Trance duo Tritonal has experienced a nearly-meteoric rise over the past five years. Chad Cisneros and David Reed, living at the time in Austin, Tex. and Washington, D.C., respectively, formed Tritonal in 2007, but both already had their own EDM projects: Cisneros remixing for some of the genre’s bigger labels and Reed creating his own record.
Since emerging as a duo, Tritonal have gathered a sizeable following, which has led to singles charting prominently on Beatport, headlining club shows all over the world, and performing in the A State of Trance tent at the 2012 Ultra Music Festival. Presently, Reed and Cisneros are touring Australia as part of Creamfields.
As far as music is concerned, “Piercing Quiet” was voted best track on the A State of Trance radio program, and other material has been released through Anjunabeats, Armada, Coldharbour, Flashover, Blackhole, and AVA Recordings and on compilations. Additionally, Reed and Cisneros put together their own label, Air Up There Recordings, and a radio program of the same name. Their Air Up There show comes every third Saturday at 3 p.m. EST on Afterhours.fm.
Recently, Crossfadr got to speak with Tritonal, through email, as they tour Australia.
How did you enjoy your recent experience playing at the Ultra Music Festival?
Dave: It was such an incredible experience! Being able to play the ASOT 550 stage was such an honor, especially being able to share our music to such an energetic crowd. It was also amazing to see how the Armada team works with such a powerful brand! Good times for sure – can’t wait to play it again.
Chad: It was hands down one of our coolest gigs to date! We’ve played Ultra before, but this was the first time on the ASOT stage and the energy was unbelievable! We had so much fun playing new remixes from our Piercing The Quiet Album and would love to be a part of it next year.
You’re going to be playing at Creamfields in Australia. How do you feel about being part of this tour?
Chad: We’re actually in the middle of it right now and in Sydney. It’s been so much fun so far! Melbourne, Adelaide, and Sydney were all massive shows and the fans here are really full of fantastic energy. They all seem to know the latest tracks and really respond well to our sets. We’re all taking part in an Artist Go Kart Race tomorrow and it looks to be some stiff competition!
Dave: The funny thing is last year, when there was discussion about doing the festival, we thought it would be a dream to achieve! We’re so thankful to be a part of such a legendary festival – being able to tour with amazing talents such as Above & Beyond, W&W, Marlo, David Guetta, Alesso, Sied Van Riel, and so many more! Lots of memories we’re making already.
What should fans expect at Creamfields?
Dave: Well, even though we only have an hour set we’re playing for each city, our fans should expect a full out Tritonal experience with some of our best tracks! Some from our upcoming Piercing The Quiet Remixed album as well as some new originals. We’re always ready to take you on journey.
Chad: Super 8 & Tab, Stoneface & Terminal, Rafael Frost, and many others have turned in amazing remixes for us and we’re just hammering them non-stop! We also have a new club mix of “Everafter,” which is getting some nice play time, and a fun instrumental track called “Azuca” which we co-wrote with Kaeno.
You recently released single “Apex.” What’s the inspiration behind this song?
Dave: Indeed we did! We really love working with Ben Gold! He’s such a good guy and an amazing producer, and we’ve always supported his material on stage as well as on our radio show Air Up There. We both thought, originally, that it would be a superb idea to either get him on a remix of one of our tunes or actually do a collaboration! From the uproar that our collab with Ben received on “Slave,” we figured it would be fun to follow up with another fun banger in the similar vein, hence bringing you “Apex.”
Chad: The inspiration was actually to give fans a proper follow up to “Slave.” The reaction globally on “Slave” has been ENORMOUS and fans were calling for a follow-up. We used a lot of the same techniques to get the track going, but a completely new melody and lots of new fun bits to really set it apart.
You opened a remix contest recently for single “Lifted.” Why did you decide to open a contest to fans?
Dave: You know, there’s been so much support for that track – especially the Mat Zo remix! The vocals are fun, the melody is catchy and it’s a track that EVERYBODY loves! We appreciate our fans and wanted to reach out to the aspiring producers out there and give them a shot on what their take of this track would be. Doing this continues to give us good relations between fan base. We loved seeing comments online about how so many of them were excited to have a play with it! We love that 🙂 Of course, in the end, it also initiates a chance to learn and grow for upcoming producers. You never know what amazing remix will turn up!
Chad: We always get hounded for the vocals from our tracks and have never released them till now. We thought it would be a good way to scout for some fresh new faces and producers, while giving our fans a chance to really dig into the meat of Cristina’s amazing vocals on this tune.
Do you have any advice for aspiring DJs/producers?
Dave: Be headstrong and don’t ever give up on your dream! That being said, there’s also a logic to it. The days of making it as a DJ are over; you need to have some original material under your belt! So the most important thing is staying in your studio, making your tracks and keeping an open mind for growth and development. It’s okay to get frustrated as long as you learn from it!
Chad: Stay hungry! It’s important to write and keep writing. We always learn something in the process which enables us to bring a sharper skill set to the next project. Learning is the key and the best way to do this is by practice.
What’s your perspective on the recent explosion of EDM in the U.S.? Has this overall preference from listeners affected how you produce or create music?
Dave: Wow! It’s astounding! The funny thing is that EDM was such a rarity in the U.S. years ago and more popular in other countries. Now it’s set sail and taken charge of some of the biggest radio stations in the U.S. I think it’s a great thing that has happened, to be honest. It’s always been my favorite kind of music and I love that it’s exploded. It’s also been crossing over with so much pop/R&B music in some pretty unique ways, expanding audiences who’ve never heard or known of the music. Now, the U.S. is where most of the development is coming from. As far as it affecting how we make music, of course it has! We still keep our normal sound as always, but we’re just so much more excited to share it and feel that it still will develop into something that retains a fresh sound! Overall, this whole “movement” is inspiring!
Chad: WE LOVE IT!! Can’t say that enough! It hasn’t affected us really; it’s just enabled us to get more and more fans. When we play the massive festivals, we play 80 to 90 percent Tritonal tracks and the fans friggin’ love it!
Why did you decide to start your own record label?
Dave: A great question 🙂 We really felt that our sound needed its own garage. There are just so many labels out there that had their own vision for our sound that we didn’t agree on. So, we thought we should just start our own one so we could release whatever we want, when we want, and how we want! It’s probably been the best decision I think we’ve ever made for our career. I honestly don’t think we would be as far as we are today without having our flagship, Air Up There Recordings. It’s also been such a great experience being able to A&R some new and upcoming talent for the label, as well. Another good thing is that it all coincides with our radio show Air Up There, so it just all makes sense.
Chad: I never wanted a boss in the real world and I don’t really want one in music either!
How has your label expanded since its inception?
Dave: If by expanded, you mean growth and development,
Chad: The tracks we’ve released have done amazing! FIVE #1 Beatport singles already and those are all Tritonal tunes, by the way. “The Gift,” “Promise You,” etc., are all Top 10 singles, as well.
What should listeners expect from you in the near future? Any albums or new music?
Dave: Without a doubt, new singles! Once we’re back home from Creamfields and rested up, we’re already going to be back in the studio working on absolutely fresh material. Though it may be little bit longer before we see another Tritonal album, another one is surely going to come! Otherwise, we have lots of new performance ideas we’re going to take into effect, too! It’s about to get really exciting fast!
