New Animation Pixel art Music Video for our 2’st single from the Collaborative E.P. between Producer/Dj – Peter Spacey & Barcelona Based Beatmaker/Producer – Skygaze, featuring UK Rapper – Xidus Pain The E.P. combines influences of Electronica and Spacey Beats, Bass, Glitch, Organic Sounds, Downtempo, Hip Hop & Groove. The Artists first Joined forces after gaining individual achievements, played on BBC Radio, Boiler Room, DMC Championship, HBO, and working with Public Enemy.
Tell us a few things about The Blend. What is the main idea behind it?
‘The Blend’ broken-down is a positive song, lyrically it’s stacked with endless wordplay which compliments the futurist, HipHop, electronic and Spacey sounding score. The wordplay in the song is linked to space and the universe. The inner universe within you and the outer universe all around us. A nice fact about the song is it was written whilst myself and Peter Spacey were on an Instagram video call
How would you describe your musical progress over the years?
Xidus: “My musical progress has been great over the last couple of years. I have written 40 projects in the last 40 months, and I’ve got to work with some legendary people, I have just delivered a Tedx Talk, I have recently been awarded a BBC / AIM Music Local Hero Award, and having the pleasure to collaborate with Peter Spacey is the Skygaze is the icing on the cake.”
Spacey: “I’m coming from a traditional background as a professional keyboard player, alongside early exposure to electronic music, beat-making, Djing (Turntablism), and music production. I started playing the keyboard at the age of 7 – my first 5 years were focused on traditional music education as a classical piano player, which later transitioned into jazz keyboard playing. I started Djing at the age of 15, bought turntables, learned the art of scratch, and grew up listening to electronic music and experimenting with synthesizers and drum machines, sampling, and beat-making. My sound signature is a result of these combination flavors and is characterized by Spacey beats, glitched grooves, and some secret spices 🙂 These three elements are the main elements of my music-making – at the studio when creating and cooking my Spacey music, and on stage while performing. Using these methods, skillset, and tools that surround me gives a solid framework for my creative process. Throughout the years of living with the music beside and inside of me, I found a way to express myself and to communicate through music. I was always fascinated by frequencies, harmonies, and sounds, and was obsessed from early age days to playing by ear musical pieces that I love, synthesizing sounds, and exploring all the different dimensions of music.”
What first got you into music?
I’ve always loved music due to my mother playing music around me as a child from Soul Music, Gospel Music, Reggae Music, traditional Zimbabwean and African Music. My older brother got me into rapping. My mentors The Sugarhill Gang’s song “Rapper’s Delight” is the first rap song I remember hearing and liking as a baby.
Spacey: “I grew up immersed in music, raised by musician parents in an innovative, inspiring musical environment. Music was always there for me, a way to express myself, to communicate, to groove and move to, and to relax into. I used to sit with my father during sessions when he was doing compositions and orchestrations for theater, making electronic music on his computer, or playing the guitar. Also, when mom’s lessons when she was teaching flute. Also listening to music at home – everything from popular oldies throughout Brasilian and jazz up to electronic. Some artists that influenced me the most in my first years were – Jobim, Chick-Korea, Jean Michel Jaar, Beastie boys, Fatboyslim, Gorillaz, and Queen, to name a few.”
Your dream collaboration?
Xidus: “My dream collaboration would have to be Jay-Z, common or Kanye. I love their beat choices, song arrangement and lyrics. The fact that they still make amazing, interesting and current music after over 20 years in the HipHop game is a testament within itself.”
Spacey “Collaborate with Nasa – play my music on the outer space / make music out of outer space field recordings, experiments with some music physics anomalies and science in the unordinary environment.”
What would you change in the music industry?
Xidus: “I would shift the power over so the artist has more control than their label. I would also make sure artists get more money for streams and have more of a balance when it comes to messages sent out to listeners within mainstream music.
In which state of mind do you imagine people might listen to your music?
Xidus: “My music is mood music I have over 40 projects which explore different subject matter. I call it mood music due to having a project or song for different emotions and occasions so people can take their pick.”
What is the most useless talent you have?
Xidus: “I am good at classic beat ’em up video games, for example games like Street Fighter 2, Mortal Kombat, Marvel Vs capcom, Tekken, Soul Calibur and Power Stone. Spacey: “i know how to make huge soap bubbles”
Tell us a few things about your new work Spacey Beats 4 Scratch, Vol. What is the story behind it?
SB4S Vol. 2 is a collection of Spacey beats that are made from my pure love for turntablism, 8-bit synthesis, Hip Hop, Electronics, Groove & Space. After using the turntable as a musical instrument and production tool for more than a decade, I decided to produce a collection of Turntablism-oriented beats with a dedication to the creative Djing artists. My intention was to give those beats a bigger meaning, more than just music on the streaming platforms. I wanted to contribute to the Turntablism and creative Djing worldwide community. I partnered up with ‘Tablet Beats’ app – a tool used by the worldwide Skratch DJs, lyricists & dancer community and released the beats via their app. I wanted my music to be more than just music to listen to, to be a tool for creatives, to learn their craft, express themselves, interact with my music and create something new. I also decided to share/submit it to ‘Artlist’ catalog – an original music platform for the use of worldwide filmmakers, video editors, and moviemakers. The beats obtained huge exposure since I released them, and I received a lot of warm messages from a wide spectrum of creators, from Djs that use them for study purposes or playing in clubs, to filmmakers who use them in Videos, commercials, & films.
Do you like the idea of collaborating? Is songwriting a lonely process?
Collaborating is fun, always refreshing the perspective of the creative process. The end result is always surprising and it helps you break out of your comfort zone. With that, I never get bored working alone and like spending hours in the studio by myself, making beats, exploring different sounds, blips and blops, synthesizing, producing, and playing around. I surround myself with fun instruments and toys, they give me inspiration and I feel like I’m collaborating with them :).
Favourite album of the past decade?
Hi This Is Flume (Mixtape) – an audiovisual masterpiece, it’s basically an album but actually so much more, and for me it symbolizes the 21-century albums, an audiovisual / digital experience. Everything is so fresh, accurate, from the sound design and music tracks to the visual aesthetics, how it all coordinates and correlates in perfect harmony.
What is the biggest challenge you have faced as an artist so far?
The biggest challenge I have faced as an artist was in May 2018 when I released my first beat tape. For the album release party I decided to make an audio-visual exhibition based on augmented reality technology / experience. For the first time in my career, I had to face the physical materialistic world as an artist. print canvases, cut papers, and do all kinds of things outside of my familiar musical world. Looking back, I feel that this was the first step out of my comfort zone as a musician and this opportunity raised me up from being only a musician and made me the artist I am today.
If you were asked to rescore a film, which one would you choose?
Hmm, that’s a good one. It will be one of the twos: Sci-Fi film I’ll do a spacey electronic synth-based soundtrack or Rescore one of Hayao Miyazaki’s films, not because I feel that the music is not good or I can do better, I actually think the original scoring is brilliant, fits so well and is irreplaceable, but I feel like composing a soundtrack for Miyazaki’s films is absolute freedom, working with a huge symphonic orchestra, or playing intimate mellow piano parts. It is very much about storytelling, and I love storytelling using music.
HipHop Paranoia 