Over the past months (and years if I am being totally honest) the formerly diverse and hard hitting wide-verse genre of Electronic Music has changed. It has become pigeon holed into pop culture. I don’t want bass heads or anyone coming at me for that comment because bass has taken on a huge role within the genre as well, however, becoming mainstream has put the Electronic brand in a weird place. That said, us devout fans of the different brands have found our homes within the subcultures. The Electronica, heavy vibe-indused culture, has been a staple in this industry for longer than any of us can rememeber. With the new sub-genres taking wind, it's been hard for newer music within the underground vibed out style to remain recieving the exposure it wants and deserves.
Darren Ziller (artist name dzill), a DJ/Poducers whose roots in Music stem from a life long passion for Jazz and the Flute has taken up his roots from Fairfield, Connecticut and brought himself to NYC. Since, he has embarked on a journey in search for his artistic identity. His ear for music and ability to manipulate sound have proven heavily to provide a path to success. His deep, dark, electonic beats will send shivers down your spine while leaving you in a bi-polar array of emotion in the musical wonderland he creates. Whats the best part about new artists with a body full of passion and drive to succeed? Das it. New Music.
“Phases” is the first installment of a 3 single drop titled “Phases: The Series”. Releases will take place on Wednesdays starting today through November 22nd. Just in time to jam out while smearing Cranberry Sauce all over your families Turkey on Thanksgiving. “Phases” features a shifty compilation of synths, dark bass and keyboard tones that delivery an unearthy feel tossing us into an emotional roller coaster. It is a masterful piece of work that provides great sound diversity and the ability to spark heavy emotions. The feels of this track has Underground Brooklyn written all over it.
Don't stop at these tracks, read on for an exclusive interview with the up-and-coming dzill below. His production stems from an insane ability to perform live. Check out his vibes below and dont forget to come back Wednesday the 15th and 22nd for more of the same!
Exclusive Interview with Dzill
Darren, thanks for taking the time to connect. Let’s start with an explaination of your background in music…. How and why did you become a DJ Producer? Who are your major influences in the music industry, not just electronic music but as a whole? In other words, WHO got you here? What else do you have going on with music? What can people look forward to from you? When people visit your soundcloud, spotify and start really delving into your music, what is the message/emotion you are hoping to be giving off? When will there be more and where can people catch you live?
I come from a music background, and music has always played an important role in my life. I studied piano and flute when I was little and got really into jazz and classical music growing up, and was fortunate enough to study music in NYC and Paris. Having graduated with a BFA in Jazz Flute Performance ((cue the Ron Burgandy jokes)) I realized I wanted to branch out more from being an instrumentalist and explored composition, orchestral conducting and electronic music. I ended up DJing some super weird parties in NYC (I didn't get the memo pants weren't required at one of them) and got some more gigs and parties around NYC and realized how much I loved DJing and sharing/ performing music which is extremely relevant, exciting and understood by my peers (which is not always the case with classical music).
A really important song for me is “Porcelain” by Moby. The fact that it samples strings backwards and blends different genres really made me realize I want to focus on writing electronic music. Moby is also someone who has a deep knowledge and appreciate of art and music and someone who I really admire. Other big influences include Trent Reznor Atticus Ross, Jon Hopkins, Daft Punk, Oliver, deadmau5, Disclosure, Jamie xx, Justice, Flume, Maceo Plex, Calvin Harris, and Kaytranada…yeah I could totally keep going. As far as classical music: Mozart, Debussy, Chopin, Beethoven, Brahms, Philip Glass, and Rachmaninoff.
I've been writing electronic music for about 2-3 years and have been super critical and selective with what I've put out, but recently feel confident in my production and ready to share new tracks, so expect much more music in the near future from dzill on more a consistent basis. I've recorded some tracks with singers and am always exploring the 10000 sub genres of electronic music…I'm literally always writing.
Everyone experiences music differently and all my tracks have different emotions and tell different stories. I hope they hear an original, unique voice for better or worse.
I'm putting out 3 singles this month on 11/8, 11/15, and 11/22 alongside living album art videos, and much more music in the future. I'm DJing a set at Solas Bar NYC this Thursday 11/9 at 232 East 9th Street and have a premiere of my film-score “No Control” which was adapted as a ballet this Saturday 11/11 at 8PM at 131 West 24th Street, 4th floor as part of the Hatch Presenting Series.
