In Focus: Adonis / ex-Iris
Hi Adonis. Most of the time I start with this question, hope you don't mind... Please introduce yourself to the readers...
As you readers might have noticed; the handle is Adonis and I have been around since the early 90’s. I started out on the Amiga and have recently started the journey in the PC scene. I started out with being a swapper (120 contacts) but that more or less stopped when the evil internet was taking over. I have been involved with several packs and disk-magazines through the years (mainly on the Amiga platform). I however have been more or less inactive for some time and last time I managed to do something was when I released the online magazine Kubika (www.kubika.dk/mag). But the last few years has been really low on motivation, but that seems to have turned around now since I "cut" relationship with my group IRIS, which I had been a member of for ages. When I say cut relationship I should say I got booted? One can wonder why, since what is left has the same activity. In real life I work as a programmer and live with my girlfriend and kid. Not much to say about that actually.
Tell us about your online diskmag called Kubika you just mentioned. What is the story about this project..?
Kubika has been an idea I have had for a long time and when Hexagon agreed to help me with the coding/design of the home page I had to give it a shot. The basic idea was to create an online magazine which aimed to look 100% like a regular magazine and used the features which releasing it on they internet would provide. I was really satisfied with the first issue and the feedback was much better than I expected. But I however stated from the start that I did not want to release it on my own and if none showed interest in joining the team there would never be another issue. As it looks now that is going to be the case; which is a shame since I still think it was one of the best ideas I have seen compared to the blog/forum magazine we see these days. Guess I will still the look and feel of a regular magazine; but I just want it to be a click away.
How do you like the demoscene in 2007? And what do you think of the roles pouet.net and bitfellas.org have in today's modern demoscening?
The demo-scene is in a transformation if you ask me; you will see the platforms will melt together when it comes to being a scener. You do not have to go back many years where people from the different platforms wanted to kill each other. Today you see people show interest in what other sceners do as long they contribute with something to keep it alive. That is in my opinion a really healthy and constructive evolution. Pouet has been a really nice asset to the scene; but I somehow get the feeling that it has to do something in order to stay on top. It seems like they are sitting back and believe they do not have to improve. There is no doubt this portal is still the leading portal and it is there where people get the majority of their information from. Might be they have been on this project for to long and do not have the same passion for it anymore. Bitfellas on the other hand seems to have a staff which burn for what they are doing and they have something to prove. That is a really good thing and we all benefit from that; question is just if it will stay like that or they also burn out if one can call it that.
What are you doing scenewise today? Are you involved with the Zine diskmag for example or will you join a new group anytime soon now you have left Iris?
I have lately found my interest in doing things for the scene again and I am pretty sure the break up with IRIS is the reason. They to a degree caused me to lose interest; so being kicked for being inactive seems to be the best thing was has happen for many years. How it happen is another story and will cause me not to talk with certain people again sadly. But I am sure all parts can handle that, since we are grown up? I have heard a lot of this ZINE; but not really involved in it I think. That is a matter of definition I guess and I judge that I am not involved. I just hope they manage to release something which will bring the magazines today into a new era; since the engine we see today could as well run on the ZX Spectrum, C-64 or Amiga; which I find really poor compared to the power the PC has. But I think ZINE will bring new things to the scene and that it will not just be a blast from the past which we have seen a few times. As you can hear; I do know something and will not say much about it.
What little work did you do for Zine than?
Did some spellchecking and gave them feedback. As I said not enough to get credit.
And what projects do you work on that does not require you to be part of a group?
That is classified... I would have to kill you if I told you.
Since you are a writer, what is your oppinion about Pain, Hugi, Savage (which seem to be the only diskmags being released at the moment)?
I think that all of the mentioned magazines are lucky that people do not dare to criticize their work, since so few released says the daylight. I do not have any comments on the content of the magazines, since that should be up to each staff to decide what they want to publish; the readers can however also state that they do not like to read a certain magazine due to that content.
The thing that annoys me is that I cannot see a difference in the disk-magazine we have today and those which were released in the early 90s and that is truly a sad thing and shows the editors does not evolve in my opinion.
Have you seen Debris, Lifeforce and Rob is jarig? (Which of those 3 demos does not fit in? :) What is your opinion about these demos and what do they have in common?
Debris: I found that demo really stunning when I watched it at the big screen. I believe they managed to make a demo which would reach the power hungry CPU lovers and the old school people due to the cubes. The demo was really impressive; but when that is said I also have to add that it is pretty boring and I tried to watch it when I came home, but I far from reached the same state as I did at Breakpoint. It is great work and a production which has to be seen on the big screen at a party to get the wanted effect.
Lifeforce: That demo is far more sophisticated and has much better ideas compared to Debris. I must admit that I never really liked the music style in the ASD demos, since that is not what I call demo music. But that is surely a matter of taste; but the extreme amount of details and features puts Lifeforce above Debris on my list.
Rob is jarig: Give me ten gold beers and I will cuddle with you while we sing that song together.
In your opinion, how should diskmags evolve? What and how could they made better?
You should watch ZINE; then you will get an idea of what I mean. It will be interesting to see the feedback on that release. (I have seen it and know what you mean -ed) I guess the editors are just narrow-minded when it comes to design of their magazine. They look exactly the same as they did in the 90s; just that MOD has been replaced by MP3. It of course still work as it should; but I just feel that it should have improve and evolved, just like everything else has when it comes to productions.
How's life in Denmark? Describe a normal day in the life of Adonis.
I get up around 06:00 and spend 30-60 minutes in front of the computer before I go to work. At work I sit another eight hours in front of the computer. When I get home I take the reminder eight hours in front of the computer. That would be the raw version of my day; but I do have a kid and a girlfriend; so they of course also get my attention. We are not the kind of people who have to get out all the time to experience everything before we die I guess I am in front of the computer more than most with family. But Denmark is perfect; you just have to pay 50% in tax and not care about anything. It is a boring country with no real problems. Pretty much like most of the Danish people want it?
Today's demosceners more and more become parents... Is the future of the demoscene their kids? As normal kids only play games, or have so many other choices these days, rather than being creative on the demoscene...
I use the demo-scene as my hobby and a way to be alone. I do not have to be with the family 24/7 and this is my way to escape reality now and then. I believe that is different from person to person how they want to use the demo-scene. Personally I would not let my kid go to a scene party, since the organizers do not do their job as they should in my opinion. I know this sounds weird from a person who is dead drunk at parties; but I am allowed to think so since I have split personalities. And this statement that the party organizers do not do their job is also an article for itself.
But would you let your kid spend as much time behind a computer as you did in the past?
Yes.
Why?
Because it does not harm anyone; and one can just hope he will be interested in something created and not just gaming.
When did you join the demoscene? How did you get involved? Which groups have you been in and what parties have you visited?
I think I joined late 1991 or 1992; not really sure I know the first party I was at was The Rendevouz '93 I Norway. That was a rather long trip for something really small but it was never the less a great party since it was the first time. I went to The Gathering '94 since I joined IRIS, I wanted to meet them in real life. I have during the years been to countries like: Norway, Belgium, Poland, Germany and of course Denmark. Guess I have past 40 parties not counting the meetings we have had.
I believe a party I have not been on which I do want to visit is Assembly, mainly to experience that many nerds at the same place. Might that be sceners or nerds. I started out like most people; watching demos and started to swap since that was the easy way to enter the scene.
One of the most legendary demos coming from Denmark could be the Desert Dream demo by Kefrens. Did you like this demo? What did you think of the group Kefrens?
Kefrens was of course one of the leading groups in Denmark but they were outer my league; so I can only comment their productions since the persons I do not know for real. I was at the party were Desert Dream was released and it was of course one of the best and I still like it; but I however could live without the pyramid part since that is plain boring? They do deserve respect of course but not more than many other groups around that time.
You have been to a polish party you just told me. What makes Polish parties so special?
Poland was great in the past and had parties which look like Breakpoint way before the rest. At that time I was having the highest amount of contact when I swapped and many of them came from Poland and it was great to meet them.
Back then the polish sceners used the demo-scene to "get out" if you ask me and I believe most of them actually did manage to succeed with that. So there is no polish demo-scene anymore; it is simply dead because they have jobs now and used the scene to improve their skills. I am however really happy to see some of them to return to Breakpoint each year since that are some of the old contacts.
But today I just find that the polish parties try to do as many stupid things in order to look crazy; which is just sad in my eyes.
What would you like to tell to the polish sceners and non-polish sceners visiting polish parties today in 2007?
I would only go down there if I had some arrangement with someone I knew would come since; polish people might be drunk and somewhat friendly; but they are also fucked up. Of course there are a handful cool guys, so it is just that certain people can fuck it up for the rest.
How do you see your future on the demoscene and on a personal basis?
I see the future of the scene stable and I see that more and more people try to build up communities which are the way to make sure it will continue to be stable. I would be naïve to say that the scene will reach the same state as it had in the 90s; since sceners are idiots to a degree. But that is another topic which actually deserves an article for itself.
I like endings where I can give some room for last words and greetings... Don't you? So here is your chance for 15 minutes of fame! :)
Uhmm there is not much to say; so I will just thank you for your time and end it here?
No greetings then?
nahh
Ok thank you very much for this interview! I hope to get that article about 'sceners idiots to a degree' for Hugi#34 then. Is this a deal? :)
That could be... But also not :) Hard to say...
Time will tell then.. Have a nice day!
Right back at you :)