YOUR FAVOURITE MTV SHOWS ARE NOW AVAILABLE ON PARAMOUNT+

Bingo Players On Daft Punk: 'No Act Has Given So Much To Electronic Music'

Maarten Hoogstraten talks getting things back on track, inspiration from Def Leppard and more in this exclusive interview...

Having premiered thebrand new Bingo PlayersbangerNothing To Saylast month, the firstproduction fromMaartenHoogstratensince the sad passing of production partnerPaulBäumer in 2013, the act is back and we're promised there's"plenty more music on the way."

While we excitedly wait patiently for more, in this exclusive interviewwetalk continuing the BP name in PaulBäumer's memory, his extensive record collection and his ideal goal of working with Daft Punk...

MTV UK: ‘Nothing To Say’ is awesome. Is the title alluding that you just want to let the music do the talking now?

Maarten: "It could be interpreted in that way, yeah. I guess that’s always been the ethos of Bingo Players though. With all our tracks up to NTS, there has been a variation in styles and ideas that you could say Bingo Players have different voices at each release. It's important to keep things diverse and I want to continue to show that as the year progresses."

MTV UK:After Paul’s passing, was it tempting to lay the Bingo Players project to rest and continue under a different name as the creative process must different for you now right?

M: "The thought crossed my mind, that’s for sure. It was such a difficult time that as a human it's natural to have those moments of weakness when you can’t see the future the way you’ve thought it was going to be for such a long time. With the support of my family, friends, management team and the outpouring of fan encouragement though I knew that I had to keep Bingo Players going – to honour Paul. The creative process is different now as it was always the two of us making the musical decisions before, but I always try to think about what Paul would like when creating new music and his presence remains in everything Bingo Players produces."

MTV UK:How do you make yourself stand out musically in what seems a very saturated market?

M: "Keep doing things differently. Never follow trends. My style of music and the taste I have is probably more in the nostalgic realm of dance – Daft Punk, Prodigy etc. and then Rock music is a long time passion. I try to bring these in and if you use what really inspires you, rather than what you think people want to hear. You will stand out."

MTV UK:What’s the best thing about dance music at the moment? And Why?

M: "How it's getting globally recognized I think. I think people assume it's always been there, it hasn’t. It’s taken a lot of producers working really hard to get it to the forefront of modern day music culture so I think that should be celebrated."

MTV UK:…and what’s the worst (and why)?

M: "Probably the hate it gets from ‘purists’. I love every genre of music, especially band based stuff so on paper I should be in this bracket. However, people don’t appreciate the processes you go through as a producer to get the sound you want. Electronic music is different to acoustic most definitely, but the heart of its creative process is the same."

MTV UK:We hear you have an extensive record collection. How many do you own? How eclectic are we talking?

M: "Haha yes you’re right! Everything from obscure 70’s rock to Daft Punk to cheesy 80’s. I love to have things on vinyl so anything I like, I have to have it - just like when most people would download a song. Imagine how big your iTunes library is – that’s how big my collection is."

MTV UK:Tell us about your influences. Are there any unexpected artists that have influenced Bingo Players? Def Leppard is one right?

M: "Yes! Def Leppard has been a great influence on Bingo Players. I knew Def Leppard before I met Paul, but he really got me into it. The album "Hysteria" is one of our favorites! We called our label "Hysteria"because of that."

MTV UK:What’s been your favourite tune of 2015 so far? (I know it’s only February!)

M: "I love the G Dancer from Peter Brown. Great throwback vibes!"

MTV UK:What else do Bingo Players have coming up for 2015?

M: "I’m back in the studio with a whole host of amazing singers, songwriters and producers so there will be plenty more music on the way."

MTV UK:Is an artist album something you hope to achieve with Bingo Players?

M: "We’ll see…"

MTV UK:Tell us about the worst gig you’ve ever played. What happened?

M: "That’s probably one of the earlier shows we did in Holland. I can remember one show at a club where the power cut down every few minutes. The promoter wanted us to keep going, so we started with a new track, which only held up for threeminutes before the power went down again. We kept playing though…"

MTV UK:…and the best gig?

M: "This is one of the hardest questions, there are so many to choose from! The most memorable is Nocturnal Wonderland in 2010 i guess. It was the first time playing for such a big crowd. When we finished the set, we’ve talked about it for days. It was such a rush!"

MTV UK:What’s the weirdest thing a fan has done to get your attention?

M: "I could make up the most weirdest things to this question, but actually, I’ve never experienced something weird from the fans! Most of the time, they hold up phones with song requests, that’s all."

MTV UK:Who would be your ideal artist to work with or produce for and why?

M: "If I could do something with Daft Punk in this lifetime I would be a happy man. No act has given so much to electronic music."

MTV UK:Have you turned down any big names to work with?

M: "Haha I couldn’t reveal that! We have worked with many big names in the past – Sia was amazing. She wrote Knock You Out. Also the remix for Gorgon City was a really cool thing – example of some of the great music these days."

MTV UK:What’s the one piece of advice you’d give to an aspiring DJ playing live?

M: "Don’t let the nerves get the better of you, use them to your advantage and try not to overthink everything, just enjoy it - people will notice that and go along with it!"

Latest News