Channeling their innate love of pure, timeless house music, Keys N Krates pivot from the sound that once took them to the biggest stages in EDM to a more refined, precise, and intentional effort. On IN:TENSION, they dig deeper than ever before into their own personal tastes—citing influences from sampling master Armand Van Helden and house music legends Masters At Work— a sound that speaks to why they fell in love with dance music decades ago. They do this all without sacrificing their signature crisp rhythms and wall-shaking low-end that their fans have adored since their original hip-hop origins.
Tell us why Fantasy is the centerpiece of this record.
Greg: It’s not necessarily the centrepiece to the project but, we love the record like all the other ones and it has an important place for sure. It’s definitely the poppiest thing on the album, but still is grounded in the gritty club vibes that we love.
What made you want to go with Ciara as a collaborator for this?
Tune: We wrote this initial “fantasy” idea with the Ciara tone in mind, and through a connection we had the opportunity to put the song in front of her. She ended up loving it and wanted to finish it and put it out with us.
What are you trying to accomplish with this record?
Matisse: We wanted to make something funky, soulful and energetic and driving all at once. We wanted catchy ear worms but with the backbone of hard hitting club and house music that sounds like it was made from a bit of hip hop perspective.
How has the business changed since you started out? How are you adapting?
Greg: We really got going in the soundcloud era so it was a lot easier to build a fanbase and disseminate your music then from a DIY perspective. Everything is about streaming platforms and social media now, so we are just trying to make the best music possible and scream from the mountain tops to try and reach our fans as much as we can.
What are some sonic influences for this record?
Tune: a lot of 90s Armand Van Helden, Masters at work, strictly rhythm kinda stuff, and from a more modern perspective Disclosure, Jamie xx, kaytranada. Also Janet Jackson energy, especially the control and rhythm nation era.
