When the Coronavirus shut us down, clubs and festivals ceased, and everyone was essentially forced inside with no definitive end in sight, DJ Times wondered: How is our tribe coping? How are DJs getting by?
So, we sent out our “Coronavirus Questionnaire” to DJ/producers from all musical genres to find out. During this period, DJ Times will continue presenting the questionnaire responses from talented music-makers from all over the world. Here’s our latest entry, this time from Sweden, the Stockholm-based, sibling duo ManyFew (aka Jacob and Victor Andersson).
What’s it like where you’re living? There hasn’t been an official lockdown in Sweden, but we have been taking precautions and are spending most of the time in the studio producing new songs.
What important gigs did you lose? We were supposed to perform at Ministry of Sound in London and at several festivals around the U.K. and in Ibiza. Of course, we’re missing the live scene so much, but it’s a crazy situation still going on in the world and we hope that it’s going to be better now that the vaccines are being rolled out. Can’t wait for that day when the nightclubs open up again.
Have you learned anything in the downtime? This all came as a shock for the world, which was very frustrating for everyone of course. We have been learning to have more patience and been focusing on the positive side of things. The world is going to get back to normal, but we need to be persistent in what we are doing. Since spending many hours in the studio, we have released more music than ever and have been doing live-stream sets during the pandemic, everything to keep up the spirit.
What are you doing now that’s ultimately constructive to your music life/career? For example, any releases during this period? Our last release was “Clouds,” a house track that we put out in December. Right now, we’re working on upcoming releases and especially on our next single, which will be out on 3Beat. It’s a song that has some piano soul vibes to it; we’re really excited about this record and can’t wait for the release.
In the studio, what’s your set-up? We’re using Logic and we’re working in the box. We love to produce while we are on the road and are always bringing our headphones and travel monitors with us. We get so much inspiration from producing from different places around the world. It could be from everywhere, from an airport, for example, or a hotel lobby, or sitting just next to the ocean on a sunny day. Our favorite plug-ins right now are MixBox from IK Multimedia, Phase Plant from Kilohearts, and Codex from Waves.
What’s your creation process in the studio? We often come up with an idea together and are playing around with the piano to find the right chords. Then, we’re spending time with the sound-design process to find the right sound, which bass sound shall we use for this track etc.? Jacob is building a structure and Victor is focusing on the mixing process. After that, if we really like the track we try it out in the clubs or in our radio show, Electronic Heaven.
What’s your typical DJ set-up? We absolutely love the stuff from Pioneer DJ. There are so many functions to use when DJing, and they are solid and long-lasting.
What’s the most surprising thing you’ve realized during this strange time? That we have more patience now than we had in the past. It’s very frustrating not to be able to meet your friends and family when the world is suffering, but with a positive state of mind you can handle more or less everything.
Have you done anything online recently? Have you seen any DJ video streams that impressed you? We’ve been doing lots of live-streams on Facebook and YouTube for record labels, UNICEF and other charities. We’ve been watching live-streams from Defected, Benny Benassi, Bob Sinclar, and Sonny Fodera. They always manage to inspire us.
Any theme tunes recommended for the moment? Bob Marley & The Wailers’ “Three Little Birds.”
Any advice on staying sane & relatively positive through this situation? You always need to see things from a positive point of view. The world is going to open up soon again and we can’t wait to see you all on dancefloors around the globe.
To check out more Life in Lockdown interviews, click here.
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