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60 seconds with...Hyper

With a new mix album out we catch up with breakbeat dj/producer Hyper.

DJ/producer Hyper is the enfant terriblé of breakbeat. Bringing a fired-up, punk juggernaut to the live stage with his band, he's one of the first to bring breaks into the domain of rock.

Now with a new mix album - 'Rewired', out now on Kilowatt Recordings - he's changed the game again, this time infusing his drum assault with a little bit of that noisy electro-punk flavour.

We linked with him to get the lowdown on new inspirations, playing live and getting hyper...

Your new mix CD 'Rewired' combines breaks with a much more electro-punk flavour. Is this the sound of Hyper saying don't pigeonhole me?

"Yeah, since the last artist album, and bringing in a lot more live elements, inevitably that's spilled over into what I'm playing out as well. A lot of what I'm writing has a lot of guitars in, and I work with the guys regularly, so it is a way of busting out of the pigeonholes.

"On the whole, with breaks at the minute there aren't that many exciting records around so you have to look beyond that."

Is the electro-punk style of Justice, Boys Noise and Digitalism a big inspiration at the moment?

"It is. I particularly like Digitalism and the rock-oriented stuff, I like the no rules aspect to it, being awkward for the sake of being awkward and getting away with it."

You're one of the first to take breaks into the full live arena. Has the touring impacted on your productions?

"I'm working on a new artist album at the moment, and I think that when we started the band thing, we were trying to take the dynamic between a crowd and a DJ further, to become more like the reaction of a crowd to a live band.

"The thing you notice is that different things work different days, and that's definitely impacted on the writing process of the next album. It's a lot more based on what we want to do live as well."

What else have you got coming up production-wise?

"I have a single out called 'No Rock Stars', off the 'Rewired' mix album, and I also have a collaboration with Jhz, 'Computer Says No'. Then there'll be another 12" release to precede the new album next year."

You're known for mixing a punk flavour into your music - what's your favourite punk tune?

"Oh, God knows! But I'm going to see the Sex Pistols tomorrow night so it could be any one of theirs. But I really like 'Rise Above' by Black Flag, I love the way they use basslines."

Are you a hyper individual all the time or just when it comes to music?

"Not all the time, I can be quite full-on, but I like a bit of downtime as well."