In relative silence, about 2 weeks ago, one of the biggest trance artists to date joined Choon.  Jezper Söderlund, best known under his alias Airbase, released his brand-new track Ejecta.  Not a headline in itself, and for many an event that passed without knowing.  But there are several reasons why the release of this little track (it’s under 3 minutes long) has significance.  It’s released independently, the style is different from earlier Airbase-productions and to top it all off, the track saw a release on the Choon-platform as well.

It is a rarity in itself that a big artist signs up for a platform that still is in its infancy. Yes, there are already some established trance names involved, like founder Gareth Emery, Skylex, Neptune Project, Dreamy, Hoyaa, Simon ‘Mindsoundscapes’ Fischer and Venaccio but most of them joined from the start or early on and have only uploaded older or unsigned works.  In that way, Ejecta is already an exception, as it is a brand-new production.  Airbase has a massive pedigree within the trance scene and is a respected producer who has released on big labels like Flashover, Black Hole Recordings, A State Of Trance/Armada Music and did remixes for guys like Tiësto, Armin van Buuren, Gouryella (Ferry Corsten), Above & Beyond and Solarstone.

So how did it all happen? It started when Jezper released a message on his website, pointed at his fans, two weeks ago, and shared that post on Twitter.  Mainly explaining why he felt creatively blocked and has released less frequently over the years.  Part of it had to do with expectations from fans and labels, which is why, for the time being, he decided to release his music for free and independently.  That feeling and frustration seemed a perfect fit for the ideology behind the Choon-platform, so it was worth pointing that out:

Marco seized the opportunity to make Airbase aware of Choon.

In the days after, Jezper actually signed up, and released both versions of Ejecta.  Not the type of track anyone would expect from him, but that was exactly why he wanted to release himself.  To be free. To rediscover his creativity.  And while Ejecta is short and has more of an EDM-feel to it, still the track has much of an Airbase-style to it.  It’s well worth checking out, and with his new release already announced for end of March, let’s hope that one turns up on Choon as well!

We hope he likes his stay, and can look beyond the shortcomings Choon has for now.  If the platform evolves, it could be the perfect fit for the state his music career is in now.  Also, worth noting: Jezper was one of the people behind the forum.  One of the inspirations behind getting ChoonTrance up and running.  So, with him joining, it feels like the circle is closing.  We are pretty honoured such a big name signed up with Choon.  Hopefully, as a (trance) community, we can learn a lot from his presence.

Airbase’s Choon profile can be found here: