ARUNA – Sunrise (Remixes) {Review + Interview} [Enhanced Music]

We have a special treat today! As a follow-up to our recent Interview with ARUNA, she was willing to give her comments and thoughts on the process of Sunrise (Remixes) from Enhanced Music. This remix package was just released so make sure you check them out! There are 5 remixes in the package: Daun Giventi: Trance, Dynastrax & Partykillers: Progressive House and chugging bassline, Kayoh & ARUNA: Future Bass, Specialist Sound: Drum and Bass, Kue: Deep House with aggressive drop.

ARUNA talked about the original Sunrise song: That song was actually written in the same room with…I don’t know if I should say who. He blew up big time since then but he was not known in EDM at all when we worked together, although he had a very very big track in the pop world. So he decided he wanted to come into the EDM world but had hadn’t released anything yet. He was still finding his sound, and so we did this track together. And then he decided he wanted to go in a much harder direction. So he decided he didn’t want this song, it was too poppy I guess, for what he wanted. So I was like cool, so I took the topline back, and basically made it mine. And the lyric is just like, it has a similar theme to Live Forever. It’s talking about how hard life can be and you feel trapped in it. And then you have these moments where you are with somebody lets say, in a club environment. You know when I write I get these images in my head, and I sort of keep that image and I write inspired by that. So I try to write in a very visual way, almost like a movie. But still somewhat abstract. So the first verse is “here we are, dancing in the dark in a crowded room, I don’t want to talk,” I sort of had this visual about two people being in a club and just engrossed in each other in that moment. And just wanting to run away with that person to somewhere beautiful, happy, euphoric even. It’s not the most original concept in the world but it’s very universal.

She talked about working on Sunrise with Aerosoul: So that was another one that I kind of jumped in on. And so because it has such a summery feel to it, I really wanted to incorporate some of the deeper, and more tropical elements into it. So basically at a certain point, it became obvious that it would just be easier for me to do it. So I said, okay tell you what, send me the stems, and I’ll do everything else. So he sent me the stems for what he had, which was a lot. He finished the track, but it just felt like it needed some more polish, some more detail, some more fairy dust. So I added this M1 organ type bassline in the drop, that gives a much more deeper house feel. And I added this xylophone melody in the second half of the verse, that creates momentum and kind of builds, and gives more tropical flavors. Music is all about association, so if you can throw some things in there that will bring people’s minds to that more tropical type place, then that’s all you need to do. It’s just small little references. I think I added some more vocal stuttery stuff, so both drops are different. And I put vocoder, I love vocoder, I put vocoder in every song. That gave it a really cool flavor. I didn’t have a lot of interaction with him to be honest. He just sort of ran with it, and then came back with this thing and I was like wow this is actually really good. It just needs a push in this other direction.

Daun Giventi Remix:

My Thoughts: This remix has a hard intro that grabs your attention immediately. When the vocals come in, this gentle piano accompanies as these sounds play in the background. This creates a nice atmosphere. When the drop hits, the synths go and cut out at the perfect time, letting the beat break up the music. The timing of this sounds amazing. This is a solid trance remix that matches the emotion of the vocals, both melodically and lyrically.

ARUNA’s Thoughts: He was actually suggested by Enhanced, and I agreed without hesitation, I love him. Everything he’s ever done, he’s so consistent. I’m not sure he’d done a vocal track though, that was my only concern. His instrumentals are amazing, but I don’t think he had done a vocal, at least at the time we brought him on. So like worst case, I can have someone else do the vocals, but I was sure he would deliver a great track and he did. And the vocals sounded fine. We ended up giving some feedback on the vocals, but minor things. He basically delivered pretty much what I was expecting him to, which is a good thing.

Dynastrax & Partykillers Remix:

My Thoughts: This intro is has a good beat to it. The vocals are set in a quieter environment initially. Chords play in the background, and the vocals echo. Once the beat comes in, the energy starts rising. The bass underneath has a nice groove to it, adding the the rhythm of the music. During the build up, the vocals cut in and out, and the beat intensifies. When the drop hits, the piano stabs launch but the grooves maintains itself.

ARUNA’s Thoughts: Dynastrax and Matierro had a track, I think it was called “Alive“, that was going around. I played it in my show at least once maybe twice. I’m not really keen on a lot of stuff that Enhanced is releasing on the main label these days to be honest. But that particular one, I really liked. So I said can we get these guys? And they got Dynastrax, and then Dynastrax brought on Partykillers, not sure what happened to Matierro. I remember they tagged me in a video, it was the four of them, towards the end of the process, in the studio, working on it. And I was kind of upset at first because I don’t like stuff being posted that early. But they didn’t name the song, so it wasn’t that bad. But they were in the room, and this is the benefit of working with other people, especially that many: You all hype each other up. So they were playing it and they were bouncing up and down in their seats and pumping their fists. Very proud and excited obviously so it was kind of funny to see people getting hyped up about a mix of your track. That one got very minor feedback on my end. They gave me pretty much what I was expecting. It was not as commercial as the Dyastrax & Matierro track, it was a little more clubby, but I was fine with it.

Kayoh & ARUNA Remix:

My Thoughts: The vocals are sped up here, during the verse, the beat hits at the right moments, and the synths stab under it. This really gets the energy going. Then the drop hits, and the synths play over the beat, which is bass heavy and has the occasional snare. This is a very solid song, and the bass of the song carries the music that is vibing so well.

ARUNA’s Thoughts: I thought his ideas were really good, but it sounded a bit like a demo to me, like the foundation of a house with no furniture in it, or no paint, or no window treatments. I asked Will at Enhanced for his thoughts and I can’t remember exactly what he said, but I got the feeling like if this were a mix for Tritonal, they would never have signed off on it. And so at that point I had to put my foot down and say we can do better this. So I sent Kayoh a few suggestions and he came back with a few minor changes and I was like we are never going to get there like this. I said to him I have a few ideas and did he mind if I jumped in? And he said that was great. I don’t think he sent me the stems, because I didn’t need them. I said just send me an instrumental version. I wanted to redo the vocals, I’m really picky about how my vocals sound. So I re-did them and I sent him the final vocals wet. And then I added a bunch of stuff. It was a fun process because I love future bass, and this was my first time working on a future bass track. I’m really happy with it now, and I’m glad he was okay with me jumping in, because a lot of guys are really proud and have their visions. But he was really cool and I had fun working on it too. There was some vocal stuttery stuff I did that the label, when I sent them the final they were like take it out, it’s too weird. And I talked to Kayoh and I was like, you know what, no. Because it’s weird it really gets your attention! Being unpredictable and a little dangerous I think is an important part of engaging your listener.

Specialist Sound Remix:

My Thoughts: This remix really speeds the vocals up but Sound Specialist also cuts the vocals really well and they sound as they they are part of the original verse. This is a definitely a nice drum & bass song that. The quality of the drums in fantastic and the instrument choice for the music makes a perfect partner. At one point you can hear this bright synth play over the fast beat, and it adds a nice melodic touch to the song.

ARUNA’s Thoughts:  That’s drum and bass, which I love. When he sent back his first version, it had the full vocal in it and anyone who knows drum and bass knows it’s about 170-180 (BPM). The original is 128 I believe, so there was a huge speedup and it sounded very weird and chipmunky to me and I didn’t like it, so I said the instrumental is cool, just don’t use the full vocal, use chops. So the next mix he came back with was all chops and it sounded great. It was much better that way.

Kue Remix:

My Thoughts: Here the vocals are slowed down, and you have this strong piano playing underneath. A nice beat joins in as the song builds, and then the drop explodes. The bass is nice and crunchy, and the beat accompanies it well. This is defintely a song with two sides to it. And it is a nice contrast to itself. This is the most unexpected of the remixes and but it is definitely up there with the rest of them.

ARUNA’s Thoughts: He came to my attention years ago because Myon found him, some really cool remix of “As the Rush Comes”. And Myon got him to remix one of their tracks, and he did a great mix of that, and I was like this kid has something special. The mix that he did was a deepish mix, and finding the deeper artists was hard, because a lot of the guys I originally suggested were too expensive. But I was like, I think this one is going to do a remix that is deep but also very unique and sure enough he did. And when Harry sent it to me, I pretty much had nothing to say about it. My only comment was that he had some snippets of my vocals in the drop and it sounded weird, because the drop is so dirty, and my vocals are so poppy. And I was like just take my vocals out of there. So he did, and the rest was great.