In a recent article in the Australian magazine 3D World, Showtek gave an interview publicizing their upcoming Australian tour, during which they mentioned “We’re not going to stay a hardstyle act.”

Woah, what?

So, maybe it isn’t as dramatic as it seems, they add: “We are really working on our own sound and I think we’ve already accomplished a lot. Tiesto, for example, is not a trance DJ – but his music sounds a bit trancy. He’s just a brand nowadays, and, with Showtek, it’s actually the same”. They follow it up with “We are not going to make house or trance. We are going to develop our sound even more – tracks like Electronic Stereophonic is really our stuff. You’ll see”.

So how did we get here? Firstly, it’s not surprising that Showtek are breaking away from hardstyle. Showtek have always been a strange brand, an outsider, a Dutch duo far more embraced worldwide than in their homeland. The most recognizable and arguably the most successful hardstyle act ever, yet they do not garner the respect amongst the hardstyle faithful that other legendary artists do. Their sound is one of the few to break free from the constraints of hardstyle, one of the few hardstyle brands recognizable in pop culture.

And their split from hardstyle has been further facilitated recently with Showtek deciding to split with the Platinum booking agency to form their own booking agency to handle them and other Dutch Master Works artists, after a rumored falling out with Platinum refusing to book them at a certain hardstyle festival (for those who don’t know: Platinum booking agency handles most big names in hardstyle, and Q-Dance almost exclusively books through Platinum, leading to allegations of corruption, shady dealing and anti-competitive practices).

Showtek are one of the few hardstyle acts who have the crowd pulling ability to do this (as they effectively waved goodbye to ever playing at a Q-Dance event again), and they have an unashamedly popular, worldwide sound. No massive name in hardstyle could afford to not be booked at Q-Dance parties; but Showtek are not trying to be a massive hardstyle name, they are trying to be a massive name full stop.

So what will this Showtek actually sound like, if it isn’t hardstyle? Obviously their recent album is a good indicator, especially the track “Electronic Stereophonic”, of which I have never seen a producer beat off to their own track as much as showtek have with this one, mentioning it in almost every interview since the album came out.

Ultimately, it seems like a more accessible sound, without as much of the “distorted and aggressive sounds” that accompany most hardstyle, to use Walt’s words. Think a softer “hard dance” sound that blends genres, coming from a hardstyle direction but containing elements from different genres like rock, trance, house and pop. It’s still undeniably Showtek, with their sound almost instantly recognizable from their productions. In fact, it’s really a sound that is just more Showtek, and less hardstyle, to sum it up.

And so, we see this positioning makes sense in a wider view of Showtek trying to really forge their own place, their own niche in the hard dance scene – not limited by any genre expectations, producing whatever they want, playing at what parties they like, globetrotting worldwide. Analogue players in a digital world, anyone?

Discuss this in its thread on our forum.

This is not so much of a surprise, after his recent move away from Showtek’s label, Dutch Master Works due to some disagreement, and the subsequent dodgy cover up by the DMW boys in Dutch Master’s biography. Shortly after the move, Slim Shore – what an odd name – was quickly scooped up by Platinum Agency, so I daresay there are already some plans in the works for him over there.

There is no doubt that there is a significant amount of work in the future for Henry, rebuilding his reputation, but with the production skills he possesses, and already a strong rebrand in place, it shouldn’t be much of an issue (however Fusion’s release schedule might be).

The move to Fusion was announced in a YouTube video on Fusion’s channel, where Slim Shore’s latest work is being displayed.

The semi-cheesy track, ‘Scars‘ seems to be having a dig at DMW, in a vein similar to that of Showtek’s ‘World is Mine‘, oddly enough, but have a listen for yourself:

Click here to view the embedded video.

Take a look at his website for a bit more information: http://www.donkeyrollers.com/slimshore/