Kore Hunter is a sappy love story between two already established DJs/producers Richard Riley (KORE) of Arizona and Megan Hunter (HK) of Colorado. Through the unifying powers of hardcore techno, these two found each other and are now combining their forces to further push the boundaries of hardcore and are hoping that they can take this scene (and their love) to new heights! Two is always better than one with this 2 for 1 interview with “hunters” of the “kore”!
How did you decide on your stage name?
Hunter: When Richard and I started dating, DJ Delirium and CIK were making jokes and throwing around names for what our future children would be named and Delirium threw out KoreHunter. Richard told me about their joke and we both decided that was better than our original duo name, HKORE.
How did you start producing/DJ’ing?:
Kore: I started producing in 1995, shortly after my first show. I was introduced to Hardcore from DJ Cetra back in the mid 90’s from the old IRC channel days. I went to Opium in San Bernadino to see The Stunned Guys and just fell in love. I went home, researched the music, found out how to use trackers and started teaching myself. When I turned 18, I took out a small loan to buy two tables, a mixer, and twelve hardcore records and just practiced every day. All I wanted to do was immerse myself in the new sound I had fallen in love with.
Hunter: I started DJ’ing back in early 2009. I used to travel for anime and gaming conventions and my friend, Mark Pieterick, DJ’ed the nighttime dance events they hosted. He would let me drunkenly mix a few songs here and there and then in 2010 I decided it was something I wanted to take more seriously. I received a set-up for Christmas that year and went crazy.
How did you get interested in the harder styles?
Kore: Growing up in Southern California, punk, rock, and metal were my main musical preferences until my uncle bought me an old 90s trance tape from Germany. It was completely different, but I was intrigued by the electronic sounds. During this time I was chatting in IRC channels all the time. So I found the channel #rave on efnet IRC (shout-outs to the old fucks that remember that!). One day DJ Cetra was streaming himself mixing on a Shoutcast I tuned into and remember hearing D.O.A. tracks. For someone that came from the harder styles of music, like metal and punk, it was easy for me to listen to it. It took all the aggressive elements I already loved growing up and took it further with unlimited possibilities.
Hunter: I went to an anime convention back in late 2007 and met a friend that wound up introducing me to happy hardcore. So that was the hardest music I listened to for a long time since my main squeeze back then was electro house. I eventually pulled myself away from mainstream electronic music and only listened to happy hardcore and that wound up being where my DJ career started. There was only one gabber DJ in the community that was playing out at mainstream shows in Colorado, and when I became friends with him he showed me an entirely new depth to this genre I already loved. Frenchcore, gabber, crossbreed, all the goodies. I was pretty floored and amazed at how large of a genre hardcore is. As a HHC DJ, I tried my best to stay away from overly euphoric songs and found myself attracted to the more quirky, harder side. It got to a point where it was a struggle to keep up because I couldn’t find music that fit my expectations and would only be able to add maybe 6 songs to my roster every few months. So about a year and a half into DJing, I decided to make the switch because gabber had what I was looking for in terms of aggression, musical depth, and community.
What changes have you noticed in your local rave/hard dance scene since you started?
Kore: Well I grew up in California and moved to AZ back in 1998 so it’s a little different for me than it may be for most. In the mid 90’s the LA scene was huge and felt like a big family. Sure we all had our crews and whatnot, but it was about the music. When I moved to AZ it felt very similar but the scene was smaller. All the kids knew the songs and understood the strength of coming together. When I met up with CIK back then, we worked our asses off to keep pushing and growing the hardcore scene and now AZ has one of the bigger scenes in the states. Not trying to take credit of anything, so don’t get me wrong, but I would like to feel we had a part in it. We just made sure to never segregate another scene or another state. We wanted to keep that concept of family and unity
intact. Outside of the hardware differences (vinyl, to CDs, to Serato, to USBs) the music and the party itself has evolved a lot. Even though Hardcore is still a minority in the U.S.A., it has gotten its fair share of mainstream attention that even kids who don’t listen to Hardcore, still know a good number of the songs. Now with the rise of Rawstyle and Hardstyle still proving it’s a force that cannot be stopped, the scene is now growing to the point where I think soon we can pass the mid 90’s again. Unfortunately, we are also getting the attention of some people that are toxic and maybe a little money hungry, but if we can all remember to unite, then maybe this time we can keep this growth going.
For the music itself, the quality has gotten so much better, and again I think we have the access to all the information to help that. It also feels like the old guys (producers, DJs, and promoters) are back to becoming a family again and are now sharing all the experience they have acquired and are passing it on. This in turns helps, not just the new kids, but us old folks as well. Respect goes both ways, not just one.
Hunter: I started out in Colorado in ’08 where the hard dance scene was gaining some traction and then burnt out while the mainstream scene started to blow up. For a few years, there were only a few hard genre DJs playing out into the scene, the rest of us stuck to a radio show to cater to a larger audience. All of the hard dance DJs stayed really dedicated and through persistence, hardstyle and hardcore have been spreading at a fairly quick pace in the mainstream scene. As for the rave scene as a whole, I think everyone has taken notice of how quickly the scene has grown and how it’s no longer an underground ordeal. I’ve seen performance mediums evolve, DJs and producers come and go, trends rise and fall, and new concepts create new sounds while some concepts and genres die. With how many people are involved in the scene, I think the scene will continue to change at a rapid pace for a while.
What do you think about the current state of harder styles in America?
Kore: I think it’s really starting to grow again with the rise of rawstyle, the reliable and consistent scene of hardstyle, and now the growth of hardcore again. The comeback of the harder styles is bringing all kinds of kids back and new ones are showing up. I feel like the hard styles reach to people in a different emotional way than some of the more mainstream options and this allows us to connect on a different level. All of us have experienced this one time or another where you hear that one track and your whole body just gets taken over with emotion. I feel like hardcore and the harder styles in general bring that feeling out in a lot of people and the more exposure we get the more we can connect, which is happening now and we are growing. As long as we can keep raising the bar on the quality of the music (production and performance) then it will continue to grow.
Hunter: I think the American hard scene is still in a smaller state. We’re starting to see many new producers and DJs that want to contribute to the genre as well and we’re starting to see more and more people support the music. I feel like we’re at a slight disadvantage right now compared to mainstream genres, though. As a producer for something like electro house, you can go to YouTube, type in what you need help with and the production program you’re using, and BAM, you have tons of videos to help you get better and learn. With hard genres, there aren’t as many so you’re kind of cornered into what you can learn without being self-taught (nothing wrong with that) and I feel that holds us back from creating new material as a genre. So if you’re an experienced producer with time on your hands and you get a lot of questions on how to do something, I highly encourage you to create video tutorials. Places like YouTube and Lynda.com have the potential to pay so it’s not like you have anything to lose in doing it, but there’s plenty for the scene to gain by you spreading your knowledge to others eager to learn but don’t know where to start. Outside of that though, I think the scene we currently have is more of a family than anything. We have a great understanding of unity through the music and I’m proud to be able to contribute to something so wonderful.
What are you guys trying to convey through your music?
Kore: Everyone has stress, trauma or some type of emotional event happening in their life and I want to help either remove that, even if it’s for a few hours, or heighten the good feeling you’re experiencing. I myself have had a roller coaster ride of events and I can say that this music has been the best cure. The general message is to enhance the best parts of life and take out your aggression on the worst parts and just say, “Eff it! This is my time to shine!”.
Hunter: For me, music has always been a form of expression. I’ve been playing instruments since I was 11 years old and it was always the best outlet for emotions. As a young adult, figuring out who you are, what you want to do, and trying to simply navigate through life is really hard at times. So Hardcore for me has always felt like a way to safely let out anger or sadness without emotionally hurting others and has felt like the slightly rebellious genre where you can jam out and give the finger to whatever stressful, shitty, or hurtful experience you’re going through. When I play, I hope that hardcore can be the same therapy for others as it has been to me.
Do you have anything special planned for the event?
Kore: For Gabberfest you will hear some original music, mainstream hardcore, and some uptempo music, we want to really ramp up the level of energy. This is a gathering of hardcore and hard genre addicts, so we are going to make sure to take the sound and ramp it up! We want to see everyone lose their fucking minds with us!
Is there anything you want to say that we haven’t asked you about yet? Do you have any upcoming projects or tours to promote, or anything special or shout outs you want to say?
Kore: We have a really big project that is the planning phases right now. I don’t want to give out too much information, but the concept really touches on an earlier question. We want to bridge a gap in respect by working with multiple genres and producers to bring out this massive release which will showcase each as an individual, and then everyone as a family. Keep your eyes and ears open for more information soon! We also have the AZ Hardcore Junkies 20 year celebration party September 9th! Come help us celebrate 20 years of Hardcore with The Outside Agency, Fiend, Delta 9 and more! You can find tickets and full event information on the Arizona Hardcore Junkies Facebook page: https://www.facebook.com/arizonahardcore/
I want to give a special thanks and shout-out to everyone in the Hardcore scene in LA and AZ. Honestly without you all I have no idea where I would be and because of you all I keep pushing and wanting to not only better myself, but everyone around me. Respect and love to you all!
Hunter: I want to tell people that are currently in the hard dance scene and people that want to get into it to just go for it. I feel like people get so caught up in the “what ifs” that they miss opportunities to create and to have fun. If people want to talk shit on you, understand that that’s a reflection of their poor dedication and discipline and their attempt to be complacent in not succeeding or progressing by making you feel bad. You’re gonna make mistakes, get hurt, be embarrassed, and fail. A lot. Instead of taking those experiences as bad, look at them from another angle and find out what you can learn from each one. That combined with discipline (NOT motivation) is the only way you will ever get better.
Shout-outs to everyone that has supported me over the years. All of you mean a lot to me and I definitely wouldn’t be here if it wasn’t for your encouraging words and enthusiasm for what I do.
Each one of these artists have their own networking pages but you can follow the work of the duo here:
https://www.facebook.com/KoreHunter/
