INTERVIEW: Deathtrippa
I: Hi everybody, welcome to this weeks Something Something interview and today we have Ian Moore, AKA Deathtrippa. Hi Ian.
D: Kia Ora.
I: How has 2021 been for you so far?
D: Yeah nah, it’s been aight aye. Like, I don’t know, fucking, just doing my shit. Another day, another struggle. Gotta get up in the morning sometimes, that’s not nice. So I don’t know bro, like, that’s a vague question. Yeah, it’s been good. I hope yours has been good. Have you had a good 2021?
I: Yeah, it’s been nice.
D: Oh true, true. Ok cool. Good to know.
I: What's on the cards for the rest of the year then?
D: Yeah, I think I’m just gonna chuck out a bunch of two tracks this year, I put out an EP last year and it did pretty good. Like, as far as like, I thought no-one would give a shit about it, to be real honest. So the fact that some people did, I was like yeah sick. But uh, I’m gonna do a show, I dunno when this will be out but I’m gonna do a show April 30th, do a live Deathtrippa one. It’s probs gonna be the only Deathtrippa show I do, ‘cause it’s a difficult, of like, having a live drummer and shit and the amount of like um, just like, production that like, needs to go into it is just like a fucking mission. Y’know with like lights and sound and sending clicks and stuff. I’m not used to that. I’m used to playing in like, hardcore bands where we don’t use any of that stuff. And we play on floors in people’s houses and shit. It’s been a mission. I actually had a stress dream about it last night. I had a dream that we were practicing in S1, the big Massey studio and the drummer, who, it wasn’t even the right drummer, it was like the old member from my high school band. And um, he was the drummer but he kept like, avoiding like, coming in to the rehearsal, and like avoiding like playing drums and shit. And then like, he eventually came in but for some reason I was playing drums and doing vocals too. So we had like two drummers and me doing vocals and like, it was all just terrible. And we had some dude doing the sound and he kept walking away from the soundboard. Yeah, and then I woke up. But it’s better than the other dream I had the other night where like, I had this dream where like, I was like, in this park of dogs, and there were like, shit tonnes of dogs, but half the dogs were like, a mix between like, spiders and dogs. But they had four legs, but like, the kind of shape of a spider and like, really like bulging eyes and shit. No ears, yeah. I mean yeah, I have night terrors so, a day in the life of me.
I: Day in the life of a grind composer.
D: Yeah, cyber grind induced nightmares.
I: Are there any particular projects you’re involved in, or you’re doing this year that you’re particularly excited about?
D: The J Pop shit's pretty cool. I guess yeah, I got that job through um, through the Deathtrippa stuff, ‘cause I put it out on a couple forums on Facebook and some guy hit me up saying he really liked my stuff, so I’m kind of like, ghost writing for some like, it’s like metal infused like, J Pop shit like, BABYMETAL is probs a prime example of who came out of the same scene. ‘Cause its called like, the idol underground scene cause they’re all called like, idols, it’s like, groups of chicks who have like, death metal blasting through their PAs and all that, and I get to write all the instrumentals and its really cool, its really exciting. I’m not sure when any of it’s gonna come out, because it's like, I don’t have like, any hand in any of the promotion or the management of that stuff, I’m just writing the music. Which is actually really nice because I feel like, this day and age you don’t get to do that anymore. So yeah that’s pretty sick, it’s pretty exciting.
I: Who is your dream collaboration?
D: Oh, I really wanna do a collaboration with Slim Jesus. That like, Slim Jesus, great hiphop artist, he made this song called Drill Time, it’s really sick you should check it out, he’s just like this like, skinny white dude who like, pretends he goes around like killing people with like guns in shoot ups in like, America.
I: Very Deathtrippa.
D: Yeah, yeah. And like um, I dunno he’s like um, apparently he only costs like um, $300 USD for a feature. I saw this YouTube video a couple years back, it’s probs gone up since he made it. But like, I’d be super down to like, do something with him, I think that’d be fucking hilarious. Or like uh, who else. Yeah, King Yosef is definitely a big one, just like a yeah, kind of angry trap dude who I really like. Unkle Adams would be real sick, I’d like to do something with Unkle Adams. Shout out to him, he’s hustling.
I: You have a busy as schedule and a lot to do, plus your other film stuff you’re working on. How do you stay motivated to keep on top of your stuff?
D: I don’t know. That’s a big question. I think I just got to the point where like, my schedule is just so fucked from everything that like, if I didn’t do it like, for the peace of my own mental health, my own sanity, like, I’d just fucking like, I’d dissipate aye. Like, especially like last year, I was going through like, so much like, mental bullshit, that the way I really coped with that was just like burying myself in work and getting involved in other projects. So it’s like, for me like, staying motivated isn’t necessarily something I’m conscious of, it’s just something I have to do, otherwise I probs will lose my shit. Y’know or even like, I feel like I’d be a bit better now if I didn’t. But um, yeah, I feel like y’know, go back 6 months it was just sort of like, something I needed to do. But um money also helps. Like, get paid for what you’re doing. Like, if you’re working for other people don’t do it for fucking free. Like, I feel like um, that’s definitely a big one. Like, so many people, especially our age and shit, are doing shit for other people and being like, oh y’know, it’s gonna help me out in exposure or look good on my CV it’s like nah, don’t. Like, people have money, people have rich parents like, they can pay. They can pay for your shit. So it’s like, y’know, even if it’s like $50 -$100 like, for like y’know, something which takes like, more than a couple of hours to start off with, like that’s still something y’know. So it’s definitely a huge like, thing for me is like, being able to get paid it’s like, yeah that’s a huge motivation. As well as like, having someone else there to like, y’know be like, fucking like, on your ass about getting your work done. Like, if it was just me and I was only relying on myself and I wasn’t like, having other people breathe down my neck, then I probs wouldn’t be as onto it as I am, I guess.
I: If you were on a desert island and you could only have one record to listen to, what would it be?
D: Oh shit, that’s a big one. Ah. Fuck. Aww-
I: I’m leaving all of those in.
D: Yeah hard, do it. Jeez that is a, that’s a real huge question. I mean like, as far as albums, I don’t know aye like, probs, like, I’m trying to think of something ‘cause like, my favourite albums aren’t the ones which I'd wanna only listen to for the rest of my life and shit.
I: What’s an album you can’t live without then?
D: Ah fuck, that’s even a big question. Probs would go with something like um, I don’t know, I really really like that uh, that last Knocked Loose album was real cool. Thats a real good one. I don’t know like, I think for me like, as far as like, I don’t really have like top top albums ‘cause it changes all the time. Yeah, I could give you like, a meme-y answer but like y’know?
I: Why don’t you hit me with three?
D: Three albums, I could do three albums. Uh like, Illmatic by Nas like, hands down. Probs like A Different Shade of Blue by Knocked Loose and I wanna say something like, probs like Pinback’s self titled album or like, Floral Green by Title Fight.
I: Can you describe to me an instrument that you’d love to play, or that would be cool, but it doesn’t actually exist?
D: Oh man, something like, real phallic aye. Something like, yeah. Maybe something which just looks like really disturbing to play. Like, which makes people like, physically uncomfortable and like, makes you wanna like, fully like, vomit at the look of it.
I: But it sounds sick.
D: Oh no. It doesn’t sound good. Like, it sounds real bad. Like, it sounds like a bunch of like, children screaming and crying and shit. It’s like, I think one of the like, most annoying sounds ever is like, a baby crying so maybe it just sounds like that aye. Like, yeah and it just looks vile, like real bad. Like it looks like me like, ripping my stomach open, like, some shit like that.
I: It’d like, suit your live show pretty well.
D: Yeah it’d be very like, performance art-esque aye like, just something which looks like, real real decrepit and terrible but like, yeah. And it sounds really bad and just makes people want to leave.
I: What’s an instrument that does exist that can can’t play but you wish you could?
D: Oh, I reckon like, saxophone. Yeah saxophones are sick. I like saxophones, and I make a lot of like hiphop music, ‘cause I don’t play video games and shit, so like my wind down time is just making other music. So I make a lot of beats which I’ll probs never put out, like, kind of like, 90s hiphop inspired like, A Tribe Called Quest like, y’know all that sort of shit. And it’s like, I just wish I could like, play saxophone so that I could like, sample it and shit and do that. Cause I feel like for the most part like, any like, stringed instrument I could like, roughly figure out, but once it gets to like, brass and like, woodwind and shit its just like, no go with me aye, like, no idea.
I: What was your main drive to start making “incest inspired cybergrind”?
D: Hahaha, incest inspired cyber grind
I: Or to start Deathtrippa
D: Ah, that’s a big one. Probs like, yeah I reckon like, definitely um, I dunno there was definitely a switch which like, flicked in my brain once we went into lockdown. Like, for me it was like, there was definitely a part like, last year where it was just like, everything in my life was just like, going to shit. And like, I felt like the only way I could get through that was like, making music, and I was definitely getting in a huge rut with like, my other projects that I’ve been doing in the past ‘cause I’m like, this just kinda sounds like, y’know it’s just like, rock templates and shit. And I got into like, a really big like, spiral in lockdown of just like, listening to shit tonnes of Lil Peep, which is not for my own good. Like, Lil Peep and like, Trippie Redd. Like, I remember like, spending like, ‘cause the only time I did really get into gaming was in lockdown where like, I would play with Josh, who used to play bass in Severed and we would just like, go on his Discord and play like, League of Legends for like, 7 hours. And it was terrible, like, it’s a terrible game. And fucking, the people who play that game take it so seriously. But all I’d do was like, sit there for like 6, 7 hours and just listen to like Lil Peep and like Trippie Redd and stuff which isn’t a good idea for like, anyone’s mental health I reckon. But it kinda slaps though. So like, but I was getting into like, producing, me and Josh were producing emo trap together and stuff and doing that and like, I think I just really enjoyed like, the workflow of just writing shit in my DAW. So I think it was like, I was just kind of um, going off that idea and I was like hey, what if I like, wrote the music which I write like, in my band but like, y’know, do it in the frame of like, a DAW and do it that way. And I think lyrically it was just like, at that point in time like y’know, I was fucking tired of life and it was like, there was definitely like, to be real honest, like, there was definitely like, moments when writing that shit like, I would like, sit in bed and just like, write it like, I wouldn’t even stand up like, I’d spend all days in bed and like I wouldn’t fucking eat, like shit, and even if I tried to eat like, I’d vomit and like, y’know my mental health was just getting ruined and there were definitely points where it was like, I didn’t know if I would see the other side of like, coming out of that project like, as a person. Like, y’know I thought I would be fucking dead by the time it would like fully go, because my mental health was just fucking terrible. But I think that project definitely opened up a way for me to like, put my feelings into that and express myself through that music and I think that’s why it came out super super confrontational, especially like, lyric wise like, its stupidly blunt and edgy.
I: It’s very edgy, and very blunt yeah.
D: It’s super edgy too. It’s so fucking edgelord but like, I think that’s what like, it was super cathartic for me to make that so I think that definitely had a huge hand in inspiring that stuff for sure.
I: A more lighthearted question to wrap up, if you were a drink, alcoholic or non alcoholic, what would you be? This is as Deathtrippa.
D: Oh yo, like, probs like, fucking, like a coke zero which has been out in the sun for like, 2 or 3 days and it’s real flat and it’s like, hot.
I: Like syrup.
D: And its like syrup yeah, it’s real sticky and it’s real hot and maybe like, a couple flies ended up in there like, someones got like, a yeah, maybe like, a ciggie butt in there as well, like, kinda it’s been sitting in the Valhalla carpark for a while like, and it’s like, it’s so bad to the point where it’s like, not even the staff will come over and like, pick it up and clean it. It’s like, for a while like, at Valhalla we had this thing called, it was called like, the king’s cup and it was like, basically like, during our shifts and shit like, where all like, the excess like, fucking foam and shit goes from like, beers, like you can, we like, leave it behind the bar in this huge ass jug. And I remember one time like, someone just added like, a bunch of like, other shit and like, mixers into it and stuff and they just like, left it below the counter, or like, behind the counter for like weeks. So maybe that’s me actually, like, that king’s cup.
I: Any final thoughts? Anything you wanna say?
D: Stay in school, don’t do drugs, uh-
I: Listen to cyber grind.
D: Yeah I guess aye? I don’t know, whoever’s watching this, I hope you have a lovely day, I love you, let’s hang out sometime.