How did you start?
This question has two possible answers because somehow I feel like I’ve started twice. I started making music almost 15 years ago when I was just a curious teenager playing around with a super old PC. I fell in love with the music production thing way before I discovered the dj side of the game. After some years releasing music I got a quite big success in Spain and South America, but I lost my connection with the music I was doing and playing at that time, so I quited. I spent more than two years without making music, but then I started making music again and Bastian Bux was born. It was my second beginning.
Where are you based?
I was born and still live in Terrassa, a small city located 20kms away from Barcelona. As I always say: the more I travel, the more I like and appreciate where I live. Barcelona is getting more and more interesting every year in terms of electronic music. A lot of big names are moving here, there are new flight routes every month, the weather is perfect, the food is amazing, the people is nice and we don’t have earthquakes, hurricanes, volcanoes, dangerous animals or this kind of scaring stuff hahaha.
Please give an example of your music writing process?
My music is made by accident. I never sit down in front of my studio with a pre-generated idea in my head. I just start playing with one of my synths until I get an interesting colour, then I try to come up with an interesting melody. I try to create the hook first, the memorable part of the track. Then is easier for me to build an environment for this hook. My music is quite minimalistic so probably the next step would be find different layers that merge with the core of my idea, always paying attention to those “happy accidents” that always occur. Sometimes these accidents became more relevant than the original seed of the track. Once I have a solid conversation between two or three elements, I start building the beat and the arrangement around it. I don’t use many layers, nor spend so much time finding samples. I use to work with super simple sounds and create everything from them: i make fx with reverb tails of my sounds, or noises with hi-hat shots, etc. Sometimes I can make the snare, the rides, the hats and the fx all from the same sample. It may sound lazy but at the end it sounds way cleaner and coherent!
What are you working on right now?
This year I wanted to work on collaborations with some of my favourite artists and this is what I’m doing at the moment. Right now I’m finishing the mixdowns of my first collaboration with one of my lifetime influences, Lee Van Dowski. I’m super happy with this project because it started super naturally and we are going to release it on John Digweed’s Bedrock; so this is more than a dream come true. Also my first EP alongside Coyu will see the light in just a few weeks. Another strong EP is ready with one of my favourite newbies, the Swiss producer Several Definitions, who is doing an outstanding work that I love and inspires me with every new song he writes. I also have my new solo EP ready and will see the light in September and a couple more of interesting collaborations almost ready so… I think that after some months of silence the next months will be interesting.
What is your gear setup?
I work on Cubase 8.5 running on a PC -yeah, I’m this kind of masochist-. I use two couples of monitors: Adam A8X as main reference, and Rokit KRK as second reference – but I always finish my mixdowns using the iphone earphones!- I have two old compressors, one analogue mixer that I can’t use anymore because it puts loads of weird noises when you record something thru it and my fav babies are a Moog Sub37 analog synth and a Nord Lead 2x that I use for almost every sound in my productions. I use some soft aswell of course. The most relevant are Spectrasonics Omnisphere, KV331 Synthmaster and all the Arturia emulations.
What do you like to do outside of music and does it affect your music?
A lot of things. I’m a hyperactive entrepreneur and I could speak hours about the non-musical things that I like to do, and every single one of them does affect my music. I have an enterprise of nightlife business consulting with three more partners and more than 50 direct and indirect employees now. We run our own nightclub in Barcelona and we help others to develop different projects and events. It is a never-ending source of inspiration and learning for me, and a source of fresh air. I also have a small business of mixing & mastering services and I do music production classes and talks in Barcelona. A part from that, I love to read, cook, and recently I’ve discovered yoga. I also like to take profit of every travel that I do and try to discover and learn as much as I can from every new country I visit. As I said, every single aspect of my life experiences does affect my music.
How would you describe your music genre?
Ahh.. I’m pretty bad labelling things. It would be something like a Trance-y, atmospheric, deep techno electronica thing? Hahaha. I use the label “bux” on rekordbox. It makes my life way easier. I don’t really know.
Do you know any music theory?
I do, but not because I’ve been taught. Everything I’ve learnt about music production and music theory is self-taught, even my English haha. Now I can understand it, and I can even play the piano a little bit, or the drums and the bass guitar… But never had any time of musical formation.
What are your plans for the future?
It may sound like a topic but the less I plan the future, the more interesting, exciting and enjoyable it gets. I’ve spent weeks talking about my future live set, forthcoming projects and stuff, but then new and unexpected opportunities appear and I get like a bittersweet feeling because I want to live them and at the same time I feel frustration because procrastinating my previous plans… So I’m like, you know what? I’m gonna make sure I focus into working everyday on something exciting and don’t think too much about the future.
How did you get into music?
Because of my sister. She’s seven years older than me and I remember her listening to all types of music on her old Hi-Fi. I’ve felt always excited and connected with music, but when she started going out partying and stuff she started bringing mixtapes from the clubs she went. I was like, hey, how these amazing sounds are made? I mean, I can understand that when she listens to pop or rock there are a few guys playing actual instruments but those early electronic music records were something out of this world… Like literally. So I fell in love with 90s house, trance and techno. Everything she brought home. She’s been my main source of inspiration and undoubtedly the most influential person of my life.
What are you listening to at the moment?
I’m deeply addicted to the new album from The XX. Can’t stop listening to it.
Who are your top 5 influences and icons?
Ahh… Tough one… I change them every now and then haha. Ok let’s be honest. There was a super cheesy electronic band back in the days when I was like 6 years old or so called Rondo Veneziano that maybe were my first big heroes. Never influenced me directly, but I guess that I’m in the game thanks to them. Then, when I was really young I got a cassette with an Sven Vath set that still giving me chills. Sven has been my in and out hero depending on the moment of my life. John Digweed got me into the sound that has driving me during my adult life. And now I get a lot of inspiration from Stephan Bodzin and Maceo Plex. But, as I said, I’m not a loyal fan 😛
When are you playing next?
This weekend I’m playing my first show at Amnesia Ibiza with Elrow, couldn’t be more excited about it! Then will be time for the Sonar Week in Barcelona where I’ll do a couple of shows with Suara and another one with Elrow. Then my first time in Croatia, playing at Hideout Festival 4 times. Then Ibiza again, Hungary, Tomorrowland, Madrid, Privilege Ibiza, Amnesia Ibiza, London, Catania… This summer looks like a lot of fun!
Bastian Bux is Playing several times this summer season at Suara residency at Privilege Ibiza.
Check Link Below!
https://www.facebook.com/bastianbuxmusic
https://soundcloud.com/bastianbuxmusic
https://twitter.com/bastianbuxmusic
https://www.instagram.com/bastianbuxmusic/
