Get to know: Bart Skils

A solid fixture of Adam Beyer’s Drumcode imprint over the last decade, Bart Skils has firmly established himself as one of Holland’s most respected techno artists. A consistent stream of transcendent tracks and remixes for the likes of Moby, Joris Voorn and Nicole Moudaber have considerably raised his profile. But it's Skil's long-running residency at his own Amsterdam based night, ‘Voltt' and outdoor festival 'Voltt Loves Summer' that has proved to be pivotal in bringing Amsterdam's New School generation to light. Taking his sound from intimate dancefloors in Berlin and Paris to capacious festivals like Awakenings and Wire, Skil’s returns to Egg London for Familia once again with a trademark selection of hypnotising grooves and rolling techno alongside Pig&Dan, Secret Cinema and Egbert. Discussing his latest Drumcode release and what he’s been up to in the studio, we caught up with the Dutch electronic aficionado ahead of the show.

 You’ve been part of the Drumcode family since your first release on the imprint back in 2008, how did your relationship begin with such an iconic label?

I met Adam (Beyer) in 2004 when we were both Djing at awakenings in Amsterdam. Over the years our friendship developed and he did two remixes for me in 2008. On a certain moment, I gave him some new tracks and he signed them for the label. Since 2012 all my original tracks have been released there and it feels the whole crew is one big family.

Tell us about your next Drumcode release coming out on 29th January? Was there a particular theme behind the release?

It’s a special EP for me because all tracks were made in my newly built studio. I moved house 1,5 year ago and decided to rebuild my whole studio from scratch. Did all the acoustic measuring, sound design and psychical building myself with a lot of tutorial watching and professional advice. The first weeks in the new studio I was playing around with the sounds to learn the new acoustics before starting the new ep.

Give us a breakdown of your studio?

From my studio, the most important thing that should sound 100% is the connection between your monitor speakers and your ears. Those are really and by far the most and only thing you need can and need to trust. So to build and set up a studio the reference and acoustic design need to be perfect when it comes to that. I wouldn’t matter how much analog or digital equipment you have besides that but that’s the basic. I work with LogicX and mostly use VST’s to work with. I do have an analog valve summing mixer from Thermionic Culture called Fat Bustard to work with. So when I want to start working in the studio the tube mixer needs to “warm up” for 30-45 minutes before it works perfectly. It does an amazing job and makes my tracks sounds very warm and round. Perfect for my rolling basslines and fat low end in the tracks.

You’ve played in some highly esteemed club and festivals like Berghain, Awakenings and Wire festival in Tokyo. What’s been a standout moment from travelling around the world and visiting these prolific institutions?

I basically love playing all the different cities and clubs around. I am based in Amsterdam but I feel like a European citizen. All cities are pretty close to each other when it comes to flying in and most cities I’ve been many times and build personal relationships with people and venues. So for me, it feels like coming home when I played these venues several times. A great feeling to be able to play wherever you feel home!

Do you experience different energies from the crowd in certain cities? If so, which crowds have really stood out to you in the past?

Music and techno is a universal thing. Our Drumcode sound and Drumcode night have events worldwide and the crowd reactions are great everywhere we play. But of course, there are minor differences for every crowd. When you play in Berlin, for example, the DK is not much the center of attention when it comes to light. Just a dark DJ booth with an intense sound system. In Italy for example the DJ is mostly in the spotlight because Italians love to catch your attention to interact with them. Furthermore, Argentina has a really good scene at the moment with some amazing crowd and events. They love their melodies and you can play deeper and longer sets.

Finally, leave us with a tune that holds significant memory from your upward trajectory so far?

From my new EP “Retrodade" has a long story behind it. I made it over year ago and the beat with the catchy “Everybody’s free” vocal warping through the track gave it an instant mayhem. I sent it to Adam (Beyer) and we both played it for the whole summer but could not decide what to do with it. The decision to release it came when the 90’s iconic singer gave kind permission to use it and of course the high public demand. Everybody keeps asking for this track wherever I play.