Category: Interviews

[Music & Interview]: Abyssal Chaos

 

Music & Interview
Abyssal Chaos

 

Introduction:
Abyssal Chaos … Greek based in Berlin and man behind the Advanded Group

 

Interview:

Hi Alex, welcome to your personal edition of „Music & Interview“. Let‘s don’t waste time and start right now. Please tell us something about your childhood & youth. Where were you born and how did you grow up? Into what kind of music did you fall in love when you started listening to music (being a teenager)? When and how did you discover techno? What situation/event had such a strong impact on you that you started to dj and produce?
Hello dear Jurgen. Thanks for the invitation – I love what you do through NovaFuture and that means a lot to me. I was born in beautiful Crete, the big island in Southern Greece, however I moved to Athens when I was still very young. We had a very tough life financial-wise but yet fulfilled with love when I was a kid. When I was 15 I lost my beloved dad in a terrible accident (whose details I don’t want to share publicly) and that in a way led me being homeless. I lived in the streets for quite some time which was nightmarish but yet the biggest school in life. It showed me the very depths of darkness so I can appreciate much more the light now. People who haven’t experienced darkness take some very valuable things for granted and therefore it is way harder for them to become happy. I feel happy everyday for the fact that I have a roof over my head, food to eat and so lovely friends/family. I feel so happy that -maybe as dark techno DJ in Berlin I shouldn’t say this as I’m supposed to be always angry and sad (joke)- I regularly catch myself even singing on the street. That period toughened me up and brought me so much darkness that I now can take this ‘darkness’ (through raw dark techno) and produce light and smiles on the dancefloor.

After I somehow managed to return to “normal” life after living on the streets, and being slightly more mature from other kids at school, I learnt to play drums and I joined a street-punk band called “Τα Αρχιδια” which in Greek means “The Testicles”. That was my first touch with music. I liked punk and classic rock music. A while after my cousin (the son-in-law of my mother’s sister) showed me electronic music through psychedelic/trance. He was the leading member of a psychedelic band called “Space Odyssey” (they had appearances at Transistance and all those big trance compilations). I explored psychedelic/trance for a while but it wasn’t exactly my cup of tea. I wanted something let’s say in between punk/rock and psychedelic/trance. And there the greatest love of my life (alongside Liverpool FC) came: TECHNO!

I was almost 18 when I started going to raves and techno parties. My first ever club night was 14 years ago when I was 17 to 18 at Athens’ most underground club at that time “Luv” which had invited DJ Hell. He blew my head off and that was the start of everything. I started digging techno record labels and artists, started going to more and more techno events and meeting people from clubbers to promoters, and very soon started working first as a PR to techno events. I remember I was getting 1,50 euro for every person I was bringing in my “pay-guestlist” and I was making some bucks. I was doing well and then I started climbing up the Athenian techno scene and by 20 years old I was already a promoter together with some partners. Meanwhile I was focused also in school and I got into a good university where I had started studying business management and marketing. And that’s how I started managing artists and record labels. We were bringing big international names to Athens and some became clients for artist/record-label digital services. The very first one I worked for was UMEK and his label 1605. Then more and more followed with some such as my brother Marco Bailey and his label MB Elektronics (and now also MATERIA) being still with me until today, without stop. At age of 23 I went to UK to take my master and one year later, I moved to Berlin where my music management agency (Advanced) started expanding and my dream kept unveiling itself more and more everyday.

So yes, I started and I was for a long while just label/artist manager, booking agent and event promoter. It was a bit more than 5 years ago when I started exploring DJing/producing and I created the Abyssal Chaos alias. I received some judgement at the start which I understand and accept. Most people were like: “look – the booking agent and promoter who became a dj”. Especially in Berlin, with so many artists existing around who unfortunately see you as “rival”, it can become really toxic. That however made me work harder and harder, and I believe by now, I have made most of them to shut their mouth when it comes to the “Abyssal Chaos” matter. Having said that, I’m having my 30-tracker album out in March and I’m beyond excited to show it that to you!

 

Abyssal Chaos 1
(Abyssal Chaos 2017)

 
Let’s talk about producing. What are your general inspirations for starting the production of a new track? How do you start with a new piece of music? How looks the whole production process?
As stated above, I’m still quite “new” with producing. Just 5 years which for me is still not much. It could be for someone else but for me, that I have to do office work 10-12 hours per day, I haven’t invested that much time as 5 years might imply. Due to my office work I listen to insane amounts of music and every little thing is an inspiration. Sometimes a demo from an unknown artist can be an inspiration. Or a track that I will listen at a club. I get some ideas in my head and then try to make something in the studio. Sometimes something else pops up in that process. So, let’s say that I just “go with the flow” when I work on something.
 


(full length streaming of the EP “Illusions”, Abyssal Chaos’s debut EP on Advanced (Black))

 
One track seems to have a very special meaning for you with a strong message: „FCK NZS“. Could you please tell us something about your reason to compose this one? What is the story behind it? Usually techno is not very political but in the past few months there were several demonstrations in Berlin eg against the right-wing party AfD. Do you think more producers & DJs should stand up and articulate their opinions?
Techno is an expression – of acting/doing/being. I want my music to mean something about me in many ways. And the whole part of me is all the way against fascism, racism, sexism…

Indeed more DJs (especially in rave scene) should stand up for especially a matter like this but honestly I do believe not many want to lose potential fans. Getting out any message like this limits down the target groups of an artist. I knew that releasing this track, right immediately all the techno-lovers who happen to be racists or sexists (oh, the irony…) immediately stopped being my potential fans. In the madness of social media and in an ocean of artists, where artists go hysterically crazy for the numbers of fans, almost everyone wants to get the maximum possible and therefore don’t want to limit down anyone. They just make techno hoping as more as possible people will like it and like their facebook page – no matter who.

Personally, I want to really and intentionally filter my fanbase. I don’t know if it’s right or wrong, in a way techno should be for everyone and some people tell me that I can’t say “far-right party voters are not allowed to listen to me” because it might make me appear one of them BUT I show my middle finger and here is why: The term of democracy is created for and based on high values such as freedom, human rights, acceptance, self-expression and equality – those values are absolutely broken by what the nazis/fascists/racists/sexists represent – it’s the ultimate contradiction. They can’t play a game if they don’t accept/follow its rules, right? That way I exclude far-right fans from my music and that track is there to shout it out loud for me. Techno supports the actual spirit of democracy -freedom, acceptance, equality and unity- way more than any political party. Fascism has no place in the world and I want to shout that out through everything I have – my techno included. In my opinion techno is very political and whoever can’t see this, is ignorant. My personal humble (but maybe wrong) opinion.

 


(Video for Abyssal Chaos’s “FCK NZS”)

 
… back to music itself. You just announced the release of an album for March. What is the idea of it? Is it an album with a specific topic? Is it a bundle of single tracks or did you produce them with the knowledge that they will be part of the album? Is there a difference between producing tracks for an EP and tracks made for an album? Which? A different process? Tell us something about your album please.
Yes my album “Dark Fairytales” will be out 4th of March and it will have 30 tracks. 16 new and 14 of my most-favorite old ones where I will include in the package for a special offer through bandcamp (all 30 tracks for 15 euro). I didn’t try to actual create a “story” in this album even though eventually a story got created. I started creating tracks for the album as I decided to do it over a year ago and those tracks will vary (some more raw, some more hypnotic, some ambient) but no, I can’t say that those tracks have any specific relationship or continuity between each other. As stated above, all track-titles are specific and dedicated to something/someone: to my best friends and to the dog I would take a bullet for, things I love (wolves or ayahuasca), to things I hate (nazis, clowns, system)….
 

Abyssal Chaos 3
(cover artwork of Abyssal Chaos’s album “Dark Fairytales”)

 
You run the Advanced label with the sublabels “Advanced Black” & “Advanced White“, a booking agency and many other music-related services. What is your job at these different companies? How do you select the artists you release on your label and these ones you sign for your booking agency? How important are services like you offer for a young artist in times when you can easily start your own business? Is it necessary to release on a label or sign to an agency to get booked?
My company Advanced Music Management offers all kind of office services a label and artist needs. I do everything needed to help the product (aka label or/and artist) be created such as mastering, distribution, press, PR, promotion, social-media management and then trying to sell them (through booking agency). Some clients I just create (do the management/promotion part only) and I have them at other bigger shops (aka booking agencies) so they can be sold more effectively – some I sell also myself being the booking agent.

Unfortunately (or not – that’s relevant to someone’s success) in our era image does the work and not the music only by itself as it used to be back in the days. Social media image and numbers are highly important for an artist to get bookings and in many cases in the less underground (mainstream) and therefore kind of less educated techno scene it is the only important. Promotion and social media are a necessary evil for someone’s success in our days. I can’t say if I agree or not with this (as underground techno artist possibly not), but yeah – I will be honest, my company makes money out of it.

 

Abyssal Chaos 3
(Advanced logo)

 
In 2018 you started organizing a fetish & sex positive party called “Sweat“ at Polygon in Berlin. Additionally one of your EPs is called BDSM. What is your special interest in this topic? How did the idea of running a fetish party come up and what was your idea of organizing such kind of party? How did you start the organization of it? What things are different in comparison to normal techno parties?
To me, techno and open-spirited sex, are really tied. Techno is hedonism and hedonism is techno. Techno –at least the style I like and play- is very very sexual to me. I want people to let loose and explore all the dimensions of hedonism. I want them to explore the freedom that techno represents with the maximum of their bodies too. I want them to dive in a sphere of hedonism – both acoustic and physical. My first couple SWEAT events in 2018 took place at Polygon but now in 2019 they are moving to another, bigger and more fitting place. I have big plans for it with stellar line-ups and erotic performances, erotic cinema, erotic shops and more surprises (I have the idea of everyone before gets in the club to be given an elegant erotic masquerade mask at the door as long as he pay so the event be more anonymous for those who want). I’ll announce news about it very soon!
 

Abyssal Chaos 3
(facebook banner for “Sweat” party series)

 
Techno sets contains often the tracks of the last 3-6 months. Do you have some favourite tracks/records that inspire you so you play them again and again? Please name 10 of them and tell us why they are important for you.
I do actually a hybrid set so I play tracks that I like as “base” and with ableton I add on top loops or effects or vocals from other tracks/samples, my own kicks or hihats with roland tr8 drummachine (connected with a distortion pedal so I can make usually the kicks even more aggressive) and a roland tb3 to add some (mostly acid) effects. But yeah – you are right indeed, the tracks I use are 80% of the last 3-6 months and plenty of promos that I am lucky to get because of my business. I like to play some old EBM or techno classics (such as from Thomas P. Heckmann or The Horrorist or Front 242 or Front Line Assembly or Nitzer Ebb) and usually towards the end of my sets some new-wave, synth-wave or dark-wave gems that I love.
 


(Video for Nitzer Ebb’s “Murderous”, released in 1987 on Mute)

 
Let’s get more personal. Before being a musician, label manager and booking agent, what did you want to do for your daily living? Did you study a certain profession? You also identify yourself as a wolf. How and when that started?
When I was young I wanted to be a football player. I was in a young team of a big club of Athens. That was going on until I go homeless at age of 15. When I “returned to normal life” I started partying and to enjoy booze/junk-food so I dropped the football-player dream. I wanted for a while to study football science so I can become a coach but that was during my first days exploring techno and eventually techno won 😉

About wolves, I just love them with all my heart. It’s something way beyond than just my spirit animal. Call me crazy, but I really do believe that I have been a wolf in a previous life. I had this attraction since very young kid. If I would see a wolf on TV I would run to hug/touch the screen with a big smile on my face. It’s a kind of recognition. I can’t really explain it. Words can’t describe how much I value and connect myself to the personality/spirit of this animal.

It’s in the wolf’s nature to be kind, sweet, honest, gentle, loyal and loving but when it comes to matters of protecting himself or especially his loved ones, he can be the most relentless wild beast you’ve ever seen. I love that. He can actually be the most cuddly and sensitive creature but also the most wild one – within seconds – depending how anyone treats him. Same with me. Not everyone gets the same version of me. Some will tell you that I’m the sweetest and generously kindest person they have ever met. Some others will tell you that I’m an aggressive asshole. Believe them both. I’ve been giving my everything to the ones that I love but I’ve also fought and took down without mercy or hesitation some very powerful people who tried to harm me or the ones I care for. A wolf is a mirror of someone’s energy/behaviour towards him. Be nice to him and he’ll be 10 times more nice to you – the most loyal, supportive and protective friend. Try to unfairly harm him, and he’ll instantly jump to rip your skin apart. Freedom is my and every wolf’s greatest virtue. I highly value freedom of others so it’s always someone’s choice what will get from me – cuddles or bites. A wolf has two very contrasting sides – white and black – good and bad. It’s wrong to choose just one side as life isn’t only good or only bad. The white wolf and the black wolf inside me are polar opposites and therefore the perfect pair. I have to feed them both so I can survive life.

 


(full stream of Abyssal Chaos’ “White Wolf” from the EP of “The Wolf”, out on Advanced (Black))

 
Originally from Greece you now live in Berlin which is still famous for being cheaper than other cities, for a long and heavy night life, for being a creative city. You don‘t speak fluent German as I know. So please tell us something about your daily life as a foreigner who became a citizen of Berlin. Is it easy to handle all the small things like shopping (I know many of the shop assistants at German supermarkets don‘t speak English fluently)? Always trouble with German „Bürokratie“?
I am coming from a very conservative place in Greece. My hometown is just an island.

Imagine that in my hometown Crete, if you sleep with a girl, he has to marry her otherwise her brother/father will hunt him with a shotgun. I’m not joking. That wasn’t the place for the free-spirited, open-minded and polyamorous me. In Berlin I found my true home. Berlin is not Germany. It’s an utopian magic bubble where everyone from every nation/culture/background/race beautifully co-exist and enjoy the ultimate freedom of acting, doing, being. That’s the magic of Berlin. It is full of colors and contrasts. It’s not a german city and that’s it’s beauty. Before any angry Germans get triggered and start yelling at me things I don’t understand, I mean this for every city/country. Athens misses magic because it’s just mostly a greek city, Rome misses magic because it’s mostly an Italian city, Sydney misses magic because it’s mostly an Australian city and blah blah blah (insert every city here but Berlin). Berlin has no specific identity – it’s nothing and therefore it’s everything. That’s what I love here – that at actual “Berlin-y” parts of city everyone feels accepted and not judged. Personally I don’t feel comfortable at any other metropolitan city in the world. I’m 7 years here and exploring something new almost everyday, still falling in love with this city. Of course I’m aware that it’s located in Germany with german bureaucracy (not a fan…) but I manage do right the things that must be done. Not a biggie. I don’t know if I want to “die” here. My dream is to get a beach house somewhere in the Caribbean side of South/Central America (I’m not far than getting a land in Ecuador which is incredibly cheap) but comparing to city-life which is something I want in the foreseeable future, I can’t change Berlin. Nothing else is not even close. I love being here.

 

Abyssal Chaos 3
(Abyssal Chaos on tour)

 
And already coming to an end of our small feature I would like to know more about your future. Except the album: are there any releases planned? Any special gigs or parties? A new edition of „Sweat“?
The highlights so far are:
My album which is coming in early March, an “album remixes” release where 10 great friends/artists will pick a track out of the album and remix it (I did a similar release recently with my productions so far – it’s out since last month called Abyssal Chaos – The Remixes EP), some planned album-release label nights in Berlin/Stuttgart/Rome/Amsterdam/London/Athens (and more to be confirmed), my south/central America tour in October through our new project Klubnacht which aims to promote Berlin club culture/sound at other places in the world with already confirmed gigs in Brazil-Argentina-Colombia, my SWEAT events and some other extra nights in Berlin. I have in general several gigs lined up at places that I was looking forward to play such as ://aboutblank, Tresor and Sisyphos.

Follow my facebook page to be updated with news 🙂

 

Recommendations:
Abyssal Chaos’ album “Dark Fairytales” on Advanced (Black)
Abyssal Chaos’ “Unicorns On Acid” on Advanced (Black)
Abyssal Chaos’ “BDSM EP” on Advanced (Black)
Space DJz’ “Hidden Systems LP” on Advanced (Black)
Kevin De Vries’ “We Are All Prisoners EP” on Advanced (Black)

 

Exclusive Mix:

 

Tracklist of Exclusive Mix:
01. Abyssal Chaos – Through Darkness Comes Light
02. Rezystor – Shut You Down
03. SNTS – Violence and Force / Loyalty and Devotion
04. Abyssal Chaos – Unicorns on Acid
05. Abyssal Chaos – Litany Of Curses
06. Corroid – Wenn Eine Maschine
07. Mayeul – Allnite
08. Ethan Fawkes – Forget The Sunrise
09. Delectro – Mechanic
10. Adult. – Irregular Pleasure
11. Crystal Geometry – Social Injustice
12. Kotai – BA3 Breathing (Len Faki Hardspace Mix)
13. Halo Effect – Melt My Brain (Abyssal Chaos Remix)
14. The Horrorist – The Hell You Love

 

Booking:
MainFrame Artists

 

Websites:
Abyssal Chaos

 

[Interview]: Inhalt Der Nacht

 

Interview

Inhalt Der Nacht

 

Introduction:
Christoph Heinze aka Inhalt Der Nacht formerly known as Escape To Mars, the founder of the labels Modul & Lebendig

 

Interview:

Hi Christoph, cool to have finally an interview with you. We know each other for a few years now. I discovered your Escape To Mars track “Apollo” on the Wall Music compilation and fell in love with it immediately. Then you “had to” make a mix for my regular series (listen here). That was in 2014 but we needed one more year to meet personally. After all this time we worked together on several things. In the meantime you also set up a new alias, Inhalt Der Nacht, and a new label called Lebendig (after running Modul for several years). The cause for doing this interview is your trip to Cuba where you scored a theatre show. So let‘s start from the very very beginning. Please tell us something about your youth. Where and how did you grow up? When did you discover music and what kind of music did you like being a teenager? Which moment/thing/situation impressed you so much to start your DJ and producer career?
Hi Jürgen ! Thanks for the invitation. Wow it is already 4 years ago? Crazy. A lot of things happened during that time. So lets start, I grew up in Pankow it is in the east side of Berlin. We lived there in a nice flat with a garden it was really beautiful, I was nearly all my freetime outside with my friends doing some stuff in the nature. I was already listening a lot of rock music there because my parents loved this music so much. When I was 11 my parents want to move to a own house in a small village next to Berlin. Until I was 16 my year when I moved completely back to Berlin it was a really hard time I was listening to a lot of german rap music and was doing this graffitti shit like all the young bad boys. With 15/16 I discovered more and more the electronic music, it was fun since the beginning. A little funny story from the Village is that Repressed Mind was my neighbor and we startet together playing vinyls in his house every week. But yeah then I had to move back to Berlin because I’m a city kid. First i lived at my moms place and then I started working a bit and got my first own flat in Pankow with 17. Since then I was listening Techno music every day and not so many days later I went to tresor club for the first time , this was the night i decided to become a DJ. It was just amazing to see all the people going crazy and dancing in the direction of the artist. A really magic moment for me. And then everything rolled on , I got my first vinyl players and played sets at home, was making party every fucking weekend. With 18 I had to stop, because I got cancer. That was changing me 100%. I startet to produce a bit for me in the hospital because the music was the only thing what made me smile a bit. After I won the fight and I was well again I knew I always want to make music.
 

(Inhalt Der Nacht in Cuba)
 
I already mentioned it above. You got a lot of attention with your project Escape To Mars and the label Modul. Since a while you also have used the moniker Inhalt Der Nacht. What are the main differences between both projects? Why did you set up a new name (the identity was a secret at the beginning and revealed by our “Music & Art” feature)? As we know you want to stop the Escape To Mars activities. What are the reasons for this?
I mean I had a great time with my ETM project and the Modul label but Music whise I had the feeling to change, everything sounded a bit the same for me and I didnt had any creative idea anymore. In the label we had also some trouble which was making us all go our own ways. Thanks again on that point to everyone involved for an unforgettable time. But I wanted to go back to my Rock routes, I wanted to do some harder stuff and also all this EBM, Wave stuff which fascinated me always. So I sitted at home and did some music like my Rausch track. I thought okay this is was makes me happy so I did go on with that stuff.
 

(“Intergalactic Error” by Escape To Mars on Vault Series)
 
The music of IDN is dark and very EBM influenced. It is a big trend at the moment leading to a large article on Resident Advisor. What do you think are the reasons for such development? Most of the DJs are very young like Phase Fatale or Kobosil and not directly connected with the scene in the 80ies. What is your personal reason for enjoying such music and also playing it?
Yeah now it becomes a bit trendy at the moment, a lot of shit music but you still can find the special ones. I dont know whats the reason for it but for me it sounds always powerful like nitzer ebb for example , this voice is unique. It gives me always the feeling to have the strength to change something.
 

(Cuba, photographed by Inhalt Der Nacht)
 
Please tell us something about your 10 favourite EBM-like tracks/records (name them and give a short idea why they are important for you).
01. Ich Steh im Regen (Room 506 Edit) by Deutsch Nepal
02. Die Liebe by Inhalt Der Nacht & Echoes Of October
03. Dark Allies by Light Asylum
04. Your Master Is Calling by Pink Turns Blue
05. Assassin by Blind Delon
06. Malarone by Linea Aspera
07. I.B.M. by Fractions
08. Aletheia by Zanias
09. Looking For Tina by Dax J
10. Red Clouds by Parallx
11. all Lebendig stuff 😉
 

(“Die Liebe” by Inhalt Der Nacht & Echoes Of October on Lebendig)
 
Now we have a few tracks from this genre we like. Please share your thoughts about them!

01. TVOD by The Normal
02. Ricky’s Hand by Fad Gadget
03. Im Rhythmus Bleiben by Front 242
04. Violent Playground by Nitzer Ebb
05. Body Pressure by Terence Fixmer
06. Alle Gegen Alle by DAF
07. Spoken Ashes by Phase Fatale
08. Can You Hear The Sound? by The Horrorist
09. Opus Dei by Laibach
10. Nag, Nag, Nag by Cabaret Voltaire
11. Hot On The Heels Of Love by Throbbing Gristle
12. My Pornoshow by Schwefelgelb
13. Second Mission by Adam X
14. Botox by Motor
15. Cold by VNV Nation

It’s hard to pick some faves out but yeah all this tracks are amazing, the beats, the vocals, the melodys. Outstanding. Just listen to them and try to feel this power I was writing about in the question before.
 

(our selection of EBM/Industrial tracks played to IDN on Spotify, yt soon)

 
As said before you run two labels, Modul and Lebendig. Tell us something about your ideas when you started Modul, back in 2015. And what changed so you felt the necessary to et up another one? What’s the intention of the new label? What do you like about running a label and what do you hate?
I always liked to do my own stuff and then share it with like-minded people. I founded the first label “Modul” in 2013 and to be honest I was in my early 20’s and I had no idea how to do it. I was driven by my gut feeling on which I could sometimes rely more and less. In the course of time, we were then 5 artists and with the growing success, of course, the responsibility grew which then I could not quite withstand some private problems. Our troupe then lived apart, but each of us, whether in music or personal life, has gone a great way as far as I could observe, and after some time past, some of us have reconnected to others but growing level.

After a lot of changes in my musical output, new alias, new music, new ways, I had a great desire to start something new again which then feels more like me again and at the same time I got to know Echoes Of October , We were fast on the same wavelength and shared many of the same thoughts. Our first common track was “meat life” and was really successful over the next few months which we never thought would happen. But yes it was clear we should definitely do the label together.

To conclude this question, I would say launching my own label has a lot of good stuff, a lot of hard stuff and you should never underestimate that at any rate today. But what I like the most is that you can bring together young talented artists and you can support each other in everything you can do and make new friends and celebrate damn cool label nights.

 

(former Modul member Repressed Mind plays Modul tracks)
 
But let’s finally talk about your Cuba trip. How did it happen? Who organized it? How was it?
I met someone in Bochum who was really a crazy power package with a good heart. His name is Julio Cesar Iglesias Ungo. We understood directly and had a lot of fun together. One day he told me he was doing such a dance thing in Cuba and asked me if I would like to compose the music for it. I said yes and yet I could not imagine anything that awaits me. In August it was time, arrived on the island I was very excited. He showed me parts of the choreography and I sketched out my first ideas. The play was called “Second Skin” and dealt with the problems of the island that were behind the whole tourism, money problems, rape, oppression and so on. It took me 3 days to complete the music, really little but I was able to empathize with the topic quite well because we could experience it close up through the city and living with Him at home. After that I decided to play the music live, that was something new for me that I have never done before. about two weeks we had time now to practice the whole piece and let everything merge and then he was there, the day of the premiere. Everyone was excited and a little tense. The theater was full of people, I think almost sold out. The show itself passed quickly, as if in a rush, When everything went well then everyone was super happy, we had standing ovations and that was a piece that was very provocative and different for the Cuban culture.

Now that I could reflect on everything, I have to say that it was my musical but most beautiful challenge. Just dive into a completely different scene, so far away from home. I am so immensely grateful for that. The whole “Danza Contemporánea de Cuba” has such good dancers with such wonderful personalities. My respect goes to each and every one of you.

My plan now is to grow a little bit in the theater world as well. And the next plans already exist.

At this point I would like to special thank Julio, his whole family and all the dancers for this unforgettable time.

 

(Inhalt Der Nacht scoring ‘Danza Contemporánea De Cuba’, an video extract)
 
We just had an interview with Hioll, one of the guys behind the first Cubian techno label Abstraction, who told us that there is just a small but growing scene (read it here). What is your impression of the scene? Did you know any techno from Cuba before? ions?
Yes, I had no idea before but from my experience now I can also say the techno scene there is very small but with a little time also has a lot of potential. The young people there need this other music so much to get to know each other better and also to grow with themselves in such a suppressive system.
 

(“Lichter” by IDN taken from “V/A One” on Interstate Records)
 
Beside scoring the theatre play you also did a dj gig there. Please tell us more about it. How did you prepare yourself for it?
The gig was crazy, in a huge old industrial hall. Great sound system and great energy on the dance floor. I did not prepare because we were busy with the theater before. I can not wait to play there again in April 2019
 

(Inhalt Der Nacht playing techno in Cuba)
 
You spent a few weeks in Cuba also to relax a little bit. So please tell us something about the country in general. What did you to do? What can you recommend to visit?
Actually, I could not really relax because we worked a lot. But in the few days of free time we were on the beach, which is a bit out of Havana and, after the party, we were in Viñales for 2 days, about 2 hours drive and a really magical place. I have never seen such mountains and nature as there. I would really recommend that to anyone.
 

(Inhalt Der Nacht and the Cuban countryside)
 
Already the last question… for sure we want to know your future plans. What’s coming up? On Lebendig. Other releases? Gigs?
Well, a little something I can already reveal. 2019 already looks awesome. After playing the Monnom Black Label night at NYE and in Tbilisi for the first time, making my debut at the Concrete Club Paris, Echoes Of October and I present our live set and the next theatrical play is in the works. The next release is my solo EP on Seelen Records with a hot remix by Anetha and more EPs on my usual labels are also planned. But more infos to that comes soon.

Thanks a lot Jürgen for having me 🙂

 

Recommendations:
EP “Deine Aura” by Inhalt Der Nacht on Seelen Records
compilation “V/A One” w/ IDN track on Interstate Records
compilation “The World Of …” w/ IDN track on Monnom Black
free compilation “RAW Compilation First Blood Part 1” w/ IDN track on RAW
compilation “SEELEN.001” w/ ETM & IDN track on Seelen Records
EP “Vault Series 21.0” by Escape To Mars on Vault Series
all stuff on Lebendig, the label co-run by Inhalt Der Nacht

 

Booking:
Hemisphere Agency

 

Websites:
Inhalt Der Nacht
Lebendig

 

[Music & Interview]: Arthur Robert

 

Music & Interview
Arthur Robert

 

Introduction:
Arthur Robert, a young talent based in Amsterdam

 

Interview:

hi Arthur. nice to have you for this small interview with also includes an exclusive mix. I am not sure how I discovered your music the first time but I know I was impressed by your output presented on your Soundcloud profile. Later we worked together on the promotion of your first EP “Flut”, out on your own imprint Reduktion. After that I was surprised and proud/happy to see one of your tracks on Marcel Fengler’s compilation “IMF010”. So let’s start with the very beginning. Your youth. Where was you born? Where and how did you grow up? What kind of music did you enjoy first eg being a teenager?
Hi, I was born in Vienna, Austria to Romanian parents. My father fled the communist Regime installed there and initially wanted to go to either US, Australia or Canada but ended up staying in Austria.

I grew up going to a French international school with a very diverse background and being surrounded by many different nationalities, backgrounds and cultures. I think I must have been listening to mostly everything in my life. I had phases of rap/hip hop, when I was young I even like some pop music, crappy electro house and tech house even for a short amount of time and drum and bass/jungle, dubstep so mostly everything. While still in school I already remember sitting hours in front of my very own first computer I got when I was 15 and downloading rap and drum and bass to show my friends at parties. It was mostly the beats and rhythms that really stuck with me. Soon later I discovered DJ’ing and I was immediately obsessed with the idea of being able to mix two pieces of music together and make one. The fact that it was “technological” also made it even more interesting and exciting since I was always into futuristic, technology based stuff.Whether it was video games, movies about the future, some weird tech or anything innovative. I lived in Vienna until I was 19 and left to study interior architecture in Montreal and had a small hiatus musically speaking.

When I moved to Amsterdam after 3 years in 2011 I slowly but surely got back into DJ’ing and eventually also tried out producing a little but with very little success since I found it quite challenging at first.

I did have some piano lessons when I was younger but did not like it as I would have preferred to play the drums.

 

Arthur Robert 1
(Arthur Robert Promo Pic 1)

 
How looks your daily life? What is your profession (or what do you study)? Any spare time activities or hobbies beside music? We usually communicate in German. What’s the reason for your very fluent German?
For about 4 and half years now my daily life revolves in some way or another around music, especially music production. After I have met my now girlfriend in 2013, she and my best friend encouraged me to start taking up production seriously as they saw something in me I did not see myself. I was mostly still messing around Ableton and not really doing anything but they kept insisting I should do this properly. That was around end 2013 and in April 2014 my girlfriend and I moved to to a really nice apartment where we built a studio.. That year I got my first real setup with a modular, a drum computer and some speakers. The studio was setup in the garden shed which has now been fully rebuilt into a really nice music studio. Lots has changed in the meantime.

I usually wake up, do my house hold chores and other personal hygiene matter then usually go into the studio and work on my musical patterns, modular experiments and just general study into the foray of sound creating through technological means. Next to producing music Im also giving private lessons in music production since I love explaining what I do to other people (and myself especially!) which is a nice addition to my weekly routines. I learned most of what I know through the internet, trying out my modules, reading manuals and trial and error. I secretly always wished someone with all the knowledge would come and explain it to me but it became clear that I had to become that person in a way. Like being my own mentor so to speak. My other activities next to music are video games, watching sci-fi movies/shows with my girlfriend and cooking. But it’s mostly just music. I have realized that it was the red thread in my life, always passing through one way or another. I speak 5 languages fluently and therefore music is just another language.

 


(stream of the 3 track EP “Frontal” on Soundcloud)

 
I mentioned your tracks on SC and the first vinyl on your own label Reduktion. When did you decide to set up a label? How did you do it? What are your experiences?
My best friend and the graphic designer for my label Reduktion came up with the name for the label at a rave party in Rotterdam whilst Ben Klock was playing. We were all having fun and my friend was so impressed with the minimal nature of the sound yet the maximum effect it had on us. The name reflects my mindset about this very well and he captured that in this moment. After we did the first release it was nice to get some attention but the vinyl unfortunately does not sell extremely well since I have barely done any promotion myself except through your channel which was already very helpful. I know that I will sell all copies eventually one day. Im not in a hurry. There will be definitely a second release and probably more but I first have to be a little better know in order to release it in a manner in which it sells a bit better with little promotion. Im not necessarily interested in doing promo work and I rather wait for the right time and then do it. But it will happen for sure. The first release was a bit of a try out. It was a bit expensive and I made some mistakes but for the next one I will do things a lot better. I think 2020 seems realistic in terms of another release on Reduktion.
 

Arthur Robert 2
(Reduktion Logo)

 
Your track “Schwäche” was featured on IMF010, a large compilation on Marcel Fengler’s label IMF. How did that happen? Was the track already finished or did you produce it on request? Did you meet Marcel in persona (if you did tell us something about it)?
I contacted Marcel (as all other DJ’s/Label owners) through Facebook hoping to get some of my stuff heard. I admittedly did not send music to many artists since Im only interested in sending it to people I feel I could have a connection with. That does not mean I don’t want my music played by anyone or everyone. It’s more of a personal thing. He responded nicely and loved this track instantly. It took 3 years to realize it but Marcel kept his promise. It was a very nice moment when it finally happened and felt almost surreal. Marcel invited me to play in Vienna at a renowned night club called “Grelle Forelle” to celebrate his IMF 10 compilation tour and he invited artists to join him along the way. I played my first really professional gig in front a very supportive crowd right before Marcel that night which was exhilarating. The crowd loved it and the promoters and Marcel said it was very professional and well done. It was a defining moment after almost 4 years of non stop producing in my studio. A sort of culminating moment.
 


(snippet of the track “Schwäche”, released on Index Marcel Fengler)

 
Let’s talk about your way to produce. What is your inspiration? How do you start with a new track? How do you carry on producing a track til it is finalized?
I produce using a mix of hardware and software. The main focus are my Elektron machines for drums/percussion, my prophet 6 polyphonic synthesizer, modular synth which has been ever changing since I first got it and various other mono synths I have been using lately. Ableton live 10 is used for processing my sound with professional plugins and recording my sessions. All is done live and recorded along the way via the master output. Mixing is done on the machines themselves and inside Ableton. I prepare patterns and patches on the modular and other machines and when something is interesting I press record and then just see what happens. It is a rather intuitive process that depends on the moment. I can make 5 good recordings in one 6 hour session and I can end up with nothing good for one week. Its all a matter of searching for the right combination of elements which at times can be very elusive especially if you do not want to end up repeating yourself too much. Tracks can start from anything like a synth sound, a chord, a modular patch etc. I love designing drums and percussion sounds with synthesis on my computer, then recording those sounds and putting them into samplers for further mangling/processing. Best way is to start with something simple. It yields the best and most rewarding results in my opinion.
 

Arthur Robert 3
(Arthur Robert Logo)

 
What are your influences? Who serves as example for you (producer, DJ, artist in general)?
My influences are definitely science fiction, video games, movies and movie soundtracks, the technology which I use daily to create my music, be it the laptop and plugins/ableton etc or the hardware especially my modular synth. The sheer possibilities of sonic exploration is incredible and promises to keep you interested and preoccupied for a lifetime. As for artistic influences I can definitely name old school hip hop such as nas, gangstarr, krs one, wutang clan, mos def, dead prez, trip hop with tricky, massive attack, Kruder & Dorfmeister, Portishead and so forth. Jungle music and drum and bass was a turning point for me and introduced me to going out and experiencing the power of sound systems. In Techno, the Sandwell district collective, Shed and the older Ostgut ton sound has had a huge impact on what I produce to this day. It has inspired a feeling of nostalgia within me for events/moments which I have personally never experienced but been able to feel through the music. Magical.
 


(full stream of “Hochwasser” from “Die Flut”, out on Reduktion)

 
Which equipment do you have at home and use for the production? What’s your favourite gear?
My equipment consists of a modular synth that now acts as a drum/percussion and mono synth with multiple oscillators and filters namely wavetable, and FM (Buchla)

I use two Elektron mainstays: Octatrack and Analog Rytm plus the Analog Heat processor for some overdrive /saturation. I own two semi modular mono synths: MS20 Desktop module and Oberheim SEM pro.

Furthermore there is a Sequential prophet 6 polyphonic synth that runs through a strymon Big Sky Reverb pedal, a really good 808 clone/replica called the 8raw8, a Syncussion clone called the SY-1M and last but not least my recently acquired powerful MacBook Pro 2018. I don’t have any favorite gear since all tools have their advantages and disadvantages, but if there was one thing for me to chose it would be either the computer or the octatrack. They are by far the most complete systems to make complete music on them.

 

Arthur Robert 4
(Arthur Robert Promo Pic 2)

 
You live in the Netherlands which has a rich scene e.g. ADE. Could you please give us a little insight of the scene? What do you like/hate about it? What are your favourite clubs? Any other young talents we should have an eye on?
The scene is very strong here in the Netherlands. Unfortunately Im less of a socializer and therefore little involved in the scene here at the moment. I spend most of my time producing and practicing my live set. The time will come when I will be more involved I’m sure about it but for now my priorities lie otherwise. My all time favorite club in the Netherlands used to be Trouw which is gone now. I don’t really go out anymore because I spend most of my time in my studio or with my girlfriend, When I get an invitation from a nice Dj such as DVS1 which I have a good relationship with then I go out and listen but otherwise I prefer to hone my skills. Some younger talents I have faith in are Utrecht based friends Shoal and Vela Uniform as well as my lazy full of excuses good friend Joris aka Deauwd. Last but not least there is another friend I make music with called Ard, going by the name of Ghetto House drum machine or Vamos Tados. Very very talented and attentive to detail.
 


(video of “Self”)

 
On the 15th of September you performed together with Vela Uniform as AR&VU. How did you prepare the set? What equipment did you use? Which parts did you do, which Vela Uniform?
My set in Utrecht at WAS together with Vela Uniform was a very healthy and nice experience. We played right before Karenn (which are a veteran live act in the scene) which was quite nerve wrecking as we had an extensive array of machines with us and there is always the possibility of something going wrong and of course the dreading feeling of performing well and to not disappoint, Especially if you get such a good time slot. We had very good feedback and even Karenn told us afterwards that they really liked it. We used mostly my equipment and the modular synth of Vela uniform which provided a solid base of sounds throughout the whole set. There will be a recording of it posted by WAS on December 20th 2018. Most of the work was done by me in terms of mixing, drums and processing through my usual live set with Vela Uniform’s added Modular synth. We practiced extensively during the weeks before just jamming and trying to find a way to communicate with each other. A very interesting and challenging project/exercise.
 

Arthur Robert 5
(Soundcheck for the live set at WAS)

 
So this is already the last question. Please tell us what you have planned for the near future. Second release on Reduktion? Signing to another label? Any interesting gigs?
For the near future I have been in talks with Zak Khutoretsky aka DVS1 for a possible release on his label Mistress. He is a main figure in supporting my music and I have been sending him stuff regularly for about 4 years. He was in fact the first person I have ever given music to back when I still needed much more practice and time. He replied humbly and told me that I needed to get back to work but that I should continue sending him music. I had been sending tons of music and there was sometimes he would download stuff. In Aprill 2018 he played a string of gigs in Berghain, Printworks, Amsterdam DGTL where he was playing tracks of mine in every set to some very good reactions apparently with one track standing out in particular he said. He ended playing it as a closing track in Berghain and got lots of messages requesting to ID my track. That was another turning point in which I got a sort of confirmation that it was going the right direction. We then met at Shelter in Amsterdam shortly after and discussed future plans for a release. I don’t know exactly when it will be released or if its 100% still sure but my guess is if it will happen then it will be sometime in 2019.

As for other projects I am in the process of perfecting my live set and will be recording lots of new music in 2019 with the newer setup I have recently finished building. The last 3 months were a bit of a restart and the new year will consist in putting in a lot of work to get some new material out. I am also involved in scoring the sound for a arthouse science fiction movie made by friends in Berlin which is very exciting since I always dreamt of delving into movie sound and using sound design as a means to interpret images. I find the world of techno, sound design and movie scoring, especially science fiction to be quite intertwined and therefore feel a very strong connection throughout this process. I will gradually show some bits of work here and there and generally keep uploading my tracks and experiments to Soundcloud. Always more to come.

 

Recommendations:
Arthur Robert’s EP “Flut” on Reduktion
compilation “IMF10” w/ Arthur Robert track on Index Marcel Fengler

 

Exclusive Mix:

 

Tracklist of Exclusive Mix:
01. Arthur Robert – Offering
02. Arthur Robert – Ankunft
03. Arthur Robert – Yearning
04. Arthur Robert – Cloak
05. Arthur Robert – Temperament
06. Arthur Robert – Frontal
07. Arthur Robert – Confidential
08. Arthur Robert – Prelude to war
09. Arthur Robert – Cataract
10. Arthur Robert – Forthcoming
11. Arthur Robert – Sovereign
12. Arthur Robert – Lost
13. Arthur Robert – The Aftermath

 

Booking:
Source Artists for Arthur Robert

 

Websites:
Arthur Robert
Arthur Robert’s own label Reduktion

 

[Music & Interview]: Newa

 

Music & Interview
Newa

 

Introduction:
Newa, female shooting star from Tbilisi, Georgia

 

Interview:

Hi Ana, nice to have you for our “Music & Interview” series. You are one of the main characters of the young Georgian techno scene which is also important for the political development of the country. But let’s start with the very beginning. Your childhood and youth. Could you please tell us a little bit about where and how you grew up? And what was your first favourite music? What kind of music did you listen when you were a teenager?
Thanks for having me for this interview. I grew up in Tbilisi, in the capital of Georgia. During my childhood Georgia as a country was having a lot of difficulties. As we had a civil war and war with Russia. So the situation was not good, we had shortage of electricity I remember learning on candle lights and doing “concerts” for my family as we were gathering in one room to economy the candles I was in the center of attention. As a child it was fun for me. But when I look at it now it affected me a lot and not in a good way. My favorite music when I was kid was jazz, because my grandmother was a piano teacher, she had her jazz band and I was singing in the band. Occasionally playing drums and piano. My father and grandfather had a huge collection of vinyls from frank Sinatra, Earth Wind and Fire, Steve wonder, Keith Jarrett, and lot more. Also rock bands like pink Floyd, led zeppelin and many many more. So I grew up listening to this music and I remember when I first heard Keith Jarrett playing “the wind” I felt so much love and disappointment in it, I cried a lot.
 

Newa 1
(Newa, live pic)

 
You are a classical trained musician and have a background as Jazz musician. What exactly did you train? How did you become a Jazz musician? Did you play in a regular band?
As I told you in the beginning I was playing in my grandmothers’ jazz band. She is a piano teacher and teaches classical jazz and classical music. She had a small jazz band and I was singing there, was playing piano and drums occasionally. We were having concerts around Georgia and it was fun for me. I earned my first salary from singing in the band and I was 8 years old.
 

Newa 2
(Newa Pic)

 
After performing Jazz you decided to spin and produce techno music. When and how did you come up with the idea to switch the genre? Was there a special moment that you impressed? Who are your musical influences/role models/heroes?
I started producing experimental music at first, I wanted to learn more, find out more, it’s a part of me that is always looking for the answers so I found techno and acid techno particularly. It felt really pumpy and playfull and interesting to know so I started making techno. I remember the first techno track I’ve heard and it was acid. It was from Datacide ‎– Datacide II album from a collaborative project by Tetsu Inoue met Uwe Schmidt. It’s a mix of ambient and techno music and it impressed me a lot and I started digging deeper.
 


(stream of “Turtle” from “SUB.REC.5” on Subspiele Records)

 
As mentioned you are vital part of the Georgian scene. So you play regularly at clubs like Khidi & Bassiani. Could you please describe these 2 clubs and say why you lile them? Please also tell us something about the scene itself in general (parties, producers, audience etc)?
Both of the clubs are very special for the Georgian scene, they have different souls, although they are both techno/house clubs mainly. Both have their own unique soul and for everyone they are different experience, some find their home on Khidi others on Bassiani. I just recommend to visit this clubs, and have your own opinion about them. The scene is getting bigger and bigger day by day I just wish the quality to be on a higher level amongst producers and for me artist who has followers and people who like their music has a great responsibility towards them, we have a power to change so we have to use it wise. Because you can kill with music, and why not do the contrary?!
 

Georgia
(Flag of Georgia)

 
Both clubs got some attention from the “European” club scene because of amazing line-ups etc. So many people here were shocked by the (temporary) shutdown of Bassiani and another club by the Georgian police earlier this year. This led to protests in front of the parliament building. Also Khidi supported the young demonstrators who also expressed the political views there. Could you please tell us something about the background of the closing, the political situation in Georgia and your personal thoughts about it?
I was there for two days, first day was happier then the second. We were nearly attacked by fascists and nationalist groups who came up there. Dance is a political act in Georgia. There are a lot of people who were tired of this war and just went to leave in Europe or somewhere else and I understand them it’s tough. But we are here to defend it and we will dance together and fight together till the end. Political situation is in hand of pro-Russian government and Russia for us is a cage, is a monster who is tearing us apart everyday taking our citizens from their houses, during many centuries this country was causing controversy amongst Georgians. We are for freedom we won’t take this any longer and we will win this war.
 

(BBC video)

 
Enough politics – let’s get back to your music vision. You released e.g. EPs on La Chinerie & Subspiele Records and tracks on Semantica, Ben Klock’s label Klockworks & Bassiani’s label. How do you start with a track production? What are your inspirations? Which equipment do you use? How is the production process?
Track production process starts very early in my head. I get inspired by people, nature, music, books, I get those emotions in me and process them for a while, before that I’m just a librarian, who is gathering sounds and training the skills, and when the right time comes I just sit next to my equipment and everything just comes out of me like I’m giving birth to something that has a soul and you can’t touch it but it’s in there. I’ve been making music in my computer but now I can afford to buy machines, it’s more fun with them.
 


(stream of Newa’s remix of Dold’s “Version”, out on Interstate Records)

 
But you don’t just release stuff on several labels, you are also involved in running the label Icon Trax. In total three samplers were already released – including two tracks by yourself. What’s your idea / philosophy behind it? What’s your task there? Any special image you want to create?
Icontrax represents light in the darkness. As the world leaves in the darkness unfortunately we want to discover the light in it. We want to focus on light. We want to avoid releasing “regular” mainstream music. We focus on Georgian artists and their soul through music. We always listen together with Berika he’s labels boss. And when we feel it we understand instantly. We want icontrax to be a truly Georgian label, represent Georgian soul and our feelings
 


(stream of the third release on Icontrax)

 
You support the local scene e.g. with your label mentioned above. Could you please name 5 Georgian artists who we should check out and have an eye on? What’s the reason for you to like them? What makes them special?
Skyra – he’s also released on icontrax, he has two tracks in two different released. I love how he looks at music, he’s way of thinking is totally different. We are now releasing Ep consists of 4 skyras track.

Nicole – she had a boiler room debut on Bassiani couple of months ago, she was making music in a duo named by body thrills but now she’s making music alone. She hasn’t released her music yet but I’ve listened to couple of her tracks and she will take you away for sure.

Phonothek – he works in the field of dark ambient and uses his horn delicately in his music, he has several alias and plays horn professionally in a Georgian philharmonic orchestra.

Octachoron – it’s a duo from Georgia and they released their first album this year “Octachoron – Land Of Meta” you should definitely check out their spacey sounds.

 


(Electronic Beats feature about “Photon”)

 
Getting closer to the end of the interview let us talk about your DJ career again. Beside releasing on Klockworks you have another connection to Ben Klock – you played 3 times at his “Photon” show. What is so special about it? How did you experience these nights? Any other gigs you kept in mind because of special moments and experiences? What happened at these parties?
I feel very honored to take part in Photon nights, which are combined with the amazing lights that creates the atmosphere along with the music. First one was at Berghain, and it was absolutely thrilling for me because I knew I would play there 6 months before so as the date was approaching I felt more and more anxious and nervous, we went there by 8;30 as I had to start at 9 and as soon as we entered I felt at home, Sterac was playing before me with his warm vibes and when I stood there I saw all my friends around the world standing very close to me it was such a special moment. I don’t remember what I played which tracks I played it was going simultaneously with the people with the lights and I felt that connection which was unforgettable and I’m thankful for ben and Klockworks that I can be part of those amazing nights.
 


(snippets of “Split One” by Newa / Mariska Neerman on Semantica)

 
This is already the last part of our small chat. So what do you plan for your near future? Any releases coming up? Or some new special gigs?
Releases are mainly V/A-s, also just released on split Ep on Semantica and I’m really happy about it. My schedule is getting busier and busier day by day so I’m trying to stay in shape and continue loving music as I did before. Thank you
 

Recommendations:
“Split One” by Newa | Mariska Neerman on Semantica
Dold’s “Version” w/ Newa remix on Interstate Records

 

Exclusive Mix:

 

Tracklist of Exclusive Mix:
soon

 

Booking:
Mutual Obsession for Newa

 

Websites:
Newa

 

[Music & Interview]: Hioll

 

Music & Interview
Hioll

 

Introduction:
Hioll, young talented man from Cuba & founder of the first techno label in Cuba

 

Interview:

hi Hioll, welcome to our „Music & Interview“ feature which is also another part for our ABC series because you play only Abstraction tracks in your delivered mix. Let‘s start with the interview and your very beginning of being a music lover. So please tell us where you were born and when. What’s your profession? Or do you study? What kind of music did you enjoy at first and how did you become a techno fan?
Hello guys and thanks for the invitation. I was born on August 26 of 1990 in La Habana, Cuba. I studied Accounting and finances and I started enjoying music at the early age of seven, when my stepfather shows me artists like Frank Sinatra, Nat King Cole, The Beatles, Queen, Michael Jackson, Lionel Ritchie and also a lot of American songs from the 70’s, while my mother was more an 80’s kind of fan. So I grew up around all this fantastic music and when I was like eleven years old I became to interest in more contemporary pop, like Backstreet Boys, Aqua and stuff like that. By the time I began high school I was more involved with metal, becoming fan of bands like Korn, Limp Bizkit, Godsmack, Slipknot, Papa Roach, System of A Down, Rammstein, etc. But my first contact with electronic music was when my uncle showed me a video of Tiësto playing Trance on a big venue, I liked a lot. At the age of 16 i discovered clubbing and raving with my school friends and also house and techno music, i started going to different events like the infamous Rotilla Festival, sponsored by Exit Festival, the only house and techno Festival so far in Cuba (No longer exists).
 

Hioll 1
(Hioll, live pic)

 
After listening to music you mentioned above … was there a special moment or situation why you started with own productions and djing? What influences you?
I have a friend who was deep into Rap/Hip-Hop and he was making his own beats and rapping, so, one day I went to his house and he was working on something new in this weird software called Fruity Loops and I found that very interesting, so i took it and that’s how i started making music. The Djing stuff came lately, I was attending regularly to every electronic music event in the city and watching a lot of local djs playing like Djoy de Cuba, Kike Wolf, DJ Dark, Diemen, Duff and i wanted to be part of this movement, so i started practicing with a really cheap Numark setup, NDX200 cd players and I can’t remember the mixer model. What really influences me when im producing techno is fresh music, every time i download a promo, search in Beatport or Bandcamp or just simply recieve music from friends and i found something that i really like, something that really moves me, then a lot of ideas come to my head.
 

Hioll 2
(Hioll Promo Pic)

 
What equipment did you use for producing? How does a typical process look like when you make a new track? do you spin vinyls or do you use files for you dj gig? I can imagine that it is not easy to get the equipment for both in Cuba? In Europe there are sometimes heavy discussions if it is better to use vinyl or digital equipment. Are there similar „fights“ in Cuba?
I used to have a small studio setup, but i sold everything to make possible the launch party of Abstraction, so right now my studio resumes to a late 2011 MacBook Pro, a pair of Beyerdynamic DT880 Pro headphones and a Traktor Audio 6 interface/Sound Card. When i start a project I always go first with the kick and the sub bass, for me this is the soul of the track, then comes all the other, good sounds and sequences, good textures and nice hats.

I play with usb sticks, no vinyls. The equipment issue is very delicate in Cuba, we simply don’t have a place where you can go and buy some dj equipment, it doesn’t exist, so people buy it outside of Cuba and then bring it in; but is very hard to get a dj setup here.

We don’t have the vinyl versus digital equipment fight because, as I said before, we don’t have the possibility to choose one or another, so it’s mostly digital here.

 


(exclusive download “Substances ” by Hioll for NovaFuture Blog)

 
Apropros Cuba. Let‘s talk about the techno scene there. You are involved in running the label Abstraction (we will talk about it later). This first issue we would like to know is how the party scene looks like. At which places/clubs/cities do techno events take place?
Right now we don’t have a techno scene, is sad but is the true, there are some djs that defends techno music in their gigs, but I don’t think that’s something to say: -“Hey we have a small techno scene” -or anything like that. There are parties, but very diverse, very eclectic in terms of genre, some djs prefer house music, other ones techno or both or maybe more than two in the same dj set. Recently some friends of mine started a party called Rusty Nails Ravers (RNR) that truly defends techno music and they have some followers and also they are discovering very good locations, i hope it gets bigger and bigger with time.
 


(streaming of “Impedancia” by Hioll taken from his EP “HIOLL002”)

 
What about the Cubian DJ scene? Are some DJs who are popular in Cuba so people come esp. to the events to hear them (please name a few)? What about booking international DJs? Which international DJs are popular?
Right now people don’t come to the parties for the djs, they just came for the event and to see more people and socialize and also to enjoy music in some particular cases I think. We don’t book internationals because there’s no money to do that; I hope in the future we can. There have been some international djs that played here for free like Ellen Alien because they want to help the scene to grow up and we appreciate it a lot. People don’t know about the international names because our Internet access is very limited and expensive, but is getting better.
 

Hioll 3
(Hioll Promo Pic)

 
Another vital part of the European techno scene are the labels and producers. Could you please tell us a little bit about the labels and producers? How are they organized (promotion, distribution etc)? Any stuff we should have an eye on?
Abstraction is the first electronic music label we have in Cuba, so there’s no much to talk about it haha. But we have a lot of talented producers waiting to be discovered by a great label, like Åre:gone, Different Age, Dvazz Brothers aka Srav Zerbothz, Dian aka Naid, Egrod Pher, Thellus, Kidsue, MNO, Oaled Sixela, Sun Over Me and many others.
 


(snippets of “Abstract Weapons Vol. 1”, the first release on Abstraction)

 
You are involved in running the label Abstraction. Please tell us something about the label in general – who founded it when, what kind of style is presented on it and who released there. And what’s your task there? Do you enjoy label work?
Abstraction was founded by Åre:gone, Dvazz Brothers, Egrod Pher, Sun Over Me and myself, a year ago. At the beginning the idea was to release the best techno stuff we had in our hands and make events to spread the word and build a small scene in the island. With time the family grows and more names like Røttar, Kidsue, Oyiyi, Naid or Chimachine came in. My task, right now, is to choose the music we release, and when, and also to search for remixers we like and ask them to collaborate with the project; so far we have worked with Earthscape and Eonan from Germany, Laurent JC from France, Juan Trujillo from Argentina, the Canadian artist Kloves and Vegim from Kosovo. And yes I do enjoy label work!
 


(stream of “Ars Goetia” by Sun Over Me, taken from “Conducto EP” on Abstraction)

 
Cuba is a popular tourist spot for European people. Many of them know the music of Buena Vista Social Club. Perhaps you can give us also a short overview about what kind of music is popular in Cuba especially among young people.
At the moment the most popular music here is Reggaeton, and also something called Trap; the youngsters are listening to this all day in the streets. There is a small group that enjoys electronic music as something exotic and mostly they listen to mainstream EDM artists.
 

Cuba
(Flag of Cuba)

 
We already asked you about your favourite music in your youth. So what about nowadays? Could you please name 1Q0 records/tracks (of any genre) that are still important for you and you play again and again. Please also let us know why you love them.
Nowadays I must say I’m listening to a lot of techno and discovering new artists and labels everyday, but there is some tracks that i return always to, because they bring me good memories:
Queen – Bohemian rhapsody
A-Ha – Take on me
Rage Against The Machine – Killing in the name
Papa Roach – Last resort
Rammstein – Du hast
System of A Down – Aerials
Korn – Thoughtless
Godsmack – Awake
Incubus – Drive
Deftones – Change
 


(stream of “The Ancient Notes” by Hioll, taken from “Lights” on Abstraction)

 
A few days ago Inhalt Der Nacht returned from a visit of Cuba which included a gig you attended. We will have an interview with him later but would like to hear more about it from your point of view. Was you involved in organizing it? Could you please describe the venue? Who played there except Inhalt Der Nacht? Tell us how the event was for you. Did you talk with Christoph aka Inhalt Der Nacht (about?)? Any plans made with him?
Inhalt Der Nacht was here recently playing for my friends from RNR; they organized the whole event with the support of the German embassy and Danza Contemporánea de Cuba. The venue was an abandoned old bicycle factory in Vedado, one of the most popular neighbourhoods in Havana, Åre:gone and J-Lawton played alongside Inhalt Der Nacht that night. And in my opinion it was the best party, possibly, of the last 5-7 years. I never had the chance to talk with Christoph, mostly because my own fault, my friend J-Lawton called me several times to meet him, but i was not able to do it, but, I enjoyed his set a lot, and not just myself everybody there was really touched by the music he played and I’m pretty sure that it made a difference, and the most important thing is that it was a difference for the people who went there, and changed the way they see techno music. I hope that more parties like that keeps coming in the future and, of course, I also hope to meet Christoph in his next trip to Cuba and play with him too.
 

Hioll Fracture announcement
(Fracture announcement of signing Hioll)

 
Already coming to an end of this interview we would like to ask you about your future plans? What‘s coming next? New releases? Nice gigs?
Right now i’ve just signed with Fracture Agency, which I am very happy with, I’m also preparing the Abstraction’s forthcoming releases and looking for a nice location to throw our next party, celebrating one year of existence. As a producer I have several releases: an upcoming EP on H.Paul’s Induxtriall Records from Spain, more stuff on Vegim’s TMM Records from Kosovo, another EP on Dolma, a label from France, Something on Bipolar Disorder too (with amazing remixes), another EP on Trau-ma from Portugal, which is the label from Robert S, another one on Florian Meindl’s Flash Recordings, a remix for Dykkon on DkN Selections and new stuff on Abstraction too, so, yes, I’ve been quiet busy.
 

Recommendations:
Hioll’s “Hioll 002” on his own imprint
Hioll’s “Paranormal Activity EP” on Knowledge Recordings
Hioll’s “Lights EP” on Abstraction
Sun Over Me’s “Conducto EP” on Abstraction
“Far From Noise EP” by Åre:gone & Røttar on Abstraction

 

Exclusive Mix:

 

Tracklist of Exclusive Mix:
01. Hioll – Second Intentions
02. Åre:gone & Røttar – Far From Noise
03. Sun Over Me – Ars Goetia
04. Sun Over Me – Conducto
05. Kidsue – Histeria
06. Åre:gone & Røttar – Init Board
07. Sun Over Me – Network Bruxism
08. Chimachine – Mente Ácida
09. Hioll – Elemento Neutro
10. Røttar – Dark Energy
11. Sun Over Me – Gravis
12. Åre:gone – Asgard
13. Åre:gone – Rå
14. Hioll – Lights
15. Hioll – Codename
16. Hioll – Impedancia
17. Hioll – Acelerador lineal
18. Hioll – Teorema
19. Hioll – The Man From Outer Space

 

Booking:
Fracture Agency

 

Websites:
Hioll
Abstraction