artist revue

Abyss is one of those types of musicians where he is talented across the board, dabbling in many aspects of creating music. In his own words, he’s a multi-instrumentalist, turntablist, producer/composer, audio engineer, DJ, mad scientist, indecent exposer, Egyptian librarian, tri-force collector, Voltron pilot, stargazer, and master of the universe. If that isn’t enough to raise your brow, he’s also one of PLUGOLA’s top-selling artists.

We were able to corner Abyss long enough to ask him a few questions about how he got started, where he’s heading and some of his favorite work

When/how did you get started?

I grew tired of playing in bands and bought my first beat machine (Roland 505) in 1999. I have been making beats ever since.

Will you share a Few of your favorite songs?

1. stereo for chris

I made this track for my younger brother, it came together quickly and people seem to like it.

2. ninja scroll

was a fun track to make flows well and I’m really obsessed with Japanese instruments

3. killing with positive vibes

my latest track

Where did you get your name? Is there a story behind it?

A lot of my first tracks (and many still) are very deep and dark so that’s how i came up with the name abyss.

What instruments do you use to create your music?

I primarily use Logic to make my music, sometimes I use reason or abelton with a few outboard synths. For live performance I use Serato with 1200’s.

What genre do you classify your music? Who are your influences?

I do several different styles of music including down-tempo, hip hop, drum and bass, experimental, dub step, and IDM.

My influences are all over the place but I grew up listening to a lot of rock. These days I’m diggin a lot of experimental hip hop coming out of LA.

What are the main themes or topics for most of your songs?

My themes can be a culture or sound that i find interesting at that moment. Some of my tracks reflect a specific time in my life and are more emotional and some are just silly and pointless. Usually I just have an idea and try to make it come to life.

What has been your biggest challenge as a musician? Have you been able to overcome that challenge?

My biggest challenge might be finishing my tracks sometimes I call them done when they still need more work and I go back and try to fix them and I have forgotten the direction or idea of the song. So to overcome this challenge I try to take a couple days to process mentally what else the track needs etc.

What’s your ultimate direction as a musician?

To make headphone music and play out on the regular. Hit markets around the globe and spread love through music.

Can you share some of your milestones and/or accomplishments?

I am working on one now that I can’t talk about but if it goes well I’ll have some gigs coming up in Japan.

Is there anyone you’d like to acknowledge for offering financial or emotional support?

My friends and family are pretty supportive of me, financial support would be nice but I’ll take what I can get lol.

What advice do you have for people who want to create their own music?

Follow your heart, avoid the norm, and hustle.

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You can hear more of Abyss and download all his music by visiting any one of his profiles:

http://plugo.la/Abyss
http://www.myspace.com/abyssrecordings