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Features
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| Introducing NEM3SI$’s new label Infinite Resistance! | | Mindbenderz talk ‘Lord of the Rings’ and fishing, as well as the creation of their new album ‘Celestial Gateway’! | | Iono-Music artists One Function, Eliyahu, Invisible Reality and Dual Vision talk Robert Miles, kids, dogs and vinyl, while we chat about their current releases! | | Luke&Flex talk influences, the Irish rave scene, why Flex wears a mask and Play Hard, their new EP out now on Onhcet Repbulik Xtreme! | | Lyktum expands on his new album ‘Home’ – talking about his love of storytelling, creating new harmonies and the concept behind his musical works. | | Pan talks getting caught short crossing the Sahara, acid eyeballs and tells us Trance is the Answer, plus shares his thoughts on his latest release 'Beyond the Horizon' - all from a beach in Spain! | | Miss C chats about living with the KLF, DJing in a huge cat’s mouth, training her brain and the upcoming super-duper Superfreq Grande party at LDN East this Saturday, 16th September! | | NEM3SI$ - I Live for the Night – talks superficiality, psychopaths, and bittersweet success, ahead of a plethora of evocative, emotional, and passionate upcoming melodic techno releases! | | Psy-Sisters Spring Blast Off! We talk to DJ competition winner ROEN along with other super talents on the lineup! | | Blasting towards summer festivals with Bahar Canca ahead of Psy-Sisters Spring Blast! | | Shyisma talks parties, UFO's, and Shotokan Karate ahead of his upcoming album 'Particles' on Iono-Music! | | SOME1 talks family, acid, stage fright and wolves - ahead of his upcoming album release ‘Voyager’ on Iono-Music in February 2023! | | The Transmission Crew tell all and talk about their first London event on 24th February 2023! | | NIXIRO talks body, mind and music production ahead of his release 'Planet Impulse' on Static Movement's label - Sol Music! | | Turning the world into a fairy tale with Ivy Orth ahead of Tribal Village’s 10th Birthday Anniversary Presents: The World Lounge Project | | The Psy-Sisters chat about music, achievements, aspirations and the 10-Year Anniversary Party - 18/12/22! | | A decade of dance music with Daniel Lesden | | Earth Needs a Rebirth! Discussions with Psy-Trance Artist Numayma | | Taking a Journey Through Time with Domino | | New Techno Rising Star DKLUB talks about his debut release White Rock on Onhcet Republik! | | PAN expands on many things including his new album 'Hyperbolic Oxymoron' due for release on the 14th April 2022 on PsyWorld Records! | | Psibindi talks all things music including her new collaborative EP 'Sentient Rays' on Aphid Records, her band Sentience Machine and 10 years of Psy-Sisters! |
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Hard He May Be… But DJ Kristian's No Psy-Co
Reported by jon-brown
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Submitted 10-10-07 17:39
Psytrance. It can often be regarded as one of the least known of the faster paced genres of the underground club scene. As UK hardcore, hard house and filthy electro house dominate our headlines in relation to where to go and what to do every weekend; psytrance always seems to get the back foot in the limelight. However, if you are one of the thousands that roll out every weekend at underground parties both indoors and outdoors all over the country, month in, month out you’ll be fully (and happily) aware that this is just the way the scene should be - underground.
You see that’s just it, psytrance is underground and quite happy to stay that way, not fussed by the commercial cranks of the latest Top 40, 2 x CD smash hit. The psytrance crowd prefer something darker, faster, filthier and more transcendental to take them to that other place in the middle of a rave on a Friday night. However, that said, it doesn’t mean by any measure that psytrance (and its other related scenes) doesn’t have it’s own heroes, legends and superstars within it’s Global communities. One of them is this man… the one and only bearded psy legend that is Kristian.
Quite literally taking the scene by the throat, Kristian is no stranger to the dedicated followers of today’s every thriving underground playground. He’s fresh off the back of producing an album for Transient, is on a series of tour dates with Psy-God Astrix and has played all over the World including hot tour dates in Japan, Brazil and right here at our very own Brixton Academy working closely with Antiworld. A lover of a wide variety of styles and no stranger to trying new things and experimenting with what works best for the people that come to see him in their thousands, we caught up with Kristian, prior to his appearance along with Astrix at Psy-Co’s 1st Birthday at South Parade Pier in Portsmouth.
How are things with Transient at the moment and what’s hot right now on your production schedule?
Well recently I compiled Transient Dawn, a V/A which is now out and soon we will release the debut Dejavoo album and Swedish veteran, Human Blue’s second album on Transient .We are also planning some label events abroad.
You’ve played some amazing outdoor arenas in your time. Does it scare you? Do you get nervous on massive 5000 arena gigs?
Well not that nervous, use to be more in the early days, but the buzz is top, second to none.
You work very closely with the almighty legends at Antiworld, who are famous for some of the UK’s biggest psytrance and Hard Dance parties (and then some), what are your favourite moments to date since your time with them? Give us some of your memories.
Well there are so many, but Brixton Academy was so special, especially the first DJ set I did there a few years ago and the Dejavoo one last year. There are some great memories at SE1 as well, playing two sets in one night; one dark during the night and one melodic to close in the morning.
How would you describe your style exactly and in answering this question tell us why you love this style particularly and what led you to be playing, writing and producing such material?
I got into the psytrance scene via my mates - one who later was a member of One Minute Silence, a massive UK Metal / Rap outfit in the 90’s. When I started to DJ in 2000, I started with progressive psytance labels like Flying Rhino, Transient, etc who at the time where releasing this new style within the psytrance scene called progressive psy. Then I moved into ‘Full On’ after the second wave of psytrance came back after Goa Trance in 2001 and loved it and got so many gigs from it that I never looked back, the ‘Full On’ has matured and developed so well (hence its cross over appeal and cutting edge sound).
You don’t just play hard do you, tell us about your alter-ego in house and progressive, breaks and so forth?
Well since getting into prog psy, first I kept a constant look out at how that small niche evolved people like Tim Healy, Greg Coyle, Slide, and merged this sound into UK prog house that made me discover and buy prog house tracks from guys like Paris and Healy, Peter Gun, Marc O’ Tool, Bedrock, Automatic Recs, Plastic Fantastic, etc. But since this music never worked on the main floors (the parties we did and played at were psytrance), so at Chichime we decided for the first time to do something new in the UK psy scene, scrap the chill out and create an alternative groove floor with prog/tribal/tech house and some breaks then electro. Hence I created the K.V alter ego to DJ in this floor along people like Phil Chichime, one of the first to do this in the psytrance scene and with guests like Greg Coyle, Purple, Anti, Luis Paris, Tim Healy and so on.
Your work takes you all around the globe, which country or city would you say has the most energetic and up for it crowds you have ever seen? What did you like most about the places you have visited and why?
Well Japan is top for me I have DJed various times there, and the energy is incredible to the point that on one occasion I ended up lassoing my head phones over my head like John Wayne (laughs), but soon in November, we will play Dejavoo (my live act with DJ Kalimamboh) in Brazil and that is one of the Mecca’s of Dance if not the main place at the mo, one of the gigs we have lined up is for 20,000 plus and its called XXXperience 11th Birthday.
Talking Tech - as we catapult ourselves into the CDJ generation, do you think vinyl has now come to the end of its natural life? Do you still use a lot of Vinyl yourself?
Yes I believe that vinyl is slowly dying, CD’s are taking over. Now I hardly play the stuff, even as K.V I play CD’s now. CD’s are easier to carry, cheaper than vinyl and can sound better in most rigs to vinyl, although some would argue to that.
What is happening currently with your upcoming projects with Kalimamboh including your current affairs as Dejavoo?
We are almost ready with our debut on Transient Records and have a great list of gigs coming up. We are now thinking of artwork for the album and some little bits and bobs to give people something different from the usual releases. Here is the My Space: http://www.myspace.com/dejavoo303
You are set to play this weekend at Psy-Co’s 1st Birthday Party celebrating the launch of Astrix: Red Means Distortion CD album. For those that have never been, what’s Psy-Co like and what do you feel it does for the Portsmouth party scene? And of course, your thoughts on performing with your old friend Astrix?
Psy-Co is one of the top UK nights with a great vibe, the crowd are non-political and come to enjoy, this is very important! They judge with their ears like it should be and like it was in the old days, for example in London there are some events where many people go just to see who the DJ is instead of to hear what they are playing. Outside London (well in most events) it’s always a more up for it crowd with no bullshit politics. At the end of the day it’s all about dancing to good music and not seeing who belongs to what and who wears what. It’s always great to play with Avi (Astrix) he is top at his game and a great guy as well, considering his massive name he has no ego at all, and will speak to everyone, this is a lesson to be learnt by many other big acts and DJ’s (no need to mention names)!
Thanks Kristian for your time.
http://www.myspace.com/djkristiantransientrecords
Photos courtesy of Chix. Not to be reproduced without permission
Psy-Co 1st Birthday
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On:
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Friday 12th October 2007
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At:
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South Parade Pier [map]
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From:
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21:00 - 03:00
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Cost:
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£13
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Website:
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www.hedonic.biz
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Ticket Info:
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Hedonic
2a Albert Road
Southsea
Portsmouth
Hants
Tel: (023) 92 783 081
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Buy Online:
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Click here to buy tickets
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More:
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On Friday 12th October, Psy-Trance club brand Psy-Co (The Psychedelic Co-Operative) celebrates its first birthday with the return of legendary Russian DJ & Producer Astrix, World renowned for his work internationally as a rare talent that currently resides in a Top 40 position in the DJ Mag Top 100 DJ Chart. Hosted at South Parade Pier, one of Portsmouth’s oldest landmark venues this ‘psychedelic evening of full fat dance’ takes place from 9pm – 3am and promises to be a birthday session of epic proportions.
The event, which is hosted in association with Hedonic is also a unique opportunity to launch Astrix’s eagerly awaited UK CD Album – ‘Red Means Distortion’ which is a testament to his signature high quality production. Astrix aka Avi Schmailov was born in Russia in the early 80’s and grew up in Tel-Aviv spinning early 80’s and electronica from as early as 1995; Astrix discovered his love for Goa Trance worked nicely with his passion for electronica and a feel for a chaotic dancefloor. This was reflected in his first solo album production, ‘Eye To Eye’ on HOM-Mega Records which was received with critical acclaim for it’s superior production and “striking a fine balance between the chaos of a dancefloor and the coolness of at-home listening”. Consistently remaining true to his style and his roots, Astrix’s third studio album continues this tradition of outstanding production and as a DJ, Astrix brings this exceptional style with him to the Main Stage at Psy-Co which forms part of a massive string of international dates seeing the renowned headliner and DJ Mag cover star performing right around the Globe including Japan, the United States, Israel and Mexico and working with such established parties as Anti-World, South West Four, Pacha, Skol Beats and the Love Parade.
Joining him will be another high flyer in the Psy-Trance scene, Kristian, whom has a CV that boasts performances at clubs and festivals in over 19 countries and is a regular at some of the UK’s biggest parties at venues such as Brixton Academy and Alexandra Palace hosted by some of the countries mightiest brands including Slinky and Knowhere. He’s a regular guest on Kiss FM, Ministry Of Sound Radio and Paul Van Dyk’s VONYC station and regularly receives support and praise for his work from some of the most distinguished names in the scene today including World Trance hero Christopher Lawrence.
Psy-Co resident, co-promoter and South Coast star Matt Lorraine who has become a regular on the Psy-Trance and Hard Dance scene will also be part of this roof raising line-up and has had the fine opportunity of playing alongside some of the biggest names within the international scene including EVP, Djavu and Digit Cult. Matt has also performed at the Nova Festival in Belgium, had two mixes on Ministry of Sound’s Euphoria radio show and stars on the line-up at the massive Anti-World events on a regular basis.
Rounding off the line-up nicely are two aspiring Psy-Trance performers that graft hard to make waves at the very forefront of their scene; Monster and Psy-Co resident Ryan Bushell. Monster was the face behind South End’s infamous club event brand Munch – which was the biggest Trance party in the city and ran successfully for five years. He is now the driving force behind Quarantine after discovering his passion for Psy-Trance and is a regular on Unite Radio. Ryan has been DJ’ing for 7 years but has had a driving passion for Psy-Trance for much longer and brings his unique style to the Main Stage for this almighty night of outstanding Psy-Trance!
Also boasting outstanding visuals from www.bluerooms.com, a 20k Funktion One sound system, stalls by Hedonic and friends and an unbeatable atmosphere produced by today’s frontline of outstanding Psy-Trance artists; Psy-Co’s first birthday promises to be a wild party of uplifting, driving, upfront Psy-Trance headlined by an artist that can only be described as an eye-opening, foundation shaking talent, World famous for his unique genius as a recording artist and DJ.
Tickets for this event are available at £13 in advance or more on the door on the night and are available from Hedonic on (023) 92 783 081 or by visiting their store located at 2a Albert Road in Southsea, Portsmouth. You can also visit their website at www.hedonic.biz and the outlet is an excellent one stop shop for event tickets, interesting gifts, weird stuff, Psy-Trance CD’s, Pep Pills & Legal Highs!
More information is available by also visiting www.psy-co.co.uk
Words: Jon-Brown
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Flyer:
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Region:
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SW England
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Music:
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Psy Trance.
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DJ's:
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Astrix (Antiworld, Hom Mega)
Kristian (Chichime, Transient Records)
Mat Lorraine (Psy-Co, Antiworld)
Monster (Quarantine)
Ryan Bushell
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Other Features By jon-brown:
Viva La Hard Electrik! The Scott Attrill Interview
Caught In The Cross Fire - Talking European hard dance with Iain Cross
Meet the Fathers of Hard Funk - Kamui
Friend Of Kristian, Star Of Turnmills – A Pick Me Up Is Just The Thing For Matt Loraine
Sure Feels Good To Darren Styles
The views and opinions expressed in this review are strictly those of the author only for which HarderFaster will not be held responsible or liable.
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