PIET VAN NOORD
DJ | RADIO HOST | PROMOTER | PRODUCER
N E W S
LABEL OWNER PAUL THOMAS JOINS ELECTRONIC DEVOTION
07/10/23
Over the past 2 years, Paul has become synonymous with cutting edge progressive house and melodic techno. Artists from all over the melodic spectrum, from Sasha & Solomun to Guy J & Camelphat, have been firm supporters of the movement Paul and his brand, UV, is making, and this is only the beginning.
Paul’s big break was landing a residency at Birmingham’s Godskitchen and their globally-syndicated GlobalGathering festival a decade back; a dream foundation for any aspiring DJ to build their career on. From here on his destiny as a DJ was inevitable, with global tours and critically-acclaimed compilations for the brand and for Toolroom Records all soon in the bag.
Fast forward to the summer of 2017, when Paul launched UV; a record label, events brand and radio show all rolled into 1. UV has gone on to become the 3rd best selling progressive house label on Beatport, held sell out events in London, Miami, Los Angeles, Kuala Lumpur & Amsterdam in the 2019, and the radio show audience has quadrupled in the last 12 months. The ethos behind the brand is simple; UV has to deliver an enlightening experience that is refreshingly unique and always forward-thinking.
Paul’s own releases have been some of the most talked about tracks in his spectrum this year. He is in the top 5 best selling artists in his genre in 2019, alongside fellow heavyweights Camelphat, Guy J & Cristoph. ‘Allegro’, ‘Vyote’ & ‘Solace’ were all released in 2019 and all reached the Beatport top 3 chart. A cross-genre range of support from the likes of Camelphat, Above & Beyond, Guy J, Hernan Cattaneo, Sasha & Armin Van Buuren has seen Paul’s profile rise dramatically as fan bases from all corners become drawn to Paul’s often genre-defying sound.
This huge support has reflected in Paul’s diary in 2019. This year alone will see Paul perform at major festivals such as Tomorrowland, Creamfields, EDC’s Dreamstate, A State Of Trance & Heracleion amongst others. But it’s not just the large-scale shows which drives his focus. Paul is more at home in the smaller capacity venues, forging a special musical journey across 4, 5, 6 hours, a concept which his UV brand encapsulates in special venues around the world.
TRILUCID BEHIND THE DECKS OF ELECTRONIC DEVOTION
10/07/23
London based duo Trilucid, consisting of South African Hilton and Scot Andy, have, in just a short time, risen through the ranks of melodic and progressive house to become one of the stand-out acts of the moment. Their music has clocked up over 15 million streams on Spotify in the last year, topped Beatport charts and drawn support from global tastemakers and underground trailblazers alike. Their music draws on their deep knowledge and experience of electronic music to create a sound that is entirely their own, combining elements of deep house, progressive, ambient and techno to captivating effect.
Over the last decade they have held a 5-year residency for Gallery at the legendary Ministry of Sound in London, released records on UV, Proton, Colorize, Anjuna, ZeroThree , Afterglow, Glasgow Underground, Perspectives Digital and Perfecto Records. They have toured extensively both in the UK and overseas, including their residency at Ministry of Sound, SW4 and Egg in London and Space, Amnesia, Pacha and Café del Mar in Ibiza.
Clocking up 5 million streams on Spotify so far, one of their standout releases is the striking EP, One Day At A Time, released on Colorize In late 2021. A melodic fusion of house inspired drums, euphoric synth lines and uniquely emotive sound design, the 2 track EP placed the duo firmly on the map.
This was followed shortly after by Cheyenne, a rich and uplifting melodic gem that hit number 2 on Beatport’s progressive house chart, remaining in the chart for a further 6 months, topping 2+ million streams on Spotify, and receiving extensive airplay on radio shows across the globe.
They followed this up with The Loved Are Never Lost on Proton, a moving journey dedicated to lost family, that has topped 1 million streams, hit the Beatport prog house top 10 and become one of the top 100 prog best sellers of 2022.
Into 2023 a string of critically acclaimed releases on UV, Colorize and Proton pushed the duo into the top 20 genre artists on Beatport, and saw them reach into a more experimental side of their production with their unique series of Sunrise and Sunset mixes. This has seen the pair swiftly enter the top 100 Beatport electronica artists in 2023 and has cemented their reputation as one of the most exciting and innovative acts in melodic house.
PAUL ARCANE JOINS EPISODE 167
04/06/23
When an artist comes up as quickly as Paul Arcane, the trance world stops and listens. Gripped by his energetic, euphoric melodies, an eager fan base has answered with support from across the globe.
Paul Arcane’s tireless work ethic more than justifies his early success. In three short years he released an astounding 20+ songs on labels like Elliptical Sun Recordings and Enhanced Progressive. His meteoric trajectory has even registered on Above & Beyond’s radar. The iconic trio enlisted him to contribute a guest mix for an episode of their world-renowned radio show, Group Therapy.
His determination to see every project through has earned Paul Arcane such an admirable résumé. Whereas a typical producer sits on countless works in progress, he adheres to a strict personal policy of finishing every song on which he starts working. At the core of his diligence lies the philosophy that the more we create the better our world will be, which he hopes to foster in everyone touched by his music.
Considering how much he’s accomplished in such a short span of time, a bright future awaits Paul Arcane indeed. However, as far as the trance community is concerned he’s already arrived.
DJ DUO JACKARTA EXCLUSIVELY ON ED 163
22/01/23
Jackarta is a producer / DJ duo by 2 long-time friends, Evgenii (Jack) and Artem (Art).
The two were influenced by melodic electronic music since the early days, and started producing with the idea of creating melodic dance music, both deep and progressive styles. Jack & Art are being inspired by their passion for travel, life moments and emotions we all face in our lives. Started off strong with a number of releases on Songspire, Purified and Colorize, Jackarta is surely a project to put on your radar.
ELECTRONIC DEVOTION 166 WITH WANDA WILD
16/04/23
Wanda Wild, what a wild alias you might think! But no, it’s her real name. Wanda has always had a love for energetic electronic sounds, from hard peak-time techno to danceable downtempo. During the 2020 lockdown she bought her first DJ controller off eBay and developed as a Bedroom DJ, until one of her SoundCloud sets caught the attention of the Passau-based collective Villa TuNichtGut, which she subsequently became a part of.
Wanda quickly realized she wants to pursue DJing full-time and dropped out of higher education to focus on her music career. After her first successful gig at Munich’s Bahnwaerther Thiel in October 2021 she quickly secured herself a residency at the renowned techno club. In the following months she was invited to showcase her skills in other cities across the country, including appearances at world famous Berlin clubs Katerblau and Beate Uwe.
Her sound takes you on a dramatic, healing journey, aimed to make you feel the multitude of emotions she experiences in her daily life. Organic, deep, ethereal, sometimes dark, sometimes happy, but always melodic, her style hovers between melodic techno, progressive house and downtempo.
As an avid dancer, what sets Wanda apart is her sensitivity to the dancefloor and her ability to adapt her sets on the fly.
Still only 25 years old, and currently learning how to produce the musical sound she envisions for herself, she will have plenty of time to make her dreams come true and make dancefloors around the planet go wild.
