Interview with Freejack
Hello... It's me again... Why do we decide to make music or code. What is the main reason. For me and a lot of other people it's to a) Get their Music/Code released and b) Make Money. 90% of the time this does not happen but I'm talking to a guy who has been fortunate and not only had his music released on a label but it's a bloody good label... Deal.
Jack Molenschot works under the name Freejack and unlike most famous musicians he's a decent bloke. 21-year-old Jack lives in the town of Dordrecht, which is in the Netherlands. He remixes famous Dutch artists like Marco V and Benjamin Kuyten and Vincent De Moor and gets Paid For It!
He used to be in famous tracker group Explizit and worked as Thunderbass. He produced Gabber & Hardcore music mostly. After Explizit finished he joined Blacktron music and released more trancey tunes. Well they are much better now. :)
We'll see what he has to say.
Louk^CPU: Hello Mate, what made you decide to make music in the first place?
Freejack: I always loved electronic music. When I was a little kid I listened to synthesizer music like Vangelis. When i grew up I began listening to the first house tunes which had much influences from those old synthesizer tunes. I thought, I can make that kind of music too. So I tried to make some tunes with one of the first trackers, ModEdit. I thought is was a very cool thing to do, and I had the feeling and rhythm to produce good stuff. So the main thing is I grew up with house music and that's why I nowadays know how to make a quality track in that kind of music style.
Louk^CPU: Which artists do you like and how long have you been producing for?
Freejack: I made my first tunes back in 1991. On the professional level I make music since 1996. I like all kinds of trance music. From the deeper sounds of L.S.G. to the beautifull riffs from Ferry Corsten and tektrance from Mauro Picotto. I don't have a favourite producer, i just get my inspiration from all kinds of trance music.
Louk^CPU: What equipment did you use back then and now?
Freejack: I formerly used all kinds of trackers including ModEdit, ScreamTracker and ImpulseTracker. But on the professional level you can't make the trance from now with just some samples. I missed FAT sounds, effects, clear samples with a tracker. So i decided the step over to MIDI. I don't use much equipment to make the tracks I release on Vinyl today. Here follows my setup:
- Yamaha mu90r
- Roland JP8000
- Yamaha AN1x
- Topaz SoundTracs 14chn Mixer
- Studio Monitors
- SoundBlaster Live!
- Zoom Multi-FX Processor
- Cakewalk Pro Audio 9.0 sequencer
- lotsa samples :)
Louk^CPU: What was your first production (including tracked tunes)?
Freejack: I forgot which tracker tune was my first one. And I don't care, it's just some crappy 4chn happy hardcore tune I think? Not relevant. My first Vinyl though, was a German hardtrance style ScreamTracker tune called Sunburst. It was released on a label called Tesseract Records under Freejack.
Louk^CPU: And what is your latest?
Freejack: My latest release is called 'Coruscate', released under the nickname Celesta on Warner's Impetuous label. It's an old track of mine which is remixed by Prototype and Alpha Breed as well.
Louk^CPU: Do you still make gabber and hardcore music?
Freejack: No, I don't like it anymore. I'm only into Trance nowadays.
Louk^CPU: You ever met anybody who you've remixed?
Freejack: Not yet. But I'm really looking forward to meeting Vincent de Moor.
Louk^CPU: How much do you charge for remixes usually?
Freejack: That depends. Sometimes I asked about 2500 guilders (about £600). I'm only a beginner so when I grow in the scene I can ask more for a remix.
Louk^CPU: Which is your favourite production?
Freejack: My favourite is a track which is going to be released end of this month (May / begin July) also on Impetuous. It's called S'Envoler, which is french for 'FLYING'. I'm going to use a new nick for this title because it's so different from my former Impetuous releases. So watch out for 'JM - S'Envoler'.
Louk^CPU: Where do you get your samples from?
Freejack: Sample-CDs, rips from modules, midi equipment, Vinyl, CDs, the Internet! Just everywhere. :)
Louk^CPU: Do you reckon you're better than Alphabreed? :)
Freejack: Alpha Breed and me are pals for a long time. We grew up together in the tracker scene from the beginning and we have the same taste in trance. We have learned and still learn much from eachother. But I don't prefer my own tracks. Sometimes I think an Alpha Breed is awesome but also sometimes I prefer a track I made myself.
Louk^CPU: What are 3 tips you'd give to people making music?
Freejack: 1) Listen to full-length 12" versions and try imitating the build-up and usage of the various sounds to learn making music. 2) Be careful with contracts. Let them be read by people who can help you making your contract better. 3) Compress your samples! You will notice your samples will sound ten times better in your mix, definitely the bassdrum.
Louk^CPU: Has fame affected you in anyway?
Freejack: I don't have the feeling I'm famous or something. I only know my tracks are selling quite well and they are on a whole lot of compilation CDs. But I don't get much feedback from people who love my tracks which will give me a feeling of being someone!
Louk^CPU: Would you like to tell me 5 web sites you visit regularly?
Freejack:
www.news.be
www.idp.nl
www.moxmusic.com
www.combinedforces.com
www.vincentdemoor.com
Louk^CPU: What is your top 10 this month?
Freejack:
01) Kid Vicious - Paraphrase [Tsunami]
02) Subtle by Design - Sirius (tiesto rmx) [Xtranova]
03) The Digital Blonde - Electa [Free-for-all]
04) System F - Lost In Emotion [Tsunami]
05) Transa - Astro Dawn [Hook]
06) L.S.G. - Risin' [Superstition]
07) Andy Ling - Fixation (Silvio ecomo rmx) [Hooj choons]
08) Airwave - Alone in the Dark [Bonzai]
09) Aurora - Hear You Callin' (en-motion rmx) [Positiva]
10) Inkfish - Lost (transa rmx) [Limbo]
Louk^CPU: Do you keep your studio tidy ?
Freejack: My studio is in my bedroom. Because I'm a boy my room is a real mess.
Louk^CPU: Thanks. You'll probably be even more famous now!!
Freejack: Thanks to you too, and all my "fans" out there!
Freejack - Sunburst [Tesseract] 1997
Freejack I - Elevation [Deal] 1999
Freejack II - No Promises [Deal] 1999
Freejack III - Revenant [Deal] 1999
Vincent De Moor - Between 2 Fires (Freejack Remix) [Combined Forces]1999
Nowa Nowa - Free Again (Freejack Remix)[Vision]2000
Freejack IV - Emphatic [Deal] 2000
Celesta - Swirl [Impetuous] 2000
Cryo Culture - Trancefusion (Freejack Remix) [Impetuous] 2000
Celesta - Coruscate [Impetuous] 2000
Vincent De Moor - Eternity (Freejack Remix) [Combined Forces]2000
Marco V and Benjamin - Threshold (Freejack Remix) [Lube] 2000
Future Vibe - Entity [Lube] 2000
JM - S'envoler [Impetuous] 2000
He's got some unreleased tunes as well so if you ask nicely you might be able to get an mp3 copy of them.
Email him on t-bass@dds.nl.
Loukas/CPU
ICQ 10656547