Climbing the Mountain to label boss - Iconic Media catches up with Cold Blue

This approach has yielded three landmark studio albums: the expansive Winter (2019), the ambient reimagining Summer Chills (2020), and his most recent triumph, 2025’s Mountain—an alpine-inspired journey of "growing and healing" that fans consider his best release to date.

Now, two decades after staking his claim at the forefront of the genre, the German native is set to descend upon Scotland for a rare, one-off underground session. In collaboration with Frisson Events, Cold Blue will take over the intimate surroundings of Nice ‘N’ Sleazy in Glasgow on Sunday, April 5.

Gregg Kelly from Iconic Media and Halcyon Dreams caught up with the mercurial artist to delve into his unique process, his superstitions, and the unwavering belief in melodic storytelling that connects him to his global legion of fans.

G) A Glimpse into the Studio: Hey Tobias—Gregg Kelly here. How's your Tuesday evening treating you? It's a privilege to be chatting with a "trance-true believer" like yourself. I've been a fan since your 2007 remix of Seven Ways / 11 Days. Tell us: how does the average Cold Blue day begin, and what’s been on your schedule today?

CB) Hey Gregg, thanks so much for your appreciative introduction. I've had a great day, full of music preparation for the ITWT (In Trance We Trust) show in Breda this weekend. So many new ideas are coming to life these days, finally, after a rather calm winter.

My mornings start with a short but effective yoga-inspired mobility routine, recently enhanced by a 30-60 minutes meditation, if the day allows it.

Then I continue with either music or a bit of labour around the house/garden, depending on my mood and energy. I usually try to find a good balance of both.

G) Scaling the Mountain: Congratulations on your latest album. More than just music, Mountain feels like a sensory experience—a "wordless language" of warm detachment and escapism. Can you tell us about your process and how it has evolved? With a nearly five-year gap since Summer Chills, how did you go about connecting the melodies within each section of the album, and was it a deeply personal experience?

CB) I'm glad you loved Mountain so much! By far it’s been my most exciting project to date and it feels great to still be able to grow as a musician after so many years, and finding self-fulfilment by shaping a 60min piece of music into something as big as possible.

It started with a collection of single tracks and ideas that I've been working on for a long time. Some of them newer but others were already very old, the workflow was to play around with every possible combination and tracklist order until the image of a deep emotional journey started taking shape.

I think it was a combination of musical intuition and a lot of technical work that helped fit it together and polish the story, removing all conflicting elements and fine-tuning to its true core. Often the more important actions were taking out elements, rather than adding them.

There’s so much I could tell you about the process, and it took a long time with countless baby steps, until it finally expressed the message that was always meant to be told.

The deeply personal experience happened while I was walking listening to one of the pre-final album drafts on my headphones. I was going through a relationship challenge at the time and realised that Mountain described not only the exact story of my inner-fear of abandonment but also my positive redevelopment at overcoming those fears and being able to re-connect with each other through inner-trust and openness.

At that moment, I finally understood where the music was coming from and what feelings and experiences the individual tracks and parts of the album were expressing musically. From then until the album’s release the steps became clear to me and I had a great time putting it all together for the official release.

G) The Glasgow Connection: Switching attention to your upcoming gig in Glasgow, Am I right in thinking your last gig in the city was 2017 at Coloursfest? What are your memories of the festival and of the city? Known for its love of underground culture, what can your Glasgow fans expect from a Cold Blue trance set - how should they prepare?

CB) My last show in Glasgow was actually November 2024, again for a Colours event and we all had a very good time! I remember testing out some of my new tracks and feeling a very good connection between my music and everybody in the room. I have great memories from that one! Really looking forward to being back again.

G) The Choice of Quality: You are well known for refusing to succumb to the obsessive nature of non-stop touring, preferring instead to create "melodic magic" during selective appearances. How did you arrive at the decision to limit your schedule, and have you had to fight to remain firm in that choice, especially now as one of the industry's most in-demand DJs?

CB) It was definitely challenging to say no to attractive shows, especially big festivals in the US, and I think in the beginning it also had a negative impact on my popularity within promoter circles.

But it was a necessary step for my mental and physical health and it also turned out that it had a very positive boost on my creativity and helped re-define myself as an artist (and as a human being in general).

Now that demand is growing again, I can already feel a bit of tension and the growing challenge of remaining true to myself and following my inner needs instead of following career, ego or pleasing people.

G) Melodic Heritage: Your sound is incredibly distinct, with DJs such as Factor B and Craig Connelly arguably channelling your essence as well. Where does the inspiration for your melodic sound come from? Did your days in a band or your childhood musical inspirations shape this emotive style?

CB) To be honest, I really don't know where it comes from. It just feels like a very strong urge to express, create and craft some melodic beauty, powerful rhythms and sonic landscapes that move every cell inside of me. I just have to do it all as part of my nature. If it wasn't Trance, it would be some other kind of music. But Trance seems to be THE one for me.

G) One to Watch: Which DJs are you most impressed with in the industry at the minute? Who should fans of yours be checking out next time they’re on the look out for new music?

CB) I've been enjoying the sound of JOC, John Askew, Lostly, Factor B, Asteroid and many others over the last few years. I feel at this time there is great talent, it's good to see so many artists ignoring mainstream trends and just following their inner creative sources.

G) Behind the Decks: When performing, how do you approach the construction of a set? Do you prefer to walk in with a core selection of tracks, or do you thrive on spontaneity and the reaction of the crowd on the night?

CB) Depending on the length of the set it can be anything between a completely spontaneous flow, inspired by the crowd and its energy or a fully pre-arranged 60min festival set that serves as a showcase of my most recent work.

I definitely enjoy the longer sets in intimate venues!

G) Two Decades of Trance: Twenty years is quite a milestone. Have you picked up any specific superstitions or routines before a gig? And if you could reach through time to speak to your younger self, what advice would you give?

CB) I'm usually a bit nervous and tense before a gig and feel more comfortable in quiet environments before taking to the stage. What often works best for me is to arrive at the last minute before a show and have some quiet personal moments before going on stage.

My younger-self was very much trapped in his own head, trying to understand music and think my way through the creative process, instead of just letting go to FEEL. I wish I could have found that switch earlier, nowadays the switch lets me just create music with flow and intuition without being inside my head too much. But, better late than never, I guess!

G) The Future of the Genre: Trance is currently at the centre of a massive industry conversation, from the 25th anniversary of ASOT to techno DJs sampling classic sounds. How do you see the genre evolving, and do you think these shifting trends will directly influence your future releases?

CB) I think it's rather difficult to stay uninfluenced by any kind of trends, so yes, I might also pick up some sounds and styles here and there if I enjoy them. But, at the same time I feel like we live in an era where we get to know ourselves more and more, like peeling the layers of our shells and exploring our true selves.

This could mean our music becomes purer and purer, every artist more individual and characterised, helping make Trance richer and more diverse.

That's outside of mainstream trends, maybe.

G) The Privacy Paradox: You’re known for being a private person, yet the modern industry expects constant social media promotion. How do you find the balance between maintaining your label, Cold Blue Records, and the demand for constant social media presence? Have you found a "perfect balance"?

CB) I found that I really can't keep up with the constant need for content delivery on social media, but I'm very glad that when I just focus on music and deliver it in the best way I can, it also seems to work. And then, when opportunities are given, be open and show myself, offering what I have to give.

People nowadays, if they want to, know where to find me and my music. So maybe we don’t need social media that much anymore?

G) The Label Boss Era: Celebrating its third anniversary this year, how have you found the transition from producer and in-demand DJ to full-on label boss? How has this role influenced the direction of Mountain and your recent music releases?

CB) It feels really great and liberating to have Cold Blue Records as a platform for all my music and not have to worry about other record label's tastes, schedules, artwork and all that anymore,

So maximum freedom, even more creativity and flow, and a lot of gratitude for all my fans, who keep following my journey!

G) A Final Message: The floor is yours, Tobias. Is there anything you’d like to say to the Glasgow ravers eagerly awaiting your set at Nice N Sleazy with Frisson Events on April 5?

CB) First of all, thank you for these well thought out questions and for digging deep into the heart of the music, much appreciated Gregg! I can't wait to return to Glasgow, I'm happy for the opportunity to come back and get the chance to play an extended set. It will probably be the most deep and intense live set of music I have ever brought to your city.

I hope you’ll bring your full awareness and awaken senses to dive deeply into the music with me. Can't wait to see you!

G) Thanks again for taking the time to speak to us today, we can’t wait for April 5.

Catch up soon

Gregg @ Iconic Media and Halcyon Dreams.

To grab tickets for this one off Cold Blue event at Nice n Sleazy in Glasgow- visit Skiddle here.