by The utter brilliance of zodivk‘s work is nothing but star-striking and seductive. His sonic imagination is filled with gorgeous melodies, astounding environments, and high-quality excellence through his drums. Not to mention those soul-pounding 808s! Perfect to cure any broken heart across the planet. The kind of music you can easily throw on in any situation to create a bright light. Destroying any toxic or shattered mood. Getting lost in a swift and sophisticated darkness. Never wanting to leave. A glorious escape to say the least.
Angelic sound design, masterful writing, and brilliant execution, what more could you ask for? He’s always showcasing his best while evolving his skills for the next. From an impressive discography of hard-hitting singles to a carefully constructed sample pack filled with tools of destruction, he’s consistently emanating passion through his incredible art. A hardworking soul. And it’s with great pleasure to welcome him through his very own guest mix and interview!
Thank you so much for taking the time for this interview! How are you doing?
Hey everyone! Greetings from Athens! I’m doing okay-ish as I’ve been recovering from COVID, doing much better haha.
What can listeners expect diving into this mix?
I made a 30-minute mix of strictly unreleased flips, there’s tons of goodies in there, and most of these tracks will either release in 2024 or way later! Pure bouncy bliss in there, trust me!
Do you remember the first time you ever fell in love with this style of music? What was going through your mind?
One of my favourite questions, I’ll never get tired of this story! It was late 2014 when I stumbled upon Ta-Ku’s “Drive Slow Homie” mixes and I got instantly hooked. I followed every producer/musician he had included in the mixes and then started following the people those people were following. I found a lot of gems eventually leading to big underground giants like Soulection, Flow-Fi, HW&W etc. and at that point, I thought to myself “THIS! This is the music I too wanna make!” From there on the rest is history haha!
What’s the origin of the zodivk name? When did you decide this was the name you were destined to intertwine with?
I have always been a Final Fantasy fan. My favourite game in the series (besides VII) is Final Fantasy XII where there are those boss fights with creatures called “Espers”. There’s 12 of them as the game indicates, with a hidden one called “Zodiark.” The story behind this being is that even though it has the smallest size of them all and looks ugly, it’s the strongest amongst the other 12. I relate to that kinda “lore” because I’ve been overlooked as a person in my entire life (in different aspects of it) and since I liked that name I messed around with it, removed the “r” and chose a different styling because “zodiak” was kind of “default” and I wanted to come up with something that people would remember as a name, so I styled it as “zodivk”. But it literally is spelled “zodiac”, in case people are STILL wondering after all this time hahah!
It’s hell on earth, but somehow I’m still here, trying to be creative and let this huge amount of noise out of my life
How’s life for you living in Greece? Is there a strong music scene within?
Oh mannnnnnnn! The scene! The scene does NOT exist at all here, people just listen to whatever’s on the radio, and the “underground” music scene here is a bunch of Techno, Trap, and Riddim stuff. Nothing too exciting going on here. The things we were hip to like 15 years ago, these are the things people in the “now” are hip to in Athens. Generally, everything feels like Internet Explorer in Greece…That aside, the life is pretty fucked up ngl lmao, capitalism has kicked the ass out of the biggest portion of the popularity. People forced to work 2 8h jobs to make ends meet, lots of stress, little to no free time…It’s hell on earth, but somehow I’m still here, trying to be creative and let this huge amount of noise out of my life (not really easy to do so lol)
Your touch on the future beat genre is absolute bliss. From your crisp melodies to those crazy drums. What inspired you to want to create this genre?
On the “Drive Slow Homie” mixes I found this guy Carlos, going by the “Zuper” alias, he’s now inactive, at least to my knowledge. I was instantly hooked by his production quality and difference, it was NOTHING like I had ever listened to at the time. I started copying him, the drum patterns, the way he played with the reverb and delay effects, his sampling techniques, even his samples, I would just google a sample he used and then find recommended songs based off of that and I’d sample similar shit just to emulate him. I ended up with something entirely different, I think a big influence is “C Y G N”, he kind of cemented the Zuper influence and was the reason I discovered “Bounce Music” and decided to follow this style path. And then of course people like Monte, Sango, Sam G, etc. Shoutouts to everyone! <3>
I like to be able to express myself through a vast array of styles depending on how I feel at the moment.
Where can you see the zodivk project in a couple of years?
I already have started exploring other genres. When I was younger I was also hooked to “Wave Music” and I actually made a 4-track EP that I never put out except for 2 singles. At that point, I was thinking maybe I should make a side-project, but after some thought, I decided that my evolution as a person is also being outputted through my musical journey as well. Nowadays I’m stepping more into the drum&bass/liquid soundscapes but also Brazilian funk/baile, as well as soul music. I do not like to sit to one place for too long, I like to be able to express myself through a vast array of styles depending on how I feel at the moment. Sometimes I feel like I am more calm, more sexy…Other times I just feel like more energetic, or raging etc. I just really express myself and my current feelings through music haha! Oh! And I definitely wanna get into rapping soon as well, I’ve been longing to do this for soooo long, hopefully, I’ll get to it soon. Besides that, I would love to travel the world and finally play some shows for the beautiful people that have been asking for it for so long!
Are there any plans for a future EP or album on the horizon?
If I have to be honest with you all, I don’t ever think I’ll ever make strictly original music at all in my life. Things do change however, you never know…But if anything comes up as a project in the sense of an “EP” or an “Album”, it will still be flips. Just like how it happened with the “sonder EP” or the “s.h.e. (+)” album. Right now I’m sitting on a bunch of singles, I haven’t had the mental capacity to focus on a project of that likeness cause damn, brain got hands eh!?
We’re coming close to the new year already, are there any goals you’d like to accomplish within 2024?
Being entirely delusional, yes, I’d like to have my own place and build my own home studio already. A man can only dream…
I just loved being “different.”
Growing up, did you always want to pursue the creative field or did something/someone really inspire you?
From the earliest I remember myself, I always paid attention to details, I also always loved anything that was eccentric, but I didn’t know how to call it or recognise it when I was young. I just remember myself calling things “different”. I just loved being “different.” My first musical inspiration was Skrillex (cliche, I know) when I was 16. Up until then, no, I actually wasn’t really proficient in arts, but at the same time, i didn’t know what to do with my life. I’m so happy for music, it has legit saved my ass 😀
What kind of music was played in your house back then? And does it inspire your work today?
Damn I wasn’t expecting this question, but I’m so happy I got asked this haha. My parents have always been fans of rock n’ roll and stuff like that, so I was exposed to rock music as a kid and I liked how the guitarists shredded, but no, I don’t think it inspires me at all, hell, I don’t even listen to rock music man hahahaha! But it’s a nice memory from my childhood I guess (:
Do you have any interests or hobbies outside the music realm you like to do to just get away from everything?
Oh well I do play games, I’m an avid fan of League (guys i know…), so whenever I have some free time I do hop on some ranked sessions. Growing up I just want more peace though, so I also love taking walks and chilling outside when the weather’s nice. Touching grass as they say LOL!
take care of yourselves, drink water, tell people you love them (unless you don’t), and be as sexy as you can.
Any final words for our readers and listeners?
Please date me if you’re hot. Nah jk, but what if? No seriously, take care of yourselves, drink water, tell people you love them (unless you don’t), and be as sexy as you can. Oh, and stream my music (: Love y’all! <3>
Tracklist
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