Join us as Clan Brude talks about his debut experience at the Amsterdam Dance Event this past October. Having built a seemingly unstoppable momentum that sees him consistently striking back with exciting new music, most recently with the release of his EP, ‘Temporary Places’, Clan Brude continues to cement himself as a talented producer to keep paying attention to within the world of Electronic Music.
As he shares with us his favourite moments from the event, Clan Brude gives us an insider’s perspective into what makes ADE such an unmissable event in the Electronic Music calendar.
Hello Clan Brude, how’s it going?
It’s great. I actually moved to Amsterdam a couple of months ago after 8 years in Shanghai, and I got to experience my first ADE!
You attended ADE this year, what was the experience like for you?
To be honest it was quite overwhelming to navigate through all the events. I met with my team a couple of times at mixers and ventured out to some fringe events, but there was so much I missed. For instance, there were a few talks that I only found out about after the event! My key takeaway from this year going into next year is to organise what I am going to well advance.
In your opinion, do you think events like ADE are important to Electronic Music? If so, why?
Absolutely. This is way more than a festival. This is the business and industry get-together. All industries need their mixers and Electronic Music, while not a typical industry, also benefits from such an event. It’s a bit of a cliché but networking with like-minded people is so important in the development of the industry. From an Artist’s perspective, it provides inspiration and validation to keep producing new and exciting music. And of course, Amsterdam, with its EDM traditions, is the perfect backdrop.
Can you describe what the vibe in Amsterdam is like during ADE?
It’s a buzz. It wasn’t exactly the best weather this year (maybe that’s just Amsterdam?) but walking around the centre of town you could still feel it. It felt like you could drop into a local bar and there would be DJ event or some experimental, interesting thing happening.
Did you attend any live shows during the festival? If so, which performances were your favourite?
I was a bit slow off the mark and so missed a lot of the shows that I would have gone to, for instance, Overmono at Paradiso. However, I did make it to a couple of fringe events. I discovered Bret over in Amsterdam West which is one of those clubs that would be pumping at any time across the weekend. I ended up with muddy shoes at the place which was unexpected – that weather issue again!
Do you have a particularly memorable moment from ADE this year that you can share?
A lot of my experience of ADE this year was tied into exploring and understanding the city of Amsterdam so I can’t pick out a precise moment, but more the overall sense and ambiance of moving between hotel mixers and all-nighters.
Did you go to ADE with a specific goal in mind?
My main goal was to just experience it this time around and get a feel for doing it ‘properly’ next year! This was in part due to just moving to the city and finding my feet and discovering too late the expanse of the event.
You’re now based in Amsterdam; can you tell us, what is it like living in the home of ADE?
Yeah, it’s great, but I still have so much to explore in music and life. I have hardly touched the surface yet. I have only been to Paradiso once. And I haven’t even got to Melkweg yet, but I’m actually heading to an Afrobeats party there tonight! I’m hoping to explore more of the bar scene and make music contacts over the next few months.
You released your new EP, ‘Temporary Places,’ during ADE. Did you find this impacted the response at all, was there more of a buzz surrounding the release?
There was a good buzz for the release during ADE. I had a couple of press interviews while the event was on, and it was very good to associate the EP release with ADE during those interviews and while everyone was extra excited to discover new music. I think in general it is good to be associated with the scene here in Amsterdam.
Following ADE, what’s coming up next for Clan Brude?
I’m hoping to promote the new EP, ‘Temporary Places’, currently. I have another finished single ready to go, which is a departure from the current EP. It’s co-written and has quite an immediate impact so watch out for that one later on in the year!
Although new to ADE, it is clear from our conversation that Clan Brude experienced the inspiring and creatively motivating environment inherently tied to the event; now, as he calls Amsterdam home, Clan Brude promises to continue pushing his creativity, emerging with powerful productions that are sure to make an impact. So, we thank Clan Brude for his time and look forward to hearing more from him soon!
Follow Clan Brude:
