Double Helix has emerged relatively silently from his Austrian hideaway with the streamlined, hi-octane beast that is Engine on Ammunition Recordings. Time to lift the hood and have a tinker. Not to mention going pretty deep on the philosophical front too, mind.
Hi Double Helix. ‘Engine’ itself is utterly compelling: I feel it hits with a unique energy, unlike anyone elses’s work: was it long in making?
It was already done when I evolved my mixing and mastering techniques to a next level and took some time to do… but I can’t put a number on how long!
For my final mixdown I had to get back into the project and mix it from scratch with my new techniques. But I think the outcome is alright.
Leftfield question: If ‘Engine’ implies ‘energy’, do you think humanity harnesses energy well enough? I’m obsessed with this. I’d argue that we are just learning, that we waste too much.
I can’t object to that. For me humanity feels very ‘young’ in a way. We waste resources like we aren’t able to think two steps ahead.
Technically I think we could build stuff like engines today that would last for centuries and consume much less energy. But that’s obviously not fitting into our economic system.
What in general influences you, or does it all come from within the creative process? Is the process itself inspiring?
I get influenced by a lot of things, like other music, books, movies, people I meet or just everyday situations.
But also jamming with a synth and making a lot of weird noises can be inspiring.
One of the things that’s very motivating for me is that moment when you’re working on a loop and you’re trying to find a nice groove and then it catches you for the first time, and you think: Oh that’s nice!
You’re getting into some kind of flowand a lot of ideas how to evolve the tune start crossing your mind. But I also have these depressing hours in the studio, when nothing sounds right: frustrating.
‘Deep Down’ on the flip is again completely unique… I love the ‘turbulent’ nature of the synths, the vibe… this is really artistic! I listened to it five times on repeat and didn’t want to listen to anything else! I got stung.
Sweet!
I made this tune when Ammunition Rec already told me that they wanted to sign ‘Engine’ and I needed a flip. I really like how it turned out.
I used my VirusTI a lot for this tune. I also like the emotion that is mostly transported through the pads in the third part and also in the intro.
It´s like a sad and also a little painful feeling that gives you a sense of beauty, in a way.
But I think it’s not crossing the line of getting ‘cheap’.
What do you do when you’re not making music?
I work at a cinema part time and I have a family, so my timetable is really tight. But that’s also a good thing because you appreciate time in a very different way.
And do you get beset by ideas when you’re not creating, so that you need to get back to the studio fast? To get the ideas down? ha ha… torture!
Yeah, especially when I lay in bed and try to sleep my mind is going crazy on my projects and a lot of Ideas are coming how to do this or how to try that. Luckily I remember most of the things the next day, so I can try the stuff in the studio.
I also noticed when I’m not able to work in my studio for a longer period then I get really unsatisfied. I guess it’s a good sign.
Now I love the cover artwork! tell me about it…
A friend of mine, Simon Goritschnig made this cover. He is also doing all the graphics for Deep Field Audio. I wasn´t sure where Engine would be signed but he started making this cover anyway. So I send it over to Ammunition and they liked it.
Check out his other stuff if you like:
… and so, are visuals important to you? With slick and defined music such as yours it must be a huge temptation to get some amazing slick and abstract and BIG visuals up on screen behind you?
I have to say that the live show of ISAM by Amon Tobin was the best thing I ever laid eyes – and of course my ears – on. I think visual art works perfectly with D&B. But most of the time it seems very random to me when I’m in a club.
For now, I am working on a spherical video art project together with Simon. It will be a video and light installation which will be triggered by sound. Let´s see where this will go.
What sounds are you feeling right now, any genre, and why?
Inside D&B there are of course some artist that are very groundbreaking and forward-thinking like Phace, Misanthrop, Noisia, Hybris, Mefjus and so on.
Outside D&B I listen to a lot of different music of different genres. Here are some tunes outside D&B I may check…
– Mahavishnu Orchestra The Inner Mounting Flame
Just amazing musicians. I like the flow and the density of information they deliver.
– Hotline Miami OST
Amazing soundtrack and amazing game!
– Nick Cave & The Bad Seeds ‘Red Right Hand’
Nick Cave, what can I say…
– Led Zeppelin ‘Dazed And Confused’
Simply: a f*cking good tune!
– Alexander Mossolow Iron Foundry
That is some crazy classic piece of music right there. But outstanding.
Can I get any forthcomings from you?
I got some forthcoming stuff by myself and also some collabs with Host, Sustance and Bowsar inbound. And that artproject will be shown somewhere in Vienna I guess… watch out!