Known for his progressive house roots and ambient downtempo finesse, Voyager features unreleased gems alongside some of Simon Sinfield’s most lauded originals and remixes, encapsulating his evolution over decades in the industry.
Sinfield’s Voyager offers a multifaceted listening experience—one that embraces downtempo electronica, robust progressive house, and the delicate nuances of ambient soundscapes, all underscoring the artist’s far-reaching influence. This album is not only a tribute to his past but a window into his ongoing journey across the electronic music landscape.
Voyager spans decades of your work. What motivated you to release a career-spanning album now, and how did you approach curating tracks that best represent your journey?
Voyager is a project that I have wanted to release for a few years, but I was too busy producing for other artists and running the label to dedicate myself to it. I started to make the title track initially as a prospective single, but then it jumped out as the perfect starting point to get the album project underway. I wanted to add in at least 6 new tracks, so I began the process of making those, including the collaborations with Ana Be and Phildel. I then chose some of my favourite releases from across the last decade to build an album that hopefully captures in one place what I’ve created with my solo releases and remix work.
Your music has found homes on iconic labels like Sony, Toolroom, and ICONYC. How has working with these labels influenced your own sound and the direction of Krafted Records?
Working across different labels within the industry has helped me a great deal. It’s very easy to self-release, but by meeting the requirements and targets of other labels, it helps to challenge you as an artist. It also gives you that re-assurance as a producer that other professionals believe in you. After all, we are only human and there is always going to be an element of doubt in your own ability. Landing onto Toolroom, with one of my house releases (as The Cloudshapers) and having incredible producers like Steve Mac and Nick Muir remix my tracks, continued to add to that self-checking and self-belief.
In Voyager, you revisit both originals and remixes. How do you decide when a track needs a remix, and what do you feel these reworks add to the listening experience?
Usually, the remixes are requests from the original artist or the label, but I have pushed to get on releases where my creativity is going wild with an idea to give a track a different slant. Remixing is something I have always loved and so there’s quite a large discography of me adding my own interpretation, across multiple genres. The selection of remixes on the album are just some of my absolute favourites, and in all cases I adored the original tracks. My approach is always to be different, to the point where I hardly use any original parts. Within Voyager, I decided to subtly re-work my own single Latitude, as I wanted to include elements from the very first demo version that I’d made, which never made the release when it came out on Pineapple. When Latitude was originally played on BBC Radio 1 it was an incredible feeling, but I remained a little frustrated that some of the original elements had been left out. I now feel it’s a complete version. I hope that people hear these re-interpretations and then dive into those artists to discover their music.
Your Wind Down residency on BBC Radio 1 shone a spotlight on Krafted’s roster. How did this residency shape the public’s perception of Krafted Records, and what do you feel it brought to the label’s evolution?
Myself and Paul Sawyer (co-owner of Krafted) have said many times before how incredible our 2 and a half years on BBC Radio 1 was. For me, I felt it was more about industry recognition for the label, as well as such a wonderful opportunity to give our artists the exposure that they deserved. Growing up in the UK and being music mad, listening to Radio 1 was my world. It still remains unrivalled as a broadcaster for specialist music and to have been invited to produce a regular show highlighting Krafted releases was another of those moments that just gives you a re-assuring pat on the back. I felt it was as if Radio 1 were giving us a little nod and saying “well done lads, keep going’.
Under your alias The Cloudshapers, you’ve released a steady stream of tracks. How do you see your identity as Simon Sinfield versus The Cloudshapers, and how does each project let you explore different musical ideas?
My first release as The Cloudshapers came from a remix that Sony actually rejected. The A&R lead sent it back with a message to go and release it as a single, because he loved it, but I’d gone too far from my own style. He actually helped come up with the alias and push it in the USA for me. I’ve used plenty of aliases on projects that take me into other genres. I love the freedom of being creative in another style.
Road to Le Mans and the chill remix of “One Step Beyond” have been recent milestones. What personal significance do these tracks hold, and how do they fit into your broader discography?
It’s funny how you’ve picked out those 2 tracks as they are very special to me. Road to Le Mans really captures where I’m at with progressive and melodic house. I’m so proud of that record and the response from both the dancefloor and from my peers. There’s a huge nod to old school house music in it, which so many people have commented on. Solartsone supported it on his Pure Trance radio show and described it as a “stunning record”. That kind of peer approval just drives you forward. One Step Beyond is a record that I know means an awful lot to all involved. My remix was a long, long way from the brilliant original that Paul and Jan Johnston had made, and it was such an honour to launch our Radio 1 residency with it. Such a special moment!
You mentioned facing setbacks and challenges in your career. Looking back, are there particular turning points or learning experiences that have profoundly influenced your music and approach?
I’ve definitely had a few hiccups along the way, but you just have to accept it as part of the creative world we work in. You learn from those periods and move on. One of the reasons I wanted to run a label was to help new music makers get through the peaks and troughs that I had experienced. I love helping our young artists and producers in moving up the ladder. There was very little help and support when I had my first record deal and it is really rewarding giving them a helping hand.
Voyager incorporates elements from downtempo, ambient, and progressive house. As electronic music continues to evolve, what aspects of these genres resonate with you most today, and how do you see your sound developing in the future?
Voyager captures the journey so far. I’d like to think you can hear a range of composition, song writing and production styles, that showcase what I’ve been up to for the past few years. This may well mean a change of direction again. I actually think that’s a really positive thing to do. I’ll be starting 2025 off with some exciting new commercial remixes being released, working alongside an absolute hero of mine, so that will give me a natural gap away from creating new progressive house releases. No doubt I’ll soon be back on the more laidback, acoustic and ambient productions for the annual Krafted Chill album, which is always such an enjoyable project. Having a break from releasing solo material will no doubt re-energise me and see more evolution of the genres. I love how things develop through the use of new technology and the discovery and re-imagination of something old. Count me in.
Voyager is out 18 December on Kraftedhttps://go.protonradio.com/r/rlS8UvUEhrhio