Dj Xyanyde interview! PAX 2010

 Now for something a bit different:

So i’m just chilling with my boy Swoozie when I run into Dj Xyanyde at PAX 2010 

For those not in the know, Dj Xyanyde drops the illest mixes and blends of contemporary game music and gives it a distinctly hip-hop and urban feel. All of his music is classics both modern and recent and can be checked out for free. 

Storm: What’s up Dj Xyanyde! Crazy small world where everyone knows everyone! Just found out you know Phire from WCG tryouts. 

DjXyanyde: I know! It’s so crazy.

ST: Yeah man, anyway I checked out all your tracks and that shit is dope. What got you started? 

DjX: I used to work at a video game store and they allowed us to play music as ambience, but it couldnt have any words so I decided to make my first track, a remix from duck hunt. Random customers would come in and hear it playing and say “Oh! Is that Mario?!” they were wrong, but close enough, lol. The positive response made me want to keep making music. 

ST: Exactly, I definitely feel you on that. What about the newer songs? I noticed a Shenmue beat and even more recent pieces. 

DjX: Well to me, Shenmue was a classic in its own right. Songs dont have to be a specific age to make me want to redo them. The overall theme is to take older games and make them new again. Im always working on something though. 

ST: When it comes to old school greatness, are you more in the nintendo camp or the sega camp? 

DjX: Oh wow… I hate to take sides! I’ll have to say Nintendo all the way. I was born on the day the original NES came out in the US, it must be destiny to do what I do, lol. 

ST: Crazy birthday bro! haha, myself i’m more with the Sega honestly! However, Nintendo did have some killer music back in the day..   speaking of whch, are you a lifelong gamer? What got you started? 

DjX: Im totally a lifelong gamer, some of my earliest memories are of playing NES back in the day. I didn’t become truly hardcore until my big brother took me to his friends house and I got owned in Street Fighter 2 for the first time. I was upset to the point of tears and I saved up and bought an SNES and vowed to play all I could, no matter what .

DjX: I still have my very first NES controller too, I made a belt buckle out of it and I wear it to events, lol 

DjX: The same one I used to beat Megaman 2 the first time, to save Zelda the first time… ahh so many memories!

ST: I think we all grew up on Street fighter in one way or another. Do you still stick with the 2d fighters? 

DjX: Well, I was always more of a fan of the 2d fighters. I was a Tekken fan, but I dont really think any of the other 3d fighters really captured the essence that 2d fighters like any of the street fighters, killer instinct, or the marvel vs capcom series did. 

ST: Are you familiar with the Street Fighter Tribute album? If so, have you ever wanted to remix an entire game soundtrack? 

DjX: I loved the SF tribute album actually! I was thinking of doing a Killer Instinct tribute album, the music spoke to me more, you know? Lots of different genres on there too, thats a distant project though! 

ST: Thats one series I can only dream of making a comeback, I mean.. Duke Nukem this year so anything is possible right? What projects have you lined up for yourself in the near future? 

DjX: I have been doing a lot of work with my turntables, doing more live mixes than production in the last few months. My next mixtape will be one long continuous mix with new content and Im hoping to have some cameos from some top level gamers! Ive got over 100 songs completed, with even more projects that Im tinkering with. Its just a matter of polish and execution. I make the music for gamers, Im not trying to make any money or anything, just trying to spread that great nostalgic feeling. That “I remember what I was doing when I played this” feeling. 

ST: Where can people catch you live? I know thats got to be a must-see. 

DjX: Ive only done a handful of live shows, I live in Northern VA and I have done a few parties here and there. Its a pretty niche group Im aiming for though, you know? Ive been doing live streams from time to time on www.Justin.tv/DjXyanyde . New content and live mashups ftw. 

ST: After seeing the turn out for PAX 2010 this year, it might not be as niche as you think lol! For closing comments, what do you think of the current state of the gaming community as a whole, with the whole WCG reality show and events like Evo getting world wide attention? 

DjX: I love the current state of gaming and I love where it is going. I want to see gaming get even bigger like they are overseas. I want to see more events, more shows, more everything! I love WCG Ultimate Gamer and hope to get on as a contestant next season too! We just need more gamers to get off of the couches and get out there and support our scene for it to grow. 

ST: Awesome, thank you for your time and I hope that everyone downloads that mixtape right now! Good luck with your gaming career as well as the music! 

DjX: No problem man, Thanks for listening and keep gaming man. 

Check out the whole mixtape for free right here: http://djxyanyde.bandcamp.com/