We are made of the earth, dirt, and all that. Thus the phrase, ashes to ashes, dust to dust applies to everyone. Judging by what comes out of the speakers when Snavs is on the set, it sounds like some come from deeper dirt than the rest of us. The young Danish producer / DJ took on his name, which means filth or dirt in his native tongue, because the music he creates can turn any fine day into Halloween night. The beats may frighten you, excite you, or even awaken the mayhem inside your sub-conscious. But don't think you have to wait for October to give into the devil on your shoulder; Snavs' tricks and treats are perfect year round.
Snavs' story starts in Copenhagen. His mom is a lawyer and his father is an economist. Despite the square sounding nature of it all, his parents listened to a lot of music inside and outside the house. His father played guitar for many years which gave Snavs his start, but Hip-hop had a stronger pull on him as a youngster. Through Hip-Hop Snavs discovered Dubstep, which led him down the rabbit hole to the darker side of dance music. When he was 18, a friend showed him Logic inside a gymnasium and he immediately knew that he had to learn this software and make his own music. So Snavs did what any teenager would have done at the time: download a cracked version, produce a track, and put it up online the same day. Then he did something completely absurd by the standards of a web-savvy millennial--he bought his own copy.
Dubstep was the natural place to start as it dominated his personal playlists at the time. Staying in the same vein of heavy percussions and overtones, Trap was soon added to his list of favorite genres: "I just like the vibe, the energy, and the sounds in Trap and the darker sides of Dance music." Snavs' process of learning was similar to that of many other 21st century producers: Youtube and determination. The pure joy he got out of creating music kept him interested and learning new techniques. He practiced everyday like it was his job. But rather than stress it brought him happiness and after a couple years of hard work, he started to get booked for gigs. Without second guessing himself he accepted:
"I had no idea how to DJ but I said yes to all the bookings anyways. I fucked up many times but now I’m a good DJ (if you ask me). I learned everything on stage."
From knowing nothing, Snavs now has a very specific approach to his live sets. He aims to keep the energy high so he plays through around 60 tracks in an hour. He knows the balance needs to be preserved so he's mindful about including "some good breakdowns, or else the crowd will get really tired. I’ve tried to have big EDM breakdowns, and it was too boring for the crowd. I found out that it’s better to cool the crowd down with some Hip-Hop bangers or hits."
If you listen to Snavs' music enough, you might be convinced that being the evil doer in the story is just more fun. Any one of his remixes or original tunes would suit you well as an antagonistic theme song. He often chooses from the lower end of the sound spectrum to build an aura of impending doom, but things have a light side as well. When we asked if his upbringing and hometown impacted his sound, he presented another element:
"When I made the Armageddon EP, it was winter and it affected the dark vibes on the EP, but I don't think that Copenhagen affected my sound in general. I think that the weather did. The dark winter affected the dark vibes in my Armageddon EP. The hot summer weather affected the happy vibes in my newest single ‘Time.' Sometimes I also make dark tracks in the summer and happy tracks in the winter. It’s more about my mood and inspiration."
The fun factor of the Snavs' sound comes from the range and diversity packed into each song. He's not a rinse and repeat type of producer. He'll develop a theme into a variation of itself and like any great villain will keep you guessing until the end. This level of production doesn't come at an easy price. For some tracks like "Luxor," the drop and the brass build up came within an hour, and then the intro took a week. Then for tracks like "Riot," the intro was finished quickly and the drop took ages:
"I don’t have a specific way to make my tracks. I just play around with synths and if it’s good for an intro, I use it for an intro and if it’s good for a drop, I use it for a drop. I spend a lot of time on my tracks because I want them to be unique and variating. I never use the same drop lead twice."
Snavs' time is also split among his record label, Riotville. The name embodies a spirit of fighting against current trends in Dance music. It releases music of all genres, even Pop if it clears his standard of quality. Whether an artist has 10 or 10,000 followers, Snavs is more concerned about the sound. He places a lot of confidence in his ability to get good music to the public, and feels his ability to navigate the modern game has evolved: "The Dance music industry is really weird and hard to understand. Making good music is 20%. It’s more about contacts and putting the right tracks out at the right time. I’ve seen a lot of really talented producers on Soundcloud with only 500 followers." We applaud this outlook and agree that great music isn't determined by the size of one's social following.
Here's to dark beats, good times, and open-minded label bosses. We're with you, Snavs.
Last Call
1. What is your favorite movie of all time?Hmmm... all the Harry Potter movies. It’s too hard to pick only one [laughs].
2. As a young DJ, who was the one DJ you looked up to?I think Skrillex, but more as a producer.
3. As a DJ, what's your biggest pet peeve?Not wearing earplugs to protect my ears.
4. What is your current set up at home?For producing I actually produce a lot in headphones, but I have KRK Rokit 8 monitors, an Akai MIDI keyboard, and Pro Audio sound card. I have no DJ set up at home.
5. What's your favorite record of all time?I can’t answer that question [laughs]. It’s too hard.
Keep up with Snavs on his Facebook, Instagram, Youtube, and Twitter. Keep up with Riotville on its Facebook, website, Instagram, and Twitter. And be sure to check out Snavs' music on his artist page.