CASSETTER | 'INTROSPECTION' - An Interview
An Artist that you will overlook at your musical peril, the polish native that is Cassetter has had a litany of sublime tracks that'll live rent free in your strobe lit mind for quite awhile after you've listened.
He's blazed quite a trail for himself even claiming a seat at one of the scene premiere record labels FIXT NEON. It's abundantly clear the love he has for music with a prolific back catalogue and some stellar collaborations under his neon belt.
Forged were delighted to get a chance to interview the man behind the music. This is great! Take a look....
Thank you so much for sharing your time with Forged today and congratulations on the newest single ‘Observer’ such a great track and of course the soon to be released ‘Till the End’ You’ve been exceptionally consistent with new releases this year which is great, how do you feel 2021 went for you?
Thank you for your nice words and for reaching out to me. I've been following your blog for some time and I’m really happy to appear here! It’s been a good year for my project. I released my 3rd LP, Robot Era and also worked a lot on my upcoming, 4th album. Finally, it was great to play live once again after the pandemic break.
When & how did you first start your journey to becoming Cassetter?
As a teen I played around with some simple production software like Ejays etc. In 2018 I decided to come back to an old hobby, using more advanced software - FL Studio. I sat down and produced a track, then I made a second one (“Purple Dusk”) and uploaded it on Soundcloud. I didn’t expect anything and it was a huge surprise that there were any listeners. What’s more important, it gave me a lot of fun so I continued, trying to make a step forward with every track produced.
I would love to know how you came upon your stage name?
To be honest I didn’t think too much about it. I just found myself wanting to upload the track on Soundcloud as quickly as possible and it was about Synthwave. So I thought about some early music memories. When I was a child my mother had a nice hi-fi cassette player, and it was the best music quality gear in the house, so even when the CD’s became more popular, I recorded everything onto cassettes, cause the above mentioned player was the only one with a fat bass sound. I even found a way to record mp3’s on cassettes, but I don’t remember how :)
What do you enjoy most about being a musician?
Opportunity to express myself with the music and create something from scratch is extremely satisfying. It’s also kind of a catharsis, which helps you to deal with your own feelings. Furthermore, it’s a great chance to meet new people, see new places.
Tell us a little about your creative process, how long would it take for you to lay down a track?
At the beginning it went very quickly. I remember I made Mind Flayer within a one day. It changed a lot since then and my current process takes much longer, starting with the creative part, ending with the mix & mastering. I don’t think it differs too much from what other producers do. I tend to have many open projects at the same time. This way I choose the track which I’m working on based on the mood I’m in. And I finish like 95% of the projects I started - really! I don’t like any unfinished business :)
What is your favourite song to perform? Why?
I only had several gigs so far so it’s hard to choose one track. I’d say “Cloning Factory” always gets the job done. It has never been too popular on the streaming platforms, but does really well live. Perhaps it’s because of the tempo, long build ups and quite bouncy groove. Giant Drill is another one. I think that tracks with about 120 bpm and a build up/drop structure usually do well at gigs.
Anyone on the scene at the moment that you enjoy listening to?
If you refer to the Synthwave scene, Daniel Deluxe is my pick. Not sure if it’s pure Synthwave, but it doesn’t matter. I love the groove he builds and his way of mixing, but especially the atmosphere is great - dark, cyberpunk feeling. He’s the best.
Footage courtesy of Night Arcade | Amsterdam
What is the one guilty pleasure you cannot live without?
I have a cheesy music folder on my hard drive, which I listen to very rarely and usually only when I’m alone. It is top secret so I can’t tell you what’s there exactly, but Garcia’s Bamboleo is one of the songs there!
What would you say is the best advice you have ever been given as a musician?
It’s the ear, not the gear.
You’ve done some incredible collabs with names such as d.notive, Maxthor & Lukhash how did they come about? What is the process like?
Actually it depends. I reached out to some of them and just proposed to work together. Also I have great support of my label, FiXT Neon, which came up with the idea to work with some talented vocalists I didn’t know about. In some cases, the collaboration idea came up quite automatically, after I click with someone who I met or talked to on social media. Every collab is a bit different and I learned something from everyone I worked with. It’s great to make tracks with the guys I’ve been listening to before I even started producing.
Can you tell us a little about any current and future projects you have in the pipeline?
My 4th album, “Lights Out” is actually ready and we’ll be releasing the singles one by one together with my label. It will be my darkest LP so far, with a lot of mid-tempo and about-120bpm tracks, but you can still expect some 80’s/90’s vibes and a cover of a popular retro song. Also, I’m working on the techno EP with a friendly producer. Our collab project is called Control Panel. If you are into such a vibe, you should definitely check it out! It will be out in early 2022.
Your favourite movie?
I’d go with David Lynch’s Lost Highway. I like weird movies. The atmosphere and soundtrack are great in this one.
A message to your fans....
I wish you all a great Christmas time. Stay healthy and have fun at the New Year’s Eve party!