There are very few things that surprise me these days. It doesn’t matter whether it’s political events, people’s actions or simply the direction progressive house seems to be taking. In many ways, it’s just reflection of the way things are and how far we’ve all become conditioned. So I’ll be the first to admit that when it comes to Canada’s Sultan, I find my jaw dropping to the ground in wonder. Why? Because it was during my research for this interview that I came to realise that this talented man has only been producing for roughly three years. I was stunned to discover that tracks such as ‘Nightvisions’ were created by someone relatively new to the production process. Sultan’s music not only reflects a worldly maturity that surpasses his young age but a proud ethnic background and upbringing.

These all form influences that allow him to create some of the most provoking progressive house ever to be created, either as a solo artist or with another one of Canada’s talented producers, Tone Depth aka The Greek. Whether creating music for the prestigious Yoshitoshi/Shinichi labels or honing his DJing skills at some of the world’s best clubs, I have no doubt that Sultan will be a name that people will recognise and associate with superior dance music for many years to come. I, for one, am truly star struck! Intelligent, articulate and passionate! Much like the music he creates. RA had the pleasure to speak to Sultan, one of dance music’s true prodigies. Much respect!

I understand you were studying mechanical engineering and business when you decided to start DJing. That’s quite a dramatic career change. What made you decide to stop your studying and pursue a career in dance music?

I actually began pursuing my career in dance music after graduating with both a bachelors in engineering and business in 2001. Throughout my last two years of university I was introduced to the dance music scene and began spinning records with friends before actually going out and buying my first turntables. Initially when I graduated my goal was to take six months off to focus on pushing my rock band, Purusha, while searching for engineering jobs. During that time, I had attained a weekly residency at Club Living in Montreal and it was after going to the Miami Winter Music Conference in March 2001 that I was inspired to start production. In June 2001 I completed my first production and due to the interest it gained, I slowly found myself getting more involved with production/DJing and with the support of my family and management I was able to focus all my energy on pursuing a career in dance music while continuing to play with my band.

I was actually quite gobsmacked to learn that you’ve only been DJing since 1999 but even more so when I learned you’ve only been creating music since mid 2001. Your own production work and your collaborations with Tone Depth (aka The Greek) have an inherent sense of maturity and worldly depth. It honestly sounds as though you’ve been doing this for much, much longer. As such, I sense that no matter what you put your mind to, you master, especially something you love. Is this the case? Do you consider yourself a perfectionist?

I strongly believe that every individual excels or will excel in anything and everything they love if given the opportunity. This love provides the drive and motivation for success. As humans, several variables influence our day-to-day lives and these variables can play a major role in the way we perceive life and the paths we take in our life times. The struggle for survival and comfort sometimes blinds us to what we really want to achieve and fulfill. As a result we are not always free to pursue or do what we would like to cause there are so many factors that dictate what we can do and when and if we can do it. If we learn to make time work in our favor rather than deter us from what we can and cant do then success will surely come our way. Fortunately I have been given the opportunity to pursue my dreams and that alone along with my love for music has given me even more motivation to excel in my career. Ever since I was younger I have been a perfectionist in the sense that I’ve always wanted to better myself, learn from my experiences and continue to have the drive that has allowed me to reach to where I am today. This is just the beginning of my career and I hope to share my music and experiences with people for many years to come cause this life has so much to offer and music can speak all languages.

Going slightly further, do you ever find yourself listening to tracks you’ve created and thinking ‘I should have changed this or that’?

Several times I’ve listened to my own tracks and thought,” If only I changed that sound or sequence” but in reality that realization has been a key factor in the development of my sound and style. Every track carries its own significance and meaning whether it was a mood, experience or feeling. There is always a reason why each track turns out the way it does. More than likely, the moments I have listened back to my older productions and thought of changing certain things, its because with time my production and engineering skills have gotten better. If it actually came down to changing something or I was given a second chance to rework an older production, I probably wouldn’t change a thing.

Given that you’ve lived in some interesting parts of the world including Kuwait and Egypt, have these experiences influenced any aspect of your music? From my perspective, they’re rather exotic places to grow up in.

Living in Kuwait and Egypt has definitely influenced my music. Growing up I was influenced in part by the middle eastern music that played on the radio and in several of the traditional gatherings while at the same time having attended American schools most of my life I was influenced by a lot of western music. When I was in middle school in Kuwait, both my sisters were studying at universities in The United States and whenever they would come back to visit they would always bring me back tapes of all the latest music playing in North America. In school I learned to sing several Middle Eastern and Western songs. At home my parents would talk to me in both English and Arabic and while my father mainly sang Middle Eastern songs out loud, my sisters would be blasting their stereos with songs from Madonna and Michael Jackson. As I got older I became fascinated with the different instruments and techniques used by these cultures in their music and the way people danced to these grooves and sounds. To listen is one thing but to listen and visualize is to enhance the senses. Moreover, the imagery that accompanied the music (the deserts, the oasis, the palm trees, the beaches) create a mood that is different than anything I have experienced elsewhere. Nowadays when I produce, I sometimes feed off my experiences and memories of the scenery back there and it has definitely become a part of who I am and the music that I make.

From what I understand, Montreal has a very strong techno following. Was it hard for you in the beginning given that you played a progressive style of house music?

Playing progressive music at first in Montreal was a big challenge. And it took some time before the crowds began to understand and appreciate the sound. When I first started, our night was one of the only nights in Montréal pushing the progressive sound and to make things harder it was a Sunday night, which meant that it was the last night of the weekend and it also meant that most people had either work or university to attend to the next day. If it weren’t for Alex Kordzian, the promoter of the night at the time and who now is my manager alongside the rest of the Level Management team, we wouldn’t have been able to break through the Montreal scene to the extent that we have in the past three years. Alex’s love for the music and his constant persistence and belief in the sound and his DJs is the reason for the success of progressive music in Montreal. I remember there were many times when the club had only ten people on the dance floor, but that never discouraged him or changed his mind about the night; nothing would get in his way. His vision and attitude provided all the motivation and inspiration for me to continue to push the sound and evolve as a DJ. IT was a difficult path but we have succeeded in pushing the progressive sound on the Montreal scene.

You’re gaining a solid reputation for not only your own work but also that of your collaborations with Tone Depth. How did you and he get together and decide to collaborate on productions?

I’ve known Tony (Tone Depth) for several years now. We first met about four years ago through mutual friends however I never knew he was producing at the time and it was actually right before I got involved in the dance music scene and DJing. When I first started my residency at Club Living I would receive random phone calls from Tony asking to be on the guest list. So as a result I used to see him quite often at the club yet we never made much of an effort to talk or get to know each other. It was only after playing for several months that I came to learn that Tony was the man behind Rumble Fish and several other productions that I was DJing at the time. Then in 2001, we were both at an after party and I happen to pop in “Breathe and Fear” and it was at that point that Tony learned that I was producing as well. So that night we got more acquainted with each other and then he asked me to go by his studio the following week. From then on it just clicked and we started working on “Sagres”. After “Sagres” we both felt like we were a great production team and the more we worked together the more we became friends and the more we continued to produce. It is definitely a collaboration you will see a lot more of in the future. Tony is a very talented producer and a great friend. These days we spend a lot of time together whether in the studio, on tour or just hanging out.

A number of yours and Tone Depth’s tracks, as well as a remix of Valentino’s ‘Flying’, appeared on Global Underground #25 Toronto mixed by Deep Dish. If memory serves me correctly, not one artist has been used to such an extent on the one GU release. How did this come about? Has the level of interest in you increased since that compilation was released?

I first met Deep Dish in 2000 when Alex booked them to come play at our Sunday night at Club Living. Ever since then Alex and Deep Dish have developed a great relationship and they have come back to play in Montreal several times. In 2002, Deep Dish came back to play in Montreal and it was at the same time that Tone Depth and I had completed both Sagres and Resin. Alex passed on our Cd to them and a few months later Deep Dish were playing both tracks as well as “Primal Instinct” at several of their shows. In March that year, at the Winter Music Conference, both Tony and I were at the Bullitt Party and we bumped into Sharam. Sharam looked at the both of us and said, “I want to sign your songs to my label” We were both so excited. Due to Deep Dish’s heavy touring schedule they told us that they would be contacting us for contracts, etc by the end of the summer. When they did actually contact us, Tony and I had completed a few more originals including ‘Night Visions” and “Alive”. We sent the songs over to Sharam and a week later he replied saying he wanted to sign both tracks alongside “Isabella” and “Grumpy Gourmet” Also at the time we had been discussing remixes for “Resin” and we agreed that we would do a remix for Valentino “Flying” and Valentino would do a remix for “Resin” We received the pieces for “Flying” a week later and within a few days we had completed the Club mix which appears on the GU 25. And finally by end of November Tony and I completed “Wadi” and once again sent it to Sharma and a week later he wrote back saying he wanted to sign "Wadi" as well. It all happened so fast and by the time we had returned from Christmas Vacation we were told that “Alive”, “Night Visions”, “Resin”, “Wadi” and our remix of Valentino “Flying” were to appear on the GU 25.

Deep Dish’s support of our sound and the release of all the songs on the GU have definitely raised the level of interest in both Tony and I. Since the GU we have received several remix offers as well as offers from several labels for exclusive originals. In addition, I have now started to tour the world as a DJ pushing our sound and gaining inspiration to continue to produce music and DJ for many years to come.

The Sultan Of Swing

A number of your tracks and remixes have been released through the prestigious Yoshitoshi/Shinichi label group. Will this partnership continue for the time being? Would you ever want to create and run your own label?

The partnership between Yoshitoshi/Shinichi and myself will definitely continue for the time being and hopefully for many years to come. I have recently signed another two song EP with them and we are currently negotiating another single as well. Tony “The Greek” and I have also completed another original that Yoshitoshi has shown a lot of interest in. As for creating and running my own label, it definitely is something I may look into in the future but not for the time being. At the moment the industry is taking a tough turn and I don’t believe it is the best time to start a label. In addition, for the next few years I would like to concentrate most of my efforts on production and touring as a DJ.

I honestly have not heard one track created by yourself that I didn’t love. I’ve always found your music to be haunting and in many ways quite sensual. ‘Nightvisions’ has to be one of the best progressive tunes released last year. Do you have any plans to release an artist album in the future?

I think most artists at one point or another would like to release artist albums. I will most likely release an album in the future but several factors play a role into when and how I would. An album for me is a depiction of who I am, it’s a portrait of my experiences and the inspirations I have been fueled by. The album would cover a spectrum of sound from house music to down tempo to classical to rock. It would be a mesh of sound as it would be a mesh of cultures. My vision for an album would be a collaborative effort with musicians and producers from all parts of the world working together to bring music o people from all backgrounds and cultures. For the time being I intend to continue producing and DJing, meeting people and gaining even more inspiration to continue doing what I love most.

On the flipside, are there any plans for a mixed compilation on the horizon?

To date there are no plans yet for a mixed compilation. This year I plan travel and DJ as much as possible so that next year if I am given the opportunity to work on a mixed compilation, my name in the scene would already have gained some exposure as a DJ and not just as a producer.

You currently hold a residency at Club Sona and have played at various other venues and parties where you’ve played alongside the likes of Deep Dish, Sander Kleinenberg and Danny Howells to name a few. As such, does DJing add to your artistic process when creating a piece of music?

DJing has added a whole lot to my productions. DJing is key in understanding and visualizing what the crowds react and respond to. And by DJing more an more over the years and especially after touring several countries and cities in the world, my productions have taken on different directions and my artistic direction has crossed over the different genres from house to breaks to prog. Playing in Montreal and to the Montreal scene has definitely played a major role in the development of my sound as a producer as well. I feel really lucky to be part of a scene that has seen so many international DJs come through. We are exposed to the latest music, the different styles and sounds that have been shaping the industry. And by listening to all these DJs play, I have become even more educated and attentive to the different styles of music that move the crowds. This in turn has influenced my production as well.

Finally, you’ll being going on a DJ tour of Asia with Tone Depth soon. When is this happening? Do you have any plans to include Australia on your tour schedule? Please?

Our tour will be beginning the first week of April. I would have loved to been able to play some dates in Australia but unfortunately we haven’t been able to solidify any bookings so far. I have always been fascinated with Australia and even more now with the great music scene that has exploded in the past few years. If we don’t make it down this time around then I hope to be able to visit there.