Interview with Syk2ne

Syk2ne`s podcast, Facebook and Soundcloud

Can you tell us something about the man behind the mask, where are you from and what do you do for a living etc.?

My real name is Michal and I`m from the Czech republic. Last year I finished the bachelor degree of Theory of Interactive Media where I focused on experimental electronic music. Besides my education I`ve been working in the medicinal drug supply for the last few years.

How did you start producing and mixing music?

My first steps with producing music where when I was 14 or 15. It was nothing more then creating some really simple hip-hop beats and layering them over sampled loops I took from other songs or video games etc. 
Later on two good friends of mine bought some turntables, which gave me the opportunity to try mixing with vinyl and scratching. In those years I became very fascinated with the art of turntablism. And although I haven`t used turntables for almost five years now, I can say I spent my adolescent years on them, mostly scratching. 
It was around then when I also got in touch with something what is now called mainstream hardcore. That would have been around 2004 or 2005 and the tracks that were released in that period by Enzyme, Traxtorm or Neophyte records were raw and full of energy. I got hooked by this style and so I decided to produce and play this kind of music myself. 
Over the years I started to focus more on heavy, dark, experimental and broken stuff and in 2011 I discontinued my hardcore project and began with Syk2ne because I felt I needed more space to experiment with my sound.

How would you define Syk2ne`s musical style nowadays?

I get this question quite often from various people. It`s hard to explain because people tend to get confused when I describe the whole spectrum that i try to cover with my music. To put things simple, I write dark, industrial, experimental and usually broken music on varying tempo`s. The name Syk2ne really speaks for itself if you think about it.

If you state it like that then you might best describe your style as a musical hybrid, can you say what role Hardcore music plays in your life and in your music?

I do not consider myself the gabberhead that I used to be but I have to say that hardcore had a big impact on my life. About ten years ago I was really into it, and you could even say that I was addicted to it for the first couple of years after I discovered it. It really was a lifestyle for me. I made a lot of new friends, who had the same passion for the music and I still have regular contact with them, also with the one`s that aren`t into the music that I produce now. I have to admit though that I am not watching the current hardcore scene closely, except for a few of my favorite producers. I do try to attend any local hardcore party because I still haven`t found anything more energetic than a proper hardcore bassdrum.

Your music and performance are both very dark, where does your love for the dark come from?

I don't know where it comes from, but I have always been more attracted by the sick and twisted stuff than things that are considered beautiful by most people. I don't mean murders, blood or violence, these things don't inspire me. What inspires me, and my work, is stuff that is somehow connected to dystopian future, apocalyptic/post-apocalyptic visions, cybernetics, natural disasters, diseases and plagues of the modern society. Basically mankind itself in many different ways.

When did you start using your iconic mask and what is the reason behind it?

I started using it last year, just one or two months after the Contagion album was released. I had been thinking about the visual representation of Syk2ne for a while and, because all of my releases are connected to sickness, I wanted something that could carry this concept even further. I remembered a drawing of the plague doctor which I saw as a child. This drawing fascinated and disturbed me at the same time. For me the plague doctor is one of the most frightening figures in human history. His purpose was to help and take care of people with the bubonic plague, but every time he appeared he brought death with him. 

Which artist have influenced you as an artist over the years?

A lot of artists have had an influence on my music over the years and the list is very diverse as well. But If I have to name some artists with a big impact on me and my music then I should definitely mention The Outside Agency/Dj Hidden, Access to Arasaka, Ophidian/Meander, Oyaarss, Tapage, WWW, Broken Note, Venetian Snares and Hecq. I should also mention the artists releasing under the Dark Industry label because almost every album that`s released there made my spine shiver. And if you want to know specific tracks which caught me lately, you should check my soundcloud for podcasts called Syk2nes, which I release every three months.

How is the music scene (and/or Hardcore scene) in the Czech Republic?

The music scene in general is still in bad condition here. I suppose the main reason behind this is that our country spent 40 years in communism and its “official culture“. Everything that was different and slightly provocative was forbidden, and the people involved would get prosecuted. I consider myself lucky because I was born a few months before the Velvet revolution, so I was able to travel and enjoy all the new things from abroad. But the marks of the former government are still very visible in our society. People still have problem with accepting new things for example. And because of that we don't have many progressive bands or projects here. Events or festival line-ups are repeating the same names more than a chorus in a pop song. But things are slowly moving forward now, you can really see a evolution if you look at the development on a year by year basis.

If I focus on the electronic and hardcore scene I have to say that the Czech republic was always very drum and bass oriented. I can clearly remember the first hardcore parties in 2005 with local dj`s. Those parties brought twenty people to the dancefloor, where DnB events were able to pull full clubs. But the early hardcore parties were very unique. A lot of people traveled very long distances for a party because there were just a few of them a year, and this created a real sense of family here. At that time me and my friends were admiring and visiting some Dutch parties as well, hoping that something similar would be possible for the Czech republic eventually.

So in 2006 I created a platform for Czech dj`s and producers called Gabber.cz, this platform isn`t active anymore, but we organized regular events back then and released some Czech hardcore tracks. It probably changed the Czech hardcore scene and definitely brought more people to the game.

Nowadays the Prague Nightmare guys really pull the hardcore scene here, and they took the events to a complete new level. Thanks to them the scene has grown up and we can now enjoy professional parties with hundreds, or sometimes even thousands of attendants. The crossbreed sound has also helped though, that sound has attracted a lot of attention from the hard DnB audience and pulled them to the hardcore events over here.

In the end you can say that the wishes we had back in the days have come true and as an addition we now have plenty of great events with raging hard DnB like Therapy Sessions, the Forbidden Society label night or Bassinfection. 

What can we expect from Syk2ne in the (near) future?

As a person I`m pretty cautious, I usually don`t say anything specific unless it is settled. At the moment I am working on some remixes of tracks from my favourite artists, so you might hear those in the near future. Besides those tracks I have also done some major studio upgrades in the last months, so I hope that those changes will be noticeable in my upcoming tracks as well.

And last but not least, do you have any epic last words for us?

Witness the sickness!

Interview with Chaos Theory

Chaos Theory`s podcast, Facebook, and Soundcloud

Well Chaos Theory, can you tell us a little something about the man behind the artist name? Where are you from, what do you do for a living etc.?
Hi there! My real name is Phelim Young, I'm 27 and I come from a little coastal village in the north of Ireland called Annalong. I'm currently studying a HND in Music Production, which I'm then planning to take to a higher level qualification, as I would like to work in the audio industry in some shape or form to make a full time living.

Your interest in Hardcore music had to start somewhere, do you remember how you got into contact with it?

Well, I guess I initially came into contact with Hardcore music back when I was quite young in the early 90's, and I remember my brother listening to some early Nightmare in Rotterdam cd's, along with all the happy hardcore that was happening back then. Then, when I was around 17, I met a guy at college who introduced me to the hardcore sounds of the early 2000's, and I became hooked to it right away. I listen to a lot of music styles in general, anything from Johnny Cash to Slipknot, and my main interest is in dance music (or EDM if you prefer), but the sheer energy, feeling and sensation created by hardcore kickdrums tickling my eardrums was like no other to be honest!

Initially, I only liked the more mainstream side of hardcore due to the hair raising melody lines and energy of the kickdrums, but as time went on, I came to appreciate the more obscure and dirtier sounds of core. I still tend to prefer the more melodic styles, but as long as it has a distorted kickdrum of some sort, I'll probably like it!

And in which of the above periods did you start producing your own music?
When I came back into contact with Hardcore in the early 2000's, I'd already been playing around mixing some other dance music styles, but had yet to even think about making my own stuff. The guy who showed me these tracks at the time also introduced me to FL Studio (or Fruityloops as it was known as back then). We both had similar tastes in music, and thought to ourselves that we could give making our own tracks a shot. We worked on some stuff together for a while, but eventually he quit producing and we went our separate ways. However, I decided I wasn't going to give up so easily, and I've been doing it ever since. 

How would you define your style as a producer and as a dj nowadays?
Generally I tend to have a more melodic style with my tracks and sets, as I love the spine tingling sensations created by a huge melody line combined with the power of the kickdrums found within hardcore music. I always try to have an underlying story or meaning to my music, so that it feels like it has a soul, and not something that follows the same basic formula and structure that can be found in a lot of dance music. Of course, the same kind of melodic tracks can become repetitive after a while, so I do like to venture off into slower and faster styles of Hardcore. I'll generally try to have some more raw sounding tracks somewhere in a set, picking up the tempo as I go along so that I can end a set in a fury of kickdrums at 200+ BPM.

What artists and/or tracks have influenced you as an artist?
Like I said, previously, I listen to a wide variety of music styles, not just dance music, so I really get inspired by a lot of artists and other things such as movie or tv soundtracks. Within Hardcore, my biggest influence over the years would have to be Ophidian, as the sounds and sensations he has created in his music have consistently inspired me to try and hopefully make something as epic one day. Other artists who have greatly influenced me would include Nosferatu, Tha Playah, DJ Promo, Amnesys, D-Passion, Ruffneck, along with countless others. Outside of Hardcore, I get influenced by a number of styles like Drum & Bass, Dubstep, Electro etc., as these styles can also have some pretty crazy sounds and arrangements. For non dance music styles, I listen to pretty much anything and everything providing it's good; country music, punk rock, ambient, film scores etc. Music is all around us every day in some shape or form, it's just a matter of keeping an eye (or ear) out for it, and losing ourselves in it.

I can imagine that there isn`t much of a Hardcore scene in Ireland, am I correctly assuming this?
At the minute it's indeed quite poor unfortunately. It seems to be quite an acquired taste over here, with a lot of people regarding it as just noise. Hardstyle is a little bit more popular here since it can be more accessible, but even those nights can be quite rare now. Most people here seem to prefer the more civilized forms of dance music such as House, Trance etc. There was a period of time a few years ago when Hardcore gained a bit more popularity, and we even had some headliners over here such as Angerfist, Endymion, Art of Fighters and The Sickest Squad, and I was lucky enough to have the opportunity to play right before these guys who have helped inspire me to create my own music over the years, but poor crowd attendances at some of these nights meant that promoters were losing money booking these acts, and thus were hesitant to take a chance on these nights. It's quite sad, but hopefully one day the scene can gain popularity here once again.

You have released tracks on multiple labels (Gunpowder, Six Feet Underground, GGM, Deton8 and Infusion Audio) under your previous alias. Why did you decide to start allover under your current artist name Chaos Theory?
Yeah, for those who are familiar with my previous stuff, I released under the alias Xeno for a number of years on the labels mentioned above. I also released a couple of Frenchcore style tracks under the name Leprecore on GGM. I decided near the end of last year that it was time to start afresh under a new alias, as I'd made significant progress in regards to my production skills, almost like I'd became a totally new artist, or reborn in a sense. Another reason for the change was because over the years, there had been a lot of confusion between myself and a Dutch graphic designer who used a similar alias, and people in Europe often confused me with this guy, and vice versa. So, I thought for the sake of my own possible career in this scene, I'd be better to have something a bit more unique.

When we received your podcast it featured some of your own work. You had to redo that podcast, and take out your own tracks, because a label showed interest in those tracks. Can you unveil something about what happened? 
Indeed, the podcast didn't contain any of my recent tracks, as around the same time I submitted the podcast, I also got an email from a very popular Hardcore label expressing an interest in releasing these tracks. I mentioned to them about the podcast I made, and they preferred if the tracks were not in this podcast, to prevent any early leaks of the tracks coming out online before the tracks are released. So, currently I'm finishing off some more tracks for this release, and I'll be able to announce more about this in the very near future all going well. Hopefully these new tracks will cause some movement within the scene.

What can we expect from you in the (near) future?
I would imagine in the early part of 2015 my first release as Chaos Theory should be out, then from there perhaps I'll get to play some gigs in some more venues outside of Ireland. I'll also be continuing with my college course to expand my skills, and hopefully get some more work with other clients for making some other styles of music, along with some more soundtrack work. 

Do you have any good last words for us to close off this interview? 
Don't eat yellow snow, ask any Eskimo... In all seriousness though, the only thing I can really say to people is for them to pursue whatever their dream is, no matter how big, crazy and unlikely it may seem. The only thing really stopping anyone from what they want to do, is themselves. With enough time and dedication, anything is possible. Just remember, if you find a job you love, you'll never have to work a day in your life.