Meet Steven Harding, 21 years old from Northern Ireland, now based in Glasgow. He has been DJ’ing for a while now at multiply festivals and club gigs and is now also making his own beats and productions. In this post we highlight his last release “Harmony” which is available now at all major download portals (and in our Spotify Playlist). You can also check out his track on our Youtube channel:
We are very happy to tell you we have also been able to meet up with him and ask him some questions about him personally and the music!
What was your first EDM track you have heard which made you fall in love with this genre?
I got into the whole EDM scene as a whole by first watching live streams from festivals, from there i started looking through Beatport and Soundcloud to find new tracks and new remixes. Way back then I was just trying to find new music to play to my friends at school. The one track that stands out to me most and what really got me hooked was Mammoth by Dimitri Vegas and Like Mike. I heard it on a Danny Howard end of year mix on radio 1 then again on the Tomorrowland Aftermovie. Even though DVLM get a lot of hate and no matter who it actually was that produced Mammoth, it is still a massive track!
I remember not long after this I came across a Nicky Romero ID track, i loved the catchiness of it and couldn’t stop listening to it for weeks! The ID eventually got lyrics and it turned out to be the track I Could Be The One, I remember Nicky Romero being the first DJ i ever saw live – it was in a local nightclub in Northern Ireland called “Lush!”. It was in this venue that I Could Be The One got its worldwide debut, what a night that was and what an atmosphere in the club when that track came on!
When did you first started with producing music?
I originally started DJ’ing about a year ago now, after a few months i decided to try and start getting into producing. I pretty much self taught myself from Youtube along with some help from friends along the way. I brought out a few tracks on soundlcoud before releasing my track “Melody” on S Y N C Records, it was made their Summer Anthem for 2015! It is now also available on Spotify as well as being a free Download on my Soundcloud page: https://soundcloud.com/harding_dj
I have now released my new track Harmony again on S Y N C Records which is available on Beatport, iTunes and all other major download sites.
How did you came up with your DJ name?
I originally had the name “M!LLY” but decided on a rebrand when I moved to S Y N C, it was then the idea of just using my name came up and i liked it. My track releases are now done under the name HARDING while I continue using the name M!LLY for some of my remixes as well as for doing some monthly “M!LLY in the Mix” podcasts where I play some new tracks as well as classics and any of my new material. Follow my Soundcloud page to keep up to date with everything! https://soundcloud.com/harding_dj
Which DAW do you use and why?
I use FL Studio 14, I tried out it, ableton and Logic before deciding which one to use. I just find FL Studio is the easiest to use and I like the layout of it all.
What are your favorite plugins for synths, mastering and effects?
My favourite plugin just now is Sylenth though i do use others such as Nexus
If you could do a collaboration with any artist out there, what would be your top 3 (and why)?
Number 1: Martin Garrix – I love the style of this artist and he’s someone who clearly loves what he does. In my eyes he’s an inspiration to anyone and it’s incredible to see how far he’s come in such a short space of time!
Number 2: Oliver Heldens – I just love the style of all of his tracks as well as what a down to earth guy he is, I was lucky enough to meet him in Croatia just before his set at Ultra Europe and again he’s someone who has blown up massively onto the world stage in quite a short space of time
Number 3: Vicetone – In my eyes Vicetone are two of the most underrated producers in the world just now, Their style of music is incredible and its only a matter of time before they’re a name on everyones lips.
What do you usually drink when you are in the studio to get inspiration?
Usually the only drink I would ever have would be non-alcoholic, I find I get my inspiration all around me, the idea of the melody for my track Harmony came from while I was in Croatia in the summer. i’ll just find I get an idea and see how far it runs, it sometimes comes out to be a massive track while other times it ends up being a half completed project on my laptop.
If you could travel the world as a DJ what would be the three items you will always bring with you in your bag?
My laptop so I can keep producing on the move, my USBs so I’ve got all my music library there with me – Every set I do I want to make sure its different and not identical to one I’ve done before. I will obviously have a few tracks in there that come up in everything but the rest of the tracks I try to keep fresh and new. Finally my headphones – I like having the familiarity of my own headphones with me all the time and you can’t rely on venues to be able to give you a spare if you forget your own. If i can have one more it would be Vodka – who doesn’t like drinking when they’re partying!?!?
2016 just started, what can we expect in the upcoming year from you?
Look out for more massive releases original tracks from myself as well as some remixes! I am also hoping to get myself some spots in local nightclubs in Glasgow as well as playing more and more Gigs. Keep an eye on my Facebook page for all the latest news as well as competitions and free downloads! https://www.facebook.com/harding.dj
download his tracks on beatport:
https://pro.beatport.com/release/harmony/1655552
https://itunes.apple.com/nl/album/harmony-single/id1059091486