Listen to full audio recording here: Kaskade-Interview-Electric-Zoo

The Music Street Team caught up with the Chicago-born Kaskade just after his set at Electric Zoo Dance Festival in New York. From Chicago to Ibiza, Kaskade gives us an overview of the past, present and future of electronic music.

See day one photos from the Electric Zoo festival Amy’s full review here.

Amy Van-Baaren: What do you think of the NY crowd?

Kaskade: New York is New York, this is the centre of the world, it doesn’t get any better than this. Man I was really surprised, I didn’t know, I was a bit apprehensive because electronic has had a hard time finding a place in this city as of late. So it is really exciting to come here and see people so anxious and excited to have this here.

Amy: You are from Chicago originally, the holy grail of house music..

Kaskade: Yes, the birth place.

Amy: How do you compare to this?

Kaskade: In Chicago, this stuff is in their blood.

Amy: Yeah in their soul.

Kaskade: They live it, breathe it, and eat it. The people that are into it, their history is so long. The city inspired me in the 80’s and here I am two generations later, and it’s still going strong there. I have had a residency at smart bar in Chicago for the last 5 years and that’s one of the clubs I used to go when i was a kid, an all ages teen club. And to go back there and be a part of this history is truly an honour – when they called me I was ‘oh shit I’ve made it’, such a cool moment for me.

Amy: What are your biggest musical influences?

Kaskade: Oh man, I was really influenced by a lot of Nu Rave and early electronic Kraftwerk work to Ministry Revolting Cocks stuff on the Wax Trax label in Chicago, but then also I was a really big Smiths and The Cure, more songs stuff, Echo and the Bunnymen all that stuff that was going on back then, New order was massive for me, Born Slippy, even the more electronic stuff, Erasure.

Even some more current stuff, I love the Killers, Coldplay, Sade, im a huge Sade fan.

I think all this influences you, I’m a music lover really, I have thousands of records and I mean I love it.

Amy: Do you plays records mainly or CD’s?

Kaskade: I play CDs – for the time being.

Amy: So you’re not against the whole movement?

Kaskade: You can’t stop it now

Amy: No you can’t, so what do you think the future for house music in particular, how do you see it changing?

Kaskade: The future is it’s not going to be classified as genres anymore, it’s just electronic music. What is Deadmou5 playing right now, what did I play, is it really house? You listen to my record and RnB producers are like, ‘hey man i love your RnB record’, down tempo guys are like, ‘you’re down tempo record is great’, house people are like, your house record is great’, trance people are like, ‘ah man you put a little trance in there’.

I mean whatever man, we are beyond this now, its music, its independent electronic underground music. That’s where its heading, people are doing all sorts of stuff they are mashing the worlds. It’s cool that’s where dance music started; it was this weird stuff that nobody knew what to call it. So I think it’s just going back to what it was.

Amy: How have you seen yourself change, did you know what direction you heading? I know you worked for Ohm Records; do you think that shaped what future you were heading in to?

Kaskade: Yeah I was signed to Ohm for a few years and I switched to Ultra three or four years ago, not for a stylistic reason. I mean, stylistically I am not sure that I really totally fit in Ohm, I mean it was a good home for sure. I mean, do I fit into Ultra? You listen to my album and it sounds like elevator music compared to some of the stuff they put out. Or really heartfelt compared to the stuff they put out, it’s a bit out of the box.

Amy: Do you enjoy DJing more than producing?

Kaskade: I love them equally.

Amy: Is there anywhere else in world you would like a residency, like in the UK?

Kaskade: London recently has actually started coming around to my sounds, which I never thought you know, but it seems like they are finally coming around. My music’s a bit sunny for them I think, you know, it’s a bit west coast.

(Imitating the London attitude) ‘I mean who is this guy, he’s smiling and playing all these happy songs, like what the fuck, what is it?’

Amy: Who do you wanna see today, do you get into the crowd and get into the moment?

Kaskade: I haven’t yet today but that’s because I’m running on no sleep. I was going to check Steve Aoki out, but I think I might have just missed him.

Amy: Who is your music idol, like one DJ who you love to see, that never lets you down during a set?

Kaskade: I played with David Morales last year in Ibiza.

Amy: How do you like Ibiza?

Kaskade: I love it. I mean, it’s a very very cool atmosphere and environment. It’s a vacation destination; people go there to rest, relax and have a good time. So it’s like this perfect combination of Beauty, vacation, relaxation and people just wanting to have a good time. I mean I love it; I spent almost three weeks out there this year. I kinda placed myself out there. I played a bunch of gigs around Europe. I played two shows, one with Pete Tong at Wonderland in Eden and one with Robbie Riviera at Privilege – lots of fun.

Amy: Do you think you’ll go back again next year?

Kaskade: Yeah sure, hopefully

Amy: Does your family travel with you?

Kaskade: Occasionally I just did a bunch of shows down in South America in brazil and if I’m going somewhere for two or three weeks, if I have a lot of shows, they have been with me to Australian and brazil and a few other ransom places that I go for a while.

Amy: Nice profession

Kaskade: Yes one of the perks, one of many!

Amy: Thanks for your time!