Interviews

Marcel Vogel's faultless Lumberjacks in Hell imprint kicks off 2025 with a new EP from Dutchman LYMA.

The Amsterdam-based talent offers up two seriously soulful house jams while nu-disco king Ray Mang provides a remix and signature dub. LYMA brings serious heart to his sounds as he blurs boundaries between styles on labels like INI Movement.
As a singer, multi-instrumentalist and producer, his work is hugely personal and musical and draws on r&b, soul, hip hop and house. He has collaborated with label head Vogel on Shall Not Fade and Boogie Angst before now and has played cultured events like Trans Musicales and the Super Sonic Jazz Festival in Amsterdam.

Here we have the pleasure of getting to know a little more about LYMA.

Where are you this moment and how are you planning to spend the rest of the day?

I'm on my way back from Italy on a 11 hour drive, riding shotgun for a while so perfect timing to get into it!

Where were you born and raised?

I was born in a gatekeeper's house of a castle in a small town called Breukelen. (Brooklyn was named after this small town). My father gave boxing and rugby at the university located there. But after two years we moved to a small town close to Amsterdam and then all the way to the most southern part of Holland when I was 9. A town called Bemelen.

Where are you based now?

I've been in Amsterdam for the past 16 years or so.

How is the health of the house music scene where you live in your opinion? Is it alive and kicking?

I feel like there is a lot happening in Amsterdam at the moment. There have always been dope things coming from Amsterdam, but it does seem like the more left field and soulful angle that I'm into, has finally got a healthy community around it.

How long have you been making music? What was your first step?

I've been writing songs for almost 20 years. Being bored out of my mind growing up in Bemelen, I started fiddling on my dads guitar when I was about 9. But I got hooked on it when I learned to sing and play at around 16 and then I got obsessed when I started recording it back in 2012.

When was the moment that you crossed the line into becoming an artist, what moments lead up to that?

I never really dreamed about being an artist, it was never really an option. But I guess one thing leads to another. At a certain point I felt like my songs needed to have a life beyond me, and I thought I could be the only one to perform them. So I started playing them for other people. Over time that has turned me into an artist.

You are working with Lumberjacks in Hell on this new release. Tell us a little about your relationship with Marcel.

I love Marcel, he is a one of a kind human being that is always motivating me and challenging me to think differently. We became close friends over time working together and sharing a life of fatherhood. We first did two EP's together without ever meeting, but since then we’ve become very close. He’s one of the few people that I ever play my random unheard demos to.

I’d love to hear about the initial idea for the track The Fool Ain’t Me. When did you first approach the concept and what was your original intention with this release?

The fun thing about this track is that I wrote parts of it 10 years ago. I remember writing the words for it on my guitar when my girlfriend at the time went over to Japan for 3 months and all we did was fight over the phone. I recorded guitar and the lead vocals then and 10 years later I’ve sampled myself and turned it into a house track. I never intended to release it until Marcel heard it and started playing it out without knowing it was me.

What are you most proud of with on this release?

It’s a very interesting feeling to be singing backing vocals to your younger self(on both tracks). I'm proud of the way I was able to make it work and was able to turn these old forgotten tunes into something that feels fresh.

What was the most challenging part of bringing the release together?

Drawing a line under it and saying it’s finished is always hard for me to do. Especially with tracks that I both write, produce and mix. Luckily Marcel was able to tell me when it is working and brought in some dope remixes by Ray Mang to bring the whole thing together.

I guess this record marks a lot of years in the music business, I’d love to hear your thoughts on how your creative process has changed and remained the same over the years. Do you approach anything differently now?

The best creative moments come when you let it all run through you without thinking, but it does help to have more tools in your toolbox. The thing I’ve always done and still do is collect concepts, starting points or challenges for songs/productions. The process didn’t really change, there are just more directions I can go now.

Once a piece is finished, how important is it for you to let it lie and evaluate it later?

I need some time to make sure there’s nothing that annoys me anymore(usually mixing things) before I mark it as being finished. And then it needs another year or so after it’s released before I can truly hear it as a whole again.

Are you a perfectionist? How much tweaking do you allow until you're satisfied with a track?

To be honest I could probably work forever on a track. But I have gotten better at letting go and accept that it’s sometimes what it is. And changing it can sometimes harm the essence of a track.

After finishing a record and putting out there, there can often be a sense of emptiness. Can you relate to this?

Yeah, well I have felt like that before with my first releases. But now I just keep going and move on to the next, so I don’t even have time to stop and think about it. The releasing part isn’t my favorite part, but I love going back into the making part afterwards!

Do you find that the feedback of others is important, does it help you to gain new insights? Or do you have a strong vision of your sound.

I try to stay open to most feedback and see what I can get out of it. Even though I’m probably my own worst critic. In the end it’s all about emotion and how to get that across. I do have a strong vision for sound but my palette is broad so it can get a bit defused if I let it all rip.

What was most important for you to convey through this EP?

The goal as always is to try to make something unique. I think sometimes thats the case.

What drives you to create music?

I create music to stay sane. If I don’t create music I get very unhappy and a bit crazy. It’s been my therapy for as long as I can remember. Even though this industry also drives me crazy at times.

What can we hope to see next from LYMA?

I’m currently working through 100+ demo’s to try to forge my future. It’s gonna be a couple of EP’s and one or two albums. Meanwhile I’ve worked on a lot of featurings and the next album for my LIKEMINDS project. So 2025 is gonna be busy, 2026 is gonna be worse.

What has been one of your favorite moments from the past year?

Getting to witness crowds react to my unreleased music without any of them knowing it is mine. Just seeing the pure reaction is something that really moves me.

Who do you think is currently changing the world for the better?

Anyone putting love first. Love is the only thing that truly matters anyway.

Check out the latest release from LYMA.