DT642 – Siege

From its trail-blazing 90s rave days to giving birth to the world-conquering Tomorrowland, Belgium has long punched above its modest size in the world of electronic music. Now rising star Siege, whose techy take on the house has graced labels from Strictly Rhythm and ABODE Records to Toolroom and Glasgow Underground adds to the influential acts that it has gifted the world.

Raised in Hasselt, outside of Belgium’s best-known clubbing centres, Siege, aka Sieg Motmans, is a beacon for the power of focus and self-determination. From recording tracks off the radio on a tape player given to him by his grandfather to buying a mixer to try to learn to mix with this and a CD player, the desire to play music has always been with him.

Buying his first vinyl turntables before he was old enough to go to a club, instead, he listened to mixes on the internet, using this knowledge to buy the hottest records of the moment. It was after playing his first major gigs just a year or two later, however, that he realised he wanted to similarly inspire others by producing his own tracks. Self-taught by his own dedication and the help of Future Music Magazine, when his first remix stopped just shy of the Beatport House Top Ten his reputation was assured.

Having guaranteed his name back home, shored up by his own roving party Bandar, Siege is fast moving onto the world stage. Catch Belgium’s hottest new export near you very soon.

Today, he joins the Podcast series – Listen to it below, on Spotify or iTunes here

Sum up this podcast in 10 words…
Undr Siege, House, Techno, Energetic, Fun, Groovy and from the Heart

What’s your personal favourite track on it?
Can I pick one of my own records haha?! I’ll have to go with ‘Only 1’. I wrote this a long time ago and it came out almost a year ago and I think I play it in every set. I still really like it and it still goes off. Support on this one has been amazing as well, Mark Knight has been hammering it, Yousef played it a lot, Eats Everything loves it and just last week I got a message saying Adam Beyer was playing it in Space Miami whilst the sun was coming up so really chuffed with these guys supporting my music.

What’s the special ingredient in this mix?
I think it’s my own productions? These days I think almost 50% of what I play is stuff I’ve made myself. This just shows that I’m really making the music I love to play and that’s a great feeling.

What’s the best gig you’ve played recently?
In Feb I had the pleasure of closing down the legendary Fuse club in Brussels after Hot Since 82. It’s my third time playing there and it just keeps getting better and better. The crowd is always up for it. Closing the place down after Daley allowed me to pick up where he left off and gradually build my set. I had 3.5 hours to play so I could build it exactly how I wanted, the crowd was enjoying it and I enjoyed every second of it. The club scene in Belgium isn’t doing to great at the moment which makes these moments extra special and I’m very thankful for them.

What have you got coming up?
I’m super stoked to be making my Ibiza debut during the summer for Toolroom’s residency at Eden. My new single ‘Thinking’ is coming out on Toolroom this week. I’ve got another record coming out on Circus next month and in June there’s one on Big Beat with a remix from DJ Fronter. Been pretty busy in the studio so there’s a lot more to come.

And finally, do you have a special message for our readers?
I just want to thank each and everyone of the music lovers out there. If they’re going out to party, buying music, streaming music or supporting the music in any other way they’re helping us artists to keep doing what we’re doing. And if they like what I’m doing keep an eye on my social media to see whats happening in the near future 😉

Tracklist:
Bob Sinclar – Feel For You (Siege re-rub)
Miane – Don’t Trust Anyone
Siege – I’ve Been (Siege Hotel Mash-up)
Maxinne ft Niki Darling – In Our Life
Siege – Thinking
Will Clarke & Eli Brown – Stay
Siege – Kengo
Luigi Madonna – Le Ly Land
Siege – Only 1
Nic Fanciulli – Understand
Martin Books – Monkey City
Mark Broom – EFB