Amusic / ASD

Interviewed by Magic of Nah-kolor

Could you please introduce yourself to our readers?

Well, as typical as this may sound.. Hello I'm aMUSiC of ASD, I'm Greek, live in Greece, almost reaching the big three-oh age number and I can be found at Breakpoint every year =)

How did you get into the demoscene? When did you start being active in the demoscene? I've been watching demos since the age of 14, but I got active in it in 1992 when I bought my first sampler on Amiga (the DSS8+). What was catalytic in my scene involvement was the influence of Lizard (ex Andromeda musician), whose music was really inspirational to me. Thus I started up by ripping his samples and making mods thinking.. "Hey.. I can make mods too". However, I started having scene contacts after 1994, when the internet started being a limited commodity in Greece, and made my very first party release in 1996 at the Gardening party in Patras, Greece.

How is the demoscene in greece nowdays compared to the past?

The easy answer would be that it's hugely inactive compared to, let's say, 1995-97, or even 2000-03. On the other hand, I'd say that the Greek sceners are more knowledgable now, and there are people who could easily team up and form teams worthy of producing magnificent stuff. One thing that bugs me with the Greek groups is that they've recently turned into a "we don't release a demo until we're confident about it being a good one" mentality.. eventually ending up in no releases at all. Personally, I believe that it's no use beating a dead horse. Fire up what you got, then move on to the next. We'll see what Santa's bag has for this year's Pixelshow though.

What do you think is the main difference between the oldschool and the newschool scene? Do you like that progression?

I've been through both oldschool and newschool, but I've been really active during the "newschool" era. I don't feel very comfortable with oldskool/newskool distinctions as, for me at least, demos have always been there to impress the viewer. No matter what the feeling of the demo is, newskool or oldskool, I always judge it by it's WOW factor. For instance, the C64 version of Desert Dream impressed me heavily.. and so did Debris. Two different schools.. but impressive nonetheless.

What is your favourite demo?

Had I been asked that a while ago, It'd be really tough to answer. But now.. I'd have to say Debris, with flying colours.

What was your best moment in the scene so far? And what was your worst?

Best moment would probably be split between winning Assembly with Iconoclast, as this would be the first time we win a party outside Greece, and attending last year's Breakpoint which was like the best ever party experience for me. As for worst, that's probably the moment in the 5th annual scene awards when I realized I didn't manage to get the best soundtrack award for the 4th time in a row, with what many people considered to be my best track so far. Well, no biggie there but it gave me the whole moppi feeling =)

How revolutionary was the evolution of Vision?

Although I'm not the right person to answer that, I think that the whole image processing idea based on videos might open up new alleys in concepts and democoding. I don't think though that it's really revolutionary. It's just experimentation.

What are you doing for a living now?

I'm a web developer/designer/programmer, and I run an online radio related to gaming, and general "geek" lifestyle.

In which ways did your demoscene-background help you getting into the work you do today?

Getting into the work.. not much, but keeping it and advancing in it.. a lot. Not directly, but indirectly. The whole idea of watching what others do and then do something that is one step further.

How did you like Breakpoint 2007?

Can't say I enjoyed it as much as the 2006 one. Probably because the Spaniards did not come and we used to hang out with them and party crazy! The competitions were really weak too, except of course the Real Wild/Console one which was fabulous, and the PC demo compo which saved the BP experience at the last moment! Or maybe, it's just me growing up.

What do you think is necessary to bring the demoscene a bit more into the public?

I think that the whole effort should not be to bring the demoscene into the public, but try not to drive the public away from the demoscene. I believe that the scene has room (and need) for more people who have ideas. People who come up with concepts should feel welcome in the scene and not be forced to bleed to other scenes, such as the machinima scene (as discussed heavily with Fiver2 at BP). I guess we need to try and make the public less afraid of the scene.

Which party you visited did you like the most and why?

That's definitely Breakpoint '06. It had everything. Amazing entries in the compos. Crazy party feeling, a good Bass concert, lots of booze, lots of fun, lots of socializing and of course watching our prod on the big screen.

Where do you get ideas from for the music you make?

No single source actually. Most times I just let my mind free and sit in front of a synth and start playing with notes and sounds. At some point I hear something that I like, and start from that.. then the rest comes naturally =)

Can you tell us something about the new ASD demo and your music in it?

Well, we're still very much at an early stage as the "real life" has taken a toll on everyone of us. Amoivikos is currently serving the army, Navis got married and is now a father etc etc.. so we're moving slowly. Plans are very vague at the moment, visually and musically, so there's nothing I can say for it yet. No idea on a release date even. Only thing I know is that I'll be working with Leviathan again on the soundtrack.

Please tell us which rankings you had in the various competitions at the various parties you visited and how you liked it?

I've ranked 1st in the Gardening '96 with a 4ch mod in a multichannel compo. And oh it felt good =) Next year I got 2nd again at the Gardening. After that, I got disqualified in the preselection stage of Breakpoint 3 times in a row, and that's when I stopped entering music compos.

How do you see the future of yourself and ASD?

Honestly answering this, I have no clue. Big and longterm plans were never our strength. We'll still be around for as long as we enjoy ourselves writing demos. The kind of demos we'll make will be figured out for each demo when its time comes.

What programs do you use when making your music?

Reason, and CoolEdit. Just those =)

Please name your 5 most favourite musicians from the demoscene and tell why they are your favourite ones.

Lizard, as he's the reason I got involved with scene music

Reed, cause he kicks ass =)

Radix, nuff said..

Kb, cause he rules

and Dizzy =)

What is the best track you have ever made? And why?

Most people believe it's Animal Attraction, but personally I find Amphetamine Tears (Iconoclast's Soundtrack) to be the track I feel as the one that meets all of my expectations. It has the complexity and diversity I like in the music that I listen to, explores lots and various emotional aspects and required the most work of all the pieces Leviathan and I have written.

Any last words? Some greetings perhaps? Be my guest..

Just one... I'd like to welcome Andromeda back into activity. We've missed you! Oh.. and.. Congratulations to Navis for (according to him) "his best demo to date".. his lovely daughter.

aMUSiC & Magic