Tel Aviv-based electronic artist Adam Ten comes from a family with a musical background, and he says that music has always been in his life.
"I started playing around the age of 18, exploring different music and a variety of genres, mainly psytrance as that’s what was being played in the underground scene in Israel," Ten says. "Later it evolved into groovier and more elegant dance music. So it was always there but it was later in my life that I decided to quit my day to day job and focus only on music to see how far I can go."
Ten says that it's tough to nail down his sound.
"This is always a hard question to answer but I believe it’s somewhere in the range of house music with influences from psytrance and funky beats, but also more hypnotic stuff," he says. "I see myself as a DJ first so if the music touches or evokes any feelings, I want to share that with the crowd."
His latest release is "Toys," a collaboration with Rafael that's out on Higher Ground.
"I had this groove going on and didn't know which direction to take it in, then Rafael heard it and had goods idea so we sat down together to build a story, recording a funky lead and atmosphere around it," Ten says. "We tried to push the sounds so they were a bit trippy and unexpected but at the same time, made you move."
As for gear: "Ableton with lots of samples and plugins is the core of my studio," Ten says. "I have two Roland boutique synths and two pedal effects from Bose, that’s basically it. I like to keep it minimal and I always sell whatever hardware I don’t use so free space on my table. Tech gear is great to help open your mind, but in production for me it’s all about being consistent and working in progress until you like the outcome."
Looking ahead, Ten has plenty planned for 2024.
"There is lots of music which I'm happy to share on labels such as Defected, Life & Death and Maccabi House (my own label)," he says. "Some exciting new shows this summer like Circoloco in DC10, Pacha and Hï Ibiza, Junction 2 festival in London and Maccabi House events in New York and Los Angeles."
Adam Ten's "Toys" with Rafael is out now.
