Uhuruku

Tell us your story about your musical path. When did it start, and how did it turn into what we hear now? How much time do you spend listening to music and exploring diverse catalogs? What record format do you prefer (digital or physical) and why? Also, what were your motives for entering “The Guide” competition apart from winning?

Growing up with one brother that contributed vocals to a death/trash metal band, while the other recorded gabber-parties with a walkman in his pocket (and plays bass in an alternative rock band) and a sister who posted the walls with Kelly Family posters, I was at an early age interested in recording all kinds of stories and sounds on cassette tape.

In High School, me and some friends started a ska band and we play together ever since. As a teenager I was hugely interested in the music of DJ Krush, King Tubby, The Doors and Sun Ra and his Arkestra (but also Cypress Hill, Bob Marley, Pink Floyd or Miles Davis and when I was getting older – Black Sun Empire and Aphex Twin). Later on I started getting into the dubstep of Shackleton or Vex’d and discovered my fellow countryman Dimlite through the L.A. beat scene. I guess dub and psychedelic rock are my longest companions on my musical journey. After starting to mess around with my computer to produce music around three years ago (my first attempts are even older and made with video editing software), I developed the need to ban some of my favorite tunes on mix-tapes in the hope that would lead me the way to which kind of music I really want to make. I’m fortunate to have the possibility to listen to music while working, so I’m basically listening to music the whole day. During the day I’m mainly listening to radio shows and mixes made by all kinds of people.

Some years ago I started collecting cassette tapes. It’s still my favorite record format! My band records on it, most collabs with other people are recorded on it and most of my mixes are recorded on it too. Anyway, after getting my first vinyl (shouts to BASS VANDALIZM!) I fell in love with it.. and that love keeps getting stronger everyday! Holding a piece of music in the hands is one thing, but literally seeing it on the table is just fantastic! Because of limited resources, my beloved little record collection is made up of music I really wanted to have and my “The Guide” mix is compiled mostly from this stock. A lot of my vinyl didn’t have a chance to be played out to that many people, so “The Guide” competition was a chance to display this music to listeners that will appreciate it.

Tell us more about this mix’s concept and ideology. Why did you choose this way of compiling and developing it? Did you have a clear idea from the very beginning or did it change after you started working on it? Does it hide any encoded message or specific emotions? Also, could you say that it is your best selection ever crafted?

At first my intention was to do a ‘Tribute to Bryn Jones’-mix as my “The Guide” entry, because he is one of my sonic heroes. This idea is in my mind for quite some time, so I have a playlist that is growing and growing (that mix is still due to come!). In the process of putting together this mix as it stands now I took some of the tracks from that playlist and combined it with others of which I thought they would complement them to create a journey through valleys and over mountaintops, while exploring the depths of mind and subconscious. My previous mixes were quite conservative compared to this one, where a lot of tracks are played at the same time. Each mix is fairly different in terms of genre/style, but this mix is my most personal one yet.

To which types of listeners is this mix most dedicated? Should these persons have more musical knowledge, spiritual balance or both? Could you describe these people in detail, thus revealing your individuality? Also, do you think that universal music exists?

This mix is dedicated to all restless wanderers, hiking without actually having a fixed destination. People with their eyes and ears wide open, who will find beauty in a sea of ugliness. People who will feel if the music pleases them, may it be because of their musical knowledge, their spiritual balance or both. Music is a universal language that speaks to each listener personally.

What is your opinion of the current worldwide intelligent music scene? What do you think about it? What do you think about its future? What reach and attention does it have at the moment? Please write us your thoughts with examples, so that we know your insights and position.

I don’t know that much about a ‘worldwide intelligent music scene’, but if it’s the opposite to corporate mainstream monotony and dance-floor functionalism, then I like it. I’m quite happy with the niches that exist, where ‘intelligent music’ can thrive. For example, Klubi, a club of some friends of mine in Zurich, where there aren’t any blinders that block the view of the wide horizon of (electronic) music. Or labels like Hula Honeys, fanzines like Zweikommasieben or sites like Secret Thirteen. Like-minded people can connect a lot easier nowadays I guess (great that I found Manimals or did they find me?).