Exclusive Interview with Mike Candys

Siam2nite had the opportunity to have an exclusive interview with Mike Candys, shortly before his performance at The Club Khaosan on 26th March.

You are a DJ & Producer from Switzerland – you have released Gold and Platinum selling records, been nominated for “Best Swiss Act” at the MTV European Music Awards 2012 and just recently nominated for “Best Electronic Dance Music Artist” at the World Music Awards 2014. How did you get in touch with electronic dance music in the first place and how did you get into DJing and music production?

Since the age of 6, I've been interested in entertaining my friends and my family with music performances, either live (I play several instruments) or as a DJ. My first “official” gig as a DJ I had when I was 14 at a school Party. We didn't have turntables or CD players then, so I mixed my set on a double Tape-deck cassette Ghettoblaster. A little later I started building up my home studio where I produced my first dance tracks. The first time I got in touch with electronic dance music was on my holidays in Italy where the local DJ at the camping site mixed Italo Disco and early House tracks. Whenever I was at a Discothek or a Party as a Teenager, I was more interested in the technical stuff (Music and Light) and in what the DJ did than in dancing and partying.

Later I worked as a producer in my own studio and did Pop, Rock and Dance productions and Remixes for many Artists. 12 years ago I created the project “Mike Candys” and my productions and remixes got played internationally and reached the sales charts in several countries. That was the beginning of Mike Candys live as a DJ, I got a lot of requests from Clubs and Festivals. Since then I'm touring around the globe and whenever I'm at home, I work on new tracks.

You play and produce House, Electro House & Progressive House. How would you describe your own music in a few words?

My music is a blend of commercial pop music where melodies and chords are important (since I actually was a pop musician and producer) and what I still call Electro House. So in every Mike Candys Track you will find Hookline-Melodies but also the EDM beats that makes people dance.

You emerged in the consciousness of the international dance music scene in 2009 with your remix of “Insomnia” (by Faithless) and your track “One Night In Ibiza”. What more recent tracks, remixes or mix-sets would you recommend to someone that is not yet familiar with your music?

“Everybody” has been very successful in Europe in 2013 and I still love this track because it's a typical Mike Candys tune. In 2014 I produced “Anubis” which show nicely the EDM side of me. Also check the internet for “Mike Candys Remixes” or “Mike Candys Bootlegs” and you get a good idea what my music sounds like, besides my commercial single releases.

Looking back on the last 5 eventful years, what were your personal highlights, the most memorable and the worst gigs you ever played and what was the funniest thing ever occurred during any of your performances?

One really crazy moment was when I played a show in Poland in a big club and as soon as I entered the mainhall, the resident DJ stopped the music and the whole crowd just shout my name for 1 minute again and again. I was so overwhelmed, this really felt unreal. There were several huge Festivals (e.g. Siloso Beach Singapore NYE) that were really impressive.

One of the most touching moments on my tour was when a young guy came to the dj booth after my set and he said “Thank you for your music. I've been at the hospital now for 6 month because of cancer. I listened to your music everyday and it literally kept me alive with its positive energy.” Moments like this are more impressive than anything.

One of the funniest things was on a festival where the main PA shut down during my intro, and because of my in-ear monitoring, I didn't realise, so I played my first tracks while the audience didn't hear any music at all. When I took my mask off, I noted the silence in the place.

Your signature item is a huge smile-mask that you wear during your performances. What’s the story behind it?

When I changed from being a producer to being a live DJ, I was kind of frustrated by just pushing 2 knobs on cd players. I wanted to present “Mike Candys Live” as an artist. Unfortunately it's pretty complicated in clubs to perform with instruments, so I decided to do something else that makes people remember ever Mike Candys show. That's when I came up with the idea of the mask. My goal was that when people think about a party with me, they got something special to remember, in addition to my music.

What’s on your agenda for 2015 and what are you currently working and focusing on?

We're planning a big summer tour right now, it's gonna be around the world, from USA, South America to Asia and of course Europe. I'm also working on a lot of new music, my own tracks, collabs and remixes.

You live in Zürich – the largest city in Switzerland, a leading global city among the world's largest financial centres and according to several surveys the city with the best quality of life in the world. What can you tell us about clubbing and nightlife there? Do you have any nightlife related suggestions for first-time visitors?

Actually, because I'm on tour all over the world every weekend since 5 years, I don't even know the clubs in Zurich haha. I would't say Zurich is a leading city in Dance Music or Nightlife. Of course there are some nice clubs to party, but especially for the “commercial EDM scene” like it's known since 2 years, there are no clubs in Zurich that feature those artists or play that kind of music.

First time visitors I'd recommend “Kaufleuten” because it's one of the oldest and most famous clubs with different style parties, from R'n'B to House. And because it's one of the few I know haha.

You have visited Asia several times already and played in Shanghai & Bejing (China), Jakarta & Bali (Indonesia) and Sentosa Beach, Singapore. Did you keep those shows – and Asia in general – in good memory?

Yes, definitely, and I'm looking forward to come back many times. Parties in Asia are (as much as I can tell) very well organised, everybody is friendly, people are happy to see you and party with you. People are open to Dance Music here.

On 26th March you will make your Thailand Debut at The Club Khaosan. Have you ever visited Thailand before? What can the Bangkok crowd expect of your upcoming performance?

Unfortunately I haven't been to Thailand before, not even for holidays. So I'm excited to go there. It's gonna be the signature Mike Candys show, the mask, my lasers and of course a lot of unique mixes and remixes in a mix with my hits and the biggest EDM hits of other DJs.