Harry Lemon, or Lemon 8 as he used to call himself before, is probably one of the biggest influences in the progressive scene, since he’s responsible for co-shaping that sound. When his The Inner Sanctuary Sessions came out in the early 2000’s it became an instant landmark for producers and listeners. Some weeks ago I spoke to Eelke Kleijn about Harry and the first thing HE said was that The Inner Sanctuary Sessions mix compilation has been on repeat for ages and majorly influenced him making music. And he’s not the only one. Basically every producer we talk to says the same thing. And Legend is the word we hear most often from them. They all praise and have big words for this extremely modest producer from Rotterdam who’s career goes back to the eighties and took off in 1992 with his first single Model8 that became a huge underground hit in many countries.
I spoke with him at length about the early days of dj-ing and producing, his groundbreaking productions and vision of how they had to sound, as well as about the forthcoming remix series of The Inner Sanctuary Sessions in the year to come on D:STR:CT. We ourselves still have a hard time believing that we’ve been granted with this responsibility, but above all huge honour.
For years he saw no need for remixes of his work but at D:STR:CT we somehow managed to convince him otherwise. When i had my first label back in the days, Deep Records, he remixed one of the earliest releases for me and helped me immensely to make people aware of the label. I have always been thankful as well as a fan, and that’s quite an understatement.
To be able to work with him again is a dream come true and Maarten and myself have to pinch ourselves every now and then that it’s really happening now. Besides the legendary The Inner Sanctuary Sessions, with tracks like New York New York and Pressure we are also rereleasing remixes and remasters of his legendary classics Model8 and The Bells of Revolution. These will see light of day this summer with the rest to follow and be announced (through our newsletter) later on. Hopefully we can also make everybody aware of his crazy good dj-skills as he’s ready to get out there again behind ‘the wheels of steel’.
Me: Harry, we’ve known each other for roughly 30 years now. It looks like music is a passionate disease that never ends.
Haha, yes. That’s very true, at least this counts for me and like any love you can feel for someone or something. It can burn like a fire or just glow like hot coals. But my love for music has always been consistent and was never fully gone, even though I had a few periods where i focused on other things or was unable to give the music the attention it deserved. A lot has happened since I stepped into the world of music when I was an adolescent. Late eighties I was working in a place for young people, throwing parties and dj-ing under the name of DJ Funkateer. Playing funk and hip-hop mainly, as well as some disco. This was all-in Ridderkerk, not far from Rotterdam.
In 1988 we had the summer of love and I was one of the first to play hip-house. I wasn’t really keen on Acid house back then. For me it was important that there was swing in the music. The parties I started organising started off with maybe 150 people, but soon we had 1500 attending. This was the time where we still sent out flyers. Can’t even compare this with today. Everything was going great really but we had to stop because the security people at some point stole all of my money. Bit of a bummer, haha… A lot happening during that period of time. It was exciting to say the least.
Me: So if I get it right, in your teens you were already busy with sampling, listening to music, etc. What were you doing to come up with Model8 in 1992?
I had a 4 track recorder and a Technics keyboard back in the day and I was doing something called pingpong. Vangelis was a big hero of mine. Music I made was more like ambient. Basically I was learning to play around with hardware and making music with it. During that period of time I also had a synthesizer band with 2 friends.
My first track, which I made with a friend, was called Touch Somebody. I was working at Tinseltown (later on Basic Beat) back then and the basement held a studio.
I did a remix for the Telurians, which was called the Navigator, which had the main sample of Model 8 in there. Nothing happened with that so I took out the sample and created Model8.
I was playing at the techno Basement in Nighttown (Rotterdam) back then and I had that specific crowd in mind. The big tracks at that time were Circus Bells by Robert Armani and Spastik by Plastikman. Those were my main influences. When Model 8 came out everybody was talking about the swing of that track. House in 1992 was very straight forward. Of course listening to it today is not the same as back in 1992. Hardfloor was another great act who had that swing. His remix of Armani’s Circus Bells was in that same line, amazing record.
Me: Model 8 got picked up in the UK and took off during that time. It became a big underground hit everywhere. How was that for you?
That was pretty crazy, since it sold in the tens of thousands but nobody connected the dots, realising it was me. It took people quite a while before they figured out that it was that guy from Nighttown. Of course I tried to make a follow up on that record and I remember I made lots of loops and tracks that were called model 10 , model 11, etc. on my computer. Obviously that didn’t work, haha… Music is something mysterious. But in 1995 I released the Bells of Revolution which became a big record for me again. The Bells was more of a house record with a bit more aggression to it, coming from the distorted kick. It got rejected at first because they thought it was too slow. The BPM was 127 and everything else in those days was over 130. And it was different. But I eventually proved them wrong.
Me: Where you able to make your money from music back in the days?
Yes, definitely. I had a residency, was playing everywhere in the Netherlands, had a residency at the famous Nighttown in Rotterdam, got my money from record sales and was basically living a dream that i never thought would be within reach. I never planned this to be honest.
Me: I vividly remember the late nineties in Rotterdam. MTC parties, Michel de Hey, Ronald Molendijk, Nighttown and of course yourself. So much was happening beck then. An amazing period. It was great around 2000 as well, and music kept evolving. And all of a sudden there was Harry Lemon with his The Inner Sanctuary Sessions that blew everyone away. How did you come up with that?
I had my residency at Nighttown but at one point I left there. When I left I fell into a hole really. I was doing afterparties at Barocca that started at 5 in the morning till early afternoon, and unfortunately had to play music I didn’t really like. Of course I also had gigs in other places but it just didn’t feel right. I was missing the way I liked playing best, creating musical journeys. DJ sets were longer hours back then with more variety of music. I almost made a switch to Drum and Bass after hearing LTJ Bukem but the person who changed everything for me was Anthony Pappa, with his Global Underground mix compilation, Nubreed 001. It was game on after that and the inspiration just came from listening to that.
I envisioned a series of vinyl in parts, The Inner Sanctuary Sessions with Lose Control, New York New York, Pressure, etc. And I was doing a lot of remixes in those days that all did very well. I then made a double CD with all of those tracks that I found suitable. Which was quite a thing back then. Releasing a double CD with nothing but your own productions on there. Not many people are aware of this but only 500 copies were made and they are quite the collector’s item nowadays. Listening to it now I think it stood the test of time as well. Especially with how the progressive sound is evolving again with the tempo and energy of today, going back to the old days.
Me: Did that music catapult you into new territories? Playing abroad? I remember you gave quite a few labels a head start when they emerged. Release Records with New York New York, EQ which later became Balance with the Lights Out remix. My own label, Deep Records with the Goliath remix. Andy Jarrod (RIP) from 3 Beat was a huge fan as well and kept asking about you.
Yes, that’s quite remarkable if I look back now. Mitch Alexander (RIP) from Releases records said he never ever sold more records than New York New York, which gave him the head start he needed. Same with the Lights Out remix I did for Tom Pandzic from EQ Records. And my remix of Goliath for you of course, on Deep Records. I had a thing for myself that going to the big labels would only mean I would be one surrounded by many big names, so I focused more on smaller labels in stead. And all these people from the smaller labels had a strong vision about sound. Like you, you knew where you wanted to go. I also got a lot of reviews and interviews in DJ Mag and lots of other magazines back then.
It was an incredibly busy time for me. I did lots of remixes for great labels. So musically it was flowing and thus an inspirational time but I also had to deal with the passing of friends and family that took quite a toll. My father died, which had a huge impact on me as well. It turned into a juggling act of balance.
Me: What happened after those years? At one point it became rather silent around your name. Can you tell us a bit more about that?
It was a cumulation of things that happened before it got quiet. I became the first artist that got signed tot he newly launched Armada Records. Markus Schultz came right after, and then Patch Park. I launched Bandung Records but something was off during that time musically. More and more it was about Trance, which led to losing my old fans who thought I was selling out. Therefore I grew more and more unhappy with what I was doing. Surely I had great times as well, touring of course. I was married with Brigitte, then got divorced and then she became seriously ill with cancer, but luckily survived. But all together this set off a big depression and I had to fight my own battles after all those years. You can’t run away from everything apparently. I genuinely care about and for people but it’s important to do the same for yourself and stay balanced in life.
What happened also was the worldwide crash of 2008 that ruined a lot in the music world. And then minimal sound came around corner, which killed a lot in the progressive world. Followed by Deadmau5 and EDM. By 2010 everything had changed so dramatically. All the great clubs and organisations had disappeared in Rotterdam and in every other major city around the world for that matter. Festivals were on the rise also and that’s a different thing from a club. But I needed time to heal my mind. Depression can be a bitch and a monster you can’t just run away from. There is more attention to it now in the music world, which is a good thing, though it wasn’t a good thing for my career, so much is true for sure.
Me: Where do you stand now and what happened in the last years?
Covid came and set things off for me again. Which is crazy in a way. I started playing again at small home parties and re-found my love for making and especially playing music. Dj-ing is like a transcendental experience for me, almost like a drug. It’s my happy place and a lot of what I do again today is aimed at getting back behind the decks. But you definitely can say that Covid, for me, was a good thing.
But sadly my friend Ilse also became sick shortly after Covid started and that took away a lot of my time and energy since I wanted to take care of her. After she passed away I fell into a depression. Now I am slowly getting back up, and getting back into music again. I also reconnected again with a lot of people. Like yourself and Maarten for instance. But someone like me needs to take it one day at a time, regaining energy. Thankfully there are more moments where the sun is shining again. Which is also good for my music.
Me: What do you think of today’s music, or should I say nowadays progressive house?
It’s great that the bpm of the music has gone up again in progressive house. Where 120 bpm and more organic was the standard we’re now heading back to a slightly higher bpm, between 123 and 126 bpm whereas the energy is also more techy again. Like it was around 2000, and for me that’s wonderful as I sit really well in that sound. After all I am from Rotterdam and the basis of everything coming from Rotterdam is techno.
Last couple of years I got back into producing and slowly found my way back again. My best work back in the days i did on an MPC and my goal is to get back to that again. Basically it’s an all-in one workstation but it’s just very rigid and simple. I don’t want to make endless choices behind a DAW but want to focus on the energy in stead. Because of its limitations one pushes one’s creativity. At least that’s how it works for me. I’m saving up to buy an MPC again in order to do so. Everything I made for The Inner Sanctuary Sessions I did myself. Created my own snare, my own hihats, etc. Basically I want to go back to the origins , right where i started back in the day, and perform live with it as well.
Me: It’s 2026 now and your back catalogue is about to see new light of day. The original tracks, remastered by yourself, but also a slew of great producers paying hommage to you. Many moons ago you said your music didn’t need any remixes, yet here we are now.
Haha, yes. People change. And you have a part in it as well I guess. By heart I am a very modest person and not always aware of the impact of my music. People like you speak about it to a lot of other producers. And you also convinced me to re-release, as you keep talking to producers and dj’s, mentioning how important and how big an influence my music has been to them.
Me: Yes, your music is timeless. And every producer we approached for doing a remix said Yes!, instantly. Anthony Pappa was over the moon with the opportunity to remix one of his most beloved tracks, New York New York. And apparently the word is out already as we get weekly request from producers, if they can please join the project.
Thank you, that is amazing to hear and makes me so happy. Gives a lot of energy as well to be honest. Ultimately I want to get more gigs again, and like I mentioned before my other ambition is to get back into production more. Labels like Sudbeat, Selador and Bedrock have been asking if and when I’m ready to do something fresh again, which slowly starts to happen right now. Bedrock is going to re-release Lose Control as well, with remixes, which is mind blowing for me really. I do sense the increasing interest for my music again, from all angles, on socials as well.
Me: Guy J even asked for some masters of old tracks of yours. How’s that for cool?
Oh really? I wasn’t aware of that. That’s pretty amazing to hear.
Me: I went to Hartstocht festival the last 4 years, where you played as well. And every year, when driving back home again, we all agreed that it was you that got us mesmerised again with your set. We all feel you’re an amazing dj. There is an energy and drive that stands out from the rest. So for the year to come we really hope that more and more people will become aware again of that special feel and vibe you tend to create on the dance floor.
That’s really kind to say and yes, hopefully I will be able to play more again. I know I’m ready for it. Especially those longer sets make me very happy where you can really take people on a journey. The last years the average set for dj’s have been more about playing big tunes in a short period, but from my experience that’s not where dj-ing comes from. But the tide is slowly turning again which also makes me happy. Dj’s should be able to play for 3 to 4 hours at least. Or longer, better even. The truth is also that I said no to a lot of gigs in the period that Ilse was sick. Because I simply felt I couldn’t leave her alone.
Me: We sure hope there will be increasing interest in you moving forward, just so you can get out there again. You deserve it and also, people on the dance floor deserve it, haha… Thank you for taking the time to have this talk, much appreciated.
[Peter – D:STR:CT Head Quarters – June 2026]
