KOLONIE Spins Trance Tunes to Showcase the Sound of London

After releasing a flurry of trance tracks to kick the year off in style, KOLONIE swung by to chat and show us the sound of London with a mix!

Although last year was rough for artists in the dance music scene around the world, the beats that they continued to churn out kept everyone dancing – and one of the artists who did just that was KOLONIE. Having already gained some serious momentum over the past few years with tracks like 2019’s “Polaroid” and “Reasons,” along with 2018’s “Expanse” with Dezza, while also releasing remixes and taking the stage at festivals like ASOT, the future was bright.

Pressing on in 2020, KOLONIE dropped a number of tunes like “Inception,” “Paradigm,” “Light Me Up” with Julie Thompson, and a remix of Craig Connelly’s “California” that is simply divine. Now, with the new year in full swing, he has continued to press on with some seriously surreal soundscapes for trance family members to explore. “Way Of Life” arrived at the beginning of 2021 on Avanti while “Astral” found a home on Magik Muzik. But that’s just the tip of the iceberg as KOLONIE has a fresh single dubbed “Unified” that’s due out on April 9 via Paul van Dyk’s VANDIT Records and is sure to ignite a fire inside anyone who listens.

Looking to gain some extra insight into his experience last year, some of his favorite spots in London, and more, we caught up with KOLONIE for a chat. So listen to this exclusive mix from KOLONIE to get a much-needed dose of trance, read on for the conversation, and stay tuned for more to come from him in the rest of 2021!

Stream This Is Home 019 || KOLONIE [London] on SoundCloud:

Hey Kane, thanks for chatting with us today. How have you been holding up over the past year?

Hi Guys, it’s always good to catch up, thank you for your time. Surprisingly not too bad, I’ve always been a very optimistic person and I think that’s definitely helped me stay positive throughout the past year. I think today’s society complain far too much and forget how good we have it in the west!

London is a true world city with a vibrant dance music scene across a range of genres and styles. What is your favorite part about living there?

I’m fortunate enough to have visited many major cities across Europe and a few in the US, but one thing I love about London is how compact everything is. For example, you could go for a nice meal in the West End, jump on the tube, travel a few stops, and end up somewhere with a completely different vibe. It doesn’t really matter where you go in London you can always find something to do. You could visit some of the tourist attractions along the South Bank, then walk for 20 minutes and be on Oxford Street to do some shopping.

Clubs like Ministry of Sound, Fabric, Printworks, and Egg are renowned for the experience they bring. Where are some of your favorite places to go to catch a show when you’re not spinning?

It really depends what sort of vibe I’m looking for, the big clubs are known for bringing international talent but if your looking for local DJ’s and a more underground scene there are some great smaller venues in places like Shoreditch or Hoxton such as 93 Feet East and Village Underground to name a few.

Picture this: It’s post-pandemic and we’ve all just left the club after catching you spin another epic set. Where are we heading to grab a late-night bite to eat and what are you ordering?

I’d have to say the bagel shop on Brick Lane, its open 24/7 and is well known across the world for its salt beef bagel, highly recommended after a night on the beers!

Something that dominated headlines on both sides of the Atlantic was how it affected the local nightlife scene. What are your thoughts on the lockdown measures that were put in place?

I’m a bit skeptical about the lockdown measures if I were to be completely honest, we’ve had a full lockdown here in the UK and COVID-19 rates seem as bad as the US, but yet again what do I know, I’m no scientist. [Laughs]

The UK government hasn’t done enough to support the music industry here in the UK, I just hope enough venues can pull through, especially the smaller ones that have received little to no support. Also, many pubs, which have been part of British culture for as long as I can remember and have been struggling for years, unfortunately, have a difficult time ahead and I can’t see many pulling through.

While many artists have expressed that they’ve struggled to be creative, you’ve released tunes like “Way Of Life” and “Astral.” How have you pressed on to create some magical soundscapes during this time?

I find simple things such as getting outside can really help, whether it be for a walk, bike ride, basically just do anything to take yourself away from the studio environment and reset the mind. I try to limit distractions as well, especially from social media and my phone.

Finally, what are some goals you hope to achieve in 2021? Can you share any details regarding some new tunes in the near future?

Due to the pandemic and because Europe was locked down, last year I held back releasing music. I felt without clubs being open tracks would get lost or be wasted. This year there will be a consistent flow of new Kolonie material every 4-6 weeks, I have a track coming on Paul van Dyk’s Vandit Records on April 9th which I’m really excited about. Put simply the goal for 2021 is to be consistent.