Trance Family Lebanon
Today, Paul van Dyk releases his next long-form music project. It won’t, however, be the one you were expecting. An unprecedented move mirroring unprecedented times, Paul has placed the dancefloor-centric ‘Guiding Light’ album on ice until the day that clubbing starts to make sense again.
As likely you’ve guessed though, all is anything but lost. Out of even the most troubling and challenging moments, opportunities can present themselves, as has one for Paul.
‘Guiding Light’ has stepped momentarily aside to make way for ‘Escape Reality’ – a personal project that Paul’s had in process for some time now. With unexpected events giving its theme higher purpose, he sequestered himself in the studio to complete it.
‘Escape Reality’ has given PvD the opportunity to take a second look at some of his best-known works. Whilst their overarching tone is warmer, slower and more considered (influenced in no small part by studio partner Roger Shah), it’s allowed him to reframe each in a remarkably different manner.
Of this turn of release events, Paul commented: “last month it quickly became apparent that putting out an album designed for the dance floor (‘Guiding Light’) in a largely club-less world would not be right. So focusing on music-making and a release whose function is now more intimate made a lot of sense”.
Paul likens what subsequently occurred in the studio to an “opening of the floodgates”. “Again, he saysmusic became my remedy. When I got underway, much of the personal apprehension I’d been feeling moved into the background. Impasses that I’d previously reached on certain tracks vanished, new ideas popped and angles appeared. It was a remarkable final production month to something I’d enjoyed playing with for years, and a specific reason to finish it became its tipping point”.
