Ian Betts is synonymous with the UK trance scene. He DJs regularly at the best trance parties and clubs this country has to offer including The Gallery at Turnmills, The Cross and Pacha, whilst also appearing in Ibiza at Cream and last years memorable SW4 party in London.

This year he has continued to travel abroad, whilst also working on a production sound that has a number of top jocks on the lookout for his driving epic style, especially the material coming through from his fast-rising ‘Six:Thirty Records’.

In the lead up to his return to the Main Arena of South West Four in 2005, RA spoke to Ian about his panache (or lack of) for gambling, his love for 6:30 AM/PM and an exciting exclusive scoop about the line-up at this year's Heat UK SW4 party!

Go ahead - Place your Betts.

With a surname like yours I have to ask, do you fancy yourself as a bit of a gambling man?

Haha! No, not at all to be honest – the very few occasions that I have had a flutter have ended pretty disastrously so I’ve learnt to keep my wallet tightly shut!

What’s the most interesting bet you’ve had with a few mates? And, did you win?

Well I recently bet all the money I had in the world that Thailand was in the southern hemisphere (I’d just been there en route to Australia) – fortunately it was a bet with my girlfriend and although she dragged me into the nearest bookshop, found an atlas and proved to me that I had lost, she didn’t claim her winnings. She did however make the most of it by doing an ‘I told you so’ dance in the middle of the bookshop!!

After the Gatecrasher boom days of the UK trance scene in the mid-nineties, the UK trance scene experienced quite a dramatic downturn and took a lot of stick in the press. Many would have regarded the pursuit of a career as a trance DJ and producer as quite a bit of a gamble at that time? Did you or have you ever seen it that way?

No, never! To be honest, when I started DJing back then it was never intended to be a career, I was merely doing something that I genuinely loved as a bit of a hobby I guess. Things have just snowballed from there really - it’s all taken off at a rapid pace recently to the point where it does feel more like a career now, although I still love it every bit as much now as I did then!

In an interview with Resident Advisor, Armin van Buuren once described his music as “Euphoric. Melodic. Energetic. Emotional. Drugs." How would you describe your music?

High octane, energy fuelled, euphoric trance music – stuff that will make you dance with your hands in the air and a smile on your face!

Listening to your productions and DJ mixes the word ‘euphoric’ immediately springs to mind. What do you think distinguishes an Ian Betts euphoric moment from a Paul van Dyk euphoric moment or an Armin van Buuren one?

Good question! I find it can be quite hard to articulate the differences (in musical terms) between DJs and producers, but I’d say that both my sets and my productions tend to have a certain energy, drive and intensity as well as euphoric and melodic elements – I’ve always tried hard to have a unique and instantly recognizable sound, and I always try to steadily build my sets towards a particular point, crescendo-ing with the last track which you know will always be a big one!

" The consistent level of quality releases that are around right now is far greater than it was back then – people forget that for every ‘For An Angel’ or ‘1998’ there was a huge pile of utter stinkers! ”

You studied geology, which is related to the study of rocks. You’re developing quite a reputation for helping others get their rocks off. As a DJ and producer what do you think are the key qualities necessary to rock a crowd or making a rocking track?

I think it is essential to retain a link to the dance floor – I was a clubber before I was a DJ and I can still remember how it feels to be having the time of your life in the middle of a packed dance floor when that memorable tune comes pumping through the speakers and everyone erupts, and that’s the moment I’m always trying to capture, be it as a DJ or producer. My sets and productions aren’t about to go and win any awards for innovation, but I hope they provide the soundtrack to many a memorable night out.

Last year you played the SW4 Festival alongside Sasha in front of a home crowd of 10,000. For many aspiring DJs in the UK and the world over that gig would represent a rather large pinnacle in their careers. You’ve also played with Armin van Buuren and a few weeks back played Cream at Amnesia in Ibiza. Did you ever or do you still have a dream gig? What was or is it and has it happened yet?

Oh yeah, I’ve got several dream gigs! I’ve always wanted to play last set at The Gallery @ Turnmills because that is where I went clubbing religiously every week for over three years back in the late 90s – Steve Lee’s end of night sets there were the stuff of legend and were the biggest inspiration for me to start DJing the first place, and I’m going to be lucky enough to fulfill this dream next Friday when I make my Gallery debut playing the last set.

And although I’ve played early sets there, I’d love to play a peak time set at Amnesia for Cream (that club is one of the best in the world) and I’d love to play the sunrise set at a huge outdoor trance event, maybe up in the mountains somewhere… although my two gigs at Dance Valley in Holland in August might fulfill this part of my dream!

Since you work for Heat UK, the organization behind South West Four, no doubt you have more of an idea than most about this year’s event. Can you give us any inside scoops on what’s going to be new and different at this year’s party?

Well I can reveal that there are still two more artists to be added to the HeatUK Arena, so the campaign is far from over. Even I don't know who those artists will be but you can expect there will be some big surprises instore!

This year’s party will be bigger and better than last year’s and if you were lucky enough to be at the 2004 event you’ll know that was some day to beat. This year the event will be twice as big, and the headliners on the main stage reflect this – they don’t come much bigger than Sasha, Digweed and Carl Cox!

The legendary Space Terrace in Ibiza is also going to be recreated in South London for the day as well, which will be something to behold. Expect the same high levels of production as there always are at Heat events, and the best crowd in the world bar none!

Like many producers who want to get their music out there, you set up your own label. Was it something you felt you were forced to do due to a lack of response to your demos from existing labels?

Not really, I still have tracks coming out on other labels but I wanted to setup my own label (Six:Thirty Records) so that I could have more control over my music - with Six:Thirty I know that the success or failure of a release will be solely down to me and that I will have complete control over what happens to my catalogue. I learnt a lot from having my first few tracks released on other labels and I hope I’ve been able to use this knowledge to the benefit of my label.

Do you think the whole A&R aspect of labels and finding new talent has been somewhat diminished in recent years? On your label Six:Thirty you’ve released a lot of your own material or collaborations. Honestly speaking, to what extent do you intend to do pure A&R-ing i.e. looking and releasing tracks from complete unknowns on your label? Or will it just primarily be a vehicle for your own material?

Whilst having the label is an ideal vehicle for me to release my work, the next two releases are going to be from up and coming artists that I feel reflect the sound of the label, and both are tracks that I got very excited about as soon as I first heard them!

For me the A&R role of most dance music labels has been getting weaker and weaker over the years – I can remember sending out my first few tracks to a whole bunch of labels and getting absolutely no response from them at all. Even when they were chased up the best I got was ‘it’s not really what we are looking for’.

I can honestly say that with Six:Thirty I will always listen to every demo I am sent and I will always give an honest response with as much help/advice as I can – and if it’s good enough it will get signed!

What did kind of studio set up did you use to make your hit “Love Resurrection”? How long did it take between laying down the basic foundations of the track to its final completion?

Love Resurrection was pretty much the first track I ever produced – it was an idea I’d had floating around for a while and it took about 2 years to get from the first sessions to final release!

I wrote and produced the track in my home studio, which is completely software based (I use Logic on a PC with an array of VST instrument such as the V-Station, Albino, ES2, TrancePro, Vanguard, Pro53, Reaktor, Atmosphere, etc) – I’m a bit of a computer geek (I used to work in IT) so I’ve always had more of an affinity with software over hardware, but it was a real learning process - I now engineer all my own stuff which is largely as a result of everything I learnt from working on that track! My studio has grown up a lot since then but the basics are still the same…..

What was the reason behind the choice of the name of your label Six:Thirty?

Haha, I’m always being asked this!! It basically comes from a long running joke between some of my oldest clubbing mates – we always reckoned six thirty was the best time of day whether it be night or morning; if it’s six thirty in the morning then you’ve just got back from a club and you’ve got the whole day ahead of you to have some fun, if it’s six thirty in the evening then you’ve been having fun all day and now have a whole night’s clubbing ahead of you. Some of my mates have been asking for royalties for using the name!!

Where were you and what were you doing at 6:30am and 6:30pm in the previous 24 hours?

I was sleeping like a baby at 6.30am and I was in the studio swearing loudly at my PC as it crashed for the umpteenth time at 6.30pm!

Tell us the names of some tracks coming out next on Six:Thirty?

Kuffdam & Plant “Skyline” - this track is the duo’s long awaited follow up to the Paul Van Dyk favourite “Summer Dream”. The Original Mix is a slightly tougher track that still has a sweeping epic-ness. I’m really happy with my remix as well, the reaction to both so far has been great!

Elude “Purgatory” – when I first heard this a few years ago it blew me away. Then a couple of months ago I found out it had never been released so I chased the producers down and signed it for my label immediately! I hope this will be one of the summer's biggest trance anthems, it is a monster....

Ian Betts “Sonica” – my newest track and one I’ve been dipping in and out of for a while now, it’s finally come together at last though and I’ll be road testing it over the next few months. I hope this will be a more than worthy follow up to the likes of Polarise and Koinomia.

Besides your releases on Six:Thirty, what new compilations or tracks do you have coming out in the next few months?

I’ve got tracks included on the new Tidy Euphoria CD and a new compilation being brought out through ESP in South Africa.

I’ve got two remixes of a track called ‘Tears Of An Angel’ by Zirenz coming out on AJ Red this month (which has been huge with Jon O’Bir, Graham Gold, Guy Ornadel and Gavyn Mytchel).

I’ve also got the follow up to Polarise planned on Elevation Records, plus two new tracks and a remix of Marc French’s ‘Killer Disco’ coming out on Heat Vinyl.

Gatecrasher recently released a compilation of classic trance tracks which were highly definitive and influential in shaping the UK and European trance sound as a whole. What do you think are some of the most significant releases in the trance scene in more recent times, in the last 2 or 3 years, say?

A lot of people ask me if I reckon the trance scene will ever be as good as it was back in ’98-’00, but as far as I am concerned I think it’s better now than it was then! The consistent level of quality releases that are around right now is far greater than it was back then – people forget that for every ‘For An Angel’ or ‘1998’ there was a huge pile of utter stinkers! For me the true classics from the last few years are tracks like Cern “The Message”, Nu-NRG “Dreamland”, G&M Project “Sunday Afternoon”, Agnelli & Nelson “Holding On To Nothing”, Motorcycle “As The Rush Comes”, Whiteroom “Whiteroom”….the list could go on!!!

Who do you think are some upcoming and innovative trance producers at the moment? What are one or two tracks from other producers that are really doing it for you this summer?

All the guys in the Discover stable are on fire at the moment – John O’Callaghan, John Askew and Greg Downey have been turning out tune after tune, every single one of them has been at the front of my record box! Dave “Factoria” Dowsett is also a real talent, I’m sure you will be hearing a lot more from this guy this year. And Adam White has been proving himself to everyone in the last 12 months, expect to hear a lot more of the same this year.

"I’m just really looking forward the whole atmosphere and buzz about the day – 20,000 people at a mini-dance music festival in the heart of London on a hot summer’s day, it really doesn’t get much better than that!”

To be honest there is so much talent out there at the moment that as a DJ you really are spoiled for choice with new music at the moment, but if I had to pick two tracks that have been doing it for me so far this summer they would be John O'Callaghan "Stormy Clouds" (Greg Downey Remix) on Discover Dark and Super8 v DJ Tab - First Aid (Original Mix) on Anjunabeats.

Finally South West Four is going to be another great opportunity for dance music fans in London to check yourself out again and the sound of UK trance in 2005. What are you most looking forward to about SW4? What message would you like to say to punters who will be heading down to Clapham Common on August 27th?

I’m just really looking forward the whole atmosphere and buzz about the day – 20,000 people at a mini-dance music festival in the heart of London on a hot summer’s day, it really doesn’t get much better than that!! To everyone who is coming: I’ll see you down the front!

Forthcoming big gigs where you can catch Ian include The Gallery at Turnmills on July 22nd, South West 4 on Clapham Common on August 27th August and at Dance Valley on August 6th and 7th.