It’s fair to say that the Futuristic Polar Bears have had a phenomenal few years. Through their own relentless hard work and outstanding capabilities both in the production studio and behind the decks, the trio have been on an incredible ride and achieved the seemingly unachievable. With a combined skill set of accomplished DJs, producers and musicians, Luke, Rhys and Fran have become global favourites, having destroyed dancefloors in far flung destinations such as North America, India, Thailand, Singapore, South Korea, China, Jakarta, Kuala Lumpur, Holland, Italy, Kazakhstan and Ibiza with their indisputable energy and dynamic DJ sets. It’s these sets that have earned them shows at the biggest and best venues, including four of the top 10 clubs in the world; Octagon (Seoul), Zouk Singapore, BCM (Mallorca) and UshuaÏa (Ibiza), as well Ministry of Sound, Marquee and Zouk KL also in the top 50. Recognised for their effervescent progressive house sounds, in the last 18 months alone they’ve had releases on Revealed Recordings, Spinnin’ Records, Wall Recordings, Smash The House, Armada and Harem and gained consistent chart success with each and every release. Back To Earth became their first Beatport #1 in 2014, followed by a further 10 top 20s and a #25 US Billboard smash with Thundergod. It’s not surprising they were placed #40 in Beatport’s ‘Best of 2015 – Progressive House Artist’.
Traveling around the world is a daunting task for many artists, do you ever get homesick while on the road?
Luke: I love being on the road, we get to visit so many cool countries and experience so many things you wouldn’t get to do as a tourist. If our management turned round and said “you’re going to be on the road for the next 365 days with no rest,” I’d say “bring it on!”
What are some must-have travel accessories that you carry with you around the world?
Rhys: Only the essentials! Sunglasses, Macbook, multi-plug travel adaptor and painkillers for the occasional hangover 😉 Fran would probably also add to that, plenty of protein bars!
Jet-lag during a rigorous tour schedule can devastating. Do you have any tricks or tips to keep your sleep schedule set?
Fran: It’s definitely important to adapt your body and habits to whatever time zone you are in, and try to get as much sleep as you can when flying. Also, if you are flying everyday try not to drink too much alcohol, that’s the worst thing for you!
Traveling often usually means quick meals and a lack of selection food-wise. How do you eat healthy and stay fit while on the road?
Luke: It’s pretty easy to eat healthily – we avoid plane food as much as we can. When you’re in airports and hotels try to order plenty of fruit and veg, having your 5-a-day will help you out big time! Asia is always good as you can eat noodles and sushi all the time which is great!
Playing gigs around the world has let you see many different cities and countries. Are there any that stick out as favorites places to you?
Rhys: We all love Singapore massively – it’s an incredible city and there’s so much to see and do. Miami is also great, as well as Vegas & LA. We’ve been lucky enough to travel to Indonesia a good few times and we love visiting Bali, the beaches there are amazing!
Have you noticed a difference in the way that crowds react to your music in different regions?
Fran: You definitely do notice a difference! We tend to avoid vocal breakdowns in non-English speaking countries, we’d rather have people singing along to melodies!
Are there any funny experiences you can share about being on the road?
Luke: Only the usual stories of missed flights and last-minute phone calls to our manager panicking: “Help we’re stuck and there aren’t any flights anywhere!” We’ve also had a few immigration issues before, getting in and out of countries can sometimes be difficult but I’m sure every DJ has had this problem every now and again. Myself and Fran seem to manage to sweet-talk ourselves into free upgrades all the time, if you are nice and polite it’s usually manageable. Having a bed makes a big difference when you have a 12hr flight in front of you!
Do you ever get a chance to try any local food while traveling? Anywhere you’d like to give a shout out to that we should check out?
Rhys: I’m not overly keen on the local cuisine but Luke will try anything once – he’s eaten all sorts of exotic things. Great food places to try are in Bangkok, Singapore, Seoul & Jakarta especially.
https://soundcloud.com/futuristicpolarbears/olly-james-x-futuristic-polar-bears-kingpin-clap-1
Are there any cities or countries you haven’t played in yet but would like to?
Luke: We haven’t been to Australia, Taiwan or Japan yet and I really want to go. Also we’d love to travel South America a little more, the vibe and energy is always great out there!
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wrqStwfTI0g