WHEN DJ mag catches up with Thomas Shaw and Ryan Henderson, the Canadian duo have just headlined Lavo and closed Pacha in New York, met with Sony Music and been told they’ve made our Top 100 list. Their rise as Project 46 has been similarly dramatic. “It’s pretty surreal, pretty awesome,” says Ryan. “Our first release was a year ago, so it’s happened really fast.” Just two years ago, Thomas was DJing in a pub, but now he and Ryan have topped the Beatport chart with ‘Reasons’, bootlegged Deadmau5 and remixed Kelly Clarkson. It’s all thanks to a mixture of hard graft, social
DA TWEEKAZ
IN the Top 100 last year, hardstyle heavy Coone named Norway’s Da Tweekaz as his breakthrough act of 2011, and this year the duo of Kenth Kvien and Marcus Nordli make their own entry in the poll. “Our journey started in a small bedroom studio here in Oslo, and we’re actually still here,” they joke. “With very few expectations for the future, we’ve always been positively surprised in our growth and success within the hardstyle scene. The big step for us was when Coone welcomed us with open arms at his Dirty Workz label. From then on, things expanded rapidly.”
Edging in on the Dutch talents who continue to dominate the hardstyle scene, Kvien and Nordli are relishing
If you were a superhero, what would your superpower be? “Super Mario Bros, simply because we want to be pixelat- ed!” Should you play to the crowd or for yourself? “Both! But mostly for yourself. If you’re happy with your job as a DJ, the crowd will notice.” What does EDM mean to you? “We eat to it, sleep to it, drink to it, breathe it, dance to it.” Should celebrities be DJs? “If you’re referring to Paris Hilton, then no. Let’s keep the spotlight on the people who are actually working their way to the top.” Have you ever been thrown off the decks? “Do people get thrown off the decks? We’d only imagine that happen- ing if a DJ put on Justin Bieber by mistake.” Are you a DJ if you don’t beat match? “Let’s just say anyone can ‘sync’ two tracks together with all the new features on CD players.” Where’s the next dance music capital? “Antwerp in Belgium has been growing rapidly.”
Style: “Progressive house.” Best known for: “Pancakes!” Tune of 2012: “Our breakout song, ‘Reasons’ with Andrew Allan.” Breakthrough DJ/producer of 2012: “DubVision and Matisse & Sadko.”
networking and, erm, pancakes. “Every single Friday we give our fans a mash-up, original or bootleg,” explains Ryan. “It started off as a joke and we called it Pancake Fridays.” Thomas says of 2012, “It just keeps getting better. The highlight of the year was getting the email saying DJ wanted to do this interview!” The way their career is going, you can bet they’ll be getting the call again in 2013. IAN ROULLIER
NEW ENTRY
100
If you were a superhero, what would your superpower be? Thomas: “To make other superhero powers!” Ryan: “Just flying.” Should you play to the crowd or for your- self? Ryan: “A little bit of both.” Thomas: “You basically are part of the crowd. Everyone’s on the same level.” What does EDM mean to you? Thomas: “Music that evokes feel- ing.” Should celebrities be DJs? Thomas: “Who has the right to make that call?” Ryan: “Anything drawing attention to the scene is eventually going to benefit the people that are better at it.” Have you ever been thrown off the decks? Ryan: “No.” Thomas: “I was playing a super housey set at this redneck bar! My boss came up and was like, ‘What the hell are you doing?’” Are you a DJ if you don’t beat match? Ryan: “Counting to four isn’t what makes a DJ! It’s the journey of a set.” Thomas: “I don’t think it mat- ters.” Where’s the next dance music capital? Thomas: “Probably the North Pole.”
Style: “Hardstyle.” Best known for: “‘D.W.X’, ‘Ducktool’ and ‘Break The Spell’.” Tune of 2012: “Technoboy ‘Rage (Frontliner Remix)’.” Breakthrough DJ/producer of 2012: “Frontliner.”
the underdog role. “We do our own thing. And as outsiders of the Dutch wolfpack of producers, we see things a bit differently, and we have without a doubt quite different inspirations. We’re also not afraid to put humour in our tracks.” They’ve both returned from an extended working holiday in the hardstyle motherland during the summer. “The contrast between Norway and Holland is both economical and cultural. But let’s just say we didn’t suffer from starvation or lack of alcohol during our stay,” they laugh. ANGUS PATERSON