An Evolving Superstar: Our Exclusive Interview with Julian Calor

by JP Hadley · Published January 27, 2016 · Updated February 1, 2016

The success that Dutch young gun Julian Calor has experienced so far is rare. At 21 years of age, he has already released countless singles like “Typhoon” and “Power,” as well as his debut studio album, Evolve. He has also traveled the world as a DJ, having just toured Asia alongside Manse and Kill the Buzz. Julian Calor shows no signs of slowing down in 2016, as he has already premiered his next single, “Revive”. We got the chance to talk inspiration, the Evolve album, the future of the music industry and more with Julian Calor. Check it out, and enjoy!

Where do you find your inspiration as an artist?

In a lot of things! Next to artists like Deadmau5 and Wolfgang Gartner, I can also find inspiration in movies, documentaries and even YouTube videos. Recently I found inspiration in a 2 hour long documentary about Star Wars – random things like that can be big sources! As well as this, watching the progress of other artists in every artistic medium can really motivate me.

How long did it take to sink in that you had been signed as a Revealed artist?

It was unreal at first, but then I immediately thought about making more and more music. It was a big motivation and confidence boost for me, because I knew that this was a great opportunity for me to build a career as a musician!

What do you think the advantages of releasing an album so early in your career were?

It was a way to get my more experimental tracks out on a release, and in a way let people know about my other influences. From that point on, I wanted to show everyone all the different kinds of music that I like to make.

If you could give a younger Julian Calor a piece of advice, what would it be?

Learn to play an instrument! Sometimes I regret that I didn’t learn to play an instrument when I was young. I think piano or guitar would fit well with me, because those instruments are good starting points to making melodies… It’s never too late to learn though.

Was it difficult to write your music when you knew it had to fit the “Evolve” album?

Not really, a lot of the tracks were already done when we had the plan to release an album. The last tracks I worked on for the album were the most experimental. “Sorcerer,” “Pace” and the Interludes for example. That’s because it needed to be something bigger than only a compilation of some random tracks. It needed some storytelling… All the titles of the tracks are linked together and serve as puzzle pieces for the bigger picture, which is called ‘Evolve’.

How do you manage to balance the hectic schedule of being a DJ and producer?

When I’m touring, I always produce on my laptop with headphones. I started producing music this way, so it’s not strange for me. At the moment, I don’t have such of a hectic schedule. So every day I can spend as much time in the studio as I want! Which is great ☺︎

What is your favourite part of touring?

My favourite part is when the reaction of the crowd to my music is good. That feeling is so great and euphoric!
My second favourite part is visiting all the beautiful countries. And with that comes all the good food. During the Asia tour we had so much amazing food to eat!

Do you think that the divide between genres will continue to shrink in 2016?

Yes it will, and I think that’s a really good thing. I hope that there will be more “music fans” rather that “genre fans,” more open mindedness about genres. It can really frustrate me to read comments on the social media pages of DJ’s that they must make a certain type of music. “Stick to this,” “keep making that”. DJ’s (and producers) are supposed to be the trendsetters, the people who show the listeners what’s new. And not what’s already been made.

What was your favourite DJ performance as you look back at 2015?

This is a really difficult one. Creamfields, Summerfestival and RFM Somni were great. But my choice will be Tomorrowland, I think. That feeling when the whole crowd was going nuts while I played all my new stuff. Just awesome!