Interview with Lange ahead his return to Sheffield for OTR

OTR return to Plug on May 18th for a Thrill Seekers Xtreme party headlined by Lange. 

It's just over two years since Lange last played in Sheffield, so we caught up with him for a chat about Trance, dream dinner party guests, and embarrassing moments behind the decks.

Hi Stuart! Thanks for taking the time to speak to OTR today. So tell us, what does a normal day in the life of Lange consist of?

Hey, no worries! That really depends when you catch me. I've just spent a couple of weeks touring the USA so I've been doing a lot of travelling, but on an average week I'm usually only on tour at the weekend. I head back to the UK to be with my wife and of course to spend time in the studio. I've never really got used to producing 'on the road', I need the studio speakers to work with. Other days, I'll be struggling to get onto production work as there are plenty of other things to do such as my Intercity podcast, gig preparation/track edits, press stuff, label A&R etc.

You have been behind some quite outstanding productions over the last decade, including euphoric classics such as ‘Drifting Away’ to your latest offering ‘Our Way Home’ with Audrey Gallagher coming exactly 10 years later. How do you feel the sound of trance has changed over this period?

Thanks! Trance has completely exploded in all directions, it's never been more diverse. It's definitely become more house influenced, and at the same time House music has actually headed towards a trancier sound too! Ultimately what sets a trance event apart from other EDM events is the passion the crowd have for the music. I'm really enjoying the diversity at the moment and like to throw in some more driving, techier/electro tracks in with the more melodic stuff; there's nothing more boring than a relentless set that doesn't change rhythm throughout in my opinion.

You have your own label, Lange Recordings. With your busy tour schedule how involved are you in the running of the label and track selection for new releases? What’s the ethos of the label and what do you look for when signing a new track?

I'm very involved in working with the artists, listening to the music and ultimately I have final say on what gets released (I do very much take on board my A&R teams opinions too though!) Generally I sign music that I’m going to want to heavily support myself, although occasionally I'll sign something a little more progressive or harder if I think it hits the spot. I'm always on the hunt for well produced tracks with an element of surprise. It's not just about melody anymore, tracks need to impact and work on today's dancefloors. As a label we're trying to work closely with a select group of artists we think have huge talent and really get behind them. Artists on the label such as Noah Neiman, Steve Brian, and Tangle & Mateusz are really starting to get noticed in the scene.

Your recent gigs diary makes some quite impressive reading, including recent tours of America and India. How do you find the crowds you play to differ from place to place? Is this something you consider when preparing for your sets?

Crowds can differ a lot, but I play a wide spectrum of 'trance' so it's more a case of honing my set for a particular event or city. Some cities generally prefer it more progressive, or more vocal etc. Then of course you have the type of event. Festivals are very different to playing regular club nights, especially if the set is quite short. If you've got an hour then you need to keep the energy levels high, whereas with a three hour club set there's plenty of time to take things down and in different directions. Personally I like both scenarios, longer sets are preferable, but you can get a hell of a rush from playing for an intense hour in front of 10,000!

Having played some of the finest clubs, festivals and events worldwide, what is your all-time favourite event to have played at?

Amnesia in Ibiza is definitely one of my favourite places to have played, Also ASOT450 in New York, and ASOT500 in South Africa. Festival wise, Both Balaton and Sziget in Hungary were incredible. Then there was' Full On Ferry' back in 2008… Sorry you asked for one only!

If you had to name your favourite tune of all time, what would it be?

Can't do it, there are simply too many great tracks.

What do you like to do outside of music?

I don't have that much spare time. What time I do have I spend with my family and friends. Most of the time I just want to just do something simple like going for a few pints with a mate or laze around on the sofa watching DVDs; these kind of things are actually pretty rare for me as music and DJing keeps me super busy! That said, I do a fair bit of socialising on tour with other DJs and promoters. I also like to get out into the countryside and see a bit of nature; it clears the mind!

So for anyone who is yet to see Lange play out behind the decks, what can they expect come May 18th in Sheffield?

Aiming to play an epic energetic set, spinning plenty of my own tracks and also some exclusives from my label… and one or two classics.

And now, for those all-important ‘get to know you’ quick fire questions…

Marmite… love it or hate it?

Love it!

If you could have dinner with any three people, dead or alive, who would they be and why?

David Attenborough – Always been a big fan of his wildlife docs, huge respect.

David Mitchell – I'd never have gotten this far in life without comedy and Mr Mitchell is a genius! I'm sure he'd be very interesting at the table. I'm a huge 'Peep Show' fan.

My Wife – Ruth would never forgive me for having dinner with those two without her!

What’s the most embarrassing moment to have happened to you whilst behind the decks?

I've suffered power cuts, played the same track twice a few times, and even elbowed the stop button on a CDJ very recently, but the most embarrassing incident was probably when I was in Beijing, China. The track was building up out of the breakdown and was about to smash in. I was jumping up, as were the crowd, and I intentionally slammed the eject button on the other deck to remove the previous CD right at the moment the track banged in… only I hit the wrong eject button and the music stopped dead. The whole place erupted 'OOUUUHH'!

And finally, could you share an interesting fact about yourself with the readers?

I'm distantly related to George Langelaan who wrote a short story called 'The Fly' which ended up being made into the classic 50s film of the same name! Bit of trivia for you. See you soon, can't wait!!

Catch Lange at The Plug, Sheffield for OTR on 18th May. Tickets are available through Skiddle below. 

Tickets are no longer available for this event