sideral: schizotronic and techno mónica escudero
This guy has been cooking up his own stuff at the turn table for the last ten years or so. It’s six years since his first electro-pop adventure and almost two since his first and successful Darkhousz & Poptronic release on Satelite K. Two years on and he’s back with his Squizotronic & Techno on a new label and with a new distributor (Pias Spain). Aleix Verges, dj Sideral is still doing what he does best, but now he’s much freer and much more mature. What other excuse did we need to meet up with him? We hear some heavy techno vibes coming down the phone lines. This guy never lets up, not even when he’s doing promotional work. Finally, when I manage to hear myself, I ask him to define Squizotronic & Techno:
It’s not such a centred style if you compare it to the first sessions I did. That’s where the name Squizotronic comes from. It’s a chaotic mixture of different styles; a bit of drum `n´ bass, hip hop and indietronica. The melodies are the pulsing force behind the record and that made the choice more difficult. It also meant there was less order. The second one is volume, it’s like the name says: Techno and there’s no need to define that.
How do you choose the different songs? Do you just follow your instinct or is there a commercial aspect there?
A few songs are there because of their own weight and you kind of fall in love with them, but improvisation is the basis to it all. I rent out some decks, set them up at home, start waxing, dig up some oldies, come across amazing B-sides…all that gives a freshness to a session. Techno volume is different. It’s more developed, it demands a bit more reflection.
How long does it take you to round off a session?
Not long. A very strange thing happens with sessions: you record the first session and then you do another three or four with different variations, but you normally go with the first. I think it’s got something to do with freshness.
Have you applied what you learned from the mixing of your first CD to this one?
The big thing is doing a session with no crowd there. It’s hard to get used to. There’s no-one there egging you on. No-one to bounce off.
What can you tell us about the experience of setting up your own label?
Well, it’s all up in the air at the moment, for me anyway. Carlos is looking after all the paperwork (Carlos Baena owns 50% of the label) and, well, I’m just waiting to see what happens. The main idea is to re-release the Peanut Pie record and then discover lots of interesting people doing interesting things in different styles. You know, shake things up a bit. We don’t want to record and then have to wait for a year to the record in the stores. That’s really odious and I’m talking from personal experience here.
I see a bright future in it. Us artists have a great understanding. We say goodbye to him. It’s eight in the evening and the decks are calling. Good luck with the record Aleix and “may the force be with you.”
It’s not such a centred style if you compare it to the first sessions I did. That’s where the name Squizotronic comes from. It’s a chaotic mixture of different styles; a bit of drum `n´ bass, hip hop and indietronica. The melodies are the pulsing force behind the record and that made the choice more difficult. It also meant there was less order. The second one is volume, it’s like the name says: Techno and there’s no need to define that.
How do you choose the different songs? Do you just follow your instinct or is there a commercial aspect there?
A few songs are there because of their own weight and you kind of fall in love with them, but improvisation is the basis to it all. I rent out some decks, set them up at home, start waxing, dig up some oldies, come across amazing B-sides…all that gives a freshness to a session. Techno volume is different. It’s more developed, it demands a bit more reflection.
How long does it take you to round off a session?
Not long. A very strange thing happens with sessions: you record the first session and then you do another three or four with different variations, but you normally go with the first. I think it’s got something to do with freshness.
Have you applied what you learned from the mixing of your first CD to this one?
The big thing is doing a session with no crowd there. It’s hard to get used to. There’s no-one there egging you on. No-one to bounce off.
What can you tell us about the experience of setting up your own label?
Well, it’s all up in the air at the moment, for me anyway. Carlos is looking after all the paperwork (Carlos Baena owns 50% of the label) and, well, I’m just waiting to see what happens. The main idea is to re-release the Peanut Pie record and then discover lots of interesting people doing interesting things in different styles. You know, shake things up a bit. We don’t want to record and then have to wait for a year to the record in the stores. That’s really odious and I’m talking from personal experience here.
I see a bright future in it. Us artists have a great understanding. We say goodbye to him. It’s eight in the evening and the decks are calling. Good luck with the record Aleix and “may the force be with you.”
