House-Music-Zone

Armin Van Buuren & Sharon Den Adel - In and out of Love

House-Music History
Armin Van Buuren

Armin van Buuren is a happy man, and with good reason. Holding firm at Number 2 in the prestigious public-voted DJ Top 100, he's making the transition from talented young upstart to leading light in the echelons of trance - and beyond. 2005 has brought two new significant awards (Best Radio Show, and Best Compilation for A State of Trance 2004 at the Miami Winter Music Conference Awards), and a stunning new artist album, Shivers, showcasing his debut as a songwriter.

Born in Leiden, Holland (on December 25, 1976) to a musical family -Armin indulged his passion for music from a young age, blowing all the money from his paper round on records. His mum won a computer when he was 10, "So as a little nerdy kid I was writing my own Basic programmes, and learnt about the technology from there." He progressed from making the usual tapes for his friends, put together on a cheap set of decks that he wore out learning to mix, , after discovering his uncle experimenting with different sequences on his computer. "I was so amazed at what he was doing, since that moment I've been addicted to creating music!"

In the early 90s, Holland's upfront dance scene meant that although Armin was too young to go clubbing, he knew the music inside out from listening to the radio. "I loved dance music immediately - this great rebellious sound that was so different to the 'beautiful' songs of the 80s". Citing electronic pioneer Jean Michel Jarre as a major influence (famed for his awesome visuals as well as his groundbreaking synth sounds), as well as Dutch producer Ben Liebrand, who later mentored him in his mixing and producing, Armin was soon cracking out consistently stand-out tunes that graced compilations across the globe, and his DJ bookings were looking pretty healthy to boot. But despite his music career taking off at such an early age, Armin thought it was wise to have something extra in case the DJing didn't work out, and studied for a law degree.

Armin's Blue Fear, a Sasha and Digweed staple, previewed his signature style: divine layering of sounds, lush chords and a continuous driving beat with that intangible added extra, the unique essence that sets quality tunes apart when you hear them in a set. His subsequent productions and remixes include Communication, Sound Of Goodbye, Burned With Desire, Touch Me, Free, Wamdue Project's King Of My Castle, Solid Sessions' Janeiro, and Solar Stone's 7 Cities, as well as high profile collaborations with his peers.

While the remix offers now flood in, Armin only takes on tunes that he really loves, and that "I wish I'd made myself!" His compilations strive to follow that precedent, always comprising the cream of his current favourite tracks and mixes. It's what keeps him one step ahead. His desire to showcase more of the wealth of good music out there, along with the number of people sending him tracks they wanted to release, led to the obvious step of starting his own label, Armada, in 2003.

"Maykel Piron was head of A&R for Warner Music, and we always said we'd start a label together, though there was always an element of bragging! I took him to Ibiza for a weekend, and during the trip we sat on the terrace and started talking. He felt like he wanted a new challenge, and so did I". They teamed up with a third partner, David Lewis, who'd previously managed Armin, and the venture flourished. "What we wanted was a company that could offer everything for an artist: representation, a booking agency, and a record company. Artists can choose full management, or to just release a record or play out at gigs. Armada lets the artists choose what they want without telling them what to do".

Freedom is something that Armin fully appreciates as an artist, and all the tracks on his compilations are tried and tested. "Production gives you more freedom 'cos you can experiment more, it can be less obvious than DJing. Whatever - it's the best life there is!