Q&A with Skytree: Organic Dubstep from the Twin Cities
507projex
Skytree (Evan Synder) is a producer based in the Twin Cities. His latest album, Crystal Consciousness, is available on his Bandcamp page for the low, low price of pay what you want.
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507: You have been making electronic music for quite some time. What was the original reason you got into writing music? Is that the same passion that fuels you current work?
Skytree: Indeed man…I've been at it for over a decade now. The initial reason for creating music was an intense curiosity following the discovery that I could make sounds I hadn't heard before (I was using a very bare-bones Yahama keyboard, Boss DR-5 drum machine and multi-FX board at the time). I remember it was like stumbling into a portal to hyperspace…I dove in headfirst and it's beamed me along ever since. To this day I still refer to my studio as a "soundship" for that reason! To be honest, another major initial draw was just the escapism of it, but that's become less the case as time goes on…the act of creation is more an expression unto itself these days, rather than a diversion.
507: So you forged a soundship, maneuvered it through a portal to hyperspace, and on the other side you found a calling? Nice. Are you more focused with your song writing now that is less a diversion (and more a career)?
Skytree: Exactly brother. I realized about a year ago that it would never become a career unless I treated it like one…felt I had to let the Universe and my Muse know I was serious, essentially! I would be very honored and extremely blessed if this could become an even bigger part of my life as time goes on. Not just for my benefit, but hopefully for the benefit of All (which is really what it's all about).
507: You have a great music video for your track “See-Through Time” (from your latest release, Crystal Consciousness LP). The star of your video (aside from the music and awesome editing) is the legendary David Elsewhere (David Bernal)…how did you get David to dance for your video?
Skytree: Glad you were able to check it out brother…really appreciate your kind words. The opportunity to work with David essentially dropped into my lap when he contacted me through MySpace, believe it or not, to compliment my last album, "Hyphae". He has been my favorite dancer since I could remember, so I wrote back right away and things went from there…the idea of a music video came up, and he immediately offered to help. That's when I knew it had to be done! He is such an incredible, generous and crazy talented dude.
507: Can you talk about the process of conceiving and creating this video?
Skytree: I had been getting into light graffiti or light painting around the time David contacted me, working out ideas for my next album cover. Lots of these ideas came from dreams, as did the vision of a person dancing in light trails. Since I'd found only a handful of videos online involving light graffiti in motion (most are static shots), I realized it could be a great opportunity to do something really unique with David. He's been involved in an incredible number of projects, some of them very high budget and high profile, so we had to do something different in a big way with very little money. Setting the video outdoors and loosely basing the narrative on the transition from day to night just came out of the track itself and the general feeling of the dream I had. I am very, very glad to say that the final product looks almost exactly like my visuals from the dream, largely thanks to the insane number of hours put in by my great friend Ian (the director), whom I've known since I was a kid.
507: How else do you incorporate your dreams into your work, musical/visual or otherwise?
Skytree: Dreams have always factored into my work, but that's been on the up swing, without a doubt. I say the term "dream" loosely as well, so to others it could mean "vision" or "daydream"…sometimes I call them "downloads" for lack of a better way to describe it. Basically, I'm just a prism or a conduit for my muse (Skytree, Yggdrasil, the World Tree, etc.) and often it shows me what I should create in moments of stillness, both asleep and awake. In the past year, for instance, I've been having very intricate dreams and waking visions about crystalline structures…these are often so specific that I "wake up" with a precise understanding of what crystal or mineral I've been shown, without having any prior knowledge of it. The strangest bit is that these crystals or minerals often find their way into my life within 24 hours of these visions…this has had a great deal to do with the inspiration for and title of the album. I don't fully understand it, but it's a powerful, shamanic/psychedelic feeling. A gift from the Universe…
507: We talked a little about your latest album, Crystal Consciousness, can you elaborate on the the meaning of that title?
Skytree: Crystal Consciousness refers to many things to me actually (and others are also welcome to create their own interpretation). The first is the idea of a more crystalline state of mind, often achieved during meditation or deep relaxation, where our consciousness seems much clearer, lighter and more balanced. The second idea relates to the increased presence of crystals in my life and spiritual practices, acknowledging the possibility that they may also be conscious forms of energy (as I believe everything is). The third, and perhaps heaviest connotation is rooted in the idea of "Christ consciousness" ("crystal" shares the same root), or unconditional, all-pervasive love...I don't mean this in a strictly Christian sense as I don't align myself with any particular religion, but the idea intrigues me a great deal. I personally believe that unconditional, all-pervasive love is what will help humanity overcome its current challenges more than any political, economic or systemic fix. I've witnessed this unconditional love popping up everywhere these days, sometimes in very unexpected places, so it gives me great hope for our future.
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