Podcast
interview
EPM.184 comes from Theiz, an artist who has just dropped his fifth release on EPM. With a production attitude that harks back to the more warm and delicate techno and IDM sounds of Terrace, Black Dog, B12, Kenny Larkin and Stasis, his emotive electronica is further captured in this mix that brings the tempo and lights down for a heady, home listening excursion. Featuring the likes of Joep Beving, Martin Nonstatic, Nadia Struiwigh, Lake Haze, TV99AD, Jeff Beck, Tim Hecker, Húsdreki and Martin Kohlstedt this is an immersive mix to lose yourself in.
Theiz (Mathijs Schippers) is now some 30 years deep in the scene. Having released on labels such as Eevolute, Techno-Tourist and Ear-land Recordings in the late 90s and early 00s, Mathijs began producing again in 2015 with no pressure to release – simply just for the sake of making new music. His activity as a music journalist brought him back into contact with the music industry and now freshly motivated, he is firmly in the saddle with multiple releases on EPM as well as recent releases on Belgium’s Crossfadesounds, Iceland’s Moatun7 and Canada’s Stasis Recordings.
Theiz's musical journey actually goes back to the end of the eighties. Influenced by Ben Liebrand, Bomb the Bass, Coldcut, Pink Floyd and Tangerine Dream, he experimented by remixing tracks using an old tape recorder and cassette decks. At age 17-18 he met the twin brothers Tonie and Peter Van der Loon who opened up a whole new world for him: synthesizers and the underground music scene. This broadened his horizons with Detroit's Derrick May and Kenny Larkin, Richie Hawtin, B12 and Sun Electric all making a big impression. Years of making music in their little studio in the Van der Loon garage, monthly record buying trips to Amsterdam and the occasional club night resulted in a few releases on Eevolute as East Island in the second half of the 90s. In 2000 the first Theiz solo release 'It's Done' became real (as part of Techno Tourist's Various Artists 'Follow the Beat' EP alongside artists such as The Moderator and TV99AD).
After this it got a little quiet. Apart from his ambient release ‘Backyard Soundtrack’ on web label EAR-land in 2005 nothing happened. Until 2015 when Theiz began producing again just for the sake of making music, no pressure. At that time Theiz was writing about music for a few weblogs and came into contact with the record industry again. At a certain point somewhere in 2019 he spontaneously decided to send some tracks to one of these contacts: EPM Music. As they say, the rest is history as he drops his fourth EP forth eh label, following 2023’s debut album ‘All That Remains’.
Theiz - I Said Acid EP is out now on EPM Music.
EPM.184 is also available on Soundcloud, Mixcloud and Apple Music.
This mix is dedicated to Arni, the label owner of Moatun7, who sadly recently passed.
EPM Podcast 184 – Track list
1 Joep Beving - Hanging D (Deutsche Grammophon)
2 Paralelworlds – Impressions (Moatun7)
3 Joep Beving - Hanging D (Alvanoto Remodel) (Deutsche Grammophon)
4 Martin Nonstatic - Pulsatile (Ultimae)
5 Infinite Scale - Caught on Tape (VLSI Records)
6 Lake Haze - Digital Petals (Shall not Fade)
8 Imre Kiss - Love (Lobster Theremin)
9 Nadia Struiwigh - Oooso (Nous Klaer Audio)
10 Thorn - Dance on the Bones (Samurai Music)
11 TV99AD - GJ-740b (Moatun7)
12 Brussels Station – Fieldrecording (Freesound.org)
13 Jeff Beck – Suspension (Sony Music)
14 Martin Nonstatic – Pulsatile (Ultimae)
15 Juan Moreno – Samsaya (Moatun7)
16 Paralelworlds – Segment (Moatun7)
17 Martin Kohlstedt – DOM (Edition Kohlstedt)
18 Lovetrip - Habitual (Moatun7)
19 Infinite Scale - Steppa Side (VLSI Records)
20 Húsdreki - Ólæknandi (Moatun7)
21 Eusebeia – Indicia (Samurai Music)
22 Aural Imbalance - Casiopea’s Dream (Auxillary)
23 Tim Hecker - The Piano Drop (Kranky)
Q&A with THEIZ
Is this mix pretty reflective of what you are playing now, or just what you went with at the time?
I like to play with an open mind. There are some tracks in the mix I was planning to play and others just came along and fitted the whole. I am not a dancefloor DJ, but more of a mood/flow mixer.
Can you remember when you first became aware of music as more than just having the radio on?
Well I have a great story about that, it was when I was quite small maybe just 4 years old. I was playing with Lego on a rug on the lawn while my father was playing the guitar (he is a professional guitar teacher). At a certain point I started crying for no apparent reason. My father asked what’s the matter? And my reply was ‘the music you playing is so beautiful…’
What were the first clubs that you started going to?
I went to a youth club from age 14 I think, but that was just commercial music. My first real club or actually house party was around 18. Places we went frequently were Doornroosje in Nijmegen and Burgerweeshuis in Deventer. And the most memorable parties we went to were “4 Acid Eyes Only” illegal parties at fantastic locations. Nothing can beat the magic of those parties.
Were the times you worked with Tonie and Peter Van der Loon in the 90s your first efforts into producing music?
With producing yes, but before I had experimented with mixing with cassettes and with a keyboard with a rudimental sequencer. But with Tonie and Peter I learned about synthesizers and cubase (at that point this DAW fitted on one floppy disc!)
After a long break from making music how is your relationship with your studio now?
My studio is my laptop, I work in the box most of the time with Reason (12) and some vst synths and effects. And recently I’m exploring a setup to use for a live performance with some controllers.
In your creative process what do you find is the greatest barrier to starting and finishing a track?
Hmmm the greatest barrier for starting a track is being passive and binging TV series! The greatest barrier in finishing tracks is the discipline to keep going. And also tricky is knowing when to stop tweaking and adding.
Do you feel that your style of more emotive, reflective production is often over-looked in an era of big room music?
I think it is, it is harder to get a foot in the door with this style of music, but on the other there have been some positive reactions out of ‘the scene’ on all my releases thus far and I am happy with that. I hope to do some live shows in the future to get a more direct response from the audience.
What are your current production plans for the rest of the year?
Working on a live set. The trickiest thing is to find a place to set up my controllers and gear since my working place nowadays is just the couch because we have a small home.
What is life for you outside of music?
Maintaining the house and studying to be a high school teacher.
You are given the keys to your favourite club for the night. Who's playing?
Klaas Jan and Peter (Peninsula) with a modular/acid live set. DJ Draft with a acid set and Recondite and Tin Man with a live set.
RELATED LINKS:
https://soundcloud.com/epm-music/epm184-theiz
https://www.mixcloud.com/EPM-Music/epm184-theiz/
