DJ Ron Slomowicz: How did you get involved with dance music?
Valentin: Ever since I was a little boy and I had my first tutu on, I said this feels right, this is for me. As I’ve been developing my chops, I’ve always produced and written in a number of different styles and I just started to gravitate to dance music. Actually, what really drove me nuts was when I heard a couple of Delirium tracks that were playing in Hot Topic, and I had to ask the people, who is this? I was blown away by the epic European trance sound and I got totally into it. I work like a sponge. If something appeals to me on a gut level or on a creative level, and I soak up everything I can find out about it, that I just immerse myself in it, just study it and go nuts.That’s how it happened.
RS: So you're like a real musician, you play all kinds of instruments, you don’t just bang a computer keyboard.
Valentin: Exactly, yes. I am classically trained and my main instruments actually are guitar and drums. I taught myself to play keyboard for the purpose of sequencing and production chops. I also sing. Kristine sings, she's classically trained and has her degree in vocal performance so she just kicks butt. I have been singing for years in everything from madrigal choirs in high school to singing rock with my brother, whatever worked. Any music that’s well crafted to me is what really gets me charged. So it isn’t just about dance music, rock or hip-hop, anything that was inspiring enough to get somebody to put their point across in a really compelling way, I get totally into. There are hip-hop artists that I think do great stuff and there are rock artists that have been great for years. I’ve approached music from the standpoint of learning all the instruments that I could and putting them together and getting my chops together from a production and engineering standpoint. I program it, arrange it,play all the instruments so I go nuts and have a good time in the studio.
RS: Well how did you meet up with Kristine?
Valentin: She was working at a Sam Ash music store and I went in to look for a particular piece of equipment and we got to talking. At the time I was working with a couple of other people and the vocalist that we were working with had decided that she wanted to move on to a slightly different style. We were talking about getting into more dance music and really working at it. Kristine and I clicked so we started working together. You can hear in the result, her voice is just amazing for so many different styles and for the dance/pop sound we’re doing she’s brilliant. She has this incredible energy and glorious sound that comes out and it was a great match.
RS: So do you all meet in Miami or New York?
Valentin: New York.
RS: OK, because I keep thinking you're based in Miami.
Valentin: You know it’s funny, some mornings I wake up and say to myself you know what, I think I’m based in Miami. Actually it’s funny because with Love Bites and everything, Miami has been so hugely, hugely supportive. We went down there in December to do a show with PYM, and they especially have been very supportive of just what we’ve been doing musically. They really got on Christina Aguilera mix that I had done and then the Deborah Cox mix. Now they’re on the Lucas Prata mix that I did and that station and the whole town has a vibe that seems to click really well with what we’re doing musically. It’s exciting, we went down there and people knew who we were. We were like wow, this is great!
