Audile -interview

1. Who is Audile? Names and ages?

Audile is a group of two producers/DJs (Risto Poukka, 25 and Timo-Pekka Huhtinen, 24) and two vocalists (Tia Svart, 25 and Mikko Heltimoinen, 25). Although we have these main roles, we all contribute to the creative process of making music. We do both DJ gigs and gigs with live vocals.


2. What inspires your music?
Hearing a great track keeps us ambitious. We thrive to make good quality EDM (electronic dance music) while being a part of the globally emerging Christian EDM scene.


3. Which dance music genre is your favorite?
We listen to a variety of styles but progressive house is at the top of our list. However, we have our roots in trance, which is probably why emotion and beautiful melodies are essential to us. Yet house is what works the best at gigs because of its party-like drive. In a nutshell: music has to be energetic and you gotta be able to feel it.


4. Do you have favorite dance and/or trance artists? Or favorite songs?

Plenty. There are four of us and we all have a slightly different musical background, which brings richness to our music. Some artists that we all get inspired by are: Swedish House Mafia, Avicii, Arty, ATB, Gareth Emery, W&W and Super8 and Tab, all house/trance artists.


5. If you had the chance to do a song with any artist, who would it be?

Any one of those listed above! But if we had to choose one, it would probably be Swedish House Mafia.


6. In your opinion, how does a church work as a place for performing dance and trance music?

Currently Christians need to attend secular events if they want to enjoy EDM. Although we believe that Christians are free to attend those if they wish, the truth is that secular events don’t build us up spiritually. We want to offer Christians the chance to dance and listen to the music they love in an environment where their faith is supported – and that is where church comes into the picture. Some people in Christian circles still don’t accept EDM, but as we can see in the history of gospel music, there is really nothing new in that. Rock, guitar and even the organ have all gone through the same prejudice before being accepted as a part of Christian music culture. To sum this up: we don’t believe that any instrument is holier than another.


7. Has there been some sort of prejudice because you play Christian music?

Not really. Our music has also received support from secular DJs. Of course lyrics that are “too obviously Christian” create certain limitations. Having said that, we feel that the prejudice comes more from the Christians themselves than from anywhere else.


8. Are there other Christian dance acts you are friends with?

Sure! We work a lot together with our Dutch friends Maxem and Dash, who are great producers. There is also an American group called Transform Dj’s who have been very supportive from the start. Recently we’ve been making future plans with Jesus Loves Electro from Norway, and our next goal is to get in touch with LZ7. Networks are essential for today’s artists.


9. What are your opinions about today’s music industry? Especially dance music taking over the charts?

In general, today’s music is made to entertain. It also seems that the music alone is not enough to entertain. People want experiences through music, and that’s what Audile’s shows are about. It’s a very energetic and positive experience. When it comes to chart hits, the same formula is used as before but with EDM influences. We think that it’s great to see almost all music genres from pop to RnB using EDM elements. A braver approach to mixing music genres has resulted in a greater variety of music available. In this kind of industry you are allowed to try new things, but it is increasingly more challenging to stand out from the crowd. In Finland, and especially in the Christian music scene, we feel that the biggest wave of EDM influences is yet to come.


10. Is second album on the way?

Yes. Great news is that starting from January 2013, all Audile members will finally be living in the same city, which will make producing the new album considerably easier than the last one. We’ve already got quite many new tracks and a new album will be released most likely during the summer 2013.

Thanks for the interview!!!