It’s about time Delta 9 “graces” the pages of The Hard Data again! You would think that he or his alter-ego “Dave-Delta” would get play here all the time, being that he’s an old school vet still pumping out dope tunes. Well, this error has been corrected and now you get to read the words of wild from the Windy City’s #1 devil of hardcore! Without further delay…
So, ok, we already know you’re from Chicago.
Yes. The windy City creates the Chicago hardcore sound.
What’s the story behind your DJ Name?
Delta 9 equals tetrahydrocannabinol.
Who or what is responsible for you being the artist you are today?
It basically came from the upside-down behaviors of human society. It’s either find an outlet or become a serial killer.
What are you trying to convey with your music?
I’m trying to convey rebellion that becomes more difficult as the industry turns more towards the direction of big business.
What moment do you cherish the most so far in your career as a DJ, artist or musician?
All of them. Every event from small to large, every DJ set I play and everyone I speak with throughout the night.
Ok, but what specifically are you planning to give to the audience at Hard Electronic?
A look into of my soul.
What is something you really want to tell the public that we might not have asked about?
Few can rock the mic to hardcore and hardstyle with authority, but MastaChief is one of them! We managed to catch him in-between scripting his lyrical delights long enough to get the story behind the “Voyce.”
Ok Chief, before we go any further, why don’t you tell us a little bit about where you’re from?
Before I say anything, HI HARD DATA! LOVE YOU GUYS 🙂
I am born and raised in NYC. Can’t claim a borough because I’ve moved around too much. The city that never sleeps is known as one of the biggest melting pots in the country. It is this diverse city (see what I did there?) that has helped to cultivate my taste in music. While I grew up around many sounds the one that grabbed my spirit most was Hip Hop, which makes perfect sense as the culture was birthed right here in the Bronx. Through Hip Hop, I found a passion for the art of spoken word/poetry. From there my desire to perform took the forefront. And once I found the Rave Culture, as an event host I had the opportunity to learn how eMCeeing began.
MastaChief will be rocking the Hard Electronic September 8, 2017
What’s the story behind your MC Name?
At my second event I was sitting with a group of my friends on the roof. I was speaking to them about how I felt as though we were all united in a tribal celebration. There is no judgment. This is our ritual. Everything and everyone is at peace. I had love for each and every person whether I knew them personally or not. How powerful we are when we come together. And my friend Ameera laughed and responded with “yo you’re like MastaChief right now.” I loved it! Although I didn’t claim it right away because I felt the name was a big responsibility. My mentor, who is a Hip Hop artist by the name of NYOil, once told me that names are not learned, they’re earned. So about a year later I finally found what it took to hold the title of MastaChief. And here I am.
Wow, ok that clears a lot up because we thought it was because maybe you played a lot of Halo or something! So, who or what was responsible for you being the MC you are today?
I was always around music that had some kind of substance. There was a message and a purpose, no matter what the genre. Something that once you listen it would stay with you forever once you hear it even if you didn’t get it right away. As far as electronic music, mixtapes with music from the likes of Josh Wink, Junior Vasquez, and several others were in constant rotation around the house. I have to thank my entire family for not only exposing me to such great music but for raising me to be someone who acts, speaks, and thinks with a purpose as well.
What are you trying to convey with your music?
As with the music of my upbringing, I write for a purpose. There is always a message I am trying to convey. Even if I am writing a party track I still want to include some level of creativity so it’s not a typical 1-2-3 jump formula. With the exception of slight influences here and there, I don’t want to be like anything anyone has ever heard. I read some of the comments on Hard Dance tracks and I see comments all the time about how the track is good but the lyrics are so cheesy. THOSE COMMENTERS ARE MY MARKET! Those people who can go balls to the wall to the production but listen to the track in their headphones later on and actually get something from it. Unfortunately, not a lot of producers see the vision so I often have to dumb it down for lack of a better term. I mean, I’m sure Industrial Strength had its naysayers back in 1991 but here we are 26 years later. Just saying.
What moment do you cherish the most so far in your career as an MC?
I don’t really know if I can speak on a moment yet because in the grand scheme of things I am still very much a new jack and earning the responsibility of carrying the torch. However, I can say in terms of electronic music who I cherish and that is Michael Phase. He was the first DJ that believed in my ability as an MC. He offered me the tips and tricks needed to understand how to perform to an Electronic crowd (because the first time I tried to perform with him I went at it with a rapper attitude and it did not work). Before I rocked stag’s with anyone else, he and I were the pair to look out for. And now he’s about to headline in Australia for Hard Island! We fought for our respective places together for years and it’s good to finally be getting a taste of it.
What specifically are you planning to give to the audience at Hard Electronic?
For a long time I feel like I haven’t been able to be myself when I’m on stage. Yes, I am MastaChief. And MastaChief is me. But there are more layers to my personality than just all out aggression. And due to having to tone myself down in the earlier years of hosting I feel like a lot of my other layers have taken a back seat for the sake of being “professional.” However, I’d like to be able to prove there is an ability to be yourself and be professional as the same time. I want to have fun. And I want everyone to have fun with me and maybe be a bit open minded about me making a few jokes, acting silly, making powerful statements, interacting with the crowd more etc. At the very least I would like this to be a stepping stone in that direction.
What is something you really want to tell the public that we might not have asked about?
I have a scar on the left side of my face and a few people have asked me about it and I’m sure more have wondered. So, I’d like this to be my official statement as to what happened…
Back in July 2011 I was walking into an outlaw that I was supposed to be hosting in Coney Island. While I was walking into the spot it was nearly pitch black and suddenly a light flashed in my eyes and I’m surrounded by anywhere between 6-8 guys all pounding away at my face, head, and body demanding that I give up my belongings. I resisted by holding my footing and demanding a fair fight. It was at that moment in the scuffle I spotted a silver box cutter and I began to see blood spritzing out from the side of my face. I finally gave up my stuff. Once they left I could hear and feel blood spraying from my head so I used my shirt to apply pressure and I ran deeper into the spot to find help from my friend Jesse. She called 911 and walked with me for the entire half mile to the ambulance. When I got there, I discovered I wasn’t the only one who was attacked as there was more than one ambulance. Before being put on the stretcher my head and torso, which was also sliced open, was wrapped up cutting off my vision. It was at that point I began to feel myself fading away. I struggled to hold myself upright as they prepped the stretcher. I could hear Jesse yelling for them. And for just a few seconds I accepted my fate. I was ready to let myself go. Just then I was put on the stretcher and regained full consciousness. Once I got in the ambulance I raised my bloody hands and formed them into a heart as a thank you for Jesse who stood with me until practically the last stitch. As it turns out, I had lost almost 2 liters worth of blood but the laceration had not gone deep enough to reach my jugular. Whoever those individuals are, I do not wish ill on you. I understand why you felt the need to inflict such harm on people and I forgive you. Just know that not only have you created your own karma but you have awakened a beast within me. A beast which I bring to the microphone night after night and Hard Electronic will be no exception.
Frankly, we knew about as much about these guys as you do right now. But after we got done with interviewing them, we realized why ISR and Kontaminated made sure they were on the bill. Read to be intrigued…
Who is Ontal?
Ontal consists of Darko Kolar and myself, Boris Brenecki. We are both from Subotica, a city in the north of Serbia. I came to New York City one year ago and I plan to stay here. Our music has never been influenced by our location. We draw our influences from many different eras and different countries.
Ontal will be performing at Hard Electronic September 8, 2017
What does Ontal mean?
When we started making music together in 2011, we thought a lot about what our name should be. We wanted the name to convey a certain message about our project. We came across the word “ontal”. It’s a word that can only be found in the dictionary of the old English language. It means “real; comprising reality as opposed to mere phenomena”. It is a perfect name because we wanted to create original sounding music with elements of the earliest forms of the genres that we perform. Also, one of the concepts which we adopted as Ontal and which we want this name to convey is “musique concrete,” a form of earliest electronic music made by manipulating various recordings.
Where does your sound come from?
The shaping of the sound of Ontal happened in the very beginning of this project. We used to meet at Darko’s apartment in Novi Sad to try out different ideas and eventually made the first Ontal tracks. The workplace was perfect for us because Darko’s apartment was located in a building where most residents were elderly half-deaf or completely deaf persons.
Why do you make music?
We are trying to help our listeners get rid of their negative energy by dancing to mechanical and dynamic rhythms.
What’s been your favorite set to date?
Playing live last year in a secret Paris warehouse to a few thousand people who knew what they came for. The sound, blood-red lights and the energetic crowd made us change our mind and improvise by speeding up the tempo to 200 BPM during the last ten minutes of our live act.
What specifically are you planning to give to the audience at Hard Electronic?
Hard-hitting distorted goodness.
What is something you really want to tell the public that we might not have asked about?
He was stage-diving at raves before it was cool. Or safe. He’s blasted tracks around the globe and September 8 straight to your dome! Ladies and gents, let’s give it up for DJ Delirium! Here’s a little more from the man to make sure you’re in Brooklyn September 8th to hear him throw down…
Are you from Jersey?
I’m from Jersey. I am soooo influenced by my geographical location that I wrote a track about it.
How’d you get your name?
I was looking through the dictionary one day and I stumbled across the word Delirium. I was not quite sure of the meaning and after reading it I immediately felt that this was the perfect artist name for me and my Hardcore productions.
Delirium appears at Hard Electronic Sept. 8, 2017
What are you giving the crowd?
I am trying to get the dance floor in a frenzy! The more energy. the better!! =] I like to play tracks that are hard but still have a party vibe. I play many different styles of Hardcore & Hard Dance Music: Old School Techno, Early Rave, Happy Hardcore, Hardcore, Dutch Freestyle, Subgroud. My tempo ranges between 130 BPM – 200 BPM. I like to scratch a lot and do tricks to give the crowd a little more energy. I really spend a lot of time trying to find tracks that I think are going to really get the dance floor going!
What moment do you cherish the most so far in your career?
I have been producing and releasing underground music for 26 years and already performed on some major events like Dominator, Thunderdome, Mysteryland, Defqon.1, EDC – Vegas, Ground Zero, played all over the USA, Holland, Germany, Belgium, Italy, Spain, Switzerland, Russia, Canada, and even Hungary.
BUT, one of my biggest moments of my career was performing at my first Thunderdome event in Leeuwarden, Holland on April 20th, 1996.This was my first performance to a crowd of 20,000 people and I really rocked the house! People still talk about my set and my performance that night! It went so well that I decided to do a stage drive at the end of my performance. Unfortunately, the stage dive did not turn out too good and the people were in shock and did not even try to catch me!
What specifically are you planning to give to the audience at Hard Electronic?
I will be filled with positive energy and many new tracks! One special surprise is a brand new remix from Tommyknocker of DJ Delirium & Buzz Fuzz – Immortality! I also plan to play some new stuff from my label with Satronica & John Bas, Kontaminated Recordings. Which, by the way, please help support our brand and label!
Gxnnxr’s has helped keep the hard dance vibe alive on the East Coast for a few years now. But how many of you know anything about him other than standing in the middle of one of his ripping sets? We got his head out of range of the near-field monitors for a second to get a little background for the THD faithful!
Where are you from?
I’m from Harrisburg, PA, but you can usually find me at events in Philly, DC, and Baltimore because there isn’t a scene in Harrisburg. I think the biggest way that those areas have influenced me is to be more open minded about all genres. The scenes are pretty eclectic and the parties will have a huge variety of music. I think that reflects in my music because I sometimes include different styles and samples that wouldn’t be considered techno by some traditional techno lovers.
What’s the story behind your DJ Name?
My real name is Gunnar. When I started my solo project, I wanted a name which was more similar to my own name. X’s looked better than vowels, so I just ran with it.
Gxnnxr is playing at Hard Electronic Spetember 8, 2017.
Who or what events in your life are responsible for you being the artist you are today?
I think the biggest influence on me has been my experience running East Coast Hard Dance and Audio Havok with Eugene and the rest of the crew. All the traveling, meeting new people, and exchanging ideas have help shape me as a person, not just an artist.
There’s a theory that says experiencing new things helps connect neurons in the brain, which unleashes creativity because you see the world in a slightly different way. My experience in ECHD has for sure made me a believer. I’ve seen my musical creativity explode since we’ve been having all these new experiences traveling and running events.
What moment so far in your career do you cherish the most?
The best moment for me was the first big party that I ever played. Epic Adventure 2 in DC back in 2012. That was back when I was playing Hardstyle with my DJ partner Derick as The Qontrollers.
I remember the max capacity of the club was about 1,500 people, but 3,000 showed up. Most of the people crammed in to the room that we were playing in never heard Hardstyle before. It must’ve been over 120 degrees, you couldn’t breathe, and everyone was dressed in Adventure Time costumes, but the place was just bouncing. Anyone who was there still talks about that party. We went on to play bigger and crazier parties, but no party has been able to match the incredible vibe.
What’s the idea behind your music?
My music is meant to be fun for the crowd. I see a lot of artists who make music that is super technical and is hard to appreciate if you’re not a producer. That kind of stuff is great to listen to at home, but doesn’t always translate to a crowd. I just try to create something that is dancefloor ready and makes people want to move. That’s what dance music is all about for me.
What specifically are you planning to give to the audience at Hard Electronic?
I’m going to be warming up the techno stage, so I’ll be bringing some darker and some harder techno. Come out to Hard Electronic this weekend and have a good time with us!
