@ Lunatic`s DJ-workshop

Back in November we visited Hell`s Basement for an item on the Cambion, and got in touch with Lunatic, the well known DJ/Producer from Enzyme Records, and organizer of the Hell`s Basement parties. We found out that Lunatic also organizes DJ-workshops for beginning DJ`s. As Forward Observers we`re always looking for upcoming artists, so we asked Lunatic whether or not it would be possible for us to visit his workshop someday. Lunatic found it a cool idea and before we knew it, we found ourselves in a youth center in Hilversum where we were able to check out his course firsthand. 

How it all started
Lunatic has been organizing this workshop for two years now. The workshops have always taken place in a youth center called De Keet in Hilversum. In the beginning he focused on young guys and girls that lived in the area. But since last October he also started taking in people from all over the Netherlands. While talking to Lunatic it became pretty evident that he really loves organizing these evenings and also loves supporting people who are interested in the art of DJ`ing. His enthusiasm, experience and knowledge are probably the main reasons that the courses are doing so well. He has five spots per course and these spots tend to fill up really quickly. And besides his DJ-workshop Lunatic is also starting a workshop for producers somewhere in April or May.

The courses

Volstead

What he offers is an eight weeks course, one on one, with two hours per lesson. The course days are on Tuesday and Thursday. Lunatic`s courses are laid back and informal but at the same time he really emphasizes on proper mixing. Throughout his eight week course he teaches his students how to beatmatch, which tracks work together and why, how to use effects properly etc. Besides his one on one coaching he also expects his students to study at home. Though they will obviously lack the professional equipment that`s found in the youth center in Hilversum, they can still study tracks, do assignments, or practice with software at home. Eventually the participants get the opportunity to do the opening set on one of the Hell`s Basement parties. Or Lunatic finds them a different party to perform on if they don`t spin Hardcore. In the past he had participants that played a wide variety of genres, ranging from Moombahton to Hardstyle to Hardcore. Before they get to do an opening set though, both Lunatic and the student have to be convinced that they are ready for it. When they`re ready they`ll get some time before the party starts to get used to the equipment there, the loud monitor speakers, and the feeling of being on a stage in general.

KidKat

Last Tuesday
We were welcomed by Lunatic and proper Hardcore. Exodus was behind the decks and he was recording a Hardcore set with Millenium and regular Hardcore. No better way to start any evening for as far as we`re concerned. Lunatic told us that Exodus was recording his set so that he could re-listen it at home and discover where there would be room for improvement. We had a good chat with Lunatic and shot some pics while enjoying Exodus` choice of tracks and mixing. Later on two other students came in, namely Volstead and KidKat. These two students have (almost) finished the course and they`ll be opening Hell`s Basement next Friday the 30th of January. Volstead spins early Hardcore and we were impressed by his mixing skills and, though subjective of course, his choice of tracks. KidKat, on the other hand, spins recent Hardcore with a bit of a rougher industrialish twist. When he was behind the decks he looked completely in the zone, and we were impressed again by the mixing skills. The atmosphere was really informal and though Lunatic had to divide his attention we noticed that he didn't miss a single transition the guys were making. 

Coming up

Exodus

We were pretty impressed by the originality in the track selection, and the mixing skills of the upcoming DJ`s that we heard that evening. And we`re sure that you`ll be interested in hearing them as well by now. We`ve shot some short clips of these DJ`s in action which will be online soon. And we`ll also upload some new podcasts, mixed by these DJ`s, in the future. But you`ll have to wait a bit for that as both the DJ`s and Lunatic will have to be completely satisfied with the recording first. So keep your eye on our Facebook page because there`s some pretty cool stuff coming up!

Curious?
If you want to find out more about the DJ-workshop, or the upcoming producer workshop, then you should check out Lunatic`s website Bassmachine for more info, or send an e-mail directly to Lunatic through info@bassmachine.nl.

Photography by: Bren-D

Interview with Enthorine

 

Enthorine`s Facebook, Soundcloud & Podcast

Can you tell us something about the person behind Enthorine? Who are you, what do you do for a living etc.? 

Hey! My name is Dick Nieman, I am 23 years old and I live in Hilversum. I study Social Sciences at the University of Amsterdam. Next to my study I also work as a dishwasher in a small restaurant. Besides DJ'ing and  producing I also like to draw, paint and read in my spare time.  

How did you start your career as a DJ, and how is it going for you at the moment?

Well, I`d have to go back to 2006. I listened to a lot of hardcore music at the age of 14, and I also used to visit a record store in my hometown on a weekly basis, which was owned by Michel (DJ Darkcontroller). He taught me how to mix with vinyl records and also introduced me to producing music. A few years later I got in touch with Andre (MC Justice), the man behind Thunderdome Radio. He invited me to the show and I met a lot of other DJ's there, from whom I also learned a lot. This resulted in many opportunities to play on Thunderdome Radio. 
Over time I got more experienced and confident due to lots of practicing. A short while later they considered me part of the Thunderdome Radio Crew, and I focused on the alternative and industrial side of hardcore for the show. All of this has led to fantastic gigs such as Nature One, Footworxx and ultimately the last edition of Thunderdome itself: The Final Exam. Nowadays, Thunderdome (Radio) is no more and I decided to focus on producing. I rarely have gigs anymore at the moment, but I hope this will change as I get better in making music. 

Talking about Thunderdome, you had the opportunity to play at the final Thunderdome, can you tell how you got there and what that party was like for you?
A few months after my gig on Nature One in 2012 I suddenly got a phone call from Andre, asking me if I wanted to open the frenchcore stage on the final edition of Thunderdome. I couldn't believe what I was hearing, because I thought that it couldn't get any crazier than Nature One. 

The event itself became a truly memorable night. There were already quite some people at the stage I was playing at (mostly thanks to the fact that the frenchcore area was close to the entrance) and I received a good response to my set. I did not play frenchcore by the way, but this did not seem to matter as I was the opening act. 

I was nervous as hell obviously, haha. But luckily everything turned out fine. After my set, I stayed for the whole night and heard lots of cool artists and great sets. All in all, I felt really privileged and honored to be a part of such a legendary event. 

You have been a member of the Thunderdome Radio crew, a resident at Hardsoundradio and performed on MoH radio. I think that it`s safe to assume that online radio has been important to your career?

I`m sure it is. I think most of the people that know my name, know it because of the radio shows. Many recordings of these shows ended up on Soundcloud, especially the ones from Hardsoundradio. HardsoundRadio was a nice opportunity to showcase my DJ-mixes. The station served as a platform for underground hardcore-related music and acquired quite a name among alternative hardcore-listeners. The fun thing was that they had a chat room where people could talk about the music that was playing at that moment, and I think it was a good place to discover new hardcore-related music. Unfortunately, none of these radio stations are up anymore. 

We`ve noticed that you play a wide variety of styles, ranging from drum&bass, to hardcore to (hard)techno. You don`t like to limit yourself to a single style? 

Absolutely! Even though I don't like the music itself, I am very much inspired by artists in the eclectic and urban scene. I really like how they manage to put hip-hop, house, trap etc. smoothly into one DJ-set. I often try to do this in hardcore sets with UK hardcore, drum&bass, hardtechno, dubstep and industrial. Most of the time (due to time slots at parties) I stick to hardcore and drum&bass. But when I am free to play what I want, for example on online radio shows, I like to feature multiple styles. However, for the Forward Observers Podcast I decided to do a typical Enthorine DJ-set consisting of mainly hard drum&bass and drum&bass-influenced hardcore. This is because I really love breaks and the variation between breakbeats and hardcore in sets. 
Another thing worth mentioning: although I really like the work of artists like Ophidian, The Outside Agency and Tymon, I tend to avoid using their tracks in my sets. This is because I think they already get played a lot and it`s more fun for me to play forgotten and lesser known tracks. 
I guess you could say that my style is pretty similar to that of War is Inevitable, a very good DJ who I don't know personally though.   

In the past you've told us that you`re really busy with producing. Are you making progress? And should we expect a release coming out anytime soon?

I`m making progress, slowly but surely! I had the benefit of getting lots of know-how about Cubase years ago from DJ Darkcontroller, so when I decided to start making music myself I had a relatively quick start. But I still have so much to learn. Thunderdome Radio also brought me into contact with foreign hardcore-minded people like Alex (Ragnarok, from Noisj) and Candy (Minckz). This resulted in a collaboration with Ragnarok on his forthcoming album on Noisj, which will be released very soon. And I have to say I am really satisfied with this track! Besides this, I also spend a lot of time in the studio with Vincent from Terminal & Vavaculo (shout-out to you guys! haha). Concerning my solo tracks, I recently finished three tracks, and I am aiming for my debut-release this year!  

Where do you get your inspiration from when it comes to producing? And are there specific artists or tracks that influenced your music?

My inspiration definitely comes from big artists like Dolphin, The Teknoist, The DJ Producer and Detest, but also from newer guys like DJIPE and Khaoz Engine. I don't think I`ll ever be as skilled as those big names. But in my view those newer guys are doing really well and they inspire me to develop myself in producing too. 
Still, the artist that has had the biggest impact on my music has to be Dolphin. I really admire his original take on alternative hardcore music and the way he blends oldschool hip-hop, drum&bass and hardcore to get his own 'sci-fi' kind of hardcore sound. He uses futuristic effects like bleeps and lasers and manages to create a truly unique vibe. Nothing sounds like it, really awesome.
Furthermore, an example of a track that really got me thinking is 'Uncertain Sound' by The DJ Producer. He can make fast, aggressive and energetic beats without using a load of ugly distortion. In this track, you just hear a clear kick with a hard snare, yet the track is a real slammer in my opinion. I like this way of making hardcore and I hope that I`ll eventually be able to do the same myself. Of course there are many more great artists in the scene, way too much to mention here.  

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

I hope I`ll be able to create some good music and it seems like the first releases are not too far away. So you can expect more tracks for sure! There are also some small gigs coming up and I would like to do way more podcasts and radio shows.  

And last but not least, do you have some epic words to close this interview?

None at all.