I once bumped into Egyptrixx as I was getting off the subway on my way to a tutoring job. Recognizing him immediately as the disobedient-dubstep-turned-global-gutter-house DJ hailing from Toronto, I quickly tried to think of something nice I could fit into the two second time period before he passed me and got on the subway. Nothing came, sadly. However, a few months later, I got in touch with him through Mixpak to talk about his eclectic connections to music, Night Slugs, pho, overwrought heavy metal, grad school, and breaking down barriers in dance music.
2010 has already been a notable breakout year for Egyptrixx with the release of an outstanding EP, “The Battle For North America“, and all indications show that he’s just beginning to pick up steam.
Interview by Brendan Arnott (my text in bold)
Untold, who you recently played with here in Toronto, said something I really like: “I hope dubstep continues to be hard to pin down, disobeys its manifesto, gets called stupid names, gatecrashes other scenes, and spikes the punch, elopes, and has lots of children”. Do you feel similarly about your own music?
Egyptrixx: Haha, yes absolutely. What a great quote.
It’s quite comparatively easy and cheap to make electronic/club music right now. The software is cheap if you decide to pay for it at all, the distribution methods are largely digital and similarly cheap. These are pragmatic excuses to be experimental, of course there are intellectual reasons as well. It’s amusing to me that everything beyond the traditional guitar/bass/drums/piano configuration is considered experimental or electronic, because even those amplified instruments were considered alien and experimental in the 60’s when they first started popping up. Sonic experimentation is as much a part of making music as coming up with a clever way to say “I love my girlfriend, it sucked when she dumped me”.
Wow, that’s an excellent analogy.
Thanks!
When you talk about intellectual reasons to be experimental, I read that you’re finishing a graduate program now, correct? What have you been studying, and do you feel like your education informs the way you look at making music?
I just finished a Master’s degree in journalism, before that I studied neuroscience. That’s an interesting question, maybe school influenced my music in the process… how to start with an idea and end with a product. I’ve probably become a better songwriter since going to J school… more impoverished, anyway.
You’ve also been changing the way that you perform music live lately – I caught your live PA debut at Wrongbar a little while back, which sounded great. Can you talk a bit about how your live show has changed recently?
Well, when I started this project (basically out of boredom) two years ago, the intention was never to do the DJ/Producer thing. It only remained that way for so long because I was in school and touring, so I didn’t have enough time to really develop a live set. Being a DJ comes with different responsibilities/expectations, and basically, I just find a “live” set more fun, expressive and personal. It’s totally a work in progress.
The vocalist “Starving yet Full” from Azari & III was doing some vocals overtop that night… are there any plans to ever “formally” collaborate with vocalists?
Oh yeah, that was so cool. I’m working on an LP right now, there will be a few guest vocalists on it.
This is the LP that you’ve called a “vague tribute” to your Irish great grandmother?
Haha, yea.
Sometimes it feels like there’s an unspoken dichotomy in subject matter here in Canada where you can’t really write an electronic album about anything except something “dark & sexy”, y’know? Meanwhile, other Canadians like Owen Pallet are making indie music coming from a “traditionally Canadian” farmer aesthetic… and because it’s indie it can kind of talk about whatever it wants without criticism, where dance music can’t. What are your thoughts on that?
Man, I could talk to you all day about my beef with how electronic music is covered by the Canadian music media…LOL.
In short:
(1) Almost all music is made with keyboards/midi/DAWs, so deal with that.
(2) Electronic music or music with a synthesized palette (however you want to define it) is/can be serious music too.
I agree with your sentiments, we’ve got a long way to go… but onto the next question.
Haha, yes…let’s not dwell.
You once called club music “participatory and democratic” in an interview, in the sense that it takes a whole room full of people to made a mood & establish a feeling. I like that idea a lot, and there’s a track on “The Battle for North America” that I really love called “Drive U Crazy” which is not only maybe your most pop-friendly and accessible track (in my opinion) but it’s also talking about “bringing back that feeling… that feeling that’s been gone for way too long…” This may seem like a daunting question, but… how can we bring back the groove, Egyptrixx?
Thanks! Ummm, well I’m not really advocating ‘bringing something back’, I think everything is in place to create something new. What I like about club music (like you said before) is that it (along with the right people and setting) can really provide powerful moments, euphoria or whatever. It’s a very visceral style of music. I think if you present club music properly it can be very powerful. I’m not trying to sound nostalgic in that track. I didn’t even go to raves “back in the day”.
It seems like you’re suggesting that there might be something a bit dangerous about longing for that “return to a better time”, which I guess when you look at the way some of this “nu-disco” stuff stagnates pretty quickly, is understandable.
Absolutely, that sentiment seems disdainful of progress to me, like whiney grandparents. I’m happy to be making music right now, it seems like an exciting time.
I agree! It’s funny too, because there are also some changes that are a bit strange… like the way that “mainstream dubstep” seems to be enjoying a big explosion of success right now. Can you ever imagine a future where that was taken one step further, and Night Slugs family & Egyptrixx were blaring in Ibiza? I mean, it seemed like there was a point where thinking about “dubstep” and commercial success in the same sentence was ridiculous.
Haha true, you can put the right acapella over top of anything and sell it to rich Californians…Well, “dubstep” has come a long way…
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As for the Night Slugs family, I think the sky is the limit really. It’s a group of really interesting musicians from completely different backgrounds. I’m excited to see what happens…
Your new forthcoming EP “The Only Way Up” is the next Night Slugs release- did anyone’s remix (Kingdom, Ikonika, Cubic Zirconia) really surprise you?
They’re all so good, I especially loved Cubic Zirconia’s, which they flipped into this really futuristic funk/boogie song. Tiombe (their lead singer) is a total superstar.
What can you tell me about Africa, the pre-Egyptrixx group?
Oh, Africa never really graduated past the basement stage. It was almost a pretty cool drone project, then it was nothing… yea, I actually have a new band right now, we’re just writing and recording some new material.
I mention it because through twitter, I see a lot of influence from noise stuff like Suicide and AIDS Wolf. I was wondering if you had anything that you’d personally define as a guilty pleasure.
Ummmmm….. I’m a real sucker for overwrought black metal. Also, I love Lady Gaga, but i dont know I would call either a guilty pleasure.
Have you ever watched Metalocalypse? It’s amazing for overwrought death metal vibes.
Haha absolutely, it’s so funny. My brother and I were “metalheads” in our tweens/teens, I think a lot of the satire in that show is so dead-on. And the Dethklok music is legitmately good… Mermaider!!
What do you think labels need to do in 2010 to survive?
Well, it would be great to see labels start to really take advantage of the malleability of digital content, there really are endless possibilites. Splits, multimedia releases, formats beyond LP/EP- also, there is so much music being released constantly. Maybe finding the right balance between quanity/quality is key. I think the pressure is on the labels to prime the consumer sufficiently, instead of just drowning them with content.
Final question- Where can you get the best pho in Toronto? What are some of your choice dining places here?
Oh wow, GOOD QUESTION. Well, I’ve just recently been told by a reliable source that the best pho in Toronto is “Kim Asia” (I believe it’s called) on St. Andrew. The Pho Hung on Spadina is a safe bet, although Pho Pasteur right around the corner is much greasier and more indulgent. But, i moved to brockton recently, so I frequent Phoenix now, at College and Sheridan.
Wow. Title for this interview is going to be…. Egyptrixx: Serious about his Pho.
TRUTH. Can I ask you a favor?
Sure thing.
Can you not use any “TRIXX” puns in your title? Like “Back to his old TRIXX”
Hahah, oh my God, no worries.
THANK YOU!
