DJ Interviews 31, 33

LOST FREQUENCIES

With two Lost Frequencies DJ sets scheduled in Alpe D’Huez, there’s a lot to look forward to for his fans at Tomorrowland Winter 2022. During the quiet few years that are now finally behind us, Felix De Laet made a ton of new music so he’s got plenty of previously unplayed stuff to choose from. All of it has that melodic trademark Lost Frequencies vibe to it, but on top of the four to floor stuff we’ve come to know him for he’s also got some exciting new work with light trap and drum & bass rhythms. So what’s this Belgian wonderchild looking forward to this week?

So Tomorrowland Winter is finally happening again. How do you feel about it?

It's crazy because they only did one edition three years ago and then the pandemic happened. I’m going with friends and family this year and I’m incredibly excited about it. fun in the snow. Playing live stresses me out way more than DJing and it requires much more preparation. So I’m quite happy to be DJing this time! But silently I’m really looking forward to the LIVE Shows. I’ve just announced my new Live tour in the USA & Europe. I’ll be doing 23 dates in all key cities from New York to Paris and back to Brussels.

You’ve played Tomorrowland Winter back in 2019. Can you tell us something about that experience?

Well you’ve got ski stations but nothing is normal. Everywhere you look, there are Tomorrowland people. Everyone is in a good mood, so you’re just chatting to others in the ski lifts and you share the festival vibes, it’s really cool.

You’ll be playing the Mainstage as well as the smaller Chantebise stage. Do you have different plans for both sets?

My first set on the smaller stage will definitely be different from the one on the Mainstage. I’m not sure how yet, I haven’t totally thought that through yet but I’ve got so much new material to play around with that people can be sure to see two very different sets.

Do you think a lot about the balance between quieter melodic moments and super energetic moments in your sets?

Yes I do. I always try to play as much of my own music as possible. Not only during my live sets but also as a DJ. That’s how I try to make my sets stand out. I also have different versions of my own tracks. I might sometimes play the quieter original versions and then play a much more energetic version of the track later when I feel the crowd is ready for it.

You’ll be DJing at Tomorrowland Winter but you often perform live as well. Have you found the right balance between the two formats?

I like doing both. When I’ve DJ’d a lot during a certain period, I’m usually looking forward to performing live again and vice versa. Tomorrowland Winter is perfect for DJing as it is easier to combine with leisure activities such as having

You've slowly but surely become one of the world’s biggest producers on the crossroads of electronic music and pop music. Did you have aspirations to reach this level of professionality when you were younger?

It never crossed my mind. I didn’t expect this to happen at all. I have always just been making the music I love and people just "Definitely check out happened to like it. So far, my fan base just keeps growing and growing. But I really need to stay calm every little stage, because and do my thinking and talk to the people close to me, so Tomorrowland always I don’t get lost in this world. It is important to keep doing different stuff from what everybody else is doing. comes up with Does your growing status as an artist have an crazy stuff." influence on the way you make music? Yes and in a good way. In the past I would often get sent music by collaborators. Semi finished stuff. It’s like when you remix something. Parts of the music are already there. Now the general process has changed to my favour: I work with artists in the studio and we start from scratch. I can ask someone to play a part this or that way. It means I have much more influence on the creative process which is really fun!

Do you have any tips for people who are here for the first time?

You can do three things. You can go for nothing but the music, you can ski or snowboard non-stop or you can mix both things up. The mix has my preference. When I’m DJing, I’ll be in bed late of course but when I’m not I’ll try to get some sleep so I can do some skiing in the morning. What you definitely must do is check out every little stage, because Tomorrowland always comes up with crazy stuff. Don’t settle for your favourite stage before you’ve checked out all of