Egbert Interview: Drumcode, Secret Cinema, Ghost Producers
The main Dutch techno-act, Egbert van der Gugten aka Engbert is waiting for his EP with Secret Cinema to drop in Drumcode and we talked to him about the life he has now and his view of techno culture.
Hey Egbert, how is it going? Enjoying the summer?
Just bought a house at the beach, so I’m a very happy man right now 🙂
Are you a summer or winter person? Which do you prefer? How do the seasons affect the music you make and play?
When the summer season starts I’m always very happy to play daytime sets, and when wintertime starts I’m happy to go into the dark clubs 😛 I prefer summertime, because there is more daylight and more kitesurfing 🙂
You have a new EP coming on Drumcode – how did that hook up come about?
Adam heard Secret Cinema playing that track we made and he loved it. There are a lot of people who like that track, really wonder what’s going to happen once it’s released.
What’s it like working with that label – what have you learnt off Adam? has he given feedback on your music?
Every now and then I send some tracks to him. Most tracks were not really Drumcode material. But the last few years my music has started becoming more Drumcodesque. Should send him more stuff I guess.
It’s an EP with Secret Cinema – how long have you know that guy? Why do you get on with him? What’s he like?
I always respected Secret Cinema a lot. I had been making music for more than 10 years when I met him. He was exactly the guy I needed. He is a great character, he leaves everyone with a smile and has interesting thoughts. He has been the most influential person in my life musically.
The Dutch scene is vibrant right now – does it feel like that in the city? Is it the Dutch scene that first got you into music, what parties and label was it if so?
I was living in the countryside when I was young, but I used to watch a club TV show in 1995, which was on the Dutch television. I was to young to go out myself, but there were Secret Cinema, Dave Clark and all those legends playing live on TV. I was in love with the music 🙂
How do you feel about making most of your money from gigs? Is that OK or might you rather just make music, or at least a bit of both? How do you feel about how music has been devalued in that way?
In a way, I don’t mind at all, since I make more than enough money to have a comfortable life, with what I like to do. So nothing to complain about. The downside is, is that producing is not rewarded anymore. People don’t realise what a live set is. People don’t understand how many ghost producers there are. And that most of the music dj’s are playing is not made by them. But nevertheless it is how it is, and it isn’t bothering me much.
What gear do you use in the studio? What hardware and software tools do you prefer and why?
The only hardware I have is a Moog Sub37. I have tons of plugins. I bought hundreds of plugins. It would have looked really impressive if I would have spent it all on hardware haha.
In your career so far, what are the key lessons you have learnt? What mistakes have you made, what do you know now you wish you had known when you started out?
I learned that my gut feeling is mostly right, if it doesn’t feel right just don’t go there.
You like to play long sets, right? Why is that? How different do you play when playing for many hours rather than just two? What does it allow you to do?
I like to play long live sets if the vibes are there to do that. Not on a festival for example, but long concert like sets are really cool to do. I can bring more equipment on stage and try out new ways of playing.
What is next for you, whats the next project or thing to get excited about?
Next week my studio is getting a complete professional acoustic treatment. I’m hugely excited about that. Acoustics is just as important as your speakers, and now I’m getting it done very properly. I’m also working with a guy who’s making sensors and using them as midi controllers. It’s called https://owow.io/ I’m controlling synths with that, very cool stuff.
