It is said that the first thought is always the best one – the most valuable sketches usually emerge from ideas untouched by the inner critic. Two talented producers and enthusiasts of oldschool techno – Remco Beekwilder and Tarkno – decided to use this pure, creative energy, and the result of their work was released as ‘SKETCHES EP Part I’. This material draws heavily on classical techno rhythm, but thanks to the chosen sketches workflow it sounds so fresh, so interesting and very dancefloor-oriented.
Remco Beekwilder tells us about the story behind the creation of “SKETCHES” (and its sequel, already planned for May 2026), the core values of his label, EMERALD, and the rich heritage of the Dutch scene. On 17th April, we’ll hear him at Jasna 1 in Warsaw, and this is definitely a night that can’t be missed!
Agata Omelańska: Hey Remco, I’m very happy to meet you! Let’s start with a very warm-up question: how are you? What have you been doing recently, what are you focused on right now and how did 2026 start for you?
Remco Beekwilder: Hey Agata, thanks for having me and likewise! I’m doing great. I have been experimenting with sounds and textures a lot lately and spend a lot of time with Tarkno, shaping our second EP for the SKETCHES series. My focus right now is on studio sessions and sorting the releases for EMERALD.
I’d like to come back to 2025 for a moment, as you had the opportunity to play in some of the most amazing events in the techno industry, such as: Awakenings Festival, A Day at The Park, HRFST Festival or Homeless Homies at ADE. I hope you enjoyed them all, and in case I missed something: could you please tell which of them was the greatest experience for you and why?
I had a lot of fun playing Rotterdam Rave at the mighty Ahoy venue. The majority of the line up was focused on the harder style of electronic music, so based on that you could say, I was a bit of a misfit in between. But on the plus side, I could play from the underdog role and somewhat surprise people.
It was a great experience to play without any expectations.
Furthermore, I enjoyed playing at Levenslang in Amsterdam. This venue is unique, as it’s the boiler house of the former prison ‘Bijlmerbajus’. The structure of the venue and the soundsystem make it a great experience. I also had the opportunity to play for the collective WAYS in Italy at their new playground, EVO. It’s a territory hidden inside an olive garden just outside of Trani. I started playing at night and finished the event during sunrise, magical!
Playing alongside Cleric for Awakenings Festival was inspiring, as we play slightly different and it was refreshing to experience how he builds tension and commits to the audience.
Last but not least, it’s always a privilege to return to South America. I had the honor to play in Medellin in Colombia again and the energy from the crowd in that city is just unmatched.
One of your ‘25 highlights is, undoubtedly, the “SKETCHES” EP – the project you’ve worked on with Tarkno. You’re both masters in your craft, combining tougher grooves with the pure dancefloor energy, and I must admit that when I first heard of your collaboration, I was very excited. How did your cooperation start? And what kind of workflow did you choose to make all of your ideas alive?
We both have a shared passion for the energy of oldschool techno. I guess that was a starting point for our friendship.
From that point forward we shared concepts with each other and we both got really enthusiastic about each other’s ideas. Whenever I send Tarkno a rough sketch of what I was working on, he expanded on that idea and vice versa, so it was a natural decision to collaborate on a joint project. Our workflow still continues like this.
For you, what’s the essence of this project? When “SKETCHES” – not exactly the final EP, but the general idea – came into your mind for the very first time, did you know exactly who you wanted to make music with? Or maybe the ‘partner in crime’ was already chosen, and the idea came later?
The essence of this project is on finalizing ‘sketches’ from each other, so we both finish each other’s concepts.
One individual starts something and the other feeds off that idea and finishes it. Sometimes it goes back and forth a few times, but most of the time it’s done in a very short timeframe. There was never really the intention of starting the SKETCHES series, as it started off with sharing music and concepts. The name of the project came up organically, because of our workflow.
I heard that “SKETCHES” won’t stop on one EP only – the second part of this project is coming very soon, as the release is planned for 1st May 2026 as a double vinyl. You mentioned also that it will be followed by your solo release. For you, is there any difference between working individually and in a collaboration?
Working alone or together on a project is different for sure. You’ll experience that making music together is much easier, if you manage to find a partner that shares the same work ethic and vision. There’s always someone with inspiration and concepts are built much faster. You also function as a sounding board for each other, which helps to listen more critical to sounds and mixdowns. This is very beneficial for finalizing projects.
And how about back-to-backs? While preparing a shared set, what do you pay most attention to and how do you communicate with your partner behind the decks?
We never prepare our back-to-back. It’s pure improvisation, just how I would play solo, but with a b2b you are able to feed off what the other serves, so it creates unexpected directions and combinations.
Speaking about collaborations, I cannot omit the one you have with visual artists, such as CA.SIMMØNS and Mate Pavic. They’re both responsible for a signature element of your label, EMERALD, as their works can be found on the album’s covers. How did you discover their art and decide to do something together?
I discovered Mate Pavic through the work he did for Self Reflektion. I released music on Strangers label years ago and was amazed by what Mate had to offer. It was that moment I knew if I ever start something my own, I’ll ask Mate to do the artwork for the sleeve.
When Mate informed me he could no longer offer his work for the label’s identity, I knew I wanted to continue offering the sleeves printed with artwork, but from now on in colors.
On Instagram I searched for collage art and found the work from CA.SIMMØNS, and was blown away by his pieces of art. His work is very unique to me and draws attention whether you like his art or not. It’s beautiful and shocking at the same time.
I reached out to him through Instagram and told him about my intentions, print run and availability, and luckily he responded very enthusiastically.
On EMERALD, we can find releases of you, Rebecca Delle Piane, Chontane, Kenji Hina, Introversion, Endlec, Conrad van Orton and many more. How would you name ‘the secret ingredient’ they all have, and what’s the mission of your label?
The secret all these artists share with each other is their unique trademark sound. Every single one of them are masters of their own craft. This doesn’t just happen over night.
It takes years of commitment, curiosity and dedication – and it deserves to be heard.
The mission of the label is to inspire people and create opportunities.
And coming back to Remco as a solo artist: how would you describe your styles, the current one and the one from your debut times? And can you name 3 classics of electronic music that had the biggest influence on you?
The style I embraced when I just started was sort of a crossover between Rave, Tribal, Oldschool Trance and Oldschool Techno. Nowadays there’s still a part of me presenting that style,
but I’m more focused on the blend of Oldschool Techno with Modern Day Techno, as long as it’s rhythmic.
I never really think about it as it’s more intuitive, but I think this is how I would describe my current style.
Vainqueur – Lyot (Maurizio Mix)
Laurent Garnier – The Man With The Red Face
Let’s take a look at the Dutch scene today. Where to go, who to listen to, how to find the best people, events, promoters that really feel and live the underground vibe?
If you are looking for an underground experience, I would recommend visiting the smaller scale events. Radion, Tillatec, Club Raum, Lofi, Garage Noord, PIP, BASIS, BRET, Perron, Levenslang, Wibar, Multipla, Clubkade and WAS to name a few.
In terms of collectives I would recommend Frenzy, Vault Sessions, Vulged, OSU Rhythms, AURA, Ypnotika, DJ Bone presents Further, Eerste Communie, Orphic, Disturbia – and I probably forgot about many others.
I saved this question as the last one (on purpose). Complaining and comparing ourselves to the rest of Europe is a Polish national sport, and the electronic music scene is not an exception. What’s the secret behind the Dutch events, festivals, parties and club life? And how did The Netherlands manage to create such an inspiring, rich and prospering industry that became a reference point for the whole world?
I think The Netherlands managed to create this inspiring, rich and prospering industry due to different factors. It started off during the late 80’s – early 90’s, when The Netherlands welcomed emerging electronic music from overseas and iconic venues like RoXY and iT opened its doors. Furthermore, the local government gave nightclubs an exemption on opening hours which helps to fully commit to the night and experience the potential of electronic music. In addition, we are blessed in The Netherlands with proper infrastructure and night trains, which makes venues easier accessible for visitors.
I believe all of this gave Dutch artists a head start and were educated in an earlier stage in comparison to other countries.
Besides this, you can study electronic music as a course at school and The Netherlands hosts one of biggest electronic music events, ADE!
Thank you so much for the interview and time dedicated, Remco! See you at Jasna and I can’t wait to hear your new music very soon!