Gydyr

Origin: None

Gydyr is a digital leader who, with his trademark vibrational life-altering basslines, seeks to navigate through the chaos faced in this modern world. In a reality of spiritual unfulfillment and electronic chaos, we are all looking for a place of inspiration and connection. Gydyr has a vision in which through music we can bridge the gap between the seeds of our natural path and the growth of our electronic future. His all original and self-produced sound combines the pulsating chuggyness of classic house music with the deep reverberating resonance that dubstep is worshiped for.

There have been many strong roots that aided the musical growth of Gydyr. He has been playing drums since the age of six, started producing his own music in 2003, and has been rocking the decks since 2005. Until this year Gydyr was VITAMINDEVO, famous for dropping his acid tech house sounds of sunrise up and down the West Coast and NY areas, all while wearing an LED mask. He was also half of duo 3L3TRONIC, known for their wild Burning Man shows and their mainstage performance at Lovevolution 2009.

Gydyr seeks a balanced existence. He strives to learn from the past, look towards the future, but always worship the present moment, the only true time where music and connections can exist. With an authentic sound, a new vision, and an all-original artist album on the way (featuring collaborations with Nicole Torres and Bianca Dino), there’s a new digital spirit guide on the scene.

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What is a Gydyr? This is the question I have been asked more times then anything over the past eight months since the introduction of the alias. Lets take a step back into who the man is behind the name, before it has its explanation. Over the past decade I have been going by other aliases, all with a mix of vibes and genres. As an artist it is my job and duty to myself, and the people around me, to push the boundaries of my style, format and presentation. With all that said, my new sound has a massive overlap of genres, with bass at the forefront. Gydyr is a spirit guide in today’s fast-paced society, using music and art to ask questions about the world around us, and how we can move forward.

 

Interview

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Home Town: Roxbury, CT
Currently Living: San Francisco, CA
Origin Of Name: After multiple festivals and deep conversations, a good friend of mine called me his spirit guide.
Weapon of Choice: As one classic dubstep tune samples “we seek knowledge” I know that having a foundation of knowledgeable and life experiences go a long way towards creating music with heart and soul.
Source of Power: Meditation, interaction with people in reality—outside of pixels and friend requests.

Was there one particular moment in the recording or mixing process for your Discovery Project entry that made you feel like you were creating something pretty damn special?
The competition I entered was the Escape from Wonderland event. A Halloween theme song seemed like a great focus for me to whip something up. When I write music having a visual reference for vibe always helps me create something faster and more solid. When I was on version two or three of the song “Headless Hollow,” I knew it was about to get real. It has that eerie vibe, and that driving force to get you through the night. Through it feeling like you went on a late-night adventure through a forest in New England.

Are there any dots to connect with where/how you grew up to your musical output? From people freestyling on the street corner to a grand piano forced down your throat by your Mom.
Funny you should mention the mom thing. My parents were both very musically inclined. My Dad is a singer/songwriter whose musical styles are all over the board, while my Mom is a signer more into show tunes and theatricals. On my 6th birthday “Santa” delivered a drum set to me. Everyday after school I would bang away over and over on those things. Eventually my parents built a working recording studio in an off section of the house where several big name musicians came to record in the middle of the woods in Connecticut. It was there that I was handed musical knowledge that has stuck with me over the years.

What do your parents think of what you are doing?
My parents love what I am doing, and play my music to everyone around them. Although my dad isn’t a lover of electronic music, he understands the passion and drive I have towards what I do. During a recent two-month adventure with my dad to Costa Rica, he got a better window into my process, and thus a greater respect level towards the art of writing electronic music.

What’s the strangest part of your job?
The fact that so many people are willing to gather in a positive way to come together and dance baffles me over and over. It’s also the main reason I do what I do. A person dancing is the purest physical manifestation of music that exists.

What’s the biggest misconception about being a DJ?
That you must be rich and famous! Like any job of art form there are multiple levels of fame and fortune. I do my best to educate the people around me, who haven’t been exposed, to the process of how it all comes to be. I want to be approachable and share my experience with the people around me. Whether they are fans or other artists, we are all just people.

Tell me about your most memorable night out.
As an artist, I have to say opening up for Knife Party at the Warfield in SF to a sold-out crowd of 2200 was pretty awesome. I ended that set knowing: “I could do this every day, go to sleep, wake up and do it over and over til I die.” There are so many as a fan that I could write a book of inspirations. One of many experiences that blew my mind was at Burning Man in 2004. It was the first time I walked up to a DJ. I remember clearly that as he was dropping these massive tunes and that I could see his hair swinging every which way. He was just so into what he was doing, and his energy was fueling the 200 or so people dancing up a dust storm. It was epic. That DJ was Bassnectar.

Do you have any memorable moments from past EDC’s or any other Insomniac party?
My one and only EDC experience was in 2012. I went as a general patron, and waited in every line with no special treatment. I actually love to go to events sometimes and pretend I know nothing of the industry or the artists. It’s hard after being in the scene for so long to go to a show or festival and really feel that same magic that the eighteen-year-old kid next to you is feeling. I felt like I was able to at EDC. The level of production was insane, I haven’t been to an event with that many people since I was sixteen at Woodstock in 1999.

How does what you do for a living affect you on a day-to-day basis?
I am a creative person. I am an artist. I can’t help but spend my days creating, sometimes I happen to get paid for my creativity, but that does not negate the fact that I do it for me.

What is your ultimate career dream?
I believe in my art and the art of others I pull in to my circle, and I want to bring people together to create something larger than myself. I want to perform to as many inspired dreamers and new thinkers as possible, and leave them with the knowledge and courage to believe in their own power. Through my newest project, “Laser Native” I hope to bring these people together through music and community, and give them a platform to accomplish their dreams.

Are you impulsive with your work or do you have a sketch in mind before you start?
I am a very visual person (I’m also a creative director) and having visuals of scenes really helps me write. I spend a lot of time experimenting and coming up with concepts, but writing songs usually doesn’t take me that long. I say, “This is what I want to accomplish,” and I either accomplish it or come up with something better along the way. I don’t release everything I make either, I am selective. Sometimes it takes three tracks to write one song for release. They are all part of the evolution and learning process.

How, if at all, does listening to music figure into your creative process?
I listen to tons of music, mixes, songs of all genres and styles. I go out often and dance to all sorts of different DJs. What moves me is the DJ being excited. If their songs are awesome and they just stand there like they don’t care, then, I don’t either.

What’s the most important piece of gear in your studio and why?
My hand to eye coordination. Without me, the manufactured gear is a pile of metal with circuits.

How important is it for you to experiment and take on the risk of failure?
Fail daily as the saying goes. I’m not out to set records, I’m out to create lasting memories, and that takes time to produce. Failure is a part of success and anyone who disagrees is doomed to fail.

Do you have a list of people you’d like to collaborate with in the future?
I believe in the work and respect the following legends for various reasons. Richie Hawtin inspires me by his use of technology in order to push his style. Listening to the Crystal Method’s Vegas when I was teenager blew my mind. Uberzone for destroying subwoofers (and drum sticks). Tipper for the amazing things that come out of that man’s mind. Steve Aoki’s whole brand experience is so fun—I would be laughing my ass off all day long. This list could span for days. There are a few legends that I would love to someday have the opportunity to either bullshit about life with on a beach in Ibiza, or get down and make art on any level. I don’t think of them as some higher entity, I think of them as my peers. We all learn from each other and educating others always lead to inspiration.

If we pressed Shuffle on your iPod while you went to the bathroom, what would you be embarrassed to come back to us listening to?
Madonna “Ray Of Light” (but you didn’t hear that from me). In all honesty, does this sound weird…I don’t actually have any music on my iPhone. I just stream all my music from Soundcloud. My phone is more full of Instagram photos than music.

What sound or noise do you love?
The one that makes you go, “Holy crap my chest feels like it’s going to vibrate out off my body.” Yeah you know the one.

What should everyone just shut the fuck up about?
All the hate speech about this and that genre and people that eww ravers, and dubstep. Seriously stop it, stop complaining and start making stuff you like.

What gets you excited when you think about the future of electronic music and club culture?
I really like the live element. In the ‘90s it felt like there was a lot more live electronic bands, and now it seems that is making a come back in a major way. I’m also excited that the actual sound systems are becoming incredible. Ten years ago most shows I went to had the worst sound systems and monitors, I don’t think people understand how lucky they are with a Funktion One setup and a dope engineer. I’m also excited about the whole experience vibe. VJs have become center stage of what used to be a behind-the-scenes process. With all the YouTube, Twitter and never ending social networks, nothing replaces just dancing your ass off and losing ten pounds of sweat in front of a subwoofer while surrounded by friends.

When you look at electronic music and the surrounding culture, what worries you about the future?
I have to say, I’m not worried about the future at all. All the technology in the world cant make something that’s bad, good. I want to see more integration between the stage setups and the crowd. Lets face it, without crowds, large or small, we would be playing to ourselves…we should focus on the wants and needs of the fans for they are what drives us to make cooler setups, and create better experiences. We work for the fans.

What are your weaknesses?
Girls who spin fire in the jungles of Costa Rica. Actually, girls who spin fire anywhere.

Do you have a secret passion?
Lasers. Seriously can I just get some freakin’ lasers on my stage, is that too much to ask?

How would you describe your sound to a deaf person?
I wouldn’t describe anything. All speakers truly do is push air at different speeds and our ears interpret that as sound. I would invite them into a room with a sound system and play a sample for them. They would feel the sound the same way anyone else does, throughout their bodies and other senses. Music is more than just sound or noise, it is vibrational energy.

Is success physical or internal?
I measure success by how happy I am, and how happy others are around me. Do I feel successful? Yes I do, but I still have more to achieve every day. Success is not about maintaining, it is about constantly pushing and challenging yourself to new levels.

What do you remember about your first DJ gig?
I opened for this little after-hour’s venue (ok, fine it was a candy rave) in Hartford, Connecticut dressed as some sort of a scary doctor creature. My costume was horrible, but I played a great set! I had been practicing for years before actually playing out, and it paid off!

What’s the hardest professional lesson you’ve learned thus far?
Just because your name is on a big flyer, or you get a ton of plays on YouTube, or you have a dope time slot, or you win a competition, it doesn’t mean anything if you are doing it for the wrong reason. Stay true to yourself, do “it” whatever that is, 110%. If you don’t fit in, then that’s a good thing in the long run, because it means you are doing something different. Stay focused, deflect negative energy and you will succeed,

Do you have a favorite all-time mixed CD or series?
I could listen to Digweed’s Transitions series over and over and over…

What advice would you offer someone thinking about entering the Discovery Project competition?
Ask yourself: “Do you want to win the competition just to say you won, or do you want to create some great work for yourself, and then submit it for the competition?” Although it is a competition, it’s curated, so create your best work, instead of just blasting out the latest machine gun sample track.

Last words?
Lets do this people! Wake up, it’s your time to shine, the more time we spend on being negative the less time we spend on creating. At the end of the day the people who are successful are the ones putting in the time and getting better at what they do. Here’s a challenge for you all, do something that makes you uncomfortable, if you produce trance, sit down and produce dubstep. The lessons learned during those sessions will make whatever genre you produce scream in the future. Come on…do it, I dare you. With all this genre speak, I leave you with this. Lets come together to create vibes not genres.

Winning Track:

 

 

Winning Mix:

 

 

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