We are up and ready to go for the 2013 festival edition up in the mountains. Smashing a new venue is the order of the day and we here at UR are delighted to present an artist scheduled to play on this year’s line-up in an exclusive chat. The business is to bring you closer to the performers in our ‘Know your Artists’ section and to start the Universal ride, give it up to Joe Merkandale (UK) He has been making waves in the Psychedelic world with his signature sounds. Also, Joe’s latest tie up with Avalon adds to another noise making association. As a celebrated figure with the beats he unleashes at will- He is Sonic Species!
Say hello to Universal Religion Sonic Species, can you tell us your name and where you originate from?
Hi I’m Joe Markendale a.k.a. Sonic Species. I come from Brighton UK where the beaches roll and the beat goes Om.
Can you share with us, how you began your Djing career and what got you in to producing music in those initial days?
SS- I was 16 when I first went to a real outdoor Psy-Trance party in the magical forests of Kent, England. The music immersed my body as I hit the dance floor and felt as though a lightening was striking down through my body & soul. It spontaneously pulled some of the maddest shapes in my life. From that moment I was hooked. My friends and I soon began to DJ and organize parties in the forests of Kent and soon after I started producing my own tracks on Cubase. Its been 10 years now since those magical days and wow they seem just as epic as ever in my memory.
Any artists back in the day, who you took influences off?
SS- Yes, back in the day for me the artists I followed and who inspired me were Astral Projection, Hallucinogen, Cosmosis and Transwave. Later on it was tracks from more Twisted and TIP artists. When it all changed to CDs I began following a wider range of artists.
What made you lean towards Psychedelic Trance?
SS- To me Trance is the most holistic dance genre…..its the mind/body and soul of Electronica…it has all the elements you need to blow your consciousness open into new and exciting places…in style!
Sonic Species debut ep ‘Machina Terra’ got you all kids of rave reviews and became an anthem in 2010, if you look back would you say your style and productions is different now to fit the current trends?
SS- To me the Machina Terra EP captured the sound and style of Sonic Species very well and in particular the title track Machina Terra, in my opinion is the track that I identify with, most of all. Tracks come through differently under different circumstances at different times of your journey as an artist and for some reason Machina Terra was an instant hit. I like many different forms of Trance music of course, but I can definitely say that I am always in the studio trying to make the next Machina Terra! Get your ears ready……
Your thoughts on appearing at the festival and the association and friendship with the Universal Religion dream?
SS- I am very excited to be making an appearance at Universal Religion this year…I have a very good relationship with the Digital Om crew and I love all my gigs that I’ve played in India to date. I have always wanted to go to Nepal so its a dream come true to be blasting out my tracks in the Himalayas!
What does Sonic Species do on an off day?
SS- On an off-day, Sonic Species gets up around 11am does some Tai Chi maybe, chills at home for a bit and then goes out to walk around Brighton and meet a friend for lunch. I love the energy of Brighton so I am always walking around hanging out in new and different places with my friends. I will probably have lunch out and then come back home late afternoon and chill at my place. I have a laptop always connected to Skype etc so when I’m at home it’s continuous looking at tour dates, talking to my different booking agents, working on promos or talking to other artists and festival organizers on Skype. So I casually work from home on an off day as I have a separate studio space that I rent in the heart of Brighton. In the evening I will either go out and have a beer with some friends or go for dinner or just stay at home and cook some food and watch a few episodes of 24.
Can you tell us a briefly about your last album, which mind space you were in when you put it together?
SS- Yes, ‘Unleash The Beat’ was created over a couple of years really as some of the tracks were older than others. So I decided which of the best unreleased Sonic Species tracks I wanted to feature on the album and then I knew that, I had to make a number of new tracks to accompany them. So over a period of about 7 months I made the new tracks and produced the older tracks at the same time. When they were all finished I then went over all the tracks again producing them again and improving the sound quality. I was in a very focused head space for the last months of the album making and working sometimes up to 18 hours a day in the studio. I knew I had to make this album and finish the job properly and also knew that I wanted to release in April just before the summer festival season so my dates were set already. It was a race against time toward the end and I got there and released in April 2012. I was very happy when the album was mastered and released and I am now even happier that it has been really well received around the globe.
If you wished for a piece of music equipment, which would you want?
SS- A Midi bass Guitar
We hear that you have an upcoming project going on with Avalon; what’s going to be different in this teaming up and where does it stand currently?
SS- Yes Avalon and I have a new project called Future Frequency. Our sound is of Progressive tempo but rolling funky beats and the tough underground UK edge that defines us individually. We want Future Frequency to encompass all the best parts of Progressive and full on as we see them. Our tempo will be 136-140 and we are currently working on a full length album for Nano Records.
Where are you headed to from Universal Religion 2013, give us a brief gig guide?
SS- Here’s a few festival gigs I have following Universal Religion over the summer:
SHIVA SQUAD FESTIVAL – India
TREE OF LIFE FESTIVAL – Turkey
ANTARES FESTIVAL – Germany
S.U.N. FESTIVAL – Hungary
OZORA FESTIVAL – Hungary
FREEDOM FESTIVAL – Portugal
PEARL FESTIVAL – UK
And so goes the story of Psychedelic wonder Sonic Species…if you wish to chase him up for more details log in to the following site-
http://www.facebook.com/sonicspecies
http://www.soundcloud.com/sonicspecies
Plus for all other information on Universal Religion 2013 and know how of tickets to the festival and other details one needs to log on to-
You can alternately follow us on the Official page, Group and Event page at these following links-
http://www.facebook.com/universal.religion.nepal
https://www.facebook.com/groups/mountainmadnessnepal
https://www.facebook.com/events/455924434463144/
Interview courtesy- Priya Sen
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