Dance Music Northwest (virtually) sat down recently with two of the biggest names in the twisted house subgenre—Laidback Luke and Steff Da Campo. The duo shared their new release, We Found Love on MixMash Records. As their first collaboration, we were curious to hear the story of their experience working together. Read the full interview, and tune into We Found Love below!
DMNW: What was your process for deciding to collaborate? Did you know each other already, or did something about the other draw you to work together?
Laidback Luke (LL): Steff and I have been in touch over email for years! We finally met face to face at Magnetic Festival in Prague. He’s sent me tracks for surely over a decade now, so when we met at the festival I asked him if he would ever be open for a collab.
DMNW: Overall, how did this track come together? Can you speak to your process start to finish on making this happen?
LL: For years I couldn’t nail the drop on the track. I made various versions of it, but it was never quite there. I sent a sketch of the track, without any drops to Steff and incredibly enough, he nailed the drop! After that, he sent the track back to me and I added my extra tweaks on it, and the mastering.
Steff Da Campo (SDC): So the idea for a collaboration started out at a show last year when Luke came with the idea. Of course, I was totally in for it! Luke later hit me up with a very good idea, which I started putting my ideas in. A few months later, We Found Love was finished!
DMNW: As the first time you worked together, how do you think it went? Love how both of your sounds mixed together in this track!
LL: I think it went great! Our sounds do really match and we are both into that Twisted House sound. With the stems going back and forth and the amount of discussion we had about certain decisions it actually felt like a smooth process!
SDC: I feel super happy about how this collaboration turned out, in my opinion, this is a perfect combination of our styles, making this track suitable for a lot of different areas in music.
DMNW: Was is difficult at all to combine your vision for the track?
SDC: I don’t think it was difficult at all. Although we might be two different producers & persons, we both have the same vision, not only in music but also for this track specifically.
DMNW: What importance do you think music collaborations hold, for both fans listening and artists working together? Has that changed at all during the pandemic?
LL: It’s nice to be in touch. To make something together, even if it’s in digital realm. If this pandemic has taught us anything, it’s that we are not alone. And all our friends and family are just a click of a button away!
DMNW: Is there a message or emotion you’re trying to convey in We Found Love? Did that change at all in the time you worked on it?
LL: Love overcomes everything! It’s something we need in the world right now. That hope, that sense of togetherness. I think the timing of the track is perfect.
SDC: Making We Found Love felt great. We put a lot of emotion in this track, possibly even more than my previous tracks. I think that especially in these tough times, music can be something to fall back on. I hope people will be able to draw some strength out of We Found Love.
Laidback Luke performing at Mixmash Takeover, courtesy of Mixmash Records
Have you had a chance to listen to We Found Love yet? Check out Laidback Luke and Steff Da Campo’s new single available on streaming platforms now.
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