Having dug in deep to familiarise ourselves with the lineup, we’ve become particularly intimate with the progressive trance music of Danish producer Morten Granau. In keeping with the hallmarks of the genre, Granau’s compositions forgo instant melodies and exaggerated builds in favour of long builds and subtle breakdowns. His tracks tend to clock in at around eight minutes, and there’s no denying that several hours – if not weeks – worth of labour goes into generating prog-trance with such precision and balance. However, despite this, Granau’s creative stamina isn’t under threat.
“To be honest, for me it’s not a problem,” he says. “I enjoy making music. At the moment I’m working in the studio and travelling a lot around the world.”
Although Granau made his name as a solo artist, he’s also regularly involved in collaborative productions. Recently, he hit the studio with two talented producers from Israel called Royal Flush. “They really are very inspiring to work with,” he says. “I can’t say too much just yet, but the collaboration has been going great so far. I can say that you can definitely expect some kick and bass.”
Another recent collaborative development is the label 432 Records, which Granau formed with three of his best mates. “The label is something I started with Phaxe, Joel and Martin Vice and it’s going really well,” he says. “Our first release, Phaxe and Morten Granau The Collective, was number one on the global Beatport chart for more than a month. So that has been a really good framework to build up from and it’s just been expanding from there on in.”
In spite of his various commitments, Granau hasn’t let his solo work fall by the wayside. Just two months ago he unleashed the single Multinomial, which follows last year’s effort Polynomial. When it comes to working alone versus teaming up with other artists, Granau has no clear preference.
“Sometimes it’s better to work alone and sometimes it’s better to work with others,” he says. “It really depends on the scenario and the collaborator. Everybody has their own way of producing, so the good thing about working with other producers is that you always learn new production tricks.”
Granau will no doubt demonstrate some of the new tricks he’s learned when he arrives down here in November. Having visited Oz a number of times previously, he’s more than a little bit eager to return. “This will be my first time at Earthcore and I’m really excited,” he says. “I’ve heard so many good things about the festival, and from what I’ve seen it looks like an awesome event.”
A year-round traveller, Granau is well acquainted with the attitudes and behaviour of audiences around the world. Over the years, Australian audiences left an especially favourable impression on the Copenhagen native. “The Aussie’s for sure know how to party,” he says. “It’s one of my favourite countries to play in. One thing I have noticed when playing in Australia is they are much more into organic sounds, and not these small breaks all the time.
“They sure like to dance,” he adds. “I can confidently say that Australia is definitely one of the craziest crowds on the global scene.”
BY AUGUSTUS WELBY AND LUKE MCNAMARA
