Steve Bug‘s relentless commitment to quality music — both in his own work and in the many producers he has championed — has made him one of electronic music’s true originals. As the world’s most revered artist and curator, along with his label Poker Flat Recordings, Steve Bug has always shown his dedication to the European house and techno scene. Resident Advisor once called Steve Bug the “gentleman of techno” referring to his sense of duty, dependability, and professionalism as one of the world’s most renowned DJs and producers.
Now, he returns to his own Poker Flat Recordings with what might be the ultimate summer jam. Entitled The Haze — a single with wobbly, low-slung acidic rollers. On the single, he also enlists the sizeable talents of Ali Love — a known member of the music band Hot Natured and the duo Infinity Ink. Ali Love has solidified himself as one of the most instantly recognizable voices in electronic music, working with a huge array of producers and releasing on leading labels such as Keinemusik, Defected, and Crosstown Rebels.
Hi Steve Bug, thank you for joining us and for wanting to share your techno journey. How has your 2022 been so far? If you could describe your 2022 journey in one word, what would that word be?
Interesting.
In the first half of the year, you teamed up with renowned vocalist and producer Mr. V, released a vinyl that was with long-time collaborator Cle, and now you’re enlisting new sizable talents of Ali Love for the new Single The Haze. How did you keep your personal life balanced with your professional life? What advice would you give to new DJs that are experiencing a full plate of music and business in the industry?
I think most importantly you have to be into it for the right reasons. If music itself is your passion, you will always find enough time. And it will never feel like working even if you’re working in the studio 16 hours a day for weeks. If you’re doing it just for the fame, or the money, you may find it rather difficult to keep up with things.
“I think most importantly you have to be into it for the right reasons. If music itself is your passion, you will always find enough time.”
Doing what you love will never feel like a chore, but a blessing.
Read Next: Camp Bestival Breaks Guinness World Record for Largest Disco Dance
How did you and Ali Love meet for The Haze? How did you two want the track to inspire your audience?
I am a big fan of Ali’s work for a very long time. But only when I came up with this tune, I felt it was right for a collaboration with him. So I got in touch, sent him the tune, and he liked it. After a few weeks, he sent me his vocal idea, and to be honest, at first, I wasn’t so sure since harmonically there is a lot going on. But when I listened to it the second time I fell in love, and I realized this is something rather special.
So we actually worked from different paces, and I don’t think we actually ever met. But we already said, if we’re ever doing another collab, we wanna be together in the same room, as certain things are much easier to achieve.
Read Next: 16 Of The Most Popular House Songs of All Time [1980 – 2022]
This industry requires a bulletproof mindset. You need consistency, discipline, and resilience. What has helped you stay positive during your artistic journey?
I’ve always been a positive thinker/person. Of course, I do have my ups and downs like everyone else, but in the end, I always try to see the positive things in everything. I mean there are a lot of things that are far from ideal in the electronic music world right now, and it might never change for the better, but there are also some amazing things happening, and I’m still able to do what I love the most — create and play music. So why not be positive about it? And on top of that, writing music has always been like therapy for me. That definitely helps as well.
“I do have my ups and downs like everyone else, but in the end, I always try to see the positive things in everything.”
Never let the negativities outweight the positivites. Always keep a humble mindset.
Anything else we can expect from you from here on out?
I am working on a lot of stuff right now, nothing I can talk about yet, but I’m super stoked about what’s coming…Oh, two things I can mention already, I did a remix for Bengoa to be released on Sublease Music, and I also did a remix for Whyostro — both to be released this fall.
Connect with Steve Bug: SoundCloud丨Facebook丨Twitter丨Beatport丨Instagram
