Serge Devant speaks of his debut album ‘Wanderer’

Serge Devant speaks of his debut album ‘Wanderer’

7 May, 2009 | 4.07AM

• Written by: morphius_303
• Filed under: Music News: addicted, serge devant

Named by DJ Tiesto as one of the brightest sparks in dance music, and with a debut artist album ‘Wanderer’ on the way, Beatportal met progressive up and comer Serge Devant to find out more about his music productions and studio style.

How would you describe your sound at the moment?

What I do in the studio always changes, for example with an album like “Wanderer’ I wanted to try so many different things musically, but in the end I wanted to have good songs.

No matter what the music is, this is an album that will be played in cars and on iPods, so it was very important to have an album full of good songs, that don’t get really boring.

I feel like dance music is missing that element of good, well-written songs (lyrically and musically). All other genres have good, well-written songs with something behind them. But then if I’m doing something for the clubs it will be something a bit chunkier, something with a groove.

In the end for me it’s all about the groove. Something that moves and bounces. I guess I’m a bit more on the progressive side of things - I do like to get a bit melodic here and there!

But I just want to clear some things up. Some people out there still think I make or play trance. I don’t!

Your latest single ‘Addicted’ features the voice of Hadley - how did you two meet? What was it that drew you to her sound?

I was searching for some vocalists to collaborate with me on my album and after digging Myspace I came across Hadley’s voice, and it was some jazz thing that she had up in her player, but I could instantly hear the texture of her voice.

Something about it just drew me in. It was that smoothness and contrast and ability to tell a story with the voice which is a very rare thing these days. I find a lot of the singers have very empty voices with nothing to it.

So I’m extremely happy that I have found her. She’s a very hard worker and an amazing person.

Your career really took off with the cover of ‘Sweet Harmony’. Did you realise it would turn into a defining moment when you first made it?

Well I’ve loved that record since I was a kid, and I thought nobody really gave it a proper remake.

You never really know what the defining moment will be, you do it ‘cause u love it and want to bring something back in a new way so people can enjoy that ‘feel good’ track once again! 

There were a lot of people (younger kids) that had never heard the original Beloved track so they discovered it through my re-make. In the end everyone wins!

How would you describe your DJ sets?

What I play sometimes is quite different from what I make but I love playing a lot of different tunes on the more progressive/tech side with moving bass lines and great grooves.

Tell us a bit of the story behind the album ‘Wanderer’.

Well the whole idea of making an album was really intriguing, as I’ve always wanted to try to make some tracks that are not in a club format. It’s very refreshing to sit down and make something without thinking about how it’s going to sound in the club or who is going to play it and so on. Just to sit down and make what feels right and see it go somewhere. It’s a great feeling.

So that’s what I did, influenced by different places, times and experiences. I kind of wandered in music and within myself in the process of making this album and tried for it to make sense in the end.

It was a journey making this album that I really enjoyed. If you listen to the album from beginning till the end you will understand why I called it ‘Wanderer’. It’s out on June 9th on Ultra.

Any memorable moments from when you were making it?

It’s always fun when we write lyrics and record vocals, I love being in the studio with a few people brainstorming as it’s always fun.

You get to joke around, laugh, and of course create. It’s a fun process when things happen quickly – it’s always very exciting.

What are your summer plans?

Hit the beach as much as possible and of course do some gigs and just have fun doing that, it’s what are summers for, no? This winter has been so miserable I just want to enjoy warm, sunny weather.

Can you let us in on a few secrets from your studio about how you achieve your sound? What programs and plug-ins do you use?

My studio set up is pretty generic so there aren’t many secrets to share. I use Logic 8 with most of the VSTs that everyone has, such as Native Instruments Komplete, UAD card and other very common ones.

I try not to clutter my mixes, and make sure I have a tight and clean kick with a clean bassline so there’s room for everything else to breathe. 

There’s a raging debate going on about people performing live nowadays as opposed to DJing - has a live concept ever wandered into your mind?

I do think about it occasionally although I think if I was to do something like that, it would have to involve artists I work with for live PAs and I’d like to play something live too like keys.

It has to be an instrument; the idea of standing with Abelton Live on my laptop doesn’t really thrill me as a live performance. It has to be something special I guess, something different that makes sense in the club atmosphere. Until that comes to mind I’m not sure I will bother! 

Who would you ideally like to work with in the future if anyone at all?

Someone like Sarah McLachlan or Jewel probably, somebody amazing!

Serge Devant ‘Wanderer’ is out on June 9th on Ultra Records.

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