First of, just want to thank you for participating in this edition of Infidel Interviews. Could you start off by giving a little information about both of you to the audience? Whatever you feel comfortable with, but name, age, what instruments you can play, and where you live would be pretty standard?
Both of me? I am plural now. Just wait until my ego complex gets a hold of this information. Ten Cent Toys is me basically. The female voice is the amazing talent and beauty known as Katt Hanneman. Our programmer is Alec Welch and one of my best mates. Our recorded works include the brilliant musical talents of Benjahmin Zero, Travis Lee, and Kyle Kaos. But Ten Cent Toys is just me for now. I can and have performed many instruments live and recorded countless more. Guitar, bass, drums, piano, synths, vocals, and just about anything I can get my hands on. I currently live in Tampa, Florida. I am from Waterbury, Connecticut.
What drew you to create alternative electronic music in the first place? Did the local scene influence you, or did you discover the music on your own? What are some of the artists that influenced you the most during the beginning of your musical journey?
Back in 1997 I was watching mtv, back when they still played music and I heard this band called savage garden and I loved their style. It was very genuine compared to everything else I had heard. While I loved so many obvious band we all liked I always wanted to be the dirtier, kinkier, savage garden to be completely honest.
What do you see in the near, and far, future for your creative output? What would you say would be you short term, and long term, goals for your artistic self?
Always working on testing new ideas. I don't like repeating myself. I adapt and evolve. I want to push being unique even when everyone else is bored I try to keep things interesting for myself.
When it comes to sound design, would you consider yourself a nitty gritty guy who starts with an init patch. Or do you like to find a good preset as a starting point? Or do you use both methods freely?
I usually will listen to the world and make sounds that make me feel something. Music that doesn't inspire an emotion isn't honest to it's artist. I just kinda make music. The method varies but it always means something to me. I delete more music than I will ever release.
When you make music are you primarily a hardware or software oriented musician? Or do you do a fusion of both? Are there any particular instruments, programs, or effects that you would say are vital to you making music?
I love mixing it up when writing. Discovering new sounds and altering them. Both software and hardware and running them through each other's effects and pushing new ideas. I don't like feeling like I am hindered to a limiter.
If you could collaborate with any other musician in the scene, who would it be with and why?
DanielGraves aand Tim Skold, mainly because I look like their bastard love child and I would call the song, "Bastard's Butt Baby."
How would you say your music has evolved sonically throughout your musical career?
Pretty shitty I would imagine but I don't like to think of the past and about evolving. Just doing the thing. I like to express my musical feelings very much in the moment and as raw as possible. I don't try to over produce or push a sound beyond my happiness with it. I simply hear what sonically makes me feel an emotion. When my music sounds like everyone else's I will no longer wish to do music. As an artist, I produce music for me. I'm just glad other people happen to like it too.
Do you ever find it difficult to balance the creative and technical aspects of musical creation? How do you strike the balance for the need to craft and tweak your effects and sounds, in contrast to actually just getting the song itself created with structure and melody? What sort of element of creation do you prefer, the sonic shaping or the song creation?
I personally just get lost in sounds and ideas. Then after about 60-80 tracks I will start mapping out a song. Most material is just a ton of singular effects and sounds usually just a pattern or measure that all mesh very well and compliment the emotion I'm feeling. Then i dissect and spread things to alter and change my feelings. Creating verses and choruses let alone intro, outro, and breakdowns literally just happen by how I feel mostly. I rarely think of song structure and arrangement. It just kinda happens.
When it comes to non-musical media, what do you find yourself most inspired by, and what about it draws you to it as a source of inspiration?
That is quite a question. I adore art in general and so many medias. I am always dabbling in all different types of media. I paint, draw, tattoo, sculpt, graphic design, and even enjoy culinary arts. I try to do all of the ideas in my head. I have an incredible aptitude to learn, grow, and do more. I don't like feeling like I've reached my peak because I can and will be better tomorrow. Always.
Thank you so much for participating in this episode of Infidel Interview. Any parting words for your fans, or my audience?
Touch it more than twice is simply self appreciation and there is nothing wrong with loving yourself kids.