Interviewer: Marko Nikolovski
David “DAVI” Khanjian grew up listening to classic sounds of Pink Floyd, Led Zeppelin and the likes. Discovering his passion for music from an early age, he was subsequently admitted to the Vocal Department of Yerevan Komitas State Conservatory. David’s immigration to Los Angeles expanded his horizons in music. Focusing on production of genre defying electronic music, David’s sound can best be described as a deeply melodic journey into the mind that can leave you whiplashed much like a rollercoaster.
These days, David can be found playing anywhere from Avalon and Monday Night Social to LA’s best outdoor parties and even Black Rock City (Burning Man) . Pending releases from multiple record labels and support by people such as Robert Babicz, Eelke Klein ,Hernan Cattaneo, Nick Warren, Way Out West, James Zabiela and many others. With releases on Outside the Box Music , Treibstoff , Nine Records , Stripped Music Recordings, Bits & Pieces his compositions are now spread amongst a wide audience, which lets him trot the globe nowadays to perform in front of his fans. We planned a skype date with this Armenian rebel, to talk about his musical upbringing, Burning Man and his first gig in Amsterdam.
Hi David, how are you man?
I’m good. Sorry my internet keep falling out! How are you?
Good. Stoned, but very functional.
Haha I’m about to smoke too
Haha enjoy! Okay lets start with some simple questions: when and why did you start a career in music? I read somewhere that you went to music school?
I got into music when i was 15 years old and had big passion for classic rock music. I learned playing bass and electric guitar on my own. I went to music university in Yerevan, Armenia called ” Yerevan State Musical Conservatory ”
Any names from classic rock that made a great influence?
Pink Floyd, Queen, Led Zeppelin were my favorites. I knew how to play most of their songs on my guitar.
When did you start with electronic music?
I started listening to electronic music when i was 16, and had my first residency in Yerevan, Armenia. The name of the club was Monte Cristo which sadly doesn’t exist anymore. it was the only club in the city at the time that was open to all kinds of music
When did you move to the USA?
I moved to Los Angeles in 2006
And was it diffucult to establish yourself as a musicain there?
When I first moved to Los Angeles it was a big change for me to see so many big names playing in town every week. In Armenia at the time there was pretty much no scene and we never imagined seeing any of our favorite DJs in our town. So it was very eye opening and challenging at the same time.
Is there any dj you look up to?
I really like what Richie Hawtin is doing. He never disappoints with his futuristic ideas
Is that what you wanted to achieve when you realeased ‘Rebellion’
Not really, my Rebellion ep was influenced from Burning Man
Tell me more about that inspiration.
Well, I have been attending Burning Man since 2008 and haven’t missed a year. It has been big part of my life and has changed a lot of things about me. It is a magical place for creative people. The 1st year that I went to Burning Man there wasn’t that much of good music to be honest. You would mostly hear Electro, Dubstep and all kinds of dirty, scary sounding music. But there was this one stage called Robot Heart that always played very different music than any other stages. It only took them few years to become the most respected stage. And my rebellion EP tracks sound similar to what I was hearing over there
If thats the case cant wait to go there!
I always tell everyone that it’s a life-changing experience and you should attend it at least once in your life. If I didn’t attend Burning Man, I probably wouldn’t have made Rebellion.
..and we wouldn’t be having this conversation.
I would probably be making something else instead.
And was it immediately after burning man that you start to produce it?
Yes, I remember I came home and I had a lot of ideas in my head that were ready to come out, and I knew if I didn’t use the opportunity now I probably won’t be in the same mood in a few days. So I remember I made Rebel Heart immediately. By morning the next day, I already had 75 percent done.
Can you share some details with us on how you made the bass lines so damn good?
I get that question a lot from producers, It’s all about tweaking and playing with sounds until you get what you are looking for. There is no big secret. I often use Arturia and Minimonsta for my basses.
Any projcests coming up that you would like to share?
I have new EPs and a few projects that I can’t really share now. But very soon you will hear about it. My label Delysid will be launching very soon where I will be releasing my tracks often.
And what other labels than your own will you be releasing on?
I have been working on techno lately and I’m aiming at a few labels at the moment.
I would make a guess that Minus is at aim as well.
It is possible. I will have to see how the tracks come out and if they’ll match the label sound.
On April 19 you will be playing in Amsterdam at RеволуциЯ. Have you played in Amsterdam before?
No I haven’t, I had a gig at ADE with Hernan Cattaneo and Nick Warren and few other upcoming djs. But I wasn’t able to make it.
So la’s best kept secret will be debuting in Amsterdam huh? I’m happy to be the first one to bring you here. What can we expect from your set?
Well I will be playing a more techno-focuses set than usual, if that’s okay with you haha.
We would be honoured!
Cool, I can’t wait to play in Amsterdam for the 1st time, I have been waiting for this for a while.
We will see you the 19th!
DAVI | Anonym | ME.N.U. | Gerald | Pershian |
