interviews

Benya

Hi Ben welcome aboard Trance Hub, how are you and what are you doing now?
Hi Guys! Thanks a lot, I'm glad to be here! Right now I just dragged myself out of bed after a night out to celebrate an exam well done. =)

So you will make planes in future? And how do you think you will manage producing and flight engineering as simultaneous careers?
Yeah, I'm currently about halfway done with my apprenticeship with SAS (Scandinavian Airline Systems) as a flight engineer or aircraft technician which takes 5 years all together. Of course I won't be able to produce full time but that has never been my intention either. So I'll be in the studio in my spare time after work, which has been working fine so far! I'm just glad I'm fortunate enough to be able to do exactly what I love: Planes and music! =)

And what is happening in your studio currently?
Lots of things actually! Just finished my newest "Benya" single that I'm trying to find a home for, but also new tracks with Marcie. Our best ones so far in my opinion so stay tuned for those!

Do you think your remixes are more popular than your productions?
That is sorta hard for me to tell. I should leave that up to the people who listens to them hehe. Though judging from the feedback I've gotten I should say that it's about 50/50. I enjoy doing both. =)

How did you meet singer Marcie? Both of you are making a mark in trance fraternity together – by producing tracks and doing a radio show. And how you both plan to take it ahead?
Marcie wrote me an email back in 2005 asking if I wanted to collaborate. I had heard her track Charayana – Liberation which I absolutely loved when I first heard it, though at the time I did not know that Marcie was the one behind the vocals. Needless to say I was absolutely thrilled to be able to work with her. Since then we have done lots of work together as we have a very good musical connection! We each know how the other works and are able to give important feedback as the process of creating a track goes along.
Marcie had this awesome idea for a radio show, called Behind the Lyric, about lyricists and vocalists talking about their tracks and how they came to life. A very unique and breath of fresh air to an oversaturated stream of radio shows out there today. Marcie has really done an incredible job of contacting and collecting and editing the speech from all the vocalists. Which is really a much harder job than people realize! I have the easy task of just mixing it together. We are almost ready to begin working on episode 5!

A question to ask you would be about your aliases. How do you use all of them and in what kind of productions?
Well my name is Benjamin which is pronounced "Benyamin" in Danish. So Benya and Yamin is actually just my name cut up! Also "Benya" is what everyone calls me in our daily lives outside music. When I first signed "Prometheus" to Coldharbour Recordings the name "Benya" was exclusive to Armada for a 3 track release. Which is why I had to use "Yamin" for other projects.

Markus Schulz has supported you a lot. Isn't it?
Yeah he really has and I wouldn't be where I am today if it wasn't for him! I am really grateful for that.

Will there be a time when we will see a track named as Markus Schulz featuring Benya something? Are you thinking of collaborating with other producers?
Hehe I would love to make a track with Markus! Though right now there aren't any plans to do so. I have a forthcoming track with Russian producer Santerna on Real Music Recordings, which includes an awesome Probspot remix!
Right now I don't have any plans to do more collaborations, though I've talked to many producers about it, but nothing solid has ever come out.

You don't DJ. Is it because of your studies you don't get time or is it something else?
I think the main reason is that I never learnt it! Many people start out as DJs and then start producing. For me it was the other way around, I started as a producer. And yeah, time is a big factor as well. I have a pretty busy schedule with my studies so producing is getting my main attention after that.

What do you think about while producing the tracks like Dione, Prometheus or the remix of "Armenian Sun"? And are these thoughts the same when you do something like, say with Marcie. "When Stars Align" is beautiful and the tune of "Know You" is amazingly brilliant too!
I've always been a sucker for atmospheric and emotional elements in music. I know that is a big influence to me. I don't really think about anything specific when producing. I just sit down and do what I think sounds good, trying out different ideas and synths and stuff. I work the same wether it's a remix, vocal track or something else... I love an epic breakdown and if it has vocals its even better!!!

Where did you party last time? And what music was played there?
Yesterday with some fellow classmates to celebrate that the Airframe & Avionic Systems exam is over! The music wasn't anything specific, just a random playlist of lots of different stuff. I remember we heard some Red Hot Chilli Peppers. I like those guys.

Which trance producers are you betting on in 2008?
I've heard lots of good stuff coming out lately from Chance Jumpers. They really have a nice progressive sound that I really dig. I think we will definitely see more to those guys in the future!

And how do you see 2008 as an important year for your music. Every trancer knows who Benya is and they like his music!
I think 2008 is gonna be great! I've produced some really solid tracks already that I think will do well. I hope that my Markus Schulz vs. Andy Moor – Daydream remix will be well received once released later this year on Coldharbour. And I have more tracks and remixes up my sleeve, that you should keep your ears tuned into! ;)

Mention few things to your readers that they don't know about you.
I really look forward to Starcraft 2!!!!! Like, I really can't wait for that game. When it comes out I will most likely lock myself away for months and turn into a caveman.
I really like beer, skydiving and Chinese movies like House of flying daggers, Hero etc. I used to be a Sergeant in the royal Danish artillery and I love meat!!!!!

At last, what message would you like to give to your readers?
Thanks for taking the time to read my interview! I hoped you enjoyed reading it and I hope you liked the mix as well. I didn't want to be über cool and play all the latest stuff, but rather a set with some of my personal favorite tracks! And thanks to Trance Hub for having me and keep up the great work!

For more info related to Benya check out the following links:
www.benbording.com
www.myspace.com/benbordingmusic

Written by: Apoorv
Compiled by: Mr. Yank