Steve Angello is a household name in dance music – a superstar at that. With a musical resume like his, it's an de facto feat to take on a new phase of a career so influential on dance's growth and to reinvent it for a solo career, but that's what he's in the process of doing. With recent projects launching in his record companies, SIZE Records and X, Angello's reach is getting wider and long lasting solo success more imminent. The latest addition to the Size family would be his collaboration with Dimitri Vangelis & Wyman, debuted in the Swede's impressively mixed, blow-the-audience-away performance at Ultra Music Festival in Miami. "Payback" is the perfect example of where it's easy to see SIZE heading, making more of a statement on where the label stands in its specific sound: an impactful one for the generation that grew up with Swedish House Mafia, but wants to be there to take dance music into the next era of its existence. We got the special opportunity to chat with Angello about the record, his past and the opportunities in his near future – check out "Payback" and our interview below!
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EARMILK: Let's start with your latest release, "Payback." Collaborations can come together in a few different ways – how did you link up with Dimitri Vangelis & Wyman? How did you decide you wanted to collaborate?
Steve Angello: I have always been a fan of their music. I discovered them through friends and got linked up by my brother An21 who also plays a big part of the A&R team at SIZE. We´re always looking for new talent and people that haven’t been massively exposed yet, we always look for the younger talents and these guys are spot on!
EARMILK: What was the initial idea behind creating "Payback"? How was it different than other collabs you've done?
Steve Angello: They had a great initial idea and I loved the potential of the record! They are super talented and they have loads of great music in the pipelines! We might have a special little thing on “Payback” available soon too!
EARMILK: You just announced a forthcoming artist album. What can you tell us about what we can expect?
Steve Angello: Emotions, thought and melancholic! It’s a little different from my early stuff; it’s an album that taps in to all kinds of genres, but there´s a red thread throughout the whole piece.
EARMILK: Any buzzwords you can use to describe it?
Steve Angello: It’s ME, flat-out.
EARMILK: How did you decide you were ready to make a full album? What has the experience been like as a solo artist?
Steve Angello: I have always been solo since the age of 14 so there´s nothing new. I´ve always wanted to create an album that reflected on my past going in to my present state and an album should be wide, it has to reflect on something, something interesting. I´m telling my story, but in the form of music and lyrics.
EARMILK: I know that you got into music at a young age – did you grow up in a musical household?
Steve Angello: My whole family was very involved in music, from clubs to nightlife, music has been more important than food at times!
EARMILK: What do you see for the futures of Size Recs and X?
Steve Angello: We´re growing! We´re thinking outside of the box, we are also looking into bands and artists that are outside of our “box.” We have an amazing team in place and we have gone from 4 staff to 19 in 4 months! It’s time.
EARMILK: You have a multifaceted musical persona – how would you say your music has changed over time?
Steve Angello: I think my music has more thought behind it now, in a good way and bad, but I’m aware of it so it can adapt.
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EARMILK: After seeing your unbelievable set at Ultra in Miami this year, it seemed like your personal taste in music really came through, not just from what people know you for as Steve Angello. Maybe even felt like those alter egos that you're known for surfaced a little bit. How did you come to this point?
Steve Angello: I'm like a kid again! I'm reborn and it’s time to do this again!
Steve Angello, Dimitri Vangelis, Wyman
"Payback"
- Columbia (Sony)
- G0100031496538
