Tipped for great things, Chris Lake is about to drop his next Ibiza classic. Since his last hit 'Changes' was pumped out of big club soundsystems from here to Ibiza, he prepares to do the same with the release of his new single 'Carry Me Away'. Released later this month, he pairs sultry vocals with uplifting, blessed out electronica to create a piece of the soundtrack to summer 2007. He took a minute out of his packed schedule to chat to Planet Notion about the allure of the female voice, the bright future of his record label and 'the Chris Lake approach'...

Your hit 'Changes' was massive last season in Ibiza. What have you got planned this summer?
I have been very busy in the studio working on fresh material for 2007. At the moment I am promoting my new single featuring Emma Hewitt called 'Carry me Away', coming out on my own label Rising Music in May, then after that I am planning to release my new club single, 'To the Point'. DJing wise I have a lot of tour dates booked across Europe and the UK, and playing my first dates at Ibiza which is very exciting.

You seem to be a fan of female vocals on your tracks. What do you think this brings to a song?
I think it can be tough to put a good female vocal on a track. Ask many producers and they will tell you how hard it is to get it right. I just take a certain amount of satisfaction recording the vocals and making them work musically.

There has been quite a few remixes done on your new track. Which is your favourite and why?  
Possibly the Micky Slim & Funkagenda remix. It is very different sound wise for both of them and it totally rips it up in the clubs for me. I'm very proud to have this mix on the package.

Have you always been into dance music? What do you count as major inspirations?

For as long as I can remember, I have loved dance music, yes. Earliest inspirations for me were the Prodigy... Brilliant music.

Which artists and labels are you really loving right now?

Rene Amesz and Sebastien Leger are bang on it for me. I am terrible with labels, sorry.

How would you describe your music? House? Electro? Or something new and different?
It's tough to describe any dance music as 'new and different', but I guess it is electro or house, with a Chris Lake approach?

You got airplay on Radio One. How important is commercial success to you?
It isn't a major priority for me, but I am not going to shy away from the opportunity of diverse exposure when the opportunity arises. The music I make is to be heard, and getting different ways to achieve this is important to me. It was great having my music on mainstream radio though.

Through living in Scotland, have you found that the club scene there differs to the rest of the world?

I don't get a chance to follow the local scene too closely unfortunately. The clubs I have played here though have been great and the crowds have a great energy to them that lacks in certain countries, so Scotland I would argue is a great place to play.

You have been working in Australia. How is the dance scene over there?

Great. They absolutely love their dance music out there and I found they have a great appreciation for the artists.

Tell us about your new label Rising Trax. Have you already got some acts lined up that you'd like to get signed?

Rising Trax is the sister label of Rising Music. I set it up to release tracks recorded by people other than myself, as I was finding a lot of great music I was wanting to put out. Forthcoming we have releases by Rene Amesz & Peter Gelderblom, Kingclip, and Micky Slim. The future looks bright for Trax!

What is your ultimate goal? Can you see yourself DJing far into the future? Or is DJing a vehicle that allows you to work on other projects?

My ultimate goal is to become an album artist and work on diverse projects, and even produce for other groups or bands. If it stimulates my mind and ears, I will be happy!

Chris Lake's new single 'Carry Me Away' (featuring Emma Hewitt) is out on May 21 on his Rising Music label.