‘Feel The Surge’ – Meet the USA’s Hardstyle victor, Pulsatorz!

From spinning records since the ripe, young age of twelve, to performing at the USA’s biggest concepts, it’s no doubt that Teddy Glow, aka Pulsatorz is one of the most influential names in America’s Hardstyle revolution.

Hailing from the city that never sleeps, slowly, but steadily, Teddy has also been working his way into the Dutch scene, where he’s dropped bombs on X-Bone and Scantraxx Silver’s catalogue. With his latest single “Surge” out in the open and ready for release, we decided to pick the brains of this American talent as he shares his sentiments about Hardstyle in the States, the forthcoming Basscon event and much more!

– Yo Teddy, thanks for this interview and welcome back to Alive at Night! First of all, what have you been up to on this fine day?
Thanks for having me again! Today has mainly consisted of fine tuning the promotion for my latest track “Surge.”

– Before we get down to business, for our readers who don’t know you – can you give them a little rundown?
I’m a North American Hardstyle producer who goes by the name of Pulsatorz. I’m currently studying Computer Systems and Programming, however on the side I do a lot of odd jobs such as making pizza and fixing cars to running social media for local businesses!

– How did you get into Hardstyle? And how did this inspire you to begin producing?
I started DJing at the early age of 12. A bunch of the older kids from my block were actively going to raves and also aspired to be DJ’s; I looked up to a lot of these kids and when I saw them playing music together and having a good time I noticed that I really wanted to be a part of that. For Christmas one year, my parents brought me a Gemini turntable starter kit and that’s where it all started…

As the older kids would mostly spin Trance and Techno, those were the genres I got into, primarily because that’s all I was really exposed to. In America, Trance/Euro House was regularly played on the radio at the time, so I kept going with it seeing as it was quite trendy. I ended up spinning at all of the local under 18’s events up until high school; in the long run this really helped me because I already had a lot of experience playing live in front of crowds.

Around 2005/06 I felt as though Trance wasn’t speaking to me as much as it used to, so I went searching for new music. I came across this very weird site that had ‘live mixes’ available and went on a random downloading spree. After sitting down and properly listening to the sets I came across a Pavo & Zany Decibel 2005 mix and it really caught my ear. At the time I’d been exposed to Hard Trance and Techno, but this ‘Hardstyle’ stuff had a totally different flavour; this Hardstyle ‘stuff’ was aggressive, driving and had me totally speechless – I couldn’t stop listening to it.

Finally, around 2006/2007 I had saved up enough money to buy a laptop and serato, so I could download MP3’s and spin them on my vinyl turntables. I then began promoting myself as a Hardstyle DJ and began flooding New York City’s rave scene with my CD’s and stickers until I scored my first Hardstyle booking!

Fast forward to 2009/2010 and Hardstyle was really starting to make its presence known here in the North East. I’d booked the Trance Generators at a show I hosted, linked up with the infamous US group ‘Hard Onez’ and I was making all the connections I possibly could.

On the drive home from a show in Pennsylvania I came across some college FM radio station that was playing Hardstyle! I couldn’t believe my ears! I immediately rung the radio station to find out who this mystery DJ was and got his contact details – it actually ended up being a DJ (who you should all be familiar with) named Sogma. I ended up getting into contact with him and after chatting, came to knowledge that he and a few others had an all-Hardstyle event planned! I HAD to make an appearance and meet these people; I knew that this had to be one of those defining moments in my life.

On the night, I was introduced to the production company ‘Hardstylerz USA’ and we spoke about the possibilities of using the connections I’d already made in order to bring out some of the big artists to New York. We actually ended up bringing DJ Isaac, Headhunterz, JDX, Dutch Master, Wildstylez and Zany with the Donkey Rollers in our ‘Revolution’ series of events. We proudly brought each one of them out to the States for the first time ever, with huge help from Leo Corson. However, like any great event series it had taken its last breath at Revolution 8 (where Zany and Donkey Rollers was held). I couldn’t face the fact that this great thing we’d created had died – and that’s the moment I made the decision to try my hand at production.

Let’s fast forward to around 2012. Me and my three friends Charlie (Arterial), Anthony (CiM) and Tom had created and launched Pulsatorz as a group project. We went all in on equipment and built a studio together and by October we’d released our first single “Aliens” on the label Hard Dance Nation. As gig opportunities came in, we quickly realised that a four-man operation probably wasn’t going to work for shows.

After a long discussion and a lot of planning, I took over the Pulsatorz project as a solo act, so I could continue to put money into the studio from gigs and also help pave a path for my friends to follow. Arterial’s first gig was at EDC 2015, which was a HUGE accomplishment in my eyes and in that moment I knew that we’d made the right choices. We all still work together regularly, and of course, support each other’s work!

– Hailing from the US, what kind of experience did you have when discovering Hard Dance music? Do you feel as though it was as ‘pure’ as a fan growing up in Europe?
I don’t really know… When I discovered it, it was purely an accident and I guess that others kind of fell into it the same way.

– Can you speak a little further about how the Hard Dance scene has grown in the USA?
The USA is MASSIVE in size, making it virtually impossible for Hardstyle to become a primary genre, as it’s hard for it to catch on organically. There are pockets of Hardstyle scenes spread across the country; however they are so far away from each other that generally Hardstyle remains quite small.

From what I’ve been told, driving across The Netherlands only takes a few hours, however it’s A LOT longer to drive all the way across the USA. With that point being made, I feel that because the USA is so large, it limits opportunities for Hardstyle lovers to meet in the ‘middle’ for a party or festival.

The largest area for Hardstyle is California, which is where ALL of the good shows are. The crowd is so passionate and I LOVE playing for them!

– What are some things that need improvement in the American Hard Dance scene?
We need to find some sort of major media outlet that will showcase the music and I also feel as though we need to show more support to the local American artists. We are getting better and better, but we can’t sell out a show by ourselves (yet). Once we (USA producers) have the country backing us at every show it will help us spread our music all over the country.

I remember seeing one of Ran-D’s Instagram posts a few years back, which was him sitting in McDonalds with one of his tracks playing on the radio in the background. We, unfortunately, do not have that type of outlet for Hardstyle in the States. I feel that if we did, Hardstyle would be much more prominent and accessible.

– Is there any stigma attached with Hard Dance music in the US? If so, do you ever run into this as a DJ and producer?
Hardstyle definitely has a negative stigma around it; the closed-minded population view the genre as being ‘haunted by drugs’ and aggressive. It’s not classified as ‘trendy,’ so we don’t shine as bright as we could. The ‘die-hard’ fans, however, are just as pure and passionate as anyone else in the world.

– What are some of the biggest difficulties you’ve experienced being an American artist, but trying to break into a Dutch dominated scene?
I think that being American has actually helped me. There’s not many of us, so I feel as though artists and labels are more inclined to help bring us up since we are the minority.

– On April 28^th and 29^th, Basscon will hold their colossal Wasteland concept, which you’ll be performing at! Can you share your excitement for this event, and of course, to catch up with all the artists performing?
I LOVE PLAYING IN CALI! The fans are always super energetic and their passion is simply matchless! Additionally, Basscon never steps short on their productions, so I know this one will be MASSIVE for sure.

It’s always great to catch up with the artists backstage; I really enjoy hanging out with them and networking, however the thing I’m most excited about is watching the huge sea of people jump up and down whilst I’m performing! For me, nothing beats that feeling…

– Let’s now speak about some of your new music! You just dropped the preview for your latest single “Surge,” which is a feel-good melodic bomb. What inspired this track?
I’ve always loved melodic and euphoric music – it just makes me feel good. I often hear music that just feels forced or has a fake feeling, which is something I try to avoid when making tracks. This was the main source of inspiration for “Surge” – to make the listener feel genuinely good about whatever their situation may be at the current time. Out here in the USA we have A LOT of crazy stuff happening, and if this track can help someone just escape it for three minutes then my mission has been accomplished.

– Your sound focuses on melodies and drive, which can be heard in “Surge,” why did you choose to go down this route with your productions?
There’s just something special about a good melody; it has the power to change your mood and connect people to each other without the exchange of words. I get that adrenaline rush ‘feeling’ when a good melody is blasting over a festival crowd and everyone is in sync for those few minutes. I just want to capture that moment and relive it over and over.

– What are your thoughts about the current Psy Trance hype within Hardstyle and all the drama that’s come along with it?
I’m personally not a fan, BUT if the crowd calls for it then go for it! People are too damn sensitive when it comes to change; I feel as though people should just let the artists do their own thing and not attack us for trying to be creative!

– What are some of the biggest lessons you’ve learnt from being in the music industry?
1. Always have a non-disclosure agreement handy.

2. Never trust anyone who wasn’t there for you when you needed them most.

3. ALWAYS bring 2 USB Sticks AND a preselected track CD (with a copy) and a spare cat5 cable.

4. NEVER EVER GIVE OUT YOUR PRESETS AND PROJECT FILES!

5. Build a team that you know will always have YOUR best interests in mind, not their pockets. Money comes with success and success comes with hard work; if everyone wants to make it, then everyone’s gotta work.

6. Make time for your loved ones. Music will consume your life and it’s easy to get lost in it.

– What’s something unique that Pulsatorz brings to the world of Hardstyle?
I’m working on that. I feel as though I’m still developing into whatever it is that I’m destined to become.

– Looking forth into the rest of 2017; what have you got planned in terms of your productions?
I’m currently working on improving my quality of sound and really getting the composition of the track to strike all the right feels. I’m also working on creating a consistent theme around everything I do, but that’s going to take a bit of time.

– Finally, I think you know the go with this one – what did you eat for breakfast today?
Bacon, egg and cheese with an Arizona iced tea in my Yankee fitted and timbs… Deadass!

Big ups to our buddy Pulsatorz for this interview! We’re glad to see that Hardstyle in the USA is steadily on the rise, and we also hope to see more fresh concepts popping up in 2017.To stay up to date on all things Pulsatorz, throw this dude a follow at the social links below!

“Surge” is OUT NOW on all download portals!

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