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TheBeatRanch.com - Interviews - Cynex


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Finishing off our July interviews we have former Beat Ranch resident Cynex.

While the name Cynex may not ring a bell for some of you over on the other side of the pond, over here in Toronto, Cynex has made his name known and then some. Cynex's style of smooth and techincal mixing have earned him gigs at major festivals such as WEMF and Destiny, to underground events under bridges and warehouses. While he may been well known for his DJing, his unique productions have made their way on to labels such as The Beat Ranch Digital & BassTeasers Digital.

Now with out any further ado, Cynex

Welcome back Cynex, you are no stranger to us as you were one of the original 6 DJs that was featured on our site, as well you have had a remix of Fuck The Prom Queen on The Beat Ranch Digital. We'll start with the usual, where abouts are you from and do you think that it had any influence on your music?

Well I moved around as a baby a lot, but I grew up in a small town named Paisley, Ontario...For the majority of the time there, no, it didn’t have much influence on my music, until I met a guy in High School named James Campbell, who’s family just moved from the UK. He overheard me in the computer lab one day working away on a c++ program, while watching demoscene applications, with my headphones on and Chris Sheppard blaring in the background. He was in OAC (Grade 13) and took a real shining to me I suppose, as he too followed the demoscene. He offered to teach me the musical side of it. I had no idea what I was doing in that department, but I was intrigued to see what it was about…So he gave me a copy of Fast Tracker II and a starter samplebank.

So its safe to say that production came before DJing

Ya, as mentioned in the last question, definitely producing…nothing serious of course, just a series of kicks, hits, bleeps and bloops…but it was a start.

You have had the opportunity to play at some of the biggest events here in Toronto, what has been your favorite event to play at so far?

Hands down I would have to say the Purity – Message in a Bottle party. Probably because I was so involved with it I may sound a little biased…but this was the first time in a LONG time that I saw so much effort go into an event, and im not just speaking about me. This team really came together and pulled off something magical. That, and the sound / lighting setup we rented from InFused / Westbury was one of the best ive seen put together in … well…forever, in the “rave” scene at least.

How about the worst event?

I would have to say that it was a gig out in Welland, it was shady at best…the guys couldn’t even cover our gas to drive down there…instead, they tried to pawn off a very broken numark turntable on us, im not even talking a good one even worth repairing, im talking the 1625 starter models…it was a little more than insulting.

Your record collection is huge to say the least. Do you remember your first record that you bought and do you still have it?

The first record I bought was Alien Project – Don’t worry be groovy. It was a double pack set with BPM’s listed on it, so I figured it was the best learning set for me to get. Soon after that though, my buddy Kevin aka Michael Saunders, lent me a stack of vinyl, which got me right on my way to learning. Most of them were old and very challenging mixes, so learning on something tough to start with made the rest of my journey quite easy.

I remember sorting your records out one day and came across quite a few that were not hard dance based. What record in your collection do you have that you don't want anyone to know about?

Hahaha oh my. Something tells me you found Tom’s vinyl. He left all his records with me as he wasn’t getting any use out of them, ranging from Madonna, to ring my bell LOL…but as for something that I purchased myself that Im not proud of ? I can’t really say I can think of any. I have been very picky with my vinyl collection and nearly every track I have picked out is because it either blew me away, or had some very fond tie to a memory of parties past.

If you were to play any other genre other then hard dance, what would it be?

Trance, or Psytrance, maybe a bit of Breaks, Electro is fun, but sometimes a little slow for my pace. I used to dabble with Psy + Breaks, which was a lot of fun. Something about chuggy basslines over a breakbeat really made me smile.

On the production front you have had releases on The Beat Ranch Digital and Bassteasers Digital. What have you been working on lately?

Lately, my attention has been primarily on building Purity. My last production was a slow mellow trance track for the website, which I incorporated into my set for our party…the bpm was around 130 I think, so I automated a tempo rise over 64 bars up to the 148 that im normally comfortable with. All n all I was really happy with the outcome…to be quite honest, most of my productions have been originated around a party of some sort. Lunar Bass if you recall Brian, and that Phil Collins Remix for Heaven and Hell....Once the ball is rolling smoothly with Purity and I get some free time, Im definitely starting to feel the inspiration again to get some good riffs out…when that time comes, Im sure you’ll be the first to hear ‘em.

Who or what has been your production influences?

Well first and foremost I would have to bring back mention to James Campbell…he started it all for me, and without his gift to me, I definitely wouldn’t be here in the capacity I am now. I also need to give a shout out to you as well Brian (Destructo), being able to bounce ideas and concepts off of you in your learning experience has helped me keep on the beating path…As far as producer shout outs go, I would have to list of Guyver, Nick Rowland, Edison Factor, Teknical, MDA & Spherical…the list goes on. I got hooked on the chuggy bass, and the big nailing drops…the fluffy riffs are key too, but the drops and the basslines do it for me the most.

You are one of the few who work with FL Studio. What do you like most about the program and what would you like to see changed?

Workflow, I love being able to knock out a rhythm in no time flat, and being able to hone in on the finer details easily. Coming from a Trakker based environment, it was definitely the natural fit for me. I found most other programs to be quite tedious in getting started. This is probably simply due to the fact that I haven’t given them the time to find that comfort zone…but for now, im happy with FL and the results Ive been getting. Admittedly, in some previous versions, the sound quality seemed less than the competitors, but they have since really stepped up their game.

I’ve been toying around with the 8.5 Beta for some time now, and let me say that FL9 has a lot to offer. I hope they finally get to the point of utilizing multiple MIDI controllers simultaneously…that’s my biggest issue right now….I would like to lock a MIDI device to a Channel and have more flexibility of “live” play...However, Native Instruments has sort of helped in that department. I recently got the Maschine, and its completely independent from FL while being tied in as a Channel…that’s a big plus.

You and a handful of others recently started Purity Productions, here in Toronto, how did that come about and how was the first event?

Well, this is quite the long story, but ill give you the short and skinny. Kevin (Michael Saunders) and I started Bassteasers a few years back…and we threw some pretty fun parties…but somewhere along the lines, we started shifting our focus into simple club nights, as our lives got more hectic and disoriented with work. This lost a lot of the passion in what I was doing for me, as I was after the big epic party…But it was what Kevin wanted. So, this being the case, I gave up control to Kevin. Well, as fate would have it, that very same day I got a call from a man named Brad. Originally, he was referred to me to do a website, so I pointed him to my dj site as a reference, and as soon as he saw this, he called me and my girlfriend up to his condo.

As soon as we got there, he pitched an epic idea at us…the parties that I was longing for…with a very large budget to back it up. He had been exploring other promoters in the city, and everyone was giving him the run around. I gave him the straight up truth and told him how we could make both our dreams happen. Soon after, he appointed me the VP of his company, my duties being planning, execution, and development. I already had a network of my own friends and people already in the scene, so finding the help we needed was not hard at all. I gotta give a big shout out to Brian Dunseith as well, the other VP of purity, If I were thing 1, he would definitely be thing 2…together, we have been able to accomplish great things, through crazy amounts of chaos…I also gotta shout out to Joel and the Promo Team, Luna, Jake, and Elixir & Family…without these guys helping out, this event wouldn’t have been the success it was…

What are some of the things that make Purity different from other production companies here in Toronto?

Heart. Passion. Drive, and a successful businessman at the top with the funding to make all of our dreams a reality. Many people have been able to throw parties on the few grand scale…but its very difficult to organize and execute on a larger scale. The team that has rallied around this cause, has been the best this city has seen in quite a few years…not that I am discrediting ANY other production company…but with a small team, you can only do so much…with a large team…you can dream big. Sure, the stage and lighting at our first event was awesome, but It really was all the finer details that everyone did that made the magic happen. Countless meetings with everyone giving input to their “dream” of a perfect party…Endless days of Deco work, networking…all of these things played a critical role to creating the “vibe” we all wanted to happen…and lets just say it did…Throughout all the chaos during the event…I got to stop for brief moments and see so many happy people, smiling, hugging, dancing in unison…it was…well…epic.

When you are not throwin down awsome tunes, or pissing off your neighbors with production,what do you like to do for fun?

Well, I used to game quite a bit…but lately, I haven’t had much time for it. I still do a lot of web development, as it plays a critical role into what I do. I still do a bit of graphic design here and there, but I leave that to my girlfriend mainly now as this is her life goal and passion…check her out sometime http://www.mariepoliak.com . She’s grown in skill quite a bit over the past few years that I’ve known her and I’m proud of her accomplishments. Other than that, Purity is all that I need right now to keep me happy. Ive met some great people and things are really giving me the inspiration I needed to keep going…I really don’t know what I would have done with myself had this not come to fruition. Probably gaming more…lol.

Any last words or shout outs?

Deffinitely, I gotta give mad props to you Brian, and Sebby of course, seeing where you have taken The Beat Ranch over the past couple years has been great...You have given me ammunition for gigs on more than one occasion, and you have always been there to support me, in whatever I was doing.

Again, I gotta shout out to the Bassteasers Crew, the Purity Crew, The Nocturnal Commisions Crew. I gotta also give a side shout out to the Rochester / Buffalo crew, Ive just recently got to know some of these kats, and they are pure, through and through.

Finally, Shout outs to all the major labels out there across the ocean. Tidy, Nukleuz, Massif, Stimulant, Trancid, and everyone of the likes (I could list out for pages, but ill keep it to the thin list) … without labels like you out there, I wouldn’t be the DJ I am today...probably playing disco in a bowling alley or weddings or the like…lol

Peace out Guys, and thanks for having me Brian.