With his latest release “Hold Me” on Purified Records, Mian Steenwinkel continues to blur the line between dancefloor energy and emotional depth. Known for his cinematic approach to melodic techno, Steenwinkel crafts tracks that feel both expansive and intimate – music built as much for reflection as it is for movement. In this conversation, he opens up about the inspirations behind Hold Me, the interplay between classical roots and underground club culture, and how he balances atmosphere, emotion, and rhythm to tell stories that resonate long after the final beat.

You’ve released with Purified Records before, but ‘Hold Me’ feels especially intimate and atmospheric. Where did this track begin for you – was it an idea, a mood, or a moment in time? 

Hold Me started with the idea of creating a song that was energetic, uplifting and emotional at the same time. I remember starting it at a Saturday evening, which is usually when my creativity is peaking. The first concept was done pretty quickly with the gliding and moving lead sound and the chord progression. 

Many listeners describe your music as cinematic and immersive. How consciously do you think about ‘painting a scene’ when you produce? 

One of the key concepts of my artistic vision is that I want my music to be powerful and energetic, but always with a certain emotion behind it. Usually, those emotions aren’t as straight forward as a ‘sad love story’ or something similar, but more an abstract feeling I might be having where someone can have their own interpretation of it. However, since it’s also dance music, I’m creating I always try to keep that underlying momentum in my songs.

‘Hold Me’ builds its tension gradually, with subtle shifts and layered textures. What’s your approach to pacing and arrangement in a track? 

I like my songs to be long enough to be able to tell a story. I like to give my tracks room to breathe, six minutes or more feels natural when I’m telling a story. For Hold Me specifically the pacing switches between the vocals that tell a story and the lead that provides the euphoria to the track. Often when I’m working on a new song, I decide between progressing the song slowly with a certain melody, or having a contrast between two elements (for example the vocals and lead)

You have roots in both underground melodic techno and classical music. Can you share a moment in the studio where those two influences collided in an unexpected way? 

The moment that immediately comes to mind is when I was working on a song called ‘The Journey’ which was released in October last year. I was randomly playing the piano in my studio and fell in love with a chord progression I played. I think I ended up sitting in my studio from Saturday 8PM until around 6AM, finishing the track in one session. 

In ‘The Journey’ the piano, strings and pads really create this beautiful calming atmosphere. I combined this with an acid bassline which I think is quite a unique combination. It’s one of the songs I’m most proud of, even though it’s very different from my other music in its energy.

The vocals in ‘Hold Me’ feel almost like another instrument rather than a traditional lead. How do you decide the role vocals should play in your productions? 

I actually haven’t worked with vocalists that often until recently. For me vocals should never carry the track on their own but rather be a part of the music. ‘Hold Me’ has two big vocal elements. 

The first one is the main vocal which is a beautiful atmospheric vocal with lyrics written by myself. I wanted the lyrics to be somewhat mysterious in the sense that listeners can make up their own mind about what’s being sung.

The second part is the vocal chops going on where I wanted to use the vocals as an extra instrument layer providing energy and an interesting background pattern. 

Outside of the studio, where do you tend to find inspiration – is it other music, visual art, nature, or something else entirely? 

My inspiration comes from a number of different sources. I listen to a ton of different music every day and visit a lot of events to see other artists playing and have a good time, which always provides me with a lot of inspiration the next day. 

Outside of music I really enjoy walking around in Utrecht, the city I live in. The medieval architecture and the little details you see when you look deeper keeps my creativity alive.

You often explore deeper, moodier tones in your music. What draws you to that emotional palette? 

Whenever I listen to music, I want it to have ‘replay-ability’. With that I mean that even after several months I can revisit a song and hear new small details that I missed when listening to it earlier. I try to follow that same principle with my own music, with many small details that a listener might not hear at first but might notice when listening a couple of more times.

For me the deeper tones allow me to deliver a more complex musical story, although I’ve certainly moved away from the very deep and moody sounds recently. I think the kind of track I make also has to do with the mood I’m in and how my personal life is going.

Over the years, how has your relationship with the dancefloor shaped the way you produce? 

It changed it quite a lot actually! The past year has provided me with a big increase of opportunities to play at venues that felt out of reach for a long time. This also helped me understand better what a song needs to work both while listening at home, and while playing it in a club full of dancing people. 

One specific thing is that my breaks have decreased in length and often still have some kind of rhythm going on to keep the momentum. I found that it really helps to keep the energy going in a club setting while DJ’ing without it being monotone for listeners at home.

Is there a piece of advice or philosophy that’s guided you through the challenges of a career in music? 

Building a career in music isn’t easy. The learning-curve is steep and it takes obsession, dedication and patience. I’ve always believed that the only way to make a career out of it is by being 100% confident that music is the most important thing in life for you. If it’s not, that’s okay, but you should treat it as such; a hobby that should be fun and enjoyable.

For me, music is top of the list and knowing that helps me stay motivated during periods where results don’t appear to come the way I expected or wanted them. I also firmly believe that while making music it’s important to stay true to your own artistic vision. There’s obviously music that sells well and music that’s very niche which you can try to balance. But it first should still be something that you personally stand behind.

Looking ahead, how do you see your sound evolving over the next few releases? Are there new textures or ideas you’re eager to explore?

This is a difficult question to answer as I’m always so full of new ideas, but when looking at the bigger picture you can expect my next few releases to be leaning even more into that progressive trancey style with deep soundscapes and very dancefloor-ready stories to be told. 

I notice that my music is becoming faster than say 2 years ago which also reflects my personal taste at the moment. Apart from these dancefloor-ready tracks I also try to take a different route once in a while by creating a more listener-focused song during more emotional moments.