Category Archives: Interviews

Straight out of Italy, Art of Fighters have been bringing their particular flavor of hardcore music for nearly 2 decades. The Art of Fighters history began in the year 1997 and their career took off as one of the fastest in the scene. It was the year 2000 and they were just 18 years old when they jumped onto the biggest European stages playing their first hit tracks ‘Artwork‘ and ‘Earthquake‘ while wearing their trademark: the terrifying hockey mask, similar to the one seen in the movie ‘Friday the 13th’.

Since then, they have been unstoppable: spreading throughout the entirety of Europe, USA, Japan, South America and Australia. They have continued to produce track after track, becoming one of the leading acts of todays Hardcore scene. Creators of anthems for the biggest events as Dominator, Thunderdome and Q-Base, their sound is constantly evolving. A sound which can be described as a unique mix of harmony and technicality, with the rawness and power that you expect to be found in a proper hardcore track.

It’s a pleasure to be interviewing you! Could you tell us a little but about yourselves? How do you know each other? Did you always know you wanted to be DJs?

Ciao America, we are Luca and Cristian and we are Art of Fighters! We are producers from Italy, land of good food, good people and good music (in my personal opinion).
(Cristian) I have know Luca since I was a kid, we grew up together as neighbours and we spent all the childhood together. I know him since 30years, it’s my fourth brother, even if he is from another mother.

Can you tell me a little bit about the story behind you’re DJ name? How did you come up with the name ‘Art of Fighters’?

At the time we sent our first demo to The Stunned Guys our name was “Armageddon”. It was a cool one, around 15 demos, ranging from 200/400BPM, except a couple of them which were around 150bpm.
Long story short, Maxx suggested us to put into the trashcan all the tracks except the slower ones, and to find a new name cause it was a bit overused. We already had our first logo, so we had to pick up something starting with an “A”.
Our second choice was “Art of Warriors”, also taken so we went from ‘Warriors’ to ‘Fighters’ and voilà! Years later I realized how important that decision was. We became that name, and now more than ever we are fighting for our Art, which is the music and the message we are trying to spread around the world.

How did Art of Fighters get started? Did you ever expect to grow to the notoriety and recognition you have today?

We started in the basement of my parents house, using nothing else than a Pentium computer and Fast Tracker 2. Why?! I still have no idea, probably bored or just curious about how music was made.
And no, never expected to make it a full time job, also because back then (first demos are dated around 1996/97) the dj wasn’t at all a recognized figure, it was more like an outcast. You had to do it just because you liked to. We are lucky that people like what we do and support us. We’ll try to not disappoint them and stay true to our Core.

Tell me a little bit about why you wear masks and their designs? Do they mean anything special?

The idea of the masks comes from the man that taught us how to mix, DJ Tetta. We had to play a b2b set in Switzerland in early 2001 and he came with the idea of jumping on stage with those white masks and white jumpsuits. We loved the idea and kept using them. After few months we decided to personalize the mask a little bit (here’s why the different design for each one of us) and somewhere around the 2006 we hired someone to make the ones we’re using right now, which (as what the creator said) are made using the mold from the original Jason 13th movie.

(Niko e Tetta, Art of Fighters circa 2001)

Here you can see the pictures of the first time we used those masks. The design is a bit different from what we use now:

Would you have ever seen yourselves coming to perform the USA? How do you think playing for a US crowd will be different from playing in Europe, what do you expect? Are there any new tracks you plan to drop, or any tracks you are particularly excited to play for the US crowd?

This year was full of unexpected gigs. We also did Colombia and Japan, and about to set foot in Canada aswell. And every one of those gigs is a blessing.
We love to travel, see different cultures, people and situations. I belive we are all the same but still very different, the idea of party in Italy is different that the one in France or Japan, and I bet my ass that US is a different scenario aswell.
As they taught us, you have to adapt in real time to the dancefloor, I’ll try to showcase all our music, which goes from 150bpm to over 200bpm!(I use the singular since it will be a solo dj performance in the US… Luca will be unable to join me due to technical reasons).

Do you think Traxtorm Ganstaz Allied could make a US performance in the future? (DJ team consisting of members Unexist, The Stunned Guys, Mad Dog and Art of Fighters)

I really hope so, and not just in the US!

Are there any upcoming releases or future collabs you can share with us? Anything you’re particularly excited about that we should be watching for?

We’re finishing as we speak two tracks, in collaboration with a really talented and underestimated friend and producer which is Dj Predator. A mix of Early rave, Drum and Bass, Mainstyle Uptempo with a touch of Neurofunk. We Love It.
There’s also an Hardcore Italia compilation mixed by us and about to be released in Japan. Lot of fresh and cool music and idea over there from a lot of new producers and talents. Keep an eye on it.
And also working on something different for 2017. If it will work I’ll talk about it in another edition of Hard Data.

Fantastic! Is there anything else you’d like to say to the readers on the Hard Data?

Yes. A scene without a crowd is not a scene, and a dj without a public is just an expensive cdplayer. So please, support the US scene and attend every party you can!

For me personally, listening to en episode of the Hardcore Italia podcast mixed by an Art of Fighters is what sparked my interest in hardcore music and I am very excited to see them perform here in Los Angeles! Catch them on the USA stops of the Industrial Strength Records 25yr Anniversary world tour, performing in Los Angeles, CA on November 18th, and in Brooklyn, NY on November 19th.

Articles, Interviews

K.O.R.E. Interview, after AZHC XX

September 18, 2016 Jarred Maestas

Another interview featuring long time member of AZ Hardcore Junkie and played AZHC XX – Arizona Hardcore’s 20 year celebration last weekend. Talking about the future of hardcore in America.

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Articles, Interviews, Uncategorized

Fight Interview: AZHC XX

September 9, 2016 Jarred Maestas

We have an audio interview featuring Fight, all the way from France talking about AZ Hardcore Scene, Uptempo, and The Future of Hardcore.

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Announcements, Articles, Events, Interviews, Reviews

The EDC You Didn’t See

July 19, 2016 DJ Deadly Buda 1 Comment

Just when you thought you knew about everything that happened at EDC this year, we bring you the most overlooked, but perhaps most exciting development that happened under everyone’s nose. Fortunately, former Earache USA whirlwind and now ANOMIEdia’s CEO, Jim Welch, was on hand to give us the eyewitness account of what went down.

Lenny Dee and Rob Gee at EDC – photo by Jim Welch

It was a big year for the harder styles at Insomniac’s Electric Daisy Carnival. A stocked hardstyle line-up and a closing set on the Basscon: Wasteland stage by hardcore power Angerfist attested to the magnetic draw of the hard electronic. But there was another significant disruption of the status quo that went practically unnoticed even by the tea-leaf readers and crystal ball gazers who make a career out of divining Insomniac’s next moves…

Rob Gee rocking EDC hard! -photo by Jim Welch

Calliope was the Greek Muse of heroic poetry, and puttering along the Las Vegas Motor Speedway’s terra firma on EDC Day 2 was the apt-named Kalliope Art Car. This otherwise cute and unassuming converted bus actually packs a 70,000 watt sound system, and this night carried three old school legends that have steadfastly dedicated themselves to furthering the art of the rave. These heroes have continued to promote new and underground music ceaselessly for decades and were seemingly snuck into the party in the dead of night… a portent of things to come? I speak in order of appearance, Lenny Dee, Rob Gee, and Frankie Bones.

Lenny Dee lays down the hard electronic at EDC. – photo by Jim Welch

Despite the old school credibility all three of these artists bring to the table and their bona fide historical significance to the American rave scene going back to the early 1990’s, they have been surprisingly absent from the larger American festivals. In some ways, it might be because they still have never slowed down. Each has in his own way, like true artists, continued to pursue their art. So, they didn’t really fit into EDC’s usual “old school” area, the Upside Down Room, and were still a little too edgy for Basscon or Bassrush. Enter: Kalliope! and kudos to Insomniac for figuring out how to bring these guys to the attention of a new breed of ravers.

That said, I, like many of you, was stuck in the massive traffic jam that night and missed this part of the rave I wanted to hear and see most. As most of us didn’t have the privilege of following the Art Cart, we have tried our best to recreate the experience for you. Check out Jim Welch’s recount, and we’ve posted a re-creation of Lenny Dee’s set that he made for us. Frankie Bones actually managed to record his set, and we hope to get something from Rob Gee soon. At the end is my interview with Frankie Bones preceding the fateful night. Enjoy and look to the midnight horizon!

Articles, Daybreaker, Interviews

DJDjuke – The Gabberfest 2016 Interview

June 13, 2016 Daybreaker

Here is our second international headliner for this year of GABBERFEST: America’s Hardest! Djuke, also from Germany (though half Italian), will be visiting the U.S. for the very first time, and what a better way to debut in Las Vegas than with guns blazing! Here is what you need to know about your day one headliner…

Will this be your first time in America?

Yes it will be my first time in America and I’m very happy to be a part of this amazing event in Las Vegas!

How did you get your start in hardcore music?

My start was at a famous club in the Netherlands called the Peppermill Music Palace. This is the place where it all began! 1998 was the first time I visited this hardcore discothek and saw the DJ’s playing really great stuff from the old days and to this day I’m still infected; every weekend and I’m at a hardcore party, even as a guest. A year later I bought my first pair of turntables and some records and started my DJ career in the year 2000 in a little club in my hometown. Today, it’s hundreds of clubs, dance halls and discotheks all over Germany, Belgium, Netherlands, Spain (where I started) and now in Las Vegas, it’s been amazing!

The logo of Djuke

What’s the hard dance scene like where you currently live?

The scene in Germany is up and down. Sometimes it looks like it will be bigger and better but sometimes I’m not very happy with it. Most of the people are in an uptempo hype right now. But it all goes in cycles, things come and go, you know? The good thing is that the events and festivals in Germany have more than just one area so most of the time there are a lot good styles like hardcore and oldschool at the same time. We have big name festivals such as Army Of Hardcore, Hellraiser, and a lot of other crazy events where find thousands of party-freaks together and it’s wonderful and all, but my favorite place to party is in Holland!

What do you think about the current state of harder styles in America?

The only thing in America that must be pushed is hardcore music and the other harder styles! A look on the other genres and you find the biggest names worldwide, is it possible with the harder styles? Yes it is!

Will you be attending EDC this year as well?

No I am only in Vegas for a few hours on Friday, to look at the city and all the lights, then it’s back to Germany for me.

Anything that you’re looking forward to most on your trip?

How the beer in America tastes! That being said, I’m also very curious to see a completely different party crowd that I haven’t seen in 15 years. I’ve only ever seen American partygoers on TV and I’ve never seen anything about the hardcore crowds or events. I think it’s going to be very interesting and I’m very much looking forward to this!

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?

I’m currently building my own studio! There are plenty of plans for new productions for the years to come. I can’t announce anything just yet, but plenty of collaborations with some bigger artists and you will find it everywhere online! Keep an eye on my website and my Facebook where you can download my livesets and stay up to date on my touring and productions! And lastly, Las Vegas, I’m happy to be a part of this Gabberfest and I know we will have a blast together! See you all very soon!