‘I’m very much that way, controlled aggression.’
Quentin Hiatus brings us into the world of I’m Neither Quentin Nor Hiatus with all it’s sidestreets, alleyways and unknown pleasures, all made with the assistance of his car. Yes, his car.
Plus he’s delivered an exclusive free track.
Let’s go!
Hello sir what are you up to?
Hey man! I’m currently gearing up for show this weekend at Solstice here in my home town of Phoenix. Solstice is a legendary house night, so I’m excited. I’m partnering with the Provisions Crew to bring some new flavor for the night. Big up D and the whole Provisions Crew.
I’m also about to murder this breakfast, I’m excited about that.
What are some things that you do day when you’re not doing music?
Ha ha, I knew this question would come at some point. Well, I’m a family man and career guy by day, working in software.
Aside from that, I spend time with my wife and son. Play lots of basketball, run and my guilty pleasure of playing Dragon Ball Z Xenoverse. I happen to be ranked #52 in the world online Dork level Over 9,000!
You’ve been busy on the music front and I wanted to touch on I’m Neither Quentin Nor Hiatus first of all… can we talk about your work with Kryptomedic?
Mike is a great dude, we’ve been chatting and working together for quite a while now. The first track we did together was on my Conspirators ep called ‘Nyctophilia’.
He’s experienced awesome success over the years linking with EatBrain, Blackout, Let It Roll Festivals and of course FLD.
I’m proud of him and happy to work with him on projects. I built the new track around his haunting chorus and wanted to go super minimal and ominous with the beat.
What inspired the release in general, and the title?
I had so much music piling up! Creating FLD has allowed me to control the flow and style of music I put out. I’m the only one to please, which is nice. The release was inspired by self reflection and recognizing who I’ve grown into.
I’m not one thing, I’m a combination of things. I’m not just Quentin the dad or husband, or Quentin Hiatus the music guy. I’m the sum of those things. Fusion if you will.
Dragon Ball is a huge inspiration of mine. ‘I’m Neither Quentin Nor Hiatus’ was actually a play on dialogue from a famous DBZ character Piccolo. He fused with Kami and made the statement ‘I’m Neither Kami Nor Piccolo’.
And ’56’?
This tune features vocals from Stokely Carmichael. Giving a speech at a university in the 60s – Civil Rights Speech. This tune is a bit odd as it has deep serene pads and keys but very dirty electric sounding mid range.
This tune is about the struggle and the tendency to act with aggression with things get tough. I’m very much that way, controlled aggression.
‘Kuchi Kopi’? I feel like there’s loads of personality and personalities in the release. Are there? Snapshots of people?
You couldn’t be more accurate. Each tune is inspired by a different figure or person in my life. ‘Kuchi Kopi’ is an off character from Bob’s Burgers, a show a good friend of mine introduced me too.
The tranquil and eerie nature of this character inspired me to make a track similar to this character and how I interpreted it.
Stress has been higher than normal in my life and my creative output has increased with this influx.
It’s funny, I made most of this album in my car: on my laptop with an auxiliary cable running to my car stereo.
This album was my escape and I hope it helps others deal with difficult situations in life.
You’ve also released some half time music, the ‘Our Love’, why were you inspired to do this… is it something that hits a certain spot with you? The tempo?
I started making ‘halftime’ D&B back before I even knew what it was – 2009-ish. I still worked in Reason 4 at the time and made a tune called ‘Different Strokes’ which was the first halftime tune that I actually finished and released.
This tune was remixed by my friend Stunna and released on IM:ltd on vinyl.
I started making halftime tunes to bring D&B closer to hip hop and slow the groove to a head nodding experience. Just a natural evolution in my process as I have a deep underground hip-hop background.
Can you tell us about the free tune you’ve magnificently giving away? Thanks.
Yes, I love this tune! It’s inspired by deep-yet-current hip-hop but at a 170 tempo.
The pads and piano make the tune super serene and deep. The mid range bass is super slightly nuero-inspired and glitchy.
To me, it’s beautiful and a little bit twisted.
… and final sentiments?
Big up all the usual suspects: My wife Simone, FLD Crew, Provisions Crew PHX, Recon Denver, Onset Crew Seattle and all the people sticking with me through my musical journey.
One Love!
I’m Neither Quentin Nor Hiatus
‘Soul Implant’: DNBA exclusive track
