TRANCE titans Above & Beyond show no sign of slowing down as they enter their second decade together. The trio formed in 2000 after college friends Paavo Siljamaki and Jono Grant started producing together and met Tony McGuinness, who was a marketing manager at Warner Music at the time. The other two helped McGuinness with a remix for Chakra’s ‘Home’, and they took their name from a motivational poster stuck to Jono’s wall.
Immediately scoring more remixes for trance artists such as Fragma and Aurora, they were soon asked to remix Madonna — with Madge liking their overhaul of ‘What It Feels Like For A Girl’ so much that she used it as the basis for her music video to the song. They then remixed trance classics such as Tomcraft’s ‘Loneliness’ and Motorcycle’s ‘When The Rush Comes’, as well as pop acts like Dido and Britney Spears, before releasing their debut album in 2006, ‘Tri-State’. Their tracks started to be played by Armin on his A State Of Trance radio shows, and their DJ slots got bigger and better after they debuted in the Top 100 DJs chart in 2004 at No.39.
Solid fixtures in the top 10 for the past few years, their Trance Around The World radio show has helped propel their sound global, and the guys have been playing some massive gigs — hundreds of thousands-strong — in the past few years in Goa and Rio, amongst others. Able to play their epic arms-aloft anthems to crowds from mega festivals to Vegas pool parties, A&B still have what it takes to rock a crowd. A&B have also been putting a lot of time into their Anjunabeats label, and its Anjunadeep offshoot that has helped give rise to melodic house acts such as Dusky, and following the release of their third artist album, ‘Group Therapy’, last year — their most successful UK release to date — they’ve been playing assorted Group Therapy tour dates all around the world. “All of our Group Therapy shows have been highlights of the last 12 months for us,” Above & Beyond tell DJ Mag. “It’s a great feeling when we’ve had that connection with our audience, and there’s the feeling of being on the same level.” CARL LOBEN
If you were a superhero, what would your superpower be? “Helping people or countries at war with each other see eye-to-eye.” Should you play to the crowd or for yourself? “As a DJ/ producer, you should play the music you believe in, and from that palette to the crowd.” What does EDM mean to you? “It should mean any kind of Electronic Dance Music, but often when we think of EDM we tend to think of lowest common denominator mainstream dance music.” Should celebrities be DJs? “Only if they actually have something of substance to say to the world. If not, then they are basically no better than a Kim Kardashian or Geri Halliwell character.” Have you ever been thrown off the decks? “No, thankfully. That would be very humiliating!” Are you a DJ if you don’t beat match? “Absolutely. Anyone can learn to beat match anyway. The whole beat-matching thing is a big distraction. That said, it’s good to have as many skills as possible in your locker.” Where’s the next dance music capital? “Not sure there ever was a capital. It’s global, and not one place nowadays.”
Style: “Group Therapy.” Best known for: “Our incredibly loyal fan-base.” Tune ABOVE & BEYOND
of 2012: “Andrew Bayer & Matt Lange feat Kerry Leva ‘In And Out Of Phase (Norin & Rad Remix)’.” Breakthrough DJ/producer of 2012: “Madeon.”