Hardstyle is on the rise, and Dutch duo Sub Zero Project are definitely among the musically open-minded members of that scene. Thomas Velderman and Nigel Coppen don’t like to think in boxes and incorporate all the best elements of other electronic genres into their compositions.

We talked to them about growing as artists, premiering new tracks on stage, and the ultra-fun hardstyle phenomenon that is known as the kickroll.

You’re among the few hardstyle artists who are invited to play Tomorrowland time and time again, and it takes continuous creative growth to obtain such a position. How have you guys evolved as artists recently?

“As always, we are mainly focused on making new music. This year specifically, we feel our sound is where we want it to be. Luckily we seem to get the same feedback from our existing fans as from new followers worldwide.

We’ve also been playing in lots of new places which has had a positive impact on our career. Returning to Tomorrowland is something special every year, hence we are super excited to play here!”

What do you remember from your very first performance at Tomorrowland?

“We were still pretty young and didn't really know what to expect. We’d never visited the festival before, but of course we’d heard all the good stories about it. In real life, though… we were completely overwhelmed by the massive stages and all the decorations.

And back then we never thought we would make it this far. It’s crazy how things have taken shape since then.”

It seems that hardstyle is slowly but surely finding its way back to allround electronic festivals like Tomorrowland. Hardtechno DJs are playing hardstyle tracks out, like Showtek’s classic ‘FTS’. Are we witnessing a key moment for hardstyle as a genre?

“Over the past years, hardstyle has been shifting a lot in general. Within hardstyle, many subgenres have emerged, which is good for the evolution of our scene.

The fact that hardtechno artists suppport hardstyle songs and the other way around is great for the expansion of our scene. Overall, we see that the harder styles are getting more traction worldwide. We love it, as it opens new doors for us.”

Now, spoilers please. Can we expect any exclusives you’ve never played before, and what can you already reveal about these tracks?

“We have two new tracks that we will be premiering. One track has a great vocal and has the features of a traditional hardstyle arrangement. It comes with a nice break and a big uplifting melody.

However, we used lots of new sounds, which makes this a very fresh tune, even if you know us well. The second one is a lot harder and it is heavy on the kicks. It’s a proper dancefloor banger with some hardtechno influences.”

You’re among the few hardstyle artists looking outside their own genre when it comes to collabs. How have your projects with people like Timmy Trumpet, Hardwell, and Vini Vici come about?

“We love collaborating with artists outside of our own scene. Timmy Trumpet is a close friend of ours and he is clearly a fan of hardstyle too. It’s so much fun working in the studio with him.

Vini Vici was always on our list, as we love psytrance! And we now have our second collab with Hardwell coming out. The first one was epic and we felt it needed a follow-up. This new track with Robbert really goes off live!”

‘Never Surrender’ is your new release with Nathalie Blue, a nice one for the bigger stages. What’s the thought behind the lyrics? Why ‘Never Surrender’?
“This one was actually written specifically for the Mainstage of Tomorrowland. We came up with the lyrics during a writer’s camp that we organized in January, at a time when Nigel was going through some difficult family circumstances. Basically the lyrics is us saying that we never give up, regardless of what happens.”

‘It Will Be OK’ is another new one, in collaboration with Dual Damage. It’s a proper ‘kickroll’ workout, with part of the melody played by the kickdrum. To everyone unfamiliar with the phenomenon, would you explain what a kickroll is and how you like to use them?

“This track was so much fun to make and the kickrolls are definitely its signature element. A kickroll basically consists of multiple fast kicks, put into one beat like a drum roll. Sometimes they even change key, which can make it very funky and fun. In this track we tried something different: an arpeggiated kickroll.

It’s something we’ve been playing around with in the studio and it turned out pretty cool. When we play it live, we see fans drumming with their hands in the air on the beat. It’s wild!”