change.

‘Whacky Tribal’

The darkest of the bunch still carries light, but makes you work to get to it. A very frontal legato and distorted short lead meets a rolling, almost Balearic-like bass, conga drums, floating pads, and a piano. They all work together to direct the aim towards a harder-hitting tune that impacts the listener around the 2:30 mark. It’s standard P.O.S magic from there.

Somehow, Paavo knows how to blend pianos, saw leads, dark basslines, acid sounds, and vocals, all into a composition that sounds seamless. It’s like that one guy who invented salted caramel: it shouldn’t work, but it does, and those who master their craft know how to make the most out of it. Chefs like Paavo will make you crave their odd blends, and that’s what makes him a sublime artist.

Listen to Paavo’s brand-new Deeper Tales Companion EP by clicking the Spotify button below this paragraph. Also, click here to support the release on your platform of choice.

The post P.O.S Follows Up Debut Album With ‘Deeper Tales Companion’ EP appeared first on EDMTunes.

It’s finally out. Fans of arguably one of the most influential artists of the past 15 years, Spencer Brown, will love the news. The young prodigy just put out his third album, Equanimity, the culmination of four years of hard work, the good, the bad, the ugly, and more than a handful of collaborators.

Mr. Brown, who once looked up to artists like John Digweed, deadmau5, and Above & Beyond, now works by their side. A nonconformist to trends, he transcends genre while being applauded by his influences, in quite the full-circle fashion. His music is an auditive translation of love, gratitude, and union, and that’s one of the things that make him as great as he is, showing that, once the lights turn off and the speakers only play silence at the club, there was just another human behind the decks all along.

There’s little left to discover for this man and few summits to conquer, yet Spencer somehow still manages to outperform himself every single time. A leader of the new Progressive House and Techno faces (and an idol to many, myself included), Brown has proven time and time again he can not only stay true to his sound, but also create a whole range of new ones. If this wasn’t obvious before with an impressive bracket of releases on labels like Anjunadeep, mau5trap, Last Night on Earth, and Factory93 to name a few, the artist’s whole spectrum of colours, shades, textures and experiments, comes alive on both the album Equanimity and the label in which it’s released — diviine.

Spencer’s Latest Endeavour — diviine

It’s perhaps one of the wonders of any well-matured artist: the creation of their very own record label. In Spencer’s case, it came before he even turned 30! diviine was born as a means of giving talent the opportunity to be heard through a real independent label. The imprint comes to life as long as there is music that resonates: no genre discussions, no big names, no past CV, just music that makes the body move before anything else.

With songs that used to range from Spencer’s dark ‘Reforma‘, to Argentinian MATIRAMIC‘s ‘Masai‘, and even SB’s very own ‘18 Minute Loop‘, a track that might have never seen the light of day on standard labels due to its duration, diviine has always shown a wide variety of music, truly practising its vision. This statement couldn’t have become more true than with the release of Equanimity, a journey through the bright, the dark, the collective, and the introspective.

Equanimity

Born somewhere in 2019 and further shaped through the cruel, unexpected months of lockdown back in 2020-21, Spencer Brown’s new album is a true reflection of the persistence, acceptance, and growth, of one of those uncountable minds who saw their world turn literally 180 degrees in the span of just a few days. In his own words, “Every day, I saw a rapid-fire stream of contradictions: sugar-coated highlight reels balanced by extremism and negativity from the news, designed to game our emotions for attention“.

Spencer says he went through a period of trial and error regarding how to act when exposed to the neverending amount of information available every day, and at all times. The first approach, one many of us actually tried some years ago, was to look away and hide from those things that did him harm. He then “realized I had to be OK with them. I had to accept difficulties and let them pass through me“.

How The Title Came To Be

“Equanimity” is a word that describes “calmness and composure, especially in a difficult situation“. To the man of the moment, this concept seemed more than appropriate for his project on the works. Much more than just a name, the whole Equanimity album acts like a series of pictures: pixels, colours, and scenes, all stuck in time and which date back to particular moments, long gone, yet not forgotten. “In a world driven by short-form viral content, I’ve focused my last 4 years slightly shying away from the spotlight, making sure this body of work represents my authenticity. This album takes a slow-shutter snapshot of ongoing time: from pre-pandemic, to pandemic, to post-pandemic, and the lessons I’ve learned along the way“, says Spencer.

“Equanimity describes how I learned to be OK when external stimuli are out of my control. All we can do is work on how we react to the world around us.”

-Spencer Brown

Equanimity tells its story across eleven tracks, and nearly fifty minutes of an uninterrupted, seamless mix. In true Spencer Brown fashion, the album is mixed into one continuous piece, with all its diversity. From Progressive to Techno, from melody to complete darkness, from complexity to minimalism, and even having a sudden spike in BPMs along the way, Spencer’s latest showcases all faces and capabilities of a man who proves to be an EDM erudite. While some of the tracks are complete Spencer creations, the majority of the album came to be as a collection of conjoint efforts from different, equally impressive names in the Industry. Equanimity features collaborations with the musical elite that form Ezequiel Arias, ilan Bluestone, Late Night Shri, Luttrell, P.O.S (aka Above & Beyond’s Paavo Siljamäki), QRION, Wilt Claybourne and five-time Grammy Award-winning South African male choral group Ladysmith Black Mambazo.

We Were Right!!!

We didn’t want to, say, brag about it, but now that we have the tracklist all for ourselves, we can look back and gladly celebrate: our predictions were right. Some months ago, when Spencer announced the album, he posted a picture of his personal whiteboard that showed the progress of each song to be featured. The names and artists were, of course, hidden, and we played a little game here at EDMTunes to try and predict names and faces we might see.

From the article we wrote back then, here’s the key paragraph:

“the album contains eleven tracks, out of which seven are collaborations. Some names we can recall are Qrion (“Q”), and ilan Bluestone (“iB”). Track 2 seems to have some sort of “SF” title to it, which may hint at a new Ben Böhmer collaboration, or perhaps another artist with which he might apply the “SF” concept. We’d expect one of these collaborations to be a conjoint work with Paavo, too. Finally, the opening track is hidden completely, giving the illusion it could be a new alias/band of which Spencer is a part. Maybe, just maybe, it is his ABGT300 opening track, his and Wilt Claybourne’s remix for Ladysmith Black Mambazo’s ‘Awu Wemadoda’. There’s even an “a” at the very end of the line hiding the name. Please, make it happen!“

While we did get the collaboration amount and the Ben Böhmer bits wrong, we did ace pretty much everything else! Momiji, ilan, Paavo, the SF track, and ‘Awu Wemadoda’.

Be right back, we’ll go pop a champagne bottle.

Writer’s Picks

It’s hard to choose. If I had to pick two, one to close my eyes and fly away in a ball of melody, and the other one for strict warehouse use, I’m having trouble picking the one for the first category. I guess I’ll go with ‘Awu Wemadoda‘ just because of how happy I was when I acknowledged it would finally get an official release. It’s a belter of a track, and really original. Peak Spencer energy right there.

Also peak Spencer energy is ‘Masonic & Webster‘ alongside Luttrell, my pick for the hard-hitting banger. I have a clear, vivid memory of April 1st when Mr. Brown tore Buenos Aires apart with that track. I remember my, well, Imhotep face on the dancefloor. Back then, a friend approached me and asked if I had drunk too much. As if he didn’t comprehend the amount of absolute filth of the tune. No amount of volume will ever be enough for that drop.

Spencer Brown – Equanimity Tracklist

1. Awu Wemadoda with Wilt Claybourne & Ladysmith Black Mambazzo
2. SF to Córdoba with Ezequiel Arias
3. 20ms with Qrion
4. Amber Leaf with ilan Bluestone
5. Masonic & Webster with Luttrell
6. Loccou with Wilt Claybourne
7. Papi’s Cenote
8. Good Times
9. Curve
10. Little Wane with Late Night Shri
11. Afterparty Healing with P.O.S

Final Words

I’ve said it all in this article, so there’s little “final word”-worthy wording left to say at this point. It’s pretty good. The album truly showcases the pinnacle of an act that consistently delivers, impresses, and paves the way for new blends and tests gone right. Spencer, from the bottom of my heart and ears, congratulations.

Listen to Equanimity below for your beloved Spotify play. Also, click here to be redirected to YouTube, and click here to support the album on the platform of your choosing.

The post Spencer Brown Unveils Third Album Equanimity On Own Label appeared first on EDMTunes.

Lots of beautiful things happened during this year’s EDC Las Vegas. One of them, one may argue, was Jono and Paavo featuring a 90-minute-long set at the Circuit Grounds stage. The set portrays A&B’s current Progressive Trance, Techno and Older-Trance-Reimagined sound, with tons of infectious beats all throughout the night. Above & Beyond’s EDC goes, quite literally, above and beyond.

Put on your best pair of headphones, or turn your speakers up a bit louder than usual — you’re going to need that extra power. Among the tracks played that night, stand fragments from Above & Beyond’s latest Tranquility Base Vol. 1 EP, Myon‘s remix of JODA‘s ‘Breaking Down Walls‘, a couple of very tasty IDs (one rumoured to be either A&B or Alex Sonata & TheRio, other thought to be an Andrew Bayer, Gabriel & Dresden, and Sub Teal collab, and the other a new A&B x Seven Lions work), their future classic ‘Crazy Love‘ featuring Zoë Johnston, and so much more.

Did I mention the very moment they played ‘500‘ Paavo wrote some wonderful messages while it rained down in Vegas and a breathtaking round of fireworks went off? I know for a fact I would’ve broken down at that very moment. Too intense to bear.

Watch Above & Beyond’s 2023 EDC Las Vegas set below! Alternatively, click here to travel to YouTube. Also, stick around: below the video we’ve attached the tracklist.

Tracklist

1. Above & Beyond – Screwdriver (Jono Grant’s Summer of ’95 Mix)
2. Above & Beyond – Jam Tonight
3. ID – ID
4. JODA – We Find Ourselves (Jono Grant’s Stadium Mix)
5. Above & Beyond feat. Richard Bedford – Heart Of Stone
6. Above & Beyond – Angry JP8
7. Above & Beyond – Black Room Boy (Kasablanca Remix)
8. Above & Beyond and anamē feat. Marty Longstaff – Gratitude (Oliver Smith Remix)
9. Above & Beyond – 500
10. ID – ID
11. JODA – Breaking Down Walls (Myon’s Return to 2000 Mix)
12. Above & Beyond feat. Zoë Johnston – Crazy Love
13. Above & Beyond – Wasp
14. Above & Beyond feat. Richard Bedford – Northern Soul
15. Above & Beyond feat. Alex Vargas – Blue Sky Action
16. ID – ID
17. Tom Staar vs. Delerium – Silence (Above & Beyond’s It’s Not Rocket Silence Mash Up) / Mat Zo – Synapse Dynamics (ARTY Remix)
18. Above & Beyond feat. Richard Bedford – Sun & Moon

The post [WATCH] Above & Beyond’s EDC Set Is Now Live appeared first on EDMTunes.

Happy release day everyone! Happy release Above & Beyond, too. At last, their highly anticipated Tranquility Base Vol. 1 EP has seen the light of day, which means we get to enjoy their five new tracks, in full, and on all platforms. No more ABGT500 ID ripping, yo.

The first product of their extra time in the studio, Tranquility Base Vol. 1 comes as a collection of heavy-hitting club records, all calling back to their instrumental roots. These tracks have been played around the world ever since their Los Angeles Group Therapy milestone show, and, until yesterday, two singles had seen the light of day: ‘Angry JP8‘, and ‘500‘. The other three have just seen their official release today.

Tranquility Base Vol. 1

The name of the EP series references A&B’s beloved Tranquility Base alias, a staple of the noughties Trance sound, with tracks like ‘Oceanic‘, ‘Razorfish‘, and more. The collection released today features an entire range of techniques and feelings portrayed, from absolutely moving melodies, to uplifting progressions, to dark Techno vibes.

Above & Beyond – Tranquility Base Vol. 1 Tracklist

1. Angry JP8
2. Wasp
3. 500
4. VLEKNO
5. Spin Off

The post Above & Beyond’s Blazing ‘Tranquility Base Vol. 1’ EP appeared first on EDMTunes.

Surprise release everyone! And what a surprise it was. With absolutely no promotion or anticipation whatsoever, the clock hit midnight today and a very special release saw the public eye. It might have caught your attention back when Paavo Siljamäki — P.O.S — launched his debut solo album Deeper Tales that there was a song in there titled ‘It’s Me (P.O.S Mix)‘. On the day of release, Anjuna-based legend Spencer Brown also commented on socials Paavo’s album contained some of their collaborations, including Siljamäki’s take on their “still unreleased” track ‘It’s Me‘.

So, let’s summarise: There’s a track, called ‘It’s Me’, that is a collaboration between P.O.S and Spencer Brown, features vocals from Marieme, and the original is still a mystery, since we do have Paavo’s remix out on his album. Well, mystery is no more: the track has just come out. Or rather, the tracks.

‘It’s Me (feat. Marieme)’

The result of a friendship stretched through time, this song sees both masterminds Paavo and Spencer team up for a very sensitive and delicate piece. Senegalese-American singer-songwriter Marieme Diop joins as the vocalist, to deliver a powerful compliment of all elements present, and ultimately, a double release which contains the original track, plus Paavo’s lonely take, as presented on his latest LP.

Original Mix

A deeper track that soundwise — and unlike most collaborations — splits both artist’s contributions equally, the original take on ‘It’s Me’ gives a lot of starring to Marieme’s vocals, sitting them upfront and over a bed of soft kick-bass pairing and delicate mid-frequency textures, accompanied by Paavo’s soothing piano interventions.

The percussion on this one is quite reminiscent of Spencer’s older tracks, carrying you back to the Embarcadero EP, for example. It’s also the jumpy, groovy bassline that catches your attention as another element borrowed via a time capsule. Overall, it’s a lovely track to be played in the middle of a calmer set, I can picture it as a set played in nature, in a forest, pairing with the calm attitude this track depicts.

P.O.S Mix

Paavo’s version, although not a surprise since we’ve had a chance to listen to it since the album release almost a month ago, sends you through a whole different journey. The bassline becomes much more Paavo-esque on this one, dirtying things up a bit from the original. Gated vocal chops become a welcome signature Trance addition, and speaking about vocals, even though they are as upfront as they are on the original track, this take also brings more elements to the same space, making of it much more uplifting overall.

In true Paavo fashion, the way this version was engineered is bound to make you feel moved at some point, were it the start of the vocal lines, the break, the heavily tense melodic buildup, or the release. There’s something that he knows how to do so well he’s aced it in many many tracks across his discography, and that is driving you to the edge of tears with tense buildups, making use of opening plucks to wide saw waves, always paired with his unique piano accents.

Enough talking, it’s time for you to listen! Head below for your daily Spotify play, click here to fly to YouTube, or click here to support ‘It’s Me’ any way you’d like.

The post P.O.S and Spencer Brown Release Both Takes On ‘It’s Me’ appeared first on EDMTunes.

You, yes, you, Anjunafamily member, I’m talking to you. There’s no better way to cut the week than anything Anjunabeats related. Much more so if the news — and the music — come from masters Above & Beyond. We all know them, we all love them. Tony, Jono, and Paavo have been treating us with their music for years now. But that doesn’t mean it’s over yet.

As recently announced by the trio themselves, a new EP is on its way. Titled the Tranquility Base Vol. 1, it will be a release of five instrumentals honouring their legendary alias Tranquility Base, with which they released some pretty heavy tracks back in the day: ‘Oceanic‘, ‘Razorfish‘, ‘Getting Away‘, ‘Surrender‘, and ‘Buzz‘.

Today, Above & Beyond are lifting their second single from the EP, simply titled ‘500‘. The full EP will come out on May 25th. Recently-released ‘Angry JP8‘ and, of course, ‘500’, will be a part of the five-track pack.

In the same way the quieter moments on our albums have always been a major part of Above & Beyond, the bigger dancefloor moments have also been a hallmark of our sound.

-Above & Beyond

‘500’

The second track off the forthcoming EP, ‘500’, was written especially for its debut in Los Angeles, as part of the 500th episode of Above & Beyond’s weekly radioshow Group Therapy. Since then, the track has been spun ’round the world gig after gig, including, but not limited to, their Buenos Aires return, and their sold-out Printworks London takeover in April, as part of the iconic venue’s closing season.

This song starts with a plucky melody, coming from a sound that’s so reminiscent of their iconic ‘Red Rocks’ tune. Heavy bass is quick to look the part for the banging drop that gives ‘500’ a piercing character. As it is very welcome from A&B, the break features a proper trancey, airy, open atmosphere, with a little piano making you fly over the pads.

Fear not, though, the arpeggiated main melody comes right in, cutting through the openness of the first half of the break. A fast and intense buildup brings all the tension for the drop about to come, and the latter turns into a mix of both worlds, keeping the tension while opening the plucked arpeggio and turning into a sought-after trancey saw-wave lead. You don’t want to miss out on this one.

Listen to Above & Beyond’s brand-new ‘500’ right below for your Spotify play. Also, be sure to head here to support the song any other way you like. Finally, head here to pre-save the Tranquility Base Vol. 1 EP.

The post Above & Beyond Lift Single ‘500’ Ahead Of EP appeared first on EDMTunes.

Paavo Olavi Siljamäki. If you know anything about Trance you know him already. He’s a third of the superstar trio Above & Beyond, co-founder of the Anjunabeats record label, and has been a part of many Trance acts such as Anjunabeats (the music group), Aalto, Rollerball, and P.O.S. This last alias is not only the one with which Paavo wrote some of the finest anthems of the noughties, but also the one which he’s brought back to keep writing music from the bottom of his heart.

The Interview

While in South America, as part of the Above & Beyond stop in Buenos Aires for their first show in said city since 2019, Paavo gave an interview on Argentina’s 93.7 FM Nacional Rock Radio, during the DeeJay Time show, to talk about his musical career, how it started, how Above & Beyond was born, his current P.O.S alias, and more.

The interview was conducted by local radial legend and DeeJay Time host, Claudio “Capo” Ferraro. Joining him this time were station manager Alejandro Pont Lezica, simultaneous translator Fernando Farias, and, of course, Mr. Siljamäki.

The interview was recorded in full. Have a look below.

Key Moments

Even though most of the interview is in Spanish, the translation makes it really easy to follow it in English as well. Nonetheless, the rest of this article is the equivalent of almost all of the interview transcribed into text.

Before diving in, though, I want to personally thank Capo for letting me attend the interview, and agreeing on me transcribing it for EDMTunes. Paavo is an incredible artist, and human being as well, and it’s an honour for me to be able to bring this very special hour and a half to written English for the whole world to read about him, in his own words. Gracias, Capo!

Bear in mind, the format of this transcription is:

[Capo’s question]

[Paavo’s answer].

The moment we knew about the possibility of having you here on the show was a big bomb for us, because of what you mean to Electronic music, what Above & Beyond means to music, so, well, very excited to have you here on the show.

Well, I would also say our that history goes so far back with Argentina, and especially with what’s been happening in the last few years, we’ve all really missed Argentinian parties so I’m really excited [to be back].

How do you feel about Argentina? What can you say about your relationship with the country?

We’ve obviously done a lot of shows in, like, small clubs initially, then we’ve done different shows in different parts of Argentina, but there’s always been this kind of energy on the dancefloor that is really unique to Argentina, and I feel like people are so passionate about the culture and the music, that it just creates this magical thing that, you know, we experience. I’ve recently had my good friend Spencer Brown come back from Argentina and he was just, absolutely blown away, so it’s just, for him he was here for the first time and he’s getting the same experience that we got, maybe, 17 years ago when we first came here, so it’s nice to know that it’s still very much alive here.

We want to know about your early influences, your first contact with music, what were the artists that you first discovered and were a big influence [to you] when you were in Finland or later in the UK.

I’m from a very musical family, and I actually started with classical cello and piano and then did musical high school in Finland, but by the time I was eight to ten, electronic music was really starting to happen, people like Jean-Michel Jarre were doing incredible stuff, Vangelis was obviously making some really cool stuff, and because I started with classical music, I was feeling synthesizers offered this, unrivaled complexity to sound, and it all felt really exciting.

And I originally thought like “Okay, I’ll try to make classical music but with synthesizers“, but then when I was 15, I walked into a club, and I always felt like I was a bit of, like I didn’t fit in, I was maybe a little bit weird because I was so into arts and everything. But when I went clubbing in Finland for the first time my life changed, I really felt like I came home.

When you discover synthesizers and sequencers and those devices, that already provide rhythm and kind of push people into the dancefloor, is that the influence that drove you to becoming a musician and a DJ?

Well, I actually felt like I’m a musician, and for a long time, I also thought I’d much rather just be in the studio and let performers perform, that I’d just focus on creating music. But then once we formed Above & Beyond we started getting phone calls. Our first gig was in Tokyo and they’d literally called us like “We’ve got 8,000 people, we have Ferry Corsten and DJ Tiësto and we want you guys to come and play. We’ll get you flights, we’ll put you in a five-star hotel. Do you DJ?“. [Laughs nervously] “Y-yeah!“

We would like to know the process behind the creation of this sound that Capo describes as a blend of Progressive, Downtempo, Trance, and other genres that, he says, has an effect of relaxation. Tell us about that search and that creation.

Well, I always feel like we artists can often be our own worst enemies and we might box ourselves in. There’s moments when I go to the studio and I almost feel like I should try to create something. That’s when I know I’m doing the wrong thing. For me, it’s been really important to free myself of what the music means and just go on, and find fun in the music. And that’s led to, like, the Flow State project, and now this new P.O.S project as well.

Do you feel sometimes when you test some songs in front of an audience, that you need to go back to the studio to work a little more on them?

Absolutely. I just finished the first-ever P.O.S tour in North America, where I played around 20 tracks people had never heard before, and it was very interesting that some tracks, which I thought were kind of light when I was working on them, when played really loud in a dark room sounded quite heavy and banging, and vice-versa. I think you can never really know a club record until you’ve experienced it with people in a loud, dark place.

Before you begin making a track, what’s your approach to the creation? From the melody, an idea, a sound?

I think, basically creativity comes from finding a state of play, and it could be that I hear something that really inspires me, like recently, I was working on a remix of a track called ‘Baby We’re Ascending’ by Jon Hopkins, I just heard this track he’d done, and I was really inspired by it, so I managed to get the vocal, and within 24 hours I had the remix done. But it came from that spark of, like, inspiration. And sometimes it can be me playing piano, sometimes it can be I’m playing with a new plugin or software… so it really can happen in many ways but it’s always when I get that spark of inspiration.

What were your feelings when you founded your first record label, what can you tell us about that?

Actually, Anjunabeats as a name was invented with a couple of friends in Finland in 1995, because we were thinking of setting up a record label, but we never did anything with it. At the time, Anjuna Beach (Goa, India) was having lots of parties where people from different parts of the world would go and have these kinds of full-moon parties, so Anjunabeats was like a melting pot of these early electronic music styles, and we were all really excited about the idea that the label could be like a melting pot of different inspiration from around the world.

Then when I met Jono and we were setting up a Trance label, we were looking for a name, and I told him we almost started a record label with my friends in Finland called Anjunabeats. We asked the guys if we could reuse the name and they were cool with it. Anjunabeats really started when I met Jono and did my university major project, in 1999.

What can you tell us about the name Above & Beyond, where does it come from?

It’s actually almost, within six months of me meeting Jono I found myself in the studio with Tony, Jono, and me. We were remixing a track called ‘Home’ by this artist Chakra. We’d almost finished the remix but we didn’t know what we would be called. Tony was just looking around Jono’s room, and Jono’s just printed this thing from the internet onto his wall, and at the top of this thing it said “Above and Beyond“. Tony was like, “let’s call ourselves Above & Beyond“, and well, there’s that [laughs]. Jono had actually typed his own name into Altavista (Google these days), he googled himself, and found this very cheesy American webpage by this inspirational talker also called Jono Grant, his slogan was “Above and Beyond“.

What can you tell us about your first works as Above & Beyond?

Well, for the first year and a half pretty much we were only making remixes, and we had a really great studio, quite quickly we found out we had a lot of fun just jamming and making music together. And so, the first years were really productive, and we were getting to remix people like Madonna, Britney Spears, and all these superstars. This was pretty amazing actually. We’re talking around 2001.

What’s the boost given by the album Tri-State receiving the best global reviews, including DJ Mag’s 5 stars?

Tri-State was, obviously, a very, very long time ago. And basically, because we’d been doing a lot of remixes we were like, “Hang on, why aren’t we doing music ourselves?“, and that was around the time Tony was really coming into the zone as a songwriter. Tony has written I think all the male vocal tracks for Above & Beyond, so he’s an incredible songwriter. We hadn’t even realized how good Tony was until we started working on Tri-State, so that was a really big moment for us as a band when we started to make our own music.

We want to know about P.O.S, what’s the background? Is this project a way of reconnecting yourself with the dancefloor, the audience, reconnecting to yourself?

Yeah. It’s no secret I had a very bad burnout five years ago, and it left me questioning pretty much everything, “do I even want to make music?“. I felt like I maybe didn’t want to make music, and for the last two years, I’ve been sort of finding myself again as a clubber, and falling in love with Dance music all over again. So, this project, for me, is like finding my own grooves, my own things, and it’s the celebration of my love for Dance music.

What can you tell us about new generations and technology entering the scene?

This has actually been really interesting, especially during the last, I’d say, five to seven years. When we started as Above & Beyond we needed to have a studio, right? You know, synthesizers, mixing desks, all that stuff. Well, for the last two years me and my girlfriend have been traveling all around the world, we’ve been to French Polynesia, we’ve been in the forests in Finland, we’ve been sailing the Mediterranean and the Caribbean, and what I’ve done is I’ve set up a nomad music studio so that I can work on music anywhere. I’ve just been working today in my hotel room.

Now technology allows us to produce amazing stuff with very small equipment, and much more affordable too. And that way we have more and more people making music. It’s a really exciting time, but I think it’s always been a challenge for artists to be noticed, to get people to listen to your music, and that challenge is almost becoming even more challenging because there’s so much good music out there.

We noticed that your recent work [P.O.S] has a certain kind of message that you want to share, a message of love. Tell us about that, do you conceive that when you’re creating music you have this message in your mind, something that you want to tell people through your work?

I think, I’ve already mentioned, when I first went clubbing I really fell in love with the culture. And I believe that culture is still valid today, it’s all about acceptance, all about the scene being a place where you can be yourself and you will be accepted and loved just like you are, and as long as you respect others too. The P.O.S project has been accepting myself as, maybe not always making music that can fit an Above & Beyond set, but just something that’ll happen if I’m creative. If it’s a bit deeper, that’s fine too, I can accept that.

We’ve noticed how P.O.S’ sound kind of deviates from Above & Beyond. So the question is, do you think, feel, or foresee a new genre of music being born [from your project]?

I’ve always been a little bit anti-genres because I feel like it’s a limiting factor, but I’m certainly being really inspired by places I’ve been to. For example, recently I was in Guadalupe, in the Caribbean, around Carnival time, and I was listening to the local, traditional dance music, and I was so inspired by how I could see Dance music’s roots go back thousands of years. I can find inspiration, if I really look back, in old African grooves for example. In that way, I can hope [P.O.S] brings these new experimentations, and when I go into the studio with Jono and Tony, some of that will filter into A&B as well. I feel it’s really nice to find inspiration all over the place.

Claudio’s opinion is that P.O.S is, indeed, paving the way to a new subgenre. He hosts this show that’s been airing for 27 years, and over time he and his team have been spotting new trends, and he senses that your new sound is going to become a new subgenre. We believe P.O.S is here to stay. We thank you for this innovation, these new sounds into the scene.

I feel I can just return the thank yous for giving attention to my little experiment. It’s really heartwarming to see how well it’s been received so far. It’s super exciting to see how it works out.

We’re convinced, after this interview, some young people are going to decide they want to do this, become a DJ, an electronic musician, a composer, after what you’ve shared with us on the show.

And I really hope those people who are starting to make music have the same approach to just focus on having fun, and if they can really find the fun, everything else is really gonna click into place. People sometimes tend to overthink and over-plan, and that’s not good for creativity.

How many P.O.S tracks are already out there?

I just counted the tracks I took to the US tour, and I had 35 tracks in my USB sticks. So there’s plenty!

What can you tell us about you listening and speaking to people at events?

Actually, just during the P.O.S tour in North America, one of the most amazing things was going to small clubs and really partying with people, meeting them and talking to them. I love that. It sort of makes everything feel more real, when I have the opportunity to really hear from the people.

Is it true that somebody cut the audio during one of your sets for the Push The Button?

It’s happened many times, but that’s not how PTB started. I can’t remember where it was, but Tony just thought of stopping a record and pulling someone from the crowd, like it was kind of an accidental thing, but they actually felt that was really amazing — I wasn’t at that show —, and so Jono and Tony did it the night after that, and the night after that, and so on.

[Question from the crowd] What are the chances of a milestone ABGT being held in Buenos Aires/Argentina, from 1-10?

I’m not one to put an actual number on this, but we would love, love, love to bring it here.

[Question from me] Why did you decide P.O.S would be the one alias you would bring back to make music as a solo artist? I mean, as you’ve had quite a handful of aliases in the past, Anjunabeats, I think, correct me if I’m wrong, even Brasstooth, why P.O.S? Why not a new alias, for example? Did you not fear backlash from people who wanted your P.O.S alias left only for the older sound of Trance?

Well, thanks for the question. Basically, P.O.S are my own initials, and even back in like 2002, when Anjunabeats was really young, I did a couple of tracks as P.O.S, and like I’ve already said, I think it’s really important for people to be honest about what’s really inspiring them at any given time, and the P.O.S project for me is almost like a marker. Maybe 2002 me sounded a certain way, and now it’s sounding a bit different, and maybe in five years’ time I’ll do, I don’t know, a metal band. But if it honestly is what’s doing it for me, it’s coming from the right place, and that’s why I wanted to keep my original, old alias, to almost like, highlight the point that it’s coming from me, and that people change and we need to cherish that.

[Question from the crowd] Would you like to, someday, bring a big Open Air festival to one of the many beautiful locations there are in Argentina, such as Mendoza, or Patagonia?

I feel like, especially, we’ve had kind of like a two-year break from clubbing due to the pandemic, it sort of feels like right now the future is really exciting and bright again, and we’re able to start planning more and doing more. So now for us, it’s a duty to find the best places and clubs to do exciting things as Above & Beyond. I’d love to bring P.O.S to Argentina too.

What are your thoughts about the impact of the pandemic on the work of many young artists, particularly in the collaboration between artists through the internet?

It was definitely a big moment of reflection for everybody, musicians and many others. But I believe all struggles in life also bring something very good. Now that I look back, for example, I would not have ended up buying a boat and getting back into sailing if I hadn’t caught Covid. Actually, a lot of great things came out of the struggle, and, well, not all of us made it through, unfortunately. We’re the survivors, and hopefully, we can see what good came out of it too.

Can you mention an artist that’s really, really close to your heart?

For the last five years, I’ve been supported by a lot of my friends, Spencer Brown, and Marcus Schössow from anamē, have both helped me fall back in love with dance music.

You’re told your entire career work is going to be erased, minus one work that you pick. Which is the track that you choose?

The track that I’m going to make tomorrow.

What can you tell us about being part of BBC Radio 1’s Essential Mix?

It’s an incredible institution, how long it’s been going for and how it still produces incredible sets! When we did the first mix [2004] it was a very special time for us, we were doing a lot of gigs and so via this mix, we could blend our music with others’ productions, we sampled phrases from movies and yeah, I still go back and listen to it sometimes, and I still state it was a really exciting thing.

[Question from the crowd] What’s your opinion on Argentinian artists, performers, DJs, that you’ve met over the years?

One of the really amazing things for me was when I was at my first ever Burning Man festival and Paul Oakenfold invited us, I got a really good chance to know Hernan Cattaneo. When we were talking about people who do things with true honesty and have a child-like love for what they do, given how many years he’s been DJing, he’s really inspirational to me.

[Question from the crowd] Up to what extent are you aware of how much you touch people’s hearts? Your music provides a sense of union, love, and friendship. I’ve met friends through your music. Are you aware of this kind of spiritual aspect of the music that you provide to people?

I’ve been very, very aware of that, because especially now with the P.O.S project and me rediscovering clubbing, I’ve, you know, when it’s been hard for me I’ve been supported back by people who claim music has helped. So I’ve received the same thing I’ve sent. I’ve felt, in a real way, what people experience because I’ve experienced it myself.

[Question from the crowd] Can you reveal anything about future P.O.S projects being featured in other projects, remixes, or collaborations?

Well, what I’ve also been doing with P.O.S is remixing some of my all-time favourite records. And I remixed one of my all-time favourite records, ‘Who Wants To Live Forever’ by Queen, and I just heard a couple of weeks ago that the band really liked my remix, so I’m hoping we can get to release it!

[End of the interview]

Final Words

While it was certainly a great moment for both parties, A&B and attendees, to party together in Buenos Aires on April 15th, I believe this interview was one of the best things that have come out of the band in Argentina, since Paavo was so warm, and open to discussion, about his story, the past, the future, his own vision on life, and the way he feels about fans not being only followers of him but also friends, friends who are strangers but are united by a little word that has been used as a way of describing a family, Anjunabeats. And it all came true thanks to a group of friends in Finland researching India, and a little poster from a cheesy guy with the same name as one of A&B’s members.

The post [INTERVIEW] P.O.S Talks A&B, Career And More appeared first on EDMTunes.

I’ve already talked about how wonderful is to be able to party in Argentina, but in case you haven’t read my Marsh in Buenos Aires or my Spencer Brown in Buenos Aires articles, here’s my self-quote about the topic:

“Argentina is one of the best places around the world to hold a party. Its people work wonders. Parties don’t usually start before midnight, and the tonic here is to dance, quite literally, all night long. If the sun is rising behind the de la Plata river (I’m specifically talking Buenos Aires here), you still have a while to go before leaving. That’s how incredible the parties are over here.” -Yours truly.

February was ending, and Summer in the Southern Hemisphere was already waving its goodbyes. We had lost all hope that Above & Beyond would return to Argentina this year. And as we were packing our things until next year, the news came: they would come. They always play Buenos Aires either in January or February, so it was quite odd for us to see they would arrive mid-April. But no one was complaining. On the contrary, the excitement was off the charts, so much so that tickets sold out mere minutes after they came out.

Fast forward to last week, Jono and Paavo were in charge of giving Argentina the first Group Therapy experience since January 18th, 2020 (that one would also be among their last sets worldwide before the world went silent). And they sure succeeded.

The Venue

The place chosen for this event was Mandarine Park, one of Buenos Aires’ core open-air venues. Located in the Punta Carrasco area, right on the coast, this property has seen countless A&B shows and several other Trance and EDM artists, so it’s no stranger to a good party.

For good measure, here’s a picture from 2019’s Above & Beyond show, the last one in Buenos Aires until last week (2020’s show was played in Mar del Plata):

The Night

The event started at 11:00 PM. Opening the night was Belu Clavero, who warmed the night up with a wave of Organic House until 01:00 AM. Next up, Tomás Heredia followed the vibe, upping the tempo and darkening the style a tad until 02:30 AM. And then, came the masters. Paavo Siljamäki and Jono Grant hopped onto the stage, waving and walking to the rhythm of their remix for Dirty Vegas‘ ‘Tonight‘, a track made popular for its appearance in their own Anjunabeats Volume 7 compilation.

Boy, was the night just starting.

Marsh‘s ‘Reminiscent‘, Genix & Dosem‘s brand new ‘Day City‘, Paavo’s own ‘Let You Go‘, Above & Beyond’s new ‘Angry JP8‘, and many, many more tunes were blasted to the Buenos Aires crowd for a breathtaking two and a half hours of A&B set. Actually, I’ve curated a playlist with a rough estimate of the tracklist — take away some unreleased IDs, such as the premiere of Jerome Isma-Ae‘s tear-inducing remix of ‘Sun In Your Eyes‘. Listen to it by clicking below.

Jono and Paavo gave their 110% as well. Jumping with us, dancing with us, singing with us, and having the best reunion we could have after more than three years of being separated. Paavo made a symbolic Push The Button with an Argentinian flag in his hand during ‘Blue Sky Action‘, and also a second PTB occurred with people from the crowd, during ‘Sun & Moon‘. Two or three more tracks came by, and just like that, their set was over. The night flew. People hugging everywhere, crowd chanting, teary eyes filled the place at times. The guys never disappoint.

After they left the stage, Heredia came in for the last hour of music, and at 6 AM, we embarked on our different journeys home. From home to home, because being at an A&B show is being at home.

Final Words

Did we have a great time last Saturday? You be the judge. I’d say we did. And I’d say Jono and Paavo did too. The latter wrote a couple of times, in big, capital letters, “TE AMO ARGENTINA” (“I love you Argentina“).

I do too, Paavo, I do too.

The post Above & Beyond’s Sublime Reencounter With Argentina appeared first on EDMTunes.

Finnish musician Paavo Siljamäki has just conquered a great summit: he’s gone on to release his first ever solo album under his resurrected alias P.O.S. His project is called Deeper Tales and, like all things Paavo, it truly is a delicate piece of music.

The culmination of a personal journey, this album sees Paavo reconnect with club culture and rediscover himself, after a bumpy ride through life for the past five years. Following a musician burnout and health struggles, the member of the legendary British dance institution Above & Beyond wondered if the end of his career was near, for he had lost motivation to make music:

Basically, I had a burnout. I just couldn’t see what I wanted to do. And after my burnout, I was like: what is dance music to me? I don’t really know even if I like it. I’ve heard — I’ve written — too many build-ups! So I thought: that’s me done.

-Paavo Siljamäki

The Birth of Deeper Tales

In that uneasy, dimmed state, Siljamäki turned to the one thing that would often heal him, and offer answers and inspiration: Nature. And, sure enough, the answers were there — and the gust of fresh wind too. Particularly, he connected with living as far from the shore as possible, and enjoying the nomad life over bodies of water, where his connection with Nature could only grow stronger.

“There’s no feeling of freedom like being at sea“, Paavo says. “When I’m sailing, I synchronize with the sunrise and sunset — we almost always get up at sunrise. So this is like being really aligned with nature. I found that, after my burnout, and Covid, I really found myself in nature. There’s something about being closer with nature that is really healing — and very inspiring.“

That, plus the feelings evoked by looking back on his first years as a clubgoer, truly acted as fuel for him. After testing a couple of new tracks on the road, Paavo began to feel joy again when stepping behind the decks, and, most importantly, deeply connecting with those in the crowd who had gone to see him, just like he used to do when he was a part of the Finnish and British crowds back in the day.

Deeper Tales

The album, as already discussed, is not only a compilation of Paavo’s most recent works but also tells a tale, a tale of healing, growth, and knowledge, and puts into musical language how it feels like to fall back in love with your passion. The tracks used in the album and the order in which they line up, all help to paint a picture of that journey.

I can only imagine the first song as the first spark of life and joy, the first sign of him being back, reuniting with his younger self, and finding a purpose in being the artist playing the music rather than only being a listener. From then on, the road of the LP is, to me, the chronological feeling of the months succeeding said sparkling moment. And that, I love. I find myself listening to all songs one after another and enjoying them in quite a different way than when I do so in sets or just the lone tracks. They hit differently when they come together.

From the 80s sound of ‘Is It OK?‘, to the euphoria of ‘Good People‘ alongside anamē, Ercola and Richard Walters, and the goosebump-inducing vibe of ‘Coming Home‘ and ‘Polar Bears‘ with Spencer Brown, this album has a song for every taste. With a base of melody and beautiful chords, yet seasoned with a generous amount of groove, two tablespoons of the best piano skills a trained musician like Paavo has to offer, and just a pinch of — very welcome — acid leads, Deeper Tales is one of those works which are sure to stand the test of time.

Writer’s Picks

I could write about every song on the album, but I’m going to narrow it down to two: ‘Polar Bears‘, a song that feels really innocent and happy to me, and is capable of lifting me up in the darkest of times, and ‘Coming Home‘, another song with the exact same effect on me, but with the use of a much more prominent, in-your-face lead singing the melody. Also, the latter has vocals that remind me of the chorus in The Communards‘ hit ‘Don’t Leave Me This Way‘, one of my favourite songs from when I was 6 years old, and one of my first favourite songs ever. Lots of memories come to my head from that song, and having heard that resemblance kind of feels like that Ratatouille meme.

P.O.S – Deeper Tales Tracklist

1. Is It Okay?
2. Good People with anamē & Ercola feat. Richard Walters
3. Thunder & Sunshine
4. Polar Bears with Spencer Brown
5. Lonely River (P.O.S & anamē Remix) by Kyan
6. Let You Go
7. Not Going Back
8. It’s Me (P.O.S Mix) with Spencer Brown feat. Marieme
9. For Those We Lost
10. Tahiti Burning Sunset
11. Coming Home
12. We Will Get Through This

Some lucky good people who bought tickets to his Deeper Tales North America Tour — now over — could listen to these songs on the road before anybody else, plus more IDs not included in the album, and a groundbreaking remix of Queen‘s ‘Who Wants To Live Forever‘. Paavo released a promo set ahead of the tour, listen to it by referring to this article.

Final Words

I’ve been following Paavo for a while now, and I can testify, this album is 100% his sound. His raw, naked, unfiltered sound. If he wants an emotional melody he plays it; if he seeks a darker groove he adds it; if he’s feeling happy and thankful, you’ll feel it in the song.

And perhaps the best thing about the album is, since he’s basically going all in with the production and not sticking to any tags, contrasts are very welcome! We in the industry are quite used to following one line and one line only per composition: if a song is dark, it’s dark; if a song has an emotional aura, that’s it. Yet in Deeper Tales, we see that pattern completely ignored, and for an amazing result that is! Think of it as an exquisite maridaje, a professionally chosen pairing of red wine and cured meat and cheese.

Thank you Paavo for this shining piece of your answer-seeking soul. Thank you, from the bottom of my heart.

Have a listen to P.O.S’ excellent album by clicking below for your daily dose of Spotify listening. Alternatively, head here to hear the continuous mix over on YouTube, or click here to support the album any other way you’d like.

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