Prev support from Solomun, Pete Tong, Joris Voorn, Eelke Kleijn, Blond:ish, Âme, Jennifer Cardini, Hammer; Beatport; DJ Mag ES; Spotify Melodic Souls, Deep Tech House, Anjunadeep Progressive House; Apple’s Adidas Runners Playlist, Anjunadeep Trance & House
Rose Ringed, still on a high from his recent remix of Reflekt’s UK #1 “Need To Feel Loved” supported by Pete Tong, Joris Voorn, Eelke Kleijn et al, is back on his own Closed Eyes Recordings imprint with multi-genre three-track EP Prism.
The Amsterdam multi-instrumentalist/DJ/producer raids melodic techno, house, euphoric trance, synthpop, to bring high-energy uplift but also deep emotion to ravers and listeners, after the tragic childhood loss of his beloved jazz ballerina mum caused the 11-year-old to seek comfort in the euphoria of his dad’s electronic music CDs – a catharsis he feels driven to share – and don’t we all need more joy? Hence his ever-higher support from fans and industry names alike; with Joris Voorn, he played B2B at his sold-out album live show, and the two released an EP together; as well as the Reflekt remix, RR also remixed ESTIVΛ’s “Snow Flower”, and played before Solomun (Hangar Brussels, 10k audience), Adriatique (OFF Sonar), and is booked for Tomorrowland and Mysteryland.
“Stands Still” (with Julia Adriana): choppy organ notes over a jumping house beat and a fast, high synth melody showcase Adriana’s voice – now layered, now solo in long, sustained notes of stunning clarity – singing of “those moments in which the world just stops, your thoughts spinning with you. The control needed for those extended still phrases is just incredible,” says Rose Ringed of his “friend and amazing talent”.
“All I Need” is a full-on blast of speed and joy, with diamond-sharp house beat, techno-ish acid upper bass, spare distorted “morse” melody, an insistent, poppy vocal riff, a big build breakdown bringing a trance drop which already has hands and energy through the roof in his DJ sets… Hard to pin down the genre but easy to feel the lift it brings.
“Big Bang”: a steady portentous build via a displaced beat with ratatat percussion, choral chords bringing gravitas, speeding up, the extended breakdown with frantic high siren synth notes, the drop, the BIG bang –woven from RR’s doodling of a rhythmic G in 3 octaves inspiring him to “keep a repetitive G throughout, developing and bursting into the final explosion. I found a chord progression to glide underneath that lead which brought the story I always look for in my tracks”.
Tracklist:
- Stands Still
- All I Need
- Big Bang
Prism is out April 12th on Closed Eyes Recordings. Listen here:
For more information about Rose Ringed, go to:
Website | YouTube | SoundCloud | Spotify
“As an artist I want to create openness and inspire people to connect to their emotions and deeper feelings again. I have to give the world more than I’ve been given.”
After Lydia introduced me to Dutch multi-instrumentalist Rose Ringed, I found myself completely absorbed. His sound is full of melodic techno, house, euphoric trance, and synthpop positioned to bring a high-energy uplift to ravers and listeners alike. He also explores and expresses deep inner emotions with his music. That’s what caught my interest. I decided to contact him for an interview to delve deeper into his career and sources of inspiration.
As I geared up for this interview, I anticipated something remarkable, and it certainly lived up to expectations. Rose Ringed proves to be an exceptional producer, embodying both professionalism and polish. Grab your favorite mug, tune in to Rose Ringed, and relish this exclusive interview experience.
How did you come up with the name Rose Ringed?
So, you have these green birds in Amsterdam city parks which look like parrots. I’ve always wondered why such tropical birds would live here and heard many different stories about their origin, they would’ve escaped from someone’s attic or the zoo the rumors said. I randomly decided to Google the story and typed in their species name in Dutch they are called halsbandparkiet. So, when I pressed enter on Google it showed the English translation Rose Ringed. And the first thing in my mind said, “That sounds like an artist’s name.” I immediately registered it on SoundCloud as my second account which focuses more on melodic/electronic sounds. I soon realized I made and put out the music on there which was more truly me and decided it would be my main artist’s name.
Tell me about your new multi-genre three-track EP Prism, out April 12th.
The Prism EP is an EP in which the three tracks differ a lot in color from each other. Hence the name Prism. I would say “Stands Still” had a deep red/purple color, it’s melancholic and powerful at the same time mostly because of Julia Adriana, her amazing voice bringing so much depth to the underlying chord progression I wrote.
All I need is more of a light blue/pink color, it’s energetic, open, and has some poppy vibes because of the vocals in there. This track worked on the dance floor every time I played it, especially when the big unison synth came in, all hands went in the air.
“Big Bang” has more of a dark blue/deep brown kind of color. It’s heavy on the groove, deep on the chord progression, and very powerful on the drop. To me it’s the most original track since the melody is there from the beginning until the end and it never gets boring, it’s just a G played in three octaves in a well-working rhythm, But the magic is in the development of the sound and in the underlying chord progression which brings it to life.
I’m curious about the thought process behind choosing those particular three tracks and putting them in that sequence. Also, do you intentionally organize your EPs, or do they sort of come together on their own?
I’m always thinking of a collection of tracks that fit together well on an EP, they should have some emotional background that connects them or should have a sound palette that matches. With this EP I did the opposite, the tracks have no emotional connection, and they are all very different in sound, I would say “Stands Still” is a trance track, “All I Need” is more of a poppy house track, and “Big Bang” is a melodic techno track. The thing they all have in common is having a powerful drop, and working towards a big climax, which is probably partly the core of my sound. And of course, every track has a big chord progression that lies in the heart of my productions.
Are you working on anything else this spring or are you planning a tour in support of the EP?
I’m working on a lot of stuff! There will be an EP together with Helsloot at the end of May and I will release a new EP with Joris Voorn’s label Spectrum Recordings in June. Also, I promised my album to come this year on the 14th of July, but I realized 2025 will be the year. To make up for my broken promise I will release a single on the 14th of July which might be a long-awaited track by many fans.
What’s the atmosphere like during a live performance? And how do you interact with your audience when performing live?
As a DJ, I always see myself as a servant of the crowd. They paid a fair amount of money to have a good time and I am there to deliver that. It’s always a pleasure for me when there are many fans, and it seems to grow more and more. Because of this, I can play more and more of my stuff because they are there for my music, which to me is just beautiful. My favorite moments are when I mix in one of my productions and people notice it and start cheering in the crowd.
Something I noticed over the past 2 years is that the interaction I have with the crowd works in synergy. When they are feeling it, I enjoy it more and start playing better and picking better tracks, and then the people notice this and get even more excited and then I get more excited and this feedback loop goes on and on. The best moment for me is when I think I found that “uniform” energy on the dance floor, when most of the crowd is aligned in the energy and emotions of that moment magic happens, and you would see this by the grin on my face.
What’s your creative process like? Do you find yourself sitting down with a yellow pad, or do song lyrics and beats often come to you more organically, perhaps even in your sleep?
Multiple answers to this but the base is almost always the same: I play piano every morning looking for unique chord progressions that hit me in some place. When I find one, I know: today I’m making something new. And then I also know, today you will write it until the point you have a full arrangement and as many as elements in place, and tomorrow you will have a relook and mix it as soon as possible. The closer you are to the point of the magic inspiration wave at the start, the better decisions you make and the less rational overthinking you apply.
It’s a funny thing you’re mentioning sleep because I’ve been waking up lately with so many crazy-amazing lively dreams that have this deep meaning of something that happened emotionally in my life. I tend to write good works after these dreams. For instance, the track “Stay With Me” is one of those, and remember what I wrote before about the 14h of July.
Hey, you’re crushing it on Instagram! Living your best life, for sure. I spotted a photo of you with Joris Voorn, one of my all-time favorite DJs. Where was that taken, and what was it like hanging out with such a legend?
Thank you! Joris is the humblest hard-working artist I’ve met in this industry so far, I don’t know anyone who releases as much, puts out many stellar DJ sets, develops his sound, and all that while being a dad too, and he is in the game for almost 25 years now.
So, Joris lives in the same street as I do, we are almost neighbors. (Laughs.) So, we chat around now and then and we were in the same agency in the Netherlands for a while. I’ve been sending him music for a while until one of the tracks named “Reconciliation” hit the ballpark. He invited me to his studio to work on the final mix of that track and that was an incredible inspirational session for me. Not because of certain tricks (of which there were many) but mostly about his perspective on certain details and elements, changing a hi-hat and a clap can have a huge difference on the groove and the overall feel of the track. I remember he deleted most of the processing I did, it was not necessary. Since then, I improved the mix, groove, and rhythm in all my productions so much more.
Back in 2018, when Kölsch featured your single “In Your Arms Again” on BBC Radio 1, were you aware that it was going to happen? If so, where were you when you received the news? The level of support from established DJs like Kölsch must have been incredible for someone who was still emerging in the industry.
This moment has meant so much to me. Mostly because it gave me the confidence, I’m actually capable of doing this thing called making music. I remember I was sitting in the middle of a meeting at my current profession at that time. I opened SoundCloud and saw all these comments coming in, my heartbeat raised so much. (Laughs.) I couldn’t believe it. I was quite naive at that time because I thought that would be the moment they would blow up and breakthrough. But more than the comments nothing happened, even while Kölsch told everyone that this is unsigned, and someone should sign it. But the biggest gift it gave me was this confidence I’m on the right path with my music. He knows I’m very grateful for that.
I’d love to hear more about Closed Eyes Recordings, your record label. Could you shed some light on the DJs you’re collaborating with besides yourself? Although I know you release your own tracks, I’m intrigued by the other artists you showcase.
For now, it’s just my releases, when my career is on a level at which I can give other artists the push they need I will start to release other people’s work. Also, I rarely receive the stuff I’m looking for, there are some producers right now who I appreciate in their approach, names like Romain Garcia and Lydsten both talented French producers. And closer to home I think Estiva and Helsloot make tracks that would suit my label really well.
It seems like every DJ has a radio show or podcast. You seem to be regularly featured on the Boom Room. Have you ever thought about having your own show? You know I’d subscribe!
Nice, so I’m certain I have 1 subscriber then. (Laughs.) I did think about that, but I feel SoundCloud is a bit on a downhill slope in terms of engagement and reach. A radio show would be something I’d like though, maybe somewhere in the future.
Living in Amsterdam sounds fascinating! I’d love to know, what are your go-to nightclubs for a great time in the city? And could you give me some insights into what daily life is like in the Venice of the North?
Depends a bit on your musical taste. I think lo-fi is one of the best true clubs now, and Het Sieraad is the best for my type of music (more melodic). If you like the clubby clubbing and strong community vibes there will be a new club called Club Raum which I think will be the successor of the recently closed De School Amsterdam.
I think the daily life of Amsterdam could be best described as friendly people who work Monday till Friday, drink lots of coffee, drink lots on the weekend, love festivals and when there is a single ray of sunshine, every terrace is packed. (Laughs.) What I love about Amsterdam besides its beautiful canals is its smallness, it doesn’t feel like a big city, and the neighborhood I live in feels like a little village.
What headphones are around your neck? And are you using something different on stage than what you’re using in the studio?
I use the DJ’s classic favorite Sennheiser HD 25 for DJing, I’m used to those and never had any problems with them so far. In the studio, I use Sennheiser HD 650 which I love, mostly because it’s open back which gives you a good stereo image.
How has your sound evolved over the years? And where do you see it going from here?
The core is still the same, big chord progression which I write on the piano, and high-energy tracks that have an emotional story in them (most of the time). I think what is changing more and more is my focus on rhythm and groove more and more. When I signed “Never Stop” on Diynamic Music I questioned myself: Why is this track signed? I realized all the elements fit together well and the whole track moves, and then finally this strong chord progression works its magic when everything around it is aligned and talks with each other.
So, for now I see my sound developing in that way, everything should work together in telling the story, and the fewer elements needed for this the better.
Do you enjoy the energy of big festivals, or do you find smaller, intimate performances more appealing?
I like both just as much, the thing I do prefer is being as close to the people as possible, no big distances. I want to high-five the people in the front when they want to, I did the same as a dancer too, high fiving the DJs when I was feeling it.
Of the three songs on the new EP, which is your favorite and why?
Trick question but I think “Stands Still” because I love Julia’s voice so much, I think the track is truly original with that big break repeating the hook 4 times, sometimes I thought it was too much but to me it captures the feeling, if you open up for it it cuts through to your heart.
I’ll continue to bring this up because, as a writer, teaming up with a DJ sounds like an exciting opportunity. If you’re interested in exploring this idea together, please let me know. It could lead to some enjoyable creative ventures!
I’m always open to collaborations, writing is a creative field on its own! I will think about something and let you know.
This conversation has been fantastic. I appreciate you opening up about your new EP. Is there more you can tell me about it? Also, I’m curious to know what your vision is for your sound moving forward.
The best way to talk about it is for everyone to listen to it. In the end, I think whether someone likes a song or not is always subjected to someone’s personal life. I would recommend everyone to check out Julia Adriana’s Instagram and follow her, I think she will be really big in the future. I hope the collab with her would be something like what Disclosure and Sam Smith did with “Latch”. They collaborated with Sam before he was as big as he is now, I hope the same will happen with Julia.
Thanks again, man. In all the interviews I do, I always give the artist the last word. Go.
Well, I think I said plenty of stuff already but let me end with the advice my mom always gave me. Always follow your heart, it will lead you down the right path.
