DX-Digital makes wonderful funky synthwave music from bustling Berlin. On his latest album ¨Berlin Nights¨ you can hear an eclectic mix of electronic styles, where you can't keep your feet still. It is wonderful to live in such a city, where creativity is eveywhere. Time for an interview.
Bernard, can you please introduce yourself?
Hey everyone, I am the producer and composer behind the project DX-Digital and I originally come from Austria and am now living in Berlin. I consider myself a fulltime live keyboard/piano player rooted in funk/fusion/jazz and started electronically as a ghost producer and made the move to being an electronic artist by discovering the retrowave and synthwave genres.
How do you look back at 2019?
I look back at 2019 like I do at 2018. Both years have been incredible for me as a producer, because I had a constantly growing followership on every channel and was able to work with some incredible musicians on the second album (Sax Trax). 2019 I worked mainly on my new album ¨Berlin Nights¨ which was a great deal of work and also a step into a different direction musically and in the end very satisfying.
What are your plans for this year?
I am doing something I never did before since I started the project in 2018 (although I did 2 remixes already)-work with a singer on one song! Luckily I live in Berlin and have a lot of people around me that are incredible musicians and want to work with me on this project. The new track is already finished and will be put out real soon! Other than that, I have a bunch of untouched ideas piling up in my folder, that want to be finished and bundled on an album. So, I guess 2020 wants to be an album year again!
Talking about your new album ¨Berlin Nights¨, what can you tell us about this album?
What can I say, every song has a very strong story to it. A lot of strange and intense things happen in a big city which have lead me to produce these songs and the moods that occur. In this album, my main focus was to make a groovy mix of synthwave, dreamwave, nu disco and house. Also sometimes a bit synthpop in there. The inspiration comes from my time living in Berlin and the vibe of the nights there.
What equipment do you use in your studio?
I use Ableton as my main DAW and Fireface UC as my interface. I use a Palmer Monicon controller and Adam A7X’s plus a sub seven (all of them seperated from the surface). The main ingredient is my trusted Yamaha DX7. I discovered a software library for the DX7 and started experimenting with FM synthesis and building myself a curated library of sounds that speak to me. The DX7 is a mono synth but I use a Boss Super chorus to make it stereo for some sounds. I use a Roland JP-08 for some special sounds that I am building for the Project (e.g. Guitar Arps). And of course a selection of Ableton racks that I have saved and are organized to serve in future projects. I also sampled my Ensoniq TS-10 for a lot of drum sounds. I had the sounds recorded on cassette tape and recorded them back into Ableton Live. These are my favorite drum sounds.
What other musicians do inspire you?
Oh, where do I start. I could list you 1000 musicians that had a huge influence on me but I try to restrain myself to the ´80s influences. I am a huge Stevie Wonder fan, also Chaka Khan and Starpoint. Bootsy Collins, Zapp and Roger, Morris Day and D-Train. You can hear it in my music that I have a very strong disco and funk influence.
How is the synthwave scene in Berlin?
I was invited by the coolest community that I have met to play a show with the guys from Tech Noir. They are always doing really great events in different clubs! I hope I get to play there again soon!
What do you like most about the ´80s?
I love the style of clothing and the use of synthesizers in commercial music. I always get the feeling that the ´80s were such an incredibly booming era for the music business. It just seems like it was easier for people to discover real talent than it is now because everything is too crowded and musicians were still getting paid for what they do.
And finally, any last words to the synthwave community?
Keep on pushing the genre. It’s incredible how supportive everybody is. That is totally awesome, keep it up! Try to develop your own sound in the realm and always make quality before quantity! I check out a lot of music out there and discovered a few favorites.
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