Psychedelic eMagazine #3 by Psychedelic Magazine

EDitRIAL (i.e. Editorial)

eya psy lovers! Time’s passing fast ha? We’re already at our third issue! Maybe only three months passed for the issue’s counting, but for the “life” of the magazine has passed already 8 months, from the day that we decided to start this crazy task! The start is tough, as always any start is, but your insanely warm welcome has fuelled up our willing to create something exiting and unique for our distinct culutre! For this issue we’re moving forward and we bring you an exclusive interview with one of the hotest full-on acts of the globe, Vibe Tribe! Furthermore, we feature Eat Static from the UK, one of the most iconic producers out there. We continue our trip further down (to the map) and we speak with Phobos from Italy and the tribe of Looney Moon Records. Finishing with our exclusive interviews for this month, we speak with Blacknoise, a fresh project from Greece. We’re also exited to have a review from one of the finest Brazil festivals, SoulVision! Of course we have our monthly stuff, such as psychedelic trance releases, festivals, production tutorials, Hemp awereness, articles & more!

This issue is deticated in the memory of Bosko Bozovic. Rest In Peace. 24/10/1987 - 28/05/2014

Psychedelic eMagazine Crew

Magazine’s cover art by Andre Castro BUY HIS ART AT ETSY

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INTERVIEW

PHOBOS

INTERVIEW

LOONEY MOON RECORDS coming to their party, instead of aiming to offer a better product and to improve the whole Italian psychedelic-trance scene.

From Blasting sounds to amazing visuals, Looney Moon Records is all about underground quality! We meet with Phobos, Label Head and Label Dj of Looney Moon for an all inclusive interview! Thank you for meeting us bro! F: Thank you for the opportunity! PM: When did your Trip start with PsyTrance? F: I met psytrance for the first time in some underground parties in Milan, but my first contact with a proper psytrance party was in Zurich for a NYE party 97/98. I was coming from a techno club scene and a punk scene and I immediately fell in love with it because I felt psytrance as the logical evolution of both my previous scenes. PM: And what brought you to the decision to start your own label? F: At the beginning Looney Moon was just a party organization, but after 2004 we started to feel like spreading around our music idea, because at that time psytrance mainstream music was getting very bad, for our music taste of course. We thought there was a total regression in the musical research: lots of cheesy stuff , lots of pop vocal samples inside the tracks , no underground , no new ideas, nothing fresh. Fog and I had already a precise style of music in mind, we just tried to keep it alive until we could finally start Looney moon records in 2008. Our first release has been the compilation “Visionary System”. This V/A was a kind of an experiment because we put there some different styles as close as we possibly could to the one we had in our mind. PM: As a Dj and label manager you must be listening to tons of music! How do you sort it all out, what are the Looney Moon “standards” for you? F: That’s right. I have to listen to tons of music everyday . I must say that our “standards” are

not that strict... as you can figure out when you listen to our music. First of all we look for an idea and when i say “idea”, I mean a particular musical point of view: it must be fresh , innovative and it has to fit well with our label style. Of course we don’t need to have exactly the same music style from our artists, but we want our style to follow a specific “music line” , then we can have some artists who make music closer to night time and other closer to morning time, but this “specific line” has to point in our direction. Done that, we can start to look for music quality; if we find an artist with very good music ideas , but without quality in his stuff , he’s not ready for Looney Moon records for sure. Our music must sound clear and powerful ...everytime. PM: A few words about the Italian psy-scene? I’ll give you three: too many parties! Everybody wanna make parties and everybody wanna be a dj and of course not everybody can do it . Being a party maker or a dj means already having a huge musical background (and not just an electronic music background, but a wider one!) a very strong passion, and most of all you have to be able to control your ego. If you don’t have these skills, you could be a dj or an organizer ...but you will just suck at it everytime . At the end, here in Italy we have tons of parties every week, but actually you can find just very few good ones, just 1 or maybe 2 for month . That’s not good because quantity is not always quality and therefore organizers often just fight between each other for just fifty people more

PM: What is your favorite hour for performing and why? That’s an easy question for me, because almost everybody knows that I like to play close to dawn. It feels like the perfect time for the music I play, and in my opinion it is the best time to bring the dancefloor into my music story. Usually I try to adapt my set to the time, the people and the venue I play in, but anyway I think playing close to sunrise is the moment when people are more into the music, for they have been dancing all night long, and they feel music in a different, more intimate way.

time.

PM: Do you enjoy playing long sets or you prefer the 1 to 2 hours standard? My favourite set span is 2,5 / 3 hours, I think it’s the best timelapse to fully express what you have in your mind. On the other hand I think longer than 3 hours djsets could be boring, because in my opinion you should do some comprimises in your music selection, and besides it could be very difficult to keep the flow going for such a long

PM: Today we can see that Looney Moon is not only about music production and Djing, but is geting into every aspect of our culture from deco to clothes and food exhibitions. Give us some more details! Yes, if we consider Looney Moon in general and not only the label, we have different sides in the psychedelic trance scene . First of all we make party in Italy since long time and recently we got involved into some big summer festivals around Europe like MO:DEM festival in Croatia. Nowadays our best known features defintely are our deco team “Looney Moon Deco” and our art gallery “Art Collider”. These two Looney Moon extensions are getting bigger and more recognized

every year. We also use to manage many cultural areas in big parties and festivals where we organize conferences and workshops related to psychedelic culture. At last, but not least, we are pretty busy in Goa as well during the winter season, booking our artists and our deco team in the best parties there. PM: Are you personaly involved in every project or you stay in the music part of the tribe? Basically I care about the music side of Looney Moon, I actually am the label manager (in collaboration with Roberto dj Fog). Even though I like to be constantly updated about all the spectrum of our activities. PM: Your plans for this summer? To this moment I have gigs confirmed in TREE OF LIFE festival in Turkey, EARTH DROP Festival in Greece, MIDNIGHTSUN Festival in Norway, MO:DEM Festival in Croatia, SONICA Festival in Italy. These are just the bigggest ones, then I have many more gigs in smaller parties and festivals. I will have a very busy summer and I am very satisfied with it! PM: Send a message to all the psy-freaks around the world! At this time I wanna say to all the psy-freaks around the world to always keep in mind that the psychedelic-trance has to be mainly fun and entertainment, so go for it but don’t take it so seriously. Of course it could even become a precious state of mind but please guys don’t make the mistake to substitute it to your real life. PM: Well thank you very much not only for the interview but for Looney Moon itself! Our scene is much richer with you guys! Psy you around! Thanks to you guys! I wish you all the best for your magazine, I am always happy when I see something new and fresh coming. Keep it up!

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ARTICLE

HEMP

Cannabis

By Jeremy Daw

Currency

At a book signing some months ago I became part of a long, proud American tradition. Near the back of the line of reading customers came a young gentleman who didn’t bring any of the asked-for cash; undeterred, he approached me with an alternate proposition. Finding the terms of his counter-offer acceptable, I agreed and traded him a copy of my book for an eighth of cannabis.

lonial governments, many colonists preferred the congruity and stability of easily measured commodities like beaver skins, tobacco leaves and, yes, hemp. The practice of trading hemp seeds became so commonly accepted that many colonial governments passed laws allowing colonists to pay some or all of their taxes in hempseed, including Virginia (1682), Maryland (1683), Pennsylvania (1706) and Massachusetts (1735).

The use of cannabis as a de facto currency predates the founding of the United States and may be found in the historical record in the early 17th century. In Hemp: Lifeline to the Future, Chris Conrad notes that “hemp was used for money in most of the Americas from 1631 until the early 1800s” (1st Ed., p. 24). It was one of many de facto currencies prevalent in the region before British Parliament passed the homogenizing Currency Act of 1751; faced with competing notes of fluctuating value issued by thirteen separate co-

The tradition revived in the 20th century, when jazz musicians, Beats and hippies began trading cannabis in the underground economy. In his memoir, Really the Blues, jazz pioneer “Mezz” Mezzrow describes his first time receiving a joint of cannabis outside a Midwestern club where he was part of the orchestra. Amazed at the power of the drug to unleash his musical creativity, Mezzrow set up his own underground network distributing “reefers” to his friends in the Harlem jazz scene. Sometimes he charged, but at other times “Mezz” and his as-

HEMP

sociates bartered, using cannabis once again as a kind of currency. Just as commonly, members of the underground economy traded cannabis for favors, knowing that their friends would get them back when and if they could. The same spirit carried forward through the 60s and 70s, with generations of hippies unknowingly acting out the same pattern of sharing economy which they inherited from the great Harlem jazz musicians who preceded them. But now, with state regulations in Washington and Colorado strictly regulating the cannabis industry, the long history of using the commodity in the place of money has come under threat. Rules like the 25% excise tax of Washington state only contemplate the value of cannabis as a product exchanged for cash, a paradigm harshly reinforced by license applications prohibitive liquidity for any would-be entrepreneur attempting to enter the business. It’s a new paradigm. Who knows what may happen? With such massive shifts happening in the cannabis market, perhaps even a long-honored tradition like cannabis for currency could be regulated out of existence.

ARTICLE

Follow Jeremy

Jeremy Daw, J.D. is the editor, with Chris Conrad, of The Leaf. A 2008 graduate of Harvard Law School, he worked as editor-in-chief of Cannabis Now Magazine until 2013. Besides Cannabis Now and the Leaf, his writings have been featured on Salon. com, SFGate.com, AlterNet Drugs, and numerous other outlets in print and online. His book Weed the People: From Founding Fiber to Forbidden Fruit (2012), a 400-year history of cannabis policy in North America, has been acclaimed as “one of the best accounts of the early US hemp industry” by Michael Aldrich, PhD, and was declared “fascinating and incredibly well researched” by Danny Danko, senior cultivation editor at High Times. Jeremy is also a professor at Oaksterdam University in Oakland, California, where he teaches Politics & History as well as Economics. He lives in Berkeley, CA.

FESTIVAL REVIEW

SoulVision 2014 Review Happened between the days February 28 and March 05, one more edition of the traditional festival of Carnival, Soulvision, at Altinópolis, SP. The proposal this year was back to the roots, and this mission was reached with success! This edition was considered for many people the best of all times! Everything contributed with our celebration! With rain prediction, the public was prepared for the worse, but they received the best! St. Peter collaborated, and made that one rainstorm diverged from the festival, twice! Those who missed the fear of rain were contemplated by the God Sun, in one edition totally without mud! This year the organization was by Fabiano Mandallah. He chose the best artists, photographers, producing, decoration, structure, sound system, and everything possible for the welfare of his public... The structure was very good, green camp, high sound system, and food spot with a lot of variety... Every point of the festival was carefully planned, and the result was totally satisfaction of the public! The people was very excited, with good energy, one wedding, the presence of beautiful pregnant women, sweet babies and kids, all together, having fun, in this beautiful celebration! The

place where the festival happens, Wolf Cave Farm, has a beautiful view, cute animals, in this way, making Soulvision one unity of respect between all living beings. The festival won highlight inside fashion, with the Brazilian brand Ticotico no Fubá. The project back to the Roots made one interaction with the public, body painting, beautiful productions, and giving gifts! The result was one amazing dance floor, with a lot of creativity and originality! The art was present in the festival, with jugglers; pirofagia; clowns; Indians with one project for spirituality cure; belly dance; project for women spirituality; real time sculptures; tiedye; stencil; dream catcher; yoga classes; dance workshop; the Breath team, that stimulate the reflection, self care, and knowledge of the use of drugs in parties; the Art Move project, with the purpose of deconstruction of ideas, and recycle of attitudes. The mix fair had massages, one artisan, and many more... The point that most call the attention of the public, even before the big day come, was the line up! A lot of artists, with many styles, in the spotlight of scene, Brazilian and international! In the Main Floor, the highlight of Progressive

FESTIVAL REVIEW

(Soulvision anti-gravity class) Photos by Soulvision Facebook Page Trance was the projects of the Serbian Nikola, Zyce and Vertex; EClip; the Danish Morten Granau; the Israelis Perfect Stranger, Vertical Mode, Symbolic, Rocky, Lish, Sub6, Lifeforms, Ritmo, Suntree, and Ritree, the union of Ritmo and Suntree; Gaudium; Artic, the junction of Gaudium and Ritmo; the Swiss Human Element; AKD; Egorythmia; the Mexicans Interactive Noise, Hanzo, and Zonka; the German Kularis; the Greek HiProfile; the Brazilians Deutsch, Skipper, Ruback, Capital Monkey, Element, Max Grillo, and Vitor Falabella; the Djanes Steph, Kitty, and Malana, among others... The Psy Trance and Full On was very good represented, with great artists, to name some: Sonic Species; Brainiac, Materia; Mindfold, the union of Brainiac and Materia; Waio; Rinkadink; Absolum; Broken Toy; Menog; Loud; Azax Syndrom; Burn in Noise; Labirinto; Rosa Ventura vs Zaghini; AudioX; Moon; Mack; Ekanta; the couple Second, formed by Bhaskar and Priscilla Petrillo; Earthspace; and many more… In the Progressive Dark we had the DJ’s from Zenon Records, Sensient, Hypogeo, Fabio Leal, and Diza vs Errado. In the Dark style, highlight for Magma Ohm and

Urucubaca. The Club Floor had some wellknown names, like Ilicris, parallel project of Scronvinsky; Gabe; Marcello VOR; Velkro, formed by Gabe and Marcello VOR; Alok; Khainz; Simple Jack; Re Dupre; the couple Flow & Zeo; Bad Boss; Leo Lacerda; Jotta Soares; Gabriel Boni; Diego Salgado; Yan Brauer; Thales Lima; among others… The Chill Out this year won spotlight, being prepared by the organizer of Mundo de Oz Festival, Dêfo Estilo Espiral. The area had big names, to name some: Alexandre Zaghini, Rosa Ventura, Yage, Deutsch, Yasser Hanzi, PJ Yugar, and Eder FM… Showing that wasn’t the public from the festival that didn’t like Chill Out, was the Chill Out that wasn’t good enough in the early years… I confess that this edition overcome my expectations, I came back home with a big smile on my face! Thanks to the organization, and everybody that was there, because without you this carnival wouldn’t be complete. These days were full of happiness and big emotions! Review by: Marina Tavares

FESTIVAL NEWS

Festival News Festival News, is a monthly news article, part of psychedelic e-magazine and in association with Akida Promo! We will keep you informed about the festivals of the month! Selected international festivals and scene fresh news! _ JUNE starts early with festivals this year. South Africa comes first with a surprise! 7 & 8 of June and In Celebration of The Solstice, a time of Magic & Mystery, New Life & New Beginnings Vortex crew Present you with a new Psy-Trance Gathering PHOENIX FESTIVAL OF FIRE! The Story goes that every 500 years the Phoenix bird reincarnates from its own ashes to spring forth new life! As this is a new project we thought the name PHOENIX would suit this special event... Just like the Phoenix we rise for a new beginning into a new phase of life. The Phoenix is symbolic of rebirth, hope, purity, marriage, faith, constancy, eternity, immortality, and light. “We Will Rise Like The Phoenix Again & Again.. Forever We Will Be” A Magical, Mystical Solstice Celebration at your favorite Trance location - The Circle Of Dreams - Cape Town South Africa! Then its time for what it has become a tradition the last 3 years! TREE OF LIFE FESTIVAL in Turkey, on 18 - 25 June. After our incredible experiences at the Tree of life festival, where we understood the energetic force of bringing people together, between nature’s simplicity and hypnotic music – we realized this might be one of the best festivals in the world, and came back home with a strong memory, of unity and of heart-born faith that together we can manifest a better world. This is the third year that the dream of 2 people (Yaniv U-Recken and Tim Tmx Mind) manages to carry with it thousands of people from all over the world to a wild and

crazy forest where the music only stops to give respect to the sunset, which may be the most impressive of all… a sunset on a great mountain between 2 cliffs that prepares us to switch into night mode.. we could tell you countless stories from the forest, about the endless experiences and friends from all over the planet we have made… Juts visit it! Follows, FREAKS IN LOVE in Turkey, 26 - 29 June and right after Tree of life festival! Welcome to this lovely psychedelic gathering, limited to 600 tickets, due to beach location restrictions! We invite your ecstatic souls to our story to convert this illusion to a much more magical one, with music & love & heal & magic.. with a varied line up and an amazing beach location, this year turkey seems like the ideal destination for festivals. At the same time, again 26 - 29 June, happens BURNING MOUNTAIN FESTIVAL, in the swiss alps! Following the end of the ice age, an 80 kilometre long valley opened up in the modern swiss canton of Graubünden, at a height of 1,800 metres above sea level. This valley – the Engadin, is one of the highest inhabited valleys in Europe... Come and join the burning mountain experience, a 4-day non stop electronic music festival... Keep in touch again next month with July festivals!

SERVED BY MIKE AKIDA

ARTICLE

Balance your heart chakra to attract more love and understanding I’m very excited about today’s chakra series installment because we’re focusing on the heart chakra, which is located at the center of the chest. The heart chakra is associated with love and understanding, limitless compassion, empathy and forgiveness. It supplies energy for all aspects of love, joy, compassion, and surrender. It also provides all parts of the energy field with nurturing energy, and can be a source of spiritual connection and guidance. The heart chakra is about love, kindness and affection. The colors associated with this chakra are green and pink. When it is open, we are compassionate and friendly, and we work at harmonious relationships. When our heart chakra is under-active, we may be cold and distant. If our heart chakra is strong, we enjoy

comfortable, loving and empathic relationships at home, at work and in our community. If our heart chakra is weak or closed, we tend to sabotage our relationships with distrust, anger, and a sense that we’ll lose our independence if we rely too much on others. A quick way to balance this chakra is to visualize yourself breathing in the colors green or pink, and bringing that breath all the way down to your heart chakra. Breathe this way several times and then visualize your heart chakra as a vibrant green or pink wheel spinning in a clockwise direction. Continue breathing and visualizing until you feel balanced. You can also do this exercise while holding or focusing on a green aventurine or pink quartz crystal.

By: Sherri Cortland Metaphysical Examiner

INTERVIEW

Straight from Greece one of the best upcoming producers! Black Noise (aka Xtatic Shiva)

P.M. Next album on the way? B.N. Probably in early 2015. Till then you can expect some releases in VAs, the “Merge and Converge” EP release on TIP Records with my mates Audioform and Martian Arts coming up in a few weeks and a couple more EPs that are scheduled for later this year. P.M. Take us inside the studio!Name your Digital Audio Workface (DAW) of preference and favorite tools!

P.M. Nice to see you again Costas! B.N. Thank you! How nice to see you too! P.M. When did the psy trip start for you? B.N. It was back in 1994 when my younger brother brought a tape back home. Weird sounds and structure, fast tempo and great vibes so it didn’t take too long to get hooked. P.M. Other music style preferences except trance afterwards? B.N. From Blues, Hard Rock and Heavy Metal to Low Bap, Reggae and and Dub. P.M. And when did you start producing? B.N. First attempts were in mid-2004 but it took a few months untill my first project -Xtatic Shiva- was born. P.M. Which artists from the “Golden Era” influenced you the most for the Xtatic Shiva Project? B.N. Manmademan, Hallucinogen, The Infinity Project, X-Dream, Prana, Man With No Name, Cosmosis and Etnica/Pleiadians to name but a few. It’s really difficult to narrow it down like that though because there are many more. P.M. Give us Xtatic Shiva’s discography. B.N. Two singles, a full album named “Traces” and more than 50 tracks spread around the

internet that you can download for free as that project was mainly “copyleft” and discography was not really my intention at that point. P.M. When and how came the change to psytrance and Black Noise project? B.N. In 2012, i had already met Martian Arts and was greatly influenced by his work. I wanted to take my music to the next level and i asked for his help. Through that process of learning more about music production and sound design and applying the things i was being taught my style changed from old-school-Goa to Psytrance and “In the dark” was my first solid track. The result was far from the tracks i was making only a few months earlier so it was time for a fresh start and a new project. P.M. In less than two years we have seen plenty of releases and not only. Your tracks have influenced serious names like Man Made Man and Martian Arts. How did that make you feel? B.N. It’s an honor really, i was influenced so much by Manmademan when i was discovering the music back in the 90s and lately i got the chance to work with them, it seems like a dream! Nectarios is my friend and tutor and gave me the tools to make my dreams come true so it goes a little further than that. P.M. Favorite colaboration till now? B.N. Martian Arts

B.N. Logic and most of its native plugins. Now my goal is to get some analogue and digital synthesizers i have in mind. P.M. How do you see the greek psy scene today? B.N. Greece always had an active scene but i think that in the past years it’s in decline. Greek artists don’t get the attention they deserve and they are condemned for their origin. P.M. Festival season is here, your confirmed gigs till now? B.N. Only one confirmed gig for the 7th of June in Munster, Germany but i’m already in talks for many more. P.M. Your message to the Dancers worldwide? B.N. Just chase your dreams and don’t stop till you make them come true, only then you’re on the road to happiness!

B.N. My pleasure, Peace and Love!

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FESTIVAL PREVIEW

Ancient Olympia, Greece Free Earth is a collaboration of like-minded

dedicated Psychedelic Freedom Fighters determined to bring back the vibe to the outdoor party scene. A new family gathering at an amazing camping river beach location in Greece! The venue: A camping so different from all others! You can relax with your friends, hang out in your tent, always next to the amazingly wide Alfios River and 15 minutes away from Kaiafas Beach. While you here, you can enjoy some delicious food and extreme sports! Many facilities, excursions, and activities are available onsite! Things u cant find in the cities or in any other camping location in Greece! A beautiful Private forested River Party Sanctuary giving us a magical party space,

perfect for multiple days of psychedelic adventure. It exudes harmony, beauty & peace and has the magic of trees, hidden forest beings & the mysteries of the ancient Alfios River and Kaiafas Beach. 10 Days of Camping by Alfios River and 15 minutes from Kaiafas Beach & amazing beaches! This is a LIMITED TICKETS EVENT! We organize it safely and in order to keep the quality of the event high and the ticket prices as low as possible and always according to the production size! FACEBOOK OFFICIAL: www.facebook.com/freeearthfestival WEBSITE OFFICIAL: http://www.freeearth-festival.com/

INTERVIEW

EAT STATIC

Underworld. None of these guys were getting up on stage and pressing play on a laptop and stood around doing nothing. If people pay to see you,its your job to work for them and give them their moneys worth. Thats my ethos anyway. P.M From 1991 that you had your first release, your discography goes huge! When should we expect your next album?

photography by Ravid Perry

This time we talk to a fellow star traveler! Meet Merve Perpler from EAT STATIC! P.M. Hi Merve and thank you for meeting us! 2014 is a special year for Eat Static, you celebrate 25 years in the EDM scene. Take us back to 1989 when it all started! At first you were a Techno duo along with Joie, right? ES: Thanks alot! Actually it all began as a 3 piece. Joie and I were already working together as Wooden Baby then third member Steve everitt joined and we became Eat Static.. Steve left in 94 to concentrate on raising a son and doing music for television. He is one of the most successful guys at that in the country now. Joie left in 2008.. I’m the last man standing! P.M. But you didn’t stick to one music genre. ES: well, the main reason for that is we both LOVED all types of music. As long as it was a bit leftfield,wacky,psychedelic etc. We came from a rock n roll background having both been in many rock bands including The Ozric Tentacles. But for us, electronic music was exciting! The whole enjoyment came from not being constricted with BPMS, styles genre’s whatever. P.M. Where did the inspiration come from? What were your favorite sounds at the time?

ES: obviously the mian influence in our stuff is the science fiction/alien thing. The area i grew up in was a UFO hotspot and i was visiting my first crop circles in the 70s. Joie and I also had a love of old B movies featuring aliens and monsters so it was bound to come out in our music! they married well together! Sounds wise, we both (and still do) love old analogue synths. Synths you can feel sound real and are very tweakable while you play.. P.M. Nowadays is it only Psychedelic Trance you get involved with? ES: of course not. My last album was for Interchill and was a full length downtempo album. The new anniversary album is gonna be a double cds and will also include a full length, downtempo experimental album. P.M. Being around for the last two and a half decades you have seen the scene’s evolution better than most! Which period would you call the “golden years” of Psy Trance? Or maybe you think they have yet to come? ES: well for me,all i miss are the characters that used to be around. Alot of the artists nowadays are so bland. No personalities. And it shows in their music. Too many people copy eachother and sound the same. I also miss seeing electronic music live. Nearly all the artists i used to gig with played live - Orbital, Aphex Twin,

ES: i am hoping to have it out late summer! its been a long time coming but its sounding how i wanted it to sound now. I went back to old school methods of recording, ditching a lot of the digital side to use the analogues more again. I was also taking every sound to its maximum and doing hours and hours of experimentation. I wanted this to be something special. P.M. You have worked along with many artists over the years, which are your latest collaborations? ES: the new album actually features the most collaborations i have ever done. There’s tracks with Laughing Buddha, Chris Rich, Robbert Heijnen, Martian Arts, Georgina Brett, Elaine Instinctive, Steve Everitt has also come back in for 2 tracks together...classic static! There may be one or two other special guests yet but we shall see! P.M. Your studio must be blasting! Tell us a few of your favorite toys in it! - My main toy as always is still the Roland SH5 with the Waldorf Wave, SH101, Korg MonoPoly, Korg Poly6, TB303,TR808/909, favourite plugins are probably AudioDamage stuff. P.M. And when not in the studio what “eats” your time? Your Radiozora show still onair? ES: still doing the Radio shows which i enjoy a lot! have also been teaching at a couple of different colleges in Israel and have been doing alot of mastering of late. P.M. Where do you enjoy performing the most? Indoor parties or Open Air Festivals, and why is that?

ES: Festivals for sure! Especially the ones in nice warm places. Israel is a favourite along with Croatia, Portugal Hungary and Japan. P.M. In which festivals will we see you this summer? ES: this summer i am headlining Boom festival,playing SUN festival,Antaris,Finland,Tra nslyvania calling..i am also doing Hilltop festival in Goa next Feb! P.M. A few hints for new producers? ES: best producers i have heard this year are the greeks!i kid you not! The nu school of trance guys are really impressing me with their passion and drive. Martian Arts, Audioform, Black Noise. All doing the bizz. As for advice? Do your own thing! Don’t copy others! Make your own sounds! Sitch those sample cds! Enjoy yourself making the music! P.M. Your special message to the psy-world? ES: prepare for upgrades. I’m coming to get you. P.M. Thank you for this interview Merve! Wish you will be rocking the dancefloors for at least 250 years more! ES: hahahahahaha thanks! (i think!)

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TUTORIAL

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TUTORIAL

MECHANIMAL MUTAGEN RECORDS

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Mechanimal launched its first live in October 2009 and has been blasting full power trance music around the globe since. Now with over 20 successful releases and ever growing experience Mechanimal released its debut album rocking dancefloors worldwide!

Psychedelic e-Mag catches up with Mechanimal for this month’s music production tutorial.

EQ Tips from Mechanimal

Cutting bad frequencies I used to boost and sweep across the frequencies until something negative popped out and then made a cut. This technique, although “easier”, has a flaw: some frequencies will ALWAYS sound bad if boosted for example around 3-5khz will always sound harsh but if taken away the track will lose presence. For problems make a bell shape CUT and sweep across, when you are either side of the bad frequency it will be apparent. Slowly hone in to the area and make adjustments to taste. By doing it this way you are dealing with the real problem. Top End I have seen many producers always go straight for the top frequencies of around 8khz – 20khz rather than using their ears to determine what they really want to achieve. There are strong differences in the zone of 4khz and 20khz and understanding them can really help improve your mix.

Mixing using an analyser When I mix a track I normally have a frequency analyser on the master channel. I find that 80% of well mixed music has more or less the same frequency shape. With knowledge of this I can use it as a guideline to balance the instruments and make EQ adjustments.

12khz-20khz: Detail & sparkle

6khz-10khz: Air & bite

3khz-5khz: Presence & harshness

For a typical mix down [Green] you can expect a roll off at around 30hz, Bass bump at around 50hz80hz, dip at around 150hz-400hz, and a slow roll off from 1khz. Obviously each mix varies but this can be a helpful guide. In red you can see another mix curve: from this I can see that the track has too much low end, treble and maybe a bit boxy around 150-400hz. To combat this I could turn the hats down, make a bell shape cut at about 250hz for kick and bass and lastly put a shallow roll off at around 25hz on the bass to help control the low end. If you don’t have a good frequency analyser I would highly recommend Voxengo span which is available as a free download here: http://www.voxengo.com/product/span/

TUTORIAL

As an example: next time something sounds “harsh” try a bell shaped cut at around 3khz5khz and it should sound more pleasant rather than cutting the tops entirely making the mix sound dull. High passing/Low cutting too much High passing is an essential technique in achieving a clean mix however if done too high up the spectrum you will kill the quality of the sound. This is most common when equalising lead sounds. As an example I normally high pass lead sounds between 150hz - 300hz maximum: any higher and they lose power. This varies between sounds and can be a lot higher for example for a high hat but the key is to appreciate the character of the sound and not to thin it out too much. In practice listen to the sound in the mix and high pass until the character changes. Next step is to roll back slightly and then you’re done.

Sub bass Many producers high pass their kick & bass or full mix. It’s true that 33hz and below pushes more air than audible frequencies however by cutting this you are in danger of your tracks sounding great in the studio but weak on dance floors. Cutting the sub bass is a good technique when you want the sound to translate well on laptop speakers, radio or on a small hifi, as examples, however dance music is normally played on full range sound systems which often have dedicated drivers (3 way or more) for dealing with the various frequency bands. Sometimes a shallow cut at around 25hz cleans things up and gives more headroom but unless you have an accurate full range monitoring system where you can hear if this makes a positive or negative effect I would leave this to the mastering engineer.

I hope you find this tutorial helpful. Many thanks for reading! Nick Sagar-House Mechanimal

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