UNTOLD STORIES OF GODS

The pessimists will tell you that no, Techno is not anymore the futuristic statement which Jeff Mills once declared it to be. 30drop is the living testimony that on the contrary, there are still producers out there for whom it is all about exploring the final frontiers. Much like Mills, the reclusive producer has been in the game for decades and shows no sign of slowing down. We sat down with the Spaniard to talk mathematics in music, his label 30dp and his newest EP History Of Gods, off of which we premiere Sterac’s (alias Steve Rachmad) icy take of the single’s title track.

You are known for your interest in science, yet your new EP is called History Of Gods. I was wondering how those two things go together.
The 30drop ideology spins around the hypothetical possibility that science and technology had played a decisive role in the emergence of all, included human beings. The concept which is a part of the Sci-Fi narrative of which I declare myself a follower is reflected in films like 2001 A Space Odyssey. It’s a theory of intervention in which it is defined that superiors being created human being from genetic modification and advanced technology. Following this theory, these superior beings would be what religion call gods and therefore have a chronological story that could be explained. The tracks of this EP claim to be the untold story of these gods in the form of music. Music with a mathematical pattern, like all existing music. Maths is a universal language that can communicate with all intelligent consciousness; it is an encoded language that you just have to know how to decode from simple formulas, just like a sum, or more complex endless calculations. Therefore we can deduce that if the music is based on mathematics, music is another encoded universal language that can send messages to the entire universe.

The title track is being remixed by Sterac aka Steve Rachmad. How did you get to know Steve and why did he remix this particular track?
Sterac was always one of my influences. The kind of Techno he has developed throughout his career has the same intention as 30drop in the sense of being halfway between Detroit and Europe but with its own storytelling. Sterac is for me one of the pioneers of the more cosmic yet forceful hypnotic approach to Techno. That group in which producers like Jeff Mills and Robert Hood or Surgeon would find themselves in, among others. They could be seen as the metaphorical equivalent to the “gods” I was referring to before. They were the creators, visionaries of all that has come to this kind of music since then.

When starting 30drop in 2014, you released music by yourself until opening last year by releasing music by Terrence Dixon. What was your approach with the label when you started out and how did it perhaps change?
As 30drop I publish my music in my own label with the same name. Producers related to 30drop’s musical concept release their music in a series called 30drop ExoPlanets (this is where an EP of Population One and an EP by The Entity have been released so far, more will come soon). Then there is the idea of mix tapes, on which DJ mixes and live sets by producers that I find interesting are being released. Finally, there are the graphics, where I will produce graphics from visual artists who are related to 30drop concept. This whole ensemble represents the 30drop Records project that has the ambition of generating its own storytelling of sound and recognisable images that defines a step in the genre.

The mix series will be released on tape and, as far as I understood it, digitally as well. Why on tape, and why so strictly limited? You only put out 25 pieces per release.
The idea of putting out tapes came out of the intention of remembering the period of time in which I grew up. They are limited editions because we want to manage it as something dedicated to collectors, for people who can really appreciate the meaning of that tape. All the people who are not interested in obtaining them will be able to free download the content in digital format through 30drop website.

What are your future plans for 30drop – both as an artist as well as with the label? 
I’d like to continue evolving the 30drop sound, shaping its own, identifiable identity – to keep providing a clear and concise message. That’s undoubtedly what I want the future of the project to be. And all of this applies to both sides of 30drop: live performances and studio work. On the other hand, I also hope that the work I do in the label with the group of selected producers pays off and sets the direction of this new 30drop sound, thus contributing to Techno music taking one step further.

Stream: 30dp – History Of Gods (Sterac Remix)

30d – 30d-004 (30d)