On September 29, at RISE Rooftop in Houston, Texas, I had the unique opportunity to sit down with Thom Jongkind, one-half of the renowned Big Room duo, Blasterjaxx. With a career spanning over a decade, Thom and his partner, Idir Makhlaf, have consistently pushed boundaries and reinvented their sound while maintaining their iconic Blasterjaxx essence. Hailing from the Netherlands, a country with a rich history in dance music, Thom draws inspiration from his musical upbringing, which includes pioneers like Tiësto and Armin Van Buuren. His passion for music extends beyond the stage, as he also co-founded Maxximize Records, a label that provides a platform for emerging talents in the industry. Blasterjaxx’s dedication to their craft and willingness to collaborate with artists from various genres continues to shape their journey as a prominent group in the world of EDM.
In the intimate and welcoming setting of the green room, Thom shared his insights on everything from the evolution of their sound to memorable collaborations with industry heavyweights. We were joined by his booking agent, his tour manager, a KLM pilot, and a dedicated group of fans, including a pair of twins eager to soak in every word from their musical idol.
Daphne: Hey Thom, welcome back to Houston! We’re stoked to have you here! First, what’s the energy like playing at a venue in Houston versus a big stage like Tomorrowland?
Thom: It’s a different vibe… I mean, you can’t compare those things with each other, but as long as the vibe is good, the people show up, they hear your music… It doesn’t matter if you’re playing Tomorrowland or Houston. And let’s be honest, Tomorrowland is also just a whole bunch of people from all around the world in one spot, so that might include Houston people!
Would you agree that the trance scene here in Houston is a bit smaller than other places in the world?
I don’t know about that. I mean, right now, overall, the whole genre is a bit more underground I would say, more so than it was before. That could be the case here as well. But we are here now, so let’s do it tonight. We’re gonna party no matter what!
You’ve performed at festivals like Tomorrowland and Ultra. Do you have a backstage ritual to get into the zone before stepping on stage?
Hmm, a backstage ritual… Yeah, actually, we do a shot with the whole crew, with everyone that was involved in there… that’s more or less our ritual.
The Dutch DJ scene has been historically strong. How has being from the Netherlands shaped you as an artist?
Well, I would say we have a longer history in dance music. We had a lot of pioneers back then. I mean for example, the guys I grew up with were like guys like Tiësto, Armin Van Buuren… they had been going on for a long time already. I bought their CDs at the age of 10 or 11. I was collecting a bunch of CDs back in those days, and this was pre-Internet! That’s how we got in touch with dance music… and it was everywhere! It was on the radio, it was in TV commercials, it was overall just very well accepted in the whole country already, so I think we grew up with it naturally.
That’s very different than here, in Houston, you grow up with Country…
I love Shania Twain. Is that country enough? I also like Yelawolf.
How do you keep reinventing your music without losing that iconic Blasterjaxx sound?
It’s difficult… especially because we’re labeled as the Big Room corner, so to speak, and we’re stepping a bit out of our comfort zone that way. We’re moving up the BPM, we’re exchanging the EDM kicks for more of the techno kicks lately, not only because it’s a trend, but for ourselves, we really felt it was a whole new, eye-opening thing… in the studio as well, I won’t say we were tired of making EDM, because we absolutely were not, but it was nice to finally have a different approach on our music… to have BPMS that were 10 to 15 BPM higher. Usually, it’s a completely different thing playing with melodies or rhythms on that BPM, as well as for the whole subgroups and everything underneath, percussion wise and kick wise, it’s a completely different thing. It’s nice to create a different energy with the same kind of Blasterjaxx sauce. But to be honest, it was challenging. It took us nearly a year to get to the point where we were satisfied with the productions in that genre. It felt like we were making something that wasn’t our own music yet, and that was difficult, because we didn’t want to follow anything else. We wanted to create it ourselves… REcreate ourselves!
Do you have a go-to track to flip the vibe when the crowd needs a boost?
Céline Dion’s “My Heart Will Go On”. That will flip the crowd, for sure. Really!
You’ve got your own label, Maxximize Records. What is the vision behind it?
Well, the vision is, I mean we got picked up by so many bigger guys over the years and especially in the beginning of our career, they basically launched our career, so we want to do something in return. I mean, there are so many potential guys out there that don’t have a label yet, didn’t have any platform or DJ that was playing their music… and so we started picking up on those, and giving them a platform on Maxximize. After release, they have something that sort of helps their status in a way. It’s nice, and I’m happy that we can help these guys out in this way.
You’ve worked with EDM heavyweights like Armin, Timmy Trumpet, Hardwell, and more. Can you spill the tea on a memorable studio session with one of these legends?
On record? (laughs). Let’s see, memorable moments…. I mean, it’s always fun, you know? It feels like homecoming working with these guys, for sure. Let’s see, on the record… (laughs) I mean, it’s not really any specific thing, to be honest. I mean for example, the last track we did with Armin, “La Bomba”… it was funny, we’d sent him a bunch of tracks, including the first draft of “La Bomba”, and we were like ‘he’s never gonna pick this one,’ you know, but whatever, it’s a weird song… and he’s like “that one, I want that song,” so we were quite surprised, yeah.
You and Idir form Blasterjaxx, but you’ve also collaborated with and featured other artists. How does the dynamic change when it’s not just the two of you?
To be honest, it’s much easier with a feature, for sure. Because at any moment that you get stuck, you just bounce it over. You’re like, OK, it’s your turn! That’s how it works. It’s nice, and it’s always good, because they use completely different elements than you use in your own studio. Bringing that together just creates a better outcome, I would say.
Would you say you still learn new things?
Yeah, for sure. You’re always learning, even from smaller artists. It’s just making the product better, you just want to create the best out of it, and you put that into the production.
For the rising talents out there, what’s your advice on approaching established artists for collaborations?
It’s best to drop a DM, or just send the link out there right away, and don’t write a whole page full of information about yourself. Like, with all due respect, the track just needs to be good. Make sure it’s interesting enough to listen to, you know, and not like, ‘hey, this sounds like something that you made’, or ‘this is sounding like this…’ I just want to hear something original. Sending just the link is even better, or maybe just a link, with ‘unreleased, something for the label?’ That’s it.
What’s your dream Collaboration? Dead or alive? EDM or not?
Eminem. Yeah, but he’s never gonna do that, no, for sure.
Have you tried sending him an e-mail?
No, I didn’t try. It’s a long shot. That’s not gonna work, but that would be great if it could ever happen. Otherwise, I would say Chester from Linkin Park would be absolutely amazing.
Artists often have ‘creative disagreements’ during collaborations, do you have any stories where this happened but turned out to be a blessing in disguise?
Well, yeah, two things. First of all, the track ‘Big Room Never Dies’ with Hardwell. We laid down the first draft of the demo, but we had a different vocal on it, and he was like, “let’s replace the vocal with something like ‘Big Room never dies’,” and we were like “Come on, man. That’s super corny, man. We cannot do that, it’s super sh***y.” So we said we’d just try a few takes, and at first, he recorded it himself, you know, and I was like… “Ehhh, I don’t know. I don’t know. Just… maybe ask somebody else to do it,” and that’s what we did, and in the end, it turned out pretty well, to be honest. It became kind of like a statement thing for the scene… and that was pretty much a coincidence, I would say. We would never have thought that that track would do anything good, to be honest. And the other thing, of course, is that “Narco” track we’ve done with Timmy Trumpet, now seven years ago, it got used by Edwin Diaz, the Pitcher from the New York Mets. He’s been using it as a walk on song for the past two or three years, and it got, like, super commercialized. It was used in commercials. It got used in these bobble head dolls with music on them… it was spiking, the song went up with, like, millions and millions of streams a week, it was crazy. So that was something unexpected. For us, it was just another dance song we made back in 2017 already, and then a few years later, it completely blew up. It’s unbelievable, even Dunkin Donuts was on it!
What is the most Dutch thing about you that you bring with you on tour?
Usually a bag of double salt licorice. Yeah, I love those. They don’t sell them anywhere else, and if they do sell them somewhere, they’re probably sh***y. And you have those Twizzler things here in America, right? But then the black ones.
Life on tour can be chaotic and exciting. But you must have some downtime, or chill time, right? What is your ultimate way to unwind and recharge for the next show? How do you relax?
To be really honest, the answer is preparing for the next show! I know, I mean like, I don’t like down time, I cannot sit still. I’d rather just work on things and, yeah. But for real, I don’t know how to relax. I mean, I have hundreds of books and I never read them so… Yeah, I’m a bit of a workaholic… Other than that, a gym session, it’s only for one hour a day, but that’s enough!
From vinyl to digital, technology changes, but the essence of DJing remains. How do you think tech innovations are influencing the new generation of DJs?
A lot. I mean, there’s so much more out there. For example, take a look at the whole AI thing going on right now. I found something super interesting. It’s an online AI tool, which extracts a Cappellas from any track. And it’s pretty alright, I would say… for me it’s amazing because now we have like a million more options, you don’t need to have the stems, and I mean, usually it’s impossible to get any stems or any a Cappella from certain tracks, so it opened up a whole new world for us, and that’s great. Other than that, I think it’s normal for the new generation of kids to use the possibilities that are out there, and as they should. I mean it’s the same for us. Back then we started playing, not on vinyl, but on CDJs already, that was super strange for the old school guys. They were like “what, what the hell is that?” Same for going to SD or USB sticks, we used to carry around one of those big suitcases with CDs. I mean, it’s normal. It’s just… yeah, it’s time.
For all the gear heads reading this, can you share one piece of equipment or software that you absolutely cannot live without in your studio setup?
We still use the Nexus plug-in, one of our signature sounds is in there. It’s very easy to find. (laughs) It’s nothing crazy, it’s just the old school Nexus.
Are there any up-and-coming DJs or producers you’ve got your eyes on that you think we should be paying attention to?
Yeah, for sure, Maddix. He’s doing great. Other than that, Eli Brown, it’s very nice what he’s doing lately.
Finally, can you give us a hint or a teaser about any upcoming collaborations or projects that you have in the pipeline?
We have some new things with Steve Aoki coming up… Any other collaboration, we can’t announce yet. Sorry, that’s all I can give you!
Amidst laughter and anecdotes, Thom provided a glimpse into his world of music, innovation, and collaboration, leaving us all eagerly anticipating the upcoming show and future projects from the dynamic duo. And what a show it was! Just 20 minutes after our interview, Thom took the stage, unleashing an electrifying, high-energy set that had the audience fully engaged and going wild. His connection with fans went beyond the music, as he shared Grey Goose shots with the front row, stayed for pictures and fan interaction after the show, and even autographed a lucky fan’s driver’s license. The entire experience, from the insightful interview to the unforgettable performance, showcased Thom’s welcoming and fun-loving nature. I am profoundly grateful to the entire team, the gracious hosts at RISE, and, of course, Thom, for sharing his wisdom and humor with us. Be sure to check out Blasterjaxx’s latest single, “Spirits,” and stay connected with them on social media to catch their future endeavors.
Connect with them via the links below!
Daphne Blakborn is a driven and motivated individual, known for her passion and dedication to her work. With a strong background in music history and writing, her innovative ideas and unwavering commitment to excellence have garnered recognition from her peers and have helped drive her success. In her free time, Daphne enjoys cuddling dogs and playing instruments. She is always looking for new challenges and opportunities to grow both personally and professionally.
