Interviews

Belgian house heroes San Soda and Red D are back in the FCL guise with a remix EP on Freerange Records. Giving new life to the previously released smash, ‘Can We Try’, a soul-drenched dancefloor doozy that features the gorgeous vocal tones of Lady Linn.

They first saw the light of day as FCL back in 2010 with their debut ‘Vocals For Everyone’ on Red D’s label We Play House Recordings. Over the years these house veterans have been involved in countless notable projects including their killer cut ‘It’s You’ - the San Soda Panorama Bar Acca Version (the only version to be named after a Panorama Bar Sunday morning set, later becoming part of house history) and their ‘Cherry Pie E.P.’ on Kai Alce’s respected NDATL imprint.

We are thrilled to have a little chimenyside chat here with one half of FCL, Red D.

Thank you for taking the time to talk. Where are you this moment and how are you spending the day?

My pleasure! At present I'm in my office doing this interview in between listening to the records I picked up from Rush Hour during ADE last week.

Can you introduce FCL to our readers a little.

'Vocals For Everyone' was the title of our very first E.P. back in 2010 and that about sums it up still. Officially FCL is San Soda and myself Red D, but in reality our singer Lady Linn is part and parcel of the project.

Where are you based currently?

Ghent, Belgium for Lady Linn and I (Red D), Brussels, Belgium for San Soda.

What is it you love most about the city in which you live?

The quality of living and the record stores.

How is the health of the music scene where you are?

Judging from the amount of parties I play and the people that go out dancing I'd say it's pretty good!

How is the health of the music scene generally in your opinion?

When it comes to the number of parties it’s pretty good, but when it comes to musical quality I feel it’s lacking a lot in terms of musicality, soul and funk.

Who are the icons who have inspired the music that you make?

Any and all of my records can bring inspiration, but chief among those are Theo Parrish, Laurent Garnier and my eternal love for both Detroit and the legendary Belgian club scene of the 90’s.

How did you come to meet San Soda?

He walked into the bar where I’ve been holding a residency since 1998 (Clues in Deinze) when I had Chicago’s Tyree Cooper as guest and got to hear proper jacking house music for the first time. And that was that!

When did FCL begin and what made you start making music together?

It all started with me starting my label We Play House Recordings to release San Soda’s early outings and then naturally progressed with us being in the studio together and joining our forces. Me being the experienced DJ at the time and him getting into his stride as a producer.

And Freerange Records, how did you get to meet the guys?

Good question! Thinking back it must have been anywhere between 10 and 15 years ago that I invited Jamie Jimpster to come and play at my residency Charlatan in Ghent. We had a good dinner and kept in touch regularly and a while later Freerange released my Chez E.P.

Why did you feel the label was the right home for your release?

The music speaks volumes with regards to this question imo!

Give us an overview of your new release.

I would suggest you let your readers have a listen and judge for themselves. All I can say is that both the original as the three remixes all stand on their own and represent the different people behind it. The whole package is a very wide interpretation of this thing called house music.

How long did it take to come together? Did it flow easily, or did it take some time to perfect?

I cannot answer this as our original dates back too long to remember exactly. What I can tell you however is that this track came out as follow up to our track 'It’s You’, but in reality the melody and lyrics for ‘Can We Try’ were done before we had the ‘It’s You’ idea. Lady Linn actually recorded the vocals for both in the same session, which only took her about 20 minutes I think.

Do you take some time - after you have made a track – to leave it alone for a while to evaluate?

All our releases take anything between 6 months and a year to fully materialize. Our joint studio sessions remain rare, so it just happens like that.

Do you find the feedback of others is important to you in the production process?

Not really. With the three of us we already have a good balance of opinions and input. If we involve more people we’ll never get anything released I fear…lol.

What are some of the challenges in putting out music currently?

Not losing money on it does spring to mind… Next to that there is no longer any relation between releasing good music and getting gigs. But speaking for myself I always release music because I want to release it, with little or no expectations of success or money.

What drives you to create music do you think?

Other music.

What other artists do you think are making great music right now?

Way too many to mention, but some of my go to labels or artists are Kai Alcé and NDATL/Nutria, Omar S and FXHE and my whole 313 family.

What was the last record you purchased?

An old 90’s progressive trance/techno record called ‘Trysting Fields’.

What has been a highlight of the last year for you guys?

Discovering a 99% finished track from some 10 years ago that we both forgot about and that sounds pretty massive to me. If all goes well you’ll be able to hear it somewhere in the first part of 2026!

What can we expect next from FCL?

I’m planning a new FCL E.P. on We Play House Recordings with two new original tracks paired with two classics from our discography that match.

Check out the latest release from FCL