Solarstone - In Search Of Sunrise 20

September 2024 sees the release of the epic-in-every-respect six-disc/six-DJ ‘In Search Of Sunrise 20’ - a landmark electronic music release if ever there was one. At the rate of one a week, Black Hole will be unveiling the DJs chosen for this task. We’ll be talking to them about the facets of their mix and what the series has meant to them over the longer span of their career.

The first is Solarstone - an artist for whom the first natural question might be ‘how is this only happening now ?!!!’ As sure a fit for ‘In Search Of Sunrise’ as anyone, and an artist/producer for whom the term ‘Balearic Trance’ might very well have been coined, we dig into Solarstone’s mix with Rich below. Enjoy!

What was the first ‘In Search Of Sunrise’ album you heard or bought, Rich?

“That was Vol.3 – the one with Solarstone ‘Solarcoaster’ on it. I remember buying the CD! It’s funny how music can be autobiographical in that way.”

It truly is! Now, looking back across their tracklists, what would you say is your all-time favourite track that’s been compiled onto an ‘In Search Of Sunrise’ album?

“Without a doubt that would Andain ‘Summer Calling’ (Josh Gabriel Mix) – it precedes ‘Solarcoaster’ on Vol. 3. I love that track so much. I’ve toyed with the idea of remixing it, but I know that whatever I did could not touch the perfection of Josh’s version, so the exercise would be kind of pointless!”

The music of ‘In Search Of Sunrise’ is perhaps renowned for having less of a ‘sound’ and more a ‘feel’. How would you encapsulate that feel in three words?

“I think it is both a ‘feel’ an also a ‘sound’. So for me that’d be: ‘Balearic progressive trance’.”

Fair enough! Is there a track on your mix that summarises that best?

“It’s the whole thing. That’s the whole point of it, at least that’s how I feel. Setting a mood and letting it flow. Having said that, the Foxhill track captures the sunrise beautifully. Even the title ‘When the Morning Comes’ is perfect. I think Sam Foxhill is a really gifted producer.”

‘In Search Of Sunrise’ mixes are all about flow. How did you approach yours?

“I knew how I wanted this to sound from day one. Keeping the Balearic vibe throughout, progressive sounds, a gentle & natural slow build. I told the artists what the tracks were for, and they produced tracks perfectly for it. Anyone who knows the early ISOS albums understands my intention with this mix. But the flow takes some crafting, you need to step back from the mechanics of the mix from time to time – listen to the whole thing in the car, for example. When I listened to the first bounce of the mix, there was one track that had been signed & edited specifically for this album but then really stood out as not fitting. It was too ‘uplifting’ and knocked the flow off-course. This is something that usually happens with a compilation, and it can be very frustrating for the artist who made the track! I was dreading telling them that I had to remove it. The Solarcoaster remix by Aquarius then materialised in a very serendipitous way on the day I realised that I needed one more track. Polish 18-year-old producer Aquarius (who has released several times on my labels) sent me a demo of his Solarcoaster remix out of the blue – and it fitted perfectly in the space left by the other track, even in terms of BPM and key. That sounds like a huge coincidence, but it has actually happened several times before! By the way, there was a happy ending with the cut track - I offered it to a DJ mixing one of the other discs, and they loved it and included it. I was very relieved!”

Are there any exclusives, premieres, or purpose-built tracks on the Solarstone mix?

“Yes – all of them! I love my compilations to consist of brand-new music. Primarily this album needed to be new music from interesting artists designed for an ISOS album. I don’t think a mix like this should be an exercise in self-promotion, but people do expect a few of my own tracks to be on there, either new tracks or remixes from my back catalogue. They have to fit naturally though, not be shoe-horned in. On this one they are the Solarcoaster remix, the William Byrne remix of ‘When I Dream’ (William made the remix about a year earlier and I was saving it for a special occasion) & ‘Release’ which closes my mix. It’s one from 2003 that I always felt would have worked perfectly on an ISOS compilation, so I dug out the original stems and made a slightly different version for this project. Sean Tyas & Enigma state kindly made an alternative version of their brilliant track ‘Lately’ for this album – the fabulous ‘Azure Mix’. The very first track written specifically for the album was the wonderful ‘Majesty’ by Singapore’s Effen, the feel of that track was always going to be the ‘peak’ of the mix – just before the ramp down towards the end.”

Nice! Now was there one ISOS-oriented artist that you were particularly keen to have on your disc?

“Absolutely – that would be Orkidea! He has mixed a previous edition of ISOS & his music often has a Balearic vibe. ‘Dance Of Life’ is vintage Orkidea, a really brilliant track.”

You yourself are the owner of a compilation series that has reached ten outings. What’s the secret to longevity when creating a series?

“I suppose it is having faith in a concept and being consistent – releasing at the same time each year. Annoyingly we missed a year with the Pure Trance series, due to the pandemic. This year, when Arny from Black Hole asked me to compile a disc for this special edition, I knew that because of the amount of work involved (& other ongoing projects) it would be impossible for me to also mix a new Pure Trance compilation, so I chose to do In Search of Sunrise. Pure Trance Vol. 11 will happen in 2025 instead.”

A noble sacrifice! So, tackling the elephant in the room, musically, Solarstone would seem like the most natural of fits for ‘In Search Of Sunrise’. Is ‘Pure Trance’ what’s kept you away from ‘In Search Of Sunrise’ for so long !?

“It is!! I’ve discussed it several times with Arny, but for the last few years it was because I couldn’t commit to doing an ISOS alongside a Pure Trance album as well. I’m really pleased that it has finally happened.”

What’s the best Sunrise you’ve ever found !?

“Paula and I were in Costa Rica recently and we saw some good ones there from a little cabin high up in the jungle. Not that we stayed up all night to see them – we were woken each morning by the sun streaming through the window. Generally, having two kids, I prefer not to be woken up in the morning, thanks very much.”