Amongst the most consistent creatives in the European electronic field, Dutch producer and DJ Mason has had a decorated career that spans over two decades. He’s seen considerable success with tracks like “Perfect (Exceeder)” and has collaborated with the likes of Princess Superstar, Róisín Murphy and Stefflon Don, as well as unveiling three diverse and daring studio albums that were greeted with critical acclaim.

Earlier this month, Mason returned with his fourth studio album, Chroma Panorama, unveiled via his own record label Animal Language. To commemorate the release, the producer threw a Kafe Raves bonanza (read about that more here) and party at Ministry of Sound.

The LP in question is perhaps his most eclectic to date, merging immersive pop with 80s influences, peppering house tendencies with indie sprinklings, with the presence of groove-laden funk and soul felt throughout. The vibrant 13-pronged album takes you on a colourful and progressive journey full of sonic twists and rhythmic turns, and features impressive contributions from the likes of BRIT Award-winner Jack Garratt, UK indie pop act Girl Ray, and Gorillaz collaborator Sweetie Irie.

A legacy already cemented – and now continually augmented – we connected with Mason, delving into the origins of his production obsession and style, the evolution of electronic music, and the process and influences of his seminal new record.

Listen to Chroma Panorama…

Read the exclusive interview…

Who and what inspires you to create?
I come from a bit of a bohemian family background, so most people in our surrounding were involved in arts in one way or another. So going that career path was well supported, as long as you showed you worked very hard for it. I think creativity can be canalised in different ways, so it’s just a matter of what sort of craft you have some experience in and steer it that way. In my case that’s music, but that’s just ‘cause I put the hours in. I find creating stuff a fun way of spending my days on this planet, and super grateful people listen to my stuff, so I get the freedom to do so every day. I’m very aware I’m one of the lucky few, but I also think creativity is something you need to train like a muscle, ’use it or lose it’, so I try to make shitloads, just to keep it flowing. It goes without saying, most music I make goes into the bin straight away, and I just finish that 1% that’s not lousy.

How did you first begin producing?
In my bedroom as a teenager in the 90s. Back then there was no audio on computers, let alone plugins, so it was all with chunky equipment and their flaws. My sampler’s floppy drive was broken for instance, so as long as I was working on a track, I had to keep all my equipment switched on in my bedroom, which became smoking hot and probably a bit of a fire hazard. The learning curve was different without computers as well. It took me quite some years before it started to sound somewhat decent.

How would you describe your production style?
I’d say I write and produce rather freely and intuitively. I kinda make a lot, and whatever feels good or strong I continue with, despite the genre. In that sense making albums really suits me, as it gives a good platform to present a broad spectrum of music. I try not to repeat myself or others. Because of that, and my DJing, I do keep up with new music releases out there, but more to avoid the cliché’s and things other artists are already doing, than to try and get in line with any trendy sound of today. I’m way too stubborn for that – ask my wife!

How have you seen electronic music evolve during your 20+ years within the scene?
It’s always changing; genres, vibes and usually pretty cyclical. You don’t have to have a sociology major to get why people after a few Covid years are now into very fast and hard party techno. That goes on and on. After loud electro came minimal as a counter movement etc. Apart from genres, the industry itself is also constantly changing in a more rapid pace than ever from physical to download to streaming to NFT to AI; different social media platforms changing the lead position every other year – it all happened within the past 20 years. It was more straightforward being a musician halfway through the 20th century – your work life wouldn’t change that drastically over the decades. But now as a musician, you have to adapt or die to all those developments really. But I also find it a fascinating time to be involved in it.

Electronica is consistently rising in popularity – why do you think this is?
I suppose the sonic possibilities are just so endless. My father-in-law is a classical musician who feels electronic music lacks complexity in harmonic progressions and dynamics, and he doesn’t get it. I’ve also had my 20 years of classical training myself (I used to be a violin player), so I get his point. But with sound, timbre, we can take it anywhere in electronic music, really. Try that with a rock band or a string ensemble and it’s so much more tied to the limits of the instrumentation.

You’ve worked with some household names down the years, who has stood out to you?
Ooh that’s a tough one, because it’s not per se the biggest names that made the most impression, and I’ve had my share of collaborations and studio sessions. Roisin Murphy stood out in terms of sheer creativity in the studio. And two years ago I wrote something for a full symphonic orchestra (Metropole Orkest), which recording I’ll cherish as a memory. It was like flying a Boeing hearing 70 people play your scribbles.

You founded your own label, Animal Language – what provoked that decision?
I started it after I had quite a big record in the charts called “Exceeder” in 2007. Labels were pushing me to make as many copies of that as possible, while I – just like today – wanted to make a wide variety of things. So, I started my own label to have an outlet for the more stranger bits that I made, which I also wanted to give some daylight. We’re up to the 100th single release now.

What is the ethos of the company?
There’s no masterplan. None. Just the freedom to release whatever and whenever I want to release, whether that’s from myself or by some artist I like. And we throw the occasional guerrilla rave in and around Amsterdam from time to time, just for pure fun and without a plan either.

Congratulations on your new album! Where did the initial idea to create the record stem from?
The last few years I’ve been writing more and more pop music and doing recording sessions with all sorts of artists and musicians. At some point the amount of material stacked up and it felt right to slowly start thinking about an album and what that would look and sound like. Then it still took ages to get it all right, but if it was easy, everyone would do it. It’s a struggle and the crazy amount of hours is probably not worth it from a business perspective. But I love doing an album, it really suits me, and I like to think a group of fans might enjoy it.

What was the creative process of the LP?
Because I write so much stuff a lot of times I went into the studio with a vocalist, giving them 20 or so different instrumental vibes to choose from, just to get a writing process started. Afterwards, once a song is written, I can rearrange or change an instrumental completely. But it’s nice having some starting bits to get a session going.

What influenced you sonically?
I’m a sucker for pop music really, so long as it’s done right. And the area between electronic music / dance and pop can be quite a slippery slope. It can be so cheesy or in-cohesive. Apart from that, I’m more influenced by old music than with whatever is trendy today. I listen to lots of old disco, funk, afro and jazz and that all finds its way back into my studio, however subtle.

What do you hope to achieve with the album?
I’m grateful for any listeners really – I see it purely as a way to express myself and not as a career stepping-stone. It’s probably also why I don’t own a private jet by making these kinds of decisions. Apologies to my manager, but it’s the fun way.

What are your career goals?
I’d like to write and produce more for other pop artists. I’m doing my first legwork with it here and there, and that feels like a nice next chapter, besides doing my own Mason releases. There’s only so much output you can have as an artist, and I’m too productive for ‘Mason’ music only…

What’s to come from you next year?
Back to the circular thing: for me after all this pop stuff it feels right making some music for dance floors again, as I’m a DJ by heart. So, expect some of that next year. As well as a bundle of studio plugins I’ve made that will see daylight. And apart from that, we’ll see – whatever I feel like really