Still Searching: RB Talks Trance With Richard Durand

In the 11th installation to the trance establishment that is In Search Of Sunrise, producer/DJ Richard Durand puts in a great effort for the ISOS franchise each year, looking for way to progress the hollowed album covers to that next city or country that inspires the world wide trance family.

“It takes months and months,” says Durand. “We start talking to producers that we feel may have promising ISOS material in the works 4 months before the release. They send in their tracks and demoes, of which we get around 800 every year… Then I work this down and down to a shortlist of 100 tracks.

“Then we start testing tracks out in the mix, seeing how they’ll flow into each other and how they might develop and add to the overall feel of each mix. At the end I have the final shortlist and work begins a proper on the final mixes. It’s a very involved process!”

Combining the sheer number of tracks with the mood and the vibe that ISOS is known for makes choosing each individual track a difficult feat. Ever since Durand took the reins in 2010 with In Search Of Sunrise 8, he’s run with the idea that he could define an entire year’s worth of trance music in a single album.

“It all depends on what you get offered at that time that the selection takes place. One year you get a heavier set of tracks and other years it’s more vocal orientated or melodic, etc,” Durand says. “The variation and differences are in that music in general keeps changing.

“You look for a balance between what you stand for and what the ISOS name stands for,” says Durand. “I didn’t know how the audience would react, but I have to say that they surprised me, and in the best possible way. So now at the start of each year, it’s one of the things I look forward to most.

“In the past a city has been used so it seemed fun to choose Las Vegas. Vegas came to mind straight away because I think its one of the leading cities in the world of EDM. Its full of energy with parties every day and clubs where the biggest names in the world are performing. Its very inspirational to be there and, crucially, it also has an exceptionally beautiful sunrise!”

Incidentally, Las Vegas leads the electronic dance charge for a country that brimming with new talent and new love for the genre.

“I don’t think the peak has been reached yet. It’s still growing quickly, especially around the house scene,” Durand says. “The money involved is really huge, and you can see that a lot of pop/R&B artists are making side steps into EDM because the public really likes it. I think that the market share is even bigger than country music and for America that’s is saying a lot!”

As of now, ISOS is still a force in the trance world, pushing a vision that Tiësto had back in 1999. Richard Durand fully intends on keeping its status as the global force in the ever changing winds of electronic dance.

“I am always open to new ideas, just like music is always changing you have to look at the concept and see if it needs to be changed. I am very happy with the result at the moment, so I don’t foresee anything that needs to be changed up just yet!”