On the Bean with Bakermat

Hello Lodewijk, Its such a huge pleasure to be doing this interview with us, Thank you for taking time out to do this.

How are you doing and what’s currently cooking in your studio?

I'm currently still touring a lot but i'm also spending quite some time in the studio. I'm working on a lot of new original songs, but i'm also collaborating with artists like Goldfish.

          •   We ask all of our “guests” this, what is the first thing that comes to mind when you                    hear  South Africa?

Wild nature, rich culture, Nelson Mandela and a lot of history. To be honest i don't know much about SA, cause i've never been there. I know about the history of the country though, and i heard a lot of great stories about sa's wildlife and nature.

•    You go by the name Bakermat which means origin in Dutch, what’s the story behind the name?

It's actually not really an exciting story, it's really random. When i finished my first track ever (zomer) last year my roommate said i should put it on youtube. I was in my room studying when i decided to do this, and when i got to the 'title' form i had to make up an artist name. Lodewijk isn't really that catchy so i decided the easiest way to find a good name is to just look into my books and find a word that sounds nice. Bakermat it was haha.

  •    Can you tell us a little more about who Lodewijk is on a non-musical front?

I'm a 22 year old Psychology student (due to a heavy touring schedule thats on pause now). I have always enjoyed listening and collecting music, and decided to make some of my own last year. My career has been going really fast since then. I love dogs, but don't like cats. My favorite food is lobster. I'm really tall. I love tobacco and alcohol. My hobbies next to music are: traveling, art, movies and hanging out with friends. Oh and hiking, i like hiking.

•   You studied a Degree in Psychology and now you in music take us through your      journey how did you end up in music?

I always listened to and collected music. Last year i had to study a lot, but i couldn't concentrate at all. I was bored and came up with the idea of writing a song. I started working on it in FL Studio and finished a track that day (zomer). It was for my self really, so i just played it while i was studying for a while. Roommates heard it and advised me to put it on youtube. I got a lot of views and nice feedback, so i started making other songs as well. Internet is responsible for the rest really, people started sharing the sounds and it got bigger and bigger. Two months later i got offers from labels and agencies, and i started touring around the world. It sounds absolutely nuts like this, but this is exactly how it went. Now it's my full time job.

       •   Your sound is extremely unique How did you develop it and how would you describe                your sound and style of music  in 3 colors? 
  

I had the musical style in my head and noticed nobody made music like that. So i decided to put all of my ideas into my laptop and create songs, so i could finally listen to that exact style i liked. The tracks i made in the beginning were made just for myself to listen to. I never expected so many people to share the same taste in music as me. I think that's what makes it unique, because it is custom made. I would describe my music as colourfull, happy and inspiring. At least i hope it's inspiring.

 •   Where do you draw your inspiration from?

From literally every genre out there. I listen to a lot of different kinds of music. Every kind has it's own strong elements. I love to combine different elements of different genres and make a new sound out of that. For example, vandaag is a combination of house, deep/tech house and jazz. Combining elements of different genres is my main inspiration. Ofcourse i also have a lot of artists that inspire me. I love artists like Moby, Fatboy Slim, Paul Kalkbrenner, Goldfish who each have a really characterstic sound. That's what i want too, that when people listen to a track they immediately know it's yours, but still are surprised because it's refreshing.

•  Your productions have a blend of Jazz, Soul and Deep house elements, how do you find the right balance between these 3 very different styles?

Grabbing the right elements out of the different genres. I love the beat and bass of deep house, i love jazz saxophone solos and i love the soul chords and vocals. This way you can combine them into a track with beat, bass, chords, vocals and jazzy saxophone parts and make a fresh composition.

•  When we hear Utrecht we think Party, Music what’s the best thing about Utrecht and living there?

I actually live in Amsterdam now. Utrecht is a real student city. I loved studying there because the city is full of student bars and cafes. As a musician though i really started to feel that Amsterdam is better place to live because it's full of creative people. That's why i recently decided to move.

 •  You have an upcoming South Africa tour; We have to ask this one what are your perceptions of South Africa and what are you most looking forward to?

I know that the boys from Goldfish are pretty popular there, so the taste in music is good in SA! I'm really looking forward to see if sa has a good, enthusiastic crowd. I love it when people really have passion for music. I love playing in France for example, because the people really come for the music and i always feel they are passionate. I hope to see SA crowds the same way. I really don't know what to expect though cause i haven't met a lot of SA inhabitants yet. But we'll see!

  •  What can we look forward to from your performances in South Africa?

I play with my live Saxophonist, Ben Rodenburg. We have a really good chemistry on stage and always get the party going if we're in good shape. I'll play a lot of my own productions combined with some tech/deep house from Europe. I get a lot of energy from a good crowd, so the better the crowd, the better the performance.

 •    If you had only six months left to live, what would you do with the time?

I'd have a big breakfast, big lunch and an extensive dinner. I love food, and would spend almost all my money on it. Also i would travel to every country possible, and make as much music possible on my journey. I would bring all my friends and family on this trip. So to be short i will organize a big Culinary Musical World Trip with friends and family that lasts 6 months.

•  Your sound reminds us a lot of our homegrown legends Goldfish, you remixed their track One Million views, you tour a lot with them can we expect a Bakermat Goldfish collab anytime soon?

Yes, last week we spend some time in the studio together in Amsterdam. We're cooking some stuff so a track is already on it's way!

Do you have any last messages for your fans…

To all my SA fans, i would love to see you at one of my performances. Let's make a hell of a party and celebrate good music, let's drink, smoke and love life to the fullest. You never know when it's gonna be over, so let's make this some legendary parties.

Thank you again for doing this interview with us, we look forward to seeing you in South Africa soon