Question : Time to go back to the essence: what made you fall in love with dance music and what was it that made it so appealing?
Well, the birth of PUSH goes back into 1995, when i produced music for an Antwerp based record company called “USA IMPORT RECORDS”.
Back in the days i was so in love with the so called RAVE side of dance music.
Harder beats, fast and driven, and so was the first release of PUSH actually.
It was released in 1995 and was called “Acid Hysteria”.
Very acid-core influenced, later on perfectly done by the likes of Kai Tracid.
Then 2 years later, back in 1997 when i joined Bonzai Records, i was touched by Trance coming out of Germany by Oliver Lieb, Taucher ... and all that other stuff from labels like Low Spirit,
that i though it was time to give PUSH a new twist.
And I think, the rest is history.
Question : How did you ever came up with the Push alias, and why did you started working with so many in the end?
Like any other alias i come up with, just a feeling and an adaptation to the music i make.
In previous interviews, I’ve always explained that it all depends on how i feel, what i produce in the studio, and at the end of the day, what i come up with.
Trance, techno, house, whatever, my titles and projects are carefully chosen, it’s very important for me that every project keeps it’s identity.
Question : You did cut down on most of the aliases to concentrate on a certain sound. Did you never have the idea you were producing too much in too many different sounds/styles?
Yes i did actually, especially now.
In this time and climate of the music scene, and considering the new edm generation, it causes confusion.
Back in the days it was easier to come up with a new sound or style and combine all at once.
Today, it seems you need a formula to stand out, and I seriously don’t like that.
I stay true to what i feel and what i should do and that’s making music I enjoy in clubs or even in my car, or home it’s about being versatile.
Question : It was 1998 when you had your first real global hit, with 'Universal Nation'. How do you look back upon that time?
It was very unexpected, it was actually a B-side of one of my 100 other aliases.
Until Bonzai, my former record company called me in the office after i first handed the demo, and they told me this could be some serious stuff.
I still wonder how one track like Universal Nation, done in 4 hours, on a Wednesday afternoon, could ever become history in the world of trance and beyond.
I remember first hearing it being played by PVD at the Berlin Love Parade in 1998, when i saw the crowd going crazy, that was a massive feeling!
Question : A few more massive hits followed. Do you think that you'll ever top those past successes?
After Universal Nation came ‘Till We Meet Again’, ‘Strange World’, ‘The Legacy’, all of which managed to top the International charts, going into the Top 20 UK charts and bringing me into the Top Of The Pops show on BBC.
I feel there will be a time again when i can come up with the missing link between the mainstream scene and that what people are waiting for.
I always say to my friends and family, like stated in the bible, there are 7 rich years, then the next 7 years are poor, and the next 7 will go back to where it belongs, we’ll see.
Question : What, do you think, makes that Push guise more interesting than all the other guises you've been using?
This is the real MIKE , this is me.
PUSH is and will always be my baby.
This project is really who i am, how i feel and how i see the world and what is next.
This new album was in my head the past 5 years, i just didn’t have the time to start it off, till November 2008 i felt i was ready for it.
After my Bonzai years it was hard to strive to a new sound and direction of which I wanted to go to.
But i feel this album is right.
Question : Global Age is about to be released, how have the reactions been so far?
Actually, I don’t know. I have been working with a team on promotion, along with my other productions keeping me busy, so it’s difficult at the moment to catch up with reactions.
I do know that Armada is really positive about it, and that Maykel and Sander (A&R) where stunned when i showed up in the office with a full album ready to go.
They know it’s a legacy, and I'm not trying to bring a pop trance album, but dance music that brings a story and an adventure throughout the two cd’s.
This album is really me and it’s just a continuation of where i stopped back in 2004 when Electric Eclipse came out.
There will always be criticism by those who are stuck back in time, but I want a fresh blended sound that can flow easily into what is now. And I feel more than content to let it be!
And while the old-school PUSH fans can understand my music and value of it, it’s also good to have gained a new generation of fans.
Question : We've also got 'This Place' out this week. Could you tell us a bit about the track?
It is the first ‘on-it’s-own, PUSH vocal track.
In the past, I’ve done a collaboration with Sunscreen and thought to give it a go once again!
So I came across Adrian - vocalist I met thru Markus Schulz for a mashup “The Space We Are”- and contacted him, and he was instantly up for it.
He really has a great voice. People shouldn't look at this track for playing it out loud in the prime of a club night. That’s why we created different mixes, of course.
This is what the outlook of ‘GLOBAL AGE’ is about, the album is so much more, and my true fans know and will hear that.
Question : What's all going to happen now, in the upcoming months? Could you tell us about a possible release-party, about your tour, etc???
There is the massive release party coming up in Ministry Of Sound for The Gallery Night on the 26th of June, a 45min full PUSH Live experience.
Then a special 45 min show case in Belgium at Tomorrowland - end of July.
There are 6 other shows planned, in Europe and my first ever PUSH Live performance in the United States, San Francisco, Las Vegas, Miami and more...
And for more exclusive news, the new upcoming single will be released along with the album in June and will be called “Infinite” , and trust me, this is PUSH in full effect, pure trance club food.
Free PUSH tracks are scheduled for this summer, that’s right...just check out MIKE.BE once and a while!
And for now, I’m off to my new studio again, working on some remixes and the new PUSH single for June...see ya!
