We sit down and grill Dutch producer extraordinaire, SIROJ.
We’ve been keeping our eye firmly focused on SIROJ for quite some time now. He has already made name in the international beat scene by producing songs for several compilations and aside from creating his own audio stimulation, he produces music for films and series.
The beatmaker has found the perfect balance between Dj’ing and producing and as a result of this balance he also managed to create his own sound, he likes to call SLOP. It’s a sound that’s influenced by House and Hip Hop and moves just between the two genres.
SIROJ’s newest body of work – the 4 track EP ‘GLOW’ will be released on March 22nd 2015 but until then we have the superb new track ‘Hey Baby‘, as a teaser before the official release.
Give us an insight into your journey – when did you fall in love with making music?
When I first had the opportunity to create music on my dad’s computer. I was 14 I think. I already played the piano since I was 7 but creating music from scratch with midi was a whole new thing. I fell in love instantly.
Was there ever any artist or a musician that made you want to be a musician?
As a kid playing the piano, one of my idols was Herbie Hancock. My dad introduced me to his music which is really diverse but I like everything about it. I think as a young hip hop producer it had to be J Dilla. The way he programmed his drums and bass lines was insane. It sounded so natural and organic. I really liked the soul in his beats.
What was life like for you growing up – did you listen to a lot of different music and what sorts of bands / DJ’s were you into as a teenager?
As a teenager I listened to a bunch of different stuff. I was into Roni Size’s drum & bass a lot. But I also was really into Hip hop (A Tribe Called Quest, De La, Slum Village, Gangstarr), Soul (D’Angelo, Bilal), Broken beat (Jazzanova, Jazztronik) and Jazz (Herbie Hancock, Roy Hargrove, George Duke). Through the years I developed a love for house music.
What is the scene like in Amsterdam compared to London?
Amsterdam is a lot smaller obviously, so the scene is too. I think because of that we all kind of know each other which results in lots of collaborations, which I think is fun but also you need to be competitive to get stuff to another level.
Give us your top 3 records to play during your set?
That would be:
1. Hi Tom – ‘Patron‘
2. Jack The Hustler – ‘Freak Like Me‘ (931 Basement Mix)
3. Jim-E-Stack – ‘Lemme’
Do you have any guilty pleasure tracks?
I don’t believe in the concept of a guilty pleasure track. If a song has certain elements that appeal to you like maybe a few phrases or a melody you shouldn’t be ashamed to like it.
Give us your top 3 clubbing destinations in the world / Best places to party?
You should party in Amsterdam and go to a few places like Ludwig, Bitterzoet or Club NYX.
Tell us more about your latest track ‘Hey Baby’ – what was the process behind making it?
I made a demo beat whichI sent to Willem of The Million Plan. He wrote a few things on it and sent it back. I’ve cut a few lines out of his hook and used it as a sample basically. Then I rebuilt the beat around the sample.
What can we expect from the forthcoming EP ‘Glow’?
The Slop really. I’ve made 4 songs for this EP which are all like a mixture between house and hiphop. We like to call it Slop. All the songs include singers from the likes of Cody ChesnuTT, SevdaLiza and a very talented new singer called Ayden.
If you could collaborate with any other artist – who would you love to get on a SIROJ track?
Oh man, I really like voices that are a bit weird. So for that I would like to work with Jai Paul, Sampha and Frank Ocean.
What do they think that track would sound like?
I think like a stripped down slop song with just a few sounds a deep bass and some real raw vocals on it.