It’s safe to say the last 18 months have been a whirlwind of uncertainty for everyone across the globe and now things are slowly getting back to “normal,” this includes Bingo Players embarking on his first tour of the United States in nearly two years.
Still buzzing off the release of his new collaboration “Do What You Like” with Zookëper and now being able to play out his recent productions in front of a live crowd once again, we took the time to chat catching up with Bingo Players to discuss the past, present and future!
DJ Life Mag: What was the pandemic like where you’re living?
I was living in a small town in The Netherlands during the pandemic. I am sure how I was living was very similar to how many people were living during this time. I stayed home with my wife and two kids and we tried to make the best of a challenging situation. I really missed touring during this time period but I really enjoyed spending so much time with my family and also being able to be in my studio making new music. When I go on tour I tend to not make as much music. Between jet lag, going between various time zones and running around so much I find it difficult to produce on the road. When I am at home, I have my home studio with my synths and everything the way I like it. Last year I released more music in twelve months than I ever had before and I have a ton of new music coming in 2022.
DJ Life Mag: How were you able to stay sane & relatively positive throughout this coronavirus craziness?
Bingo Players: I guess I kind of answered this in the previous question. I really tried to be grateful for the amount of time I had at home with my family. I tour 200 + dates a year and it is challenging at times being away from the people I love. I took this time to spend time with my wife and sons. I produced a ton of music. Me and the Oomloud guys live really near each other so we got together and would jam on new ideas every week in my studio. We would all have synths and we would record everything we performed in our sessions until we landed on an idea we loved and that’s how a lot of our collaborations like “Brighter Days” & “Shed My Skin” came together. We have more coming soon!
DJ Life Mag: What’s the most surprising thing you’ve realized during this period of social distancing?
Bingo Players: The most surprising thing I realized during this period was how productive I can be in the studio when I am home for long periods of time. When I am touring, it takes a couple weeks to adjust to the jet lag and then I leave again for tour once I start to acclimate. Being home helped with creativity in addition to being around family.
DJ Life Mag: You seemed to have made the most of your time off touring; what new skills have you learned during your downtime?
Bingo Players: I don’t know if I learned any new skills per say but I spent a lot of time working on production, trying new synths, plug-ins, etc. I also had a good amount of time to play video games which is another passion of mine. I’d like to think I got better after all the extra hours of gaming! [laughs]
DJ Life Mag: In the studio, what’s your set-up?
Bingo Players: I did a full, in-depth breakdown of my studio setup for MusicTech.Net which includes images and a ton of detail about my gear. My synth kit is Korg M-3, Yamaha DX7 IID, Ensoniq DP-4+, Roland JV-2080 expanded with various boards, Briscati M7M, DigiTech Talker and I produce in Abelton Live.
DJ Life Mag: What’s your creative process in the studio?
Bingo Players: It varies. It some cases I have a vocal hook I want to build a track around and in other cases I am just messing around with my synths or drum machines until I come up with something that catches my ear. When I land on an idea that I am excited about I then go all in tweaking and building out the idea. Sometimes I’ll have eight or ten starter ideas that go nowhere and other times half will become songs I release. Creativity comes at all times, sometimes I get up and work in the studio in the morning, other times I am playing video games and feel inspired and start a track at 2AM.
DJ Life Mag: Tell us a little about how your track “Do What You Like” with Zookëper came about.
Bingo Players: I am very happy with how “Do What You Like” came out. I’ve known Zookëper for years now and he’s released other records on my label Hysteria. In this case, he hit me up with a bass line he made using a Korg ms20 synth. At the same time, he sent me his idea, I was already working on basslines using the same exact synth so we combined our ideas and started going back and forth building out the rest of the record. I had this vocal sample for a while which I thought would fit perfectly into the track we were building. It all worked out really easily and naturally. Now we’re on tour together in the U.S. promoting the single.
DJ Life Mag: Would you say your sound/production has evolved over the past year?
Bingo Players: I like to think my sound and production continues to evolve. If you listen through Bingo Players discography no two tracks sound the same or follow the same formula which is something I am very proud of as a producer. Some people want to have a very consistent sound and style but for me I just love creating and being inspired. We have had some big records like ‘Rattle,’ ‘Cry,’ ‘Knock You Out,’ ‘Chop,’ etc. and they are all totally different. This keeps being a producer and performer fresh and exciting. Next year I have a ton of new music and most of the sounds are pretty varied.
DJ Life Mag: When you have a tough week or hit a wall creatively, how do you get yourself back on track?
Bingo Players: If I am having a tough week creatively I give myself space from creating. I play video games, I watch movies I love, I go to the gym and just give myself more time to feel creative by enjoying the things that make me tick. It always works, when I step away, I get more perspective and confidence in my ideas.
DJ Life Mag: After having to deliver live stream sets for the last two years, how happy are you to be able to get on the road touring again?
Bingo Players: I honestly didn’t do too many live stream DJ sets. I was hosting a series of live streams from my studio on my Instagram and that was fun at first but then it just felt less and less exciting as the pandemic extended and I eventually stopped doing them. There is no comparison when performing on a stream versus a live crowd. I will always choose the real live setting and I am so happy to be back performing again.
DJ Life Mag: You’ve been doing this for quite a while now with plenty of club shows and festival appearances under your belt, what do you think the energy is going to be like going forward with dance fans being stuck at home for so long?
Bingo Players: I feel like everyone coming out of the pandemic and attending shows for the first time in a year or more is going to have so much extra energy and love pouring out of them. Live events give people a place to express themselves and their emotions. Though it was nice to have live streams for some fan,s it can’t replace the feelings one gets from being in a dark club full of people and the energy and excitement that creates.
DJ Life Mag: Now that things are slowly getting back to “normal” what can fans expect from Bingo Players throughout the rest of 2021?
Bingo Players: The rest of 2021 is going to be touring and releasing new music. I have at least one more song, potentially two coming out in 2021. 2022 is going to be A LOT of new music and tour dates. Follow me on Instagram @BingoPlayers for updates.
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