RYB: The Drum'n'Bass scene was a huge part of your careers. Can you tell us a little about collaborations, and releases over the years?

SK: Absolutely. I have been blessed to be able to work with many notable talents who inspired me to produce Drum 'n' Bass over the years. One of my most pleasant experiences as far as collaboration was with Counterstrike, who are highly respected and masters of their craft. As far as the scene, I wasn’t into the rave culture when I started out. I was exposed to Drum 'n' Bass by buying mixtapes and cds at the Breakbeat Science record store.   

RR: "Head Vice" is actually my first release with Herd Killing Recordings (Silent Killer's Own Label). When I was a kid I caught the tail end of the rave scene, and really fell in love with Drum 'n' Bass. After years of frustration over being not as good as my DnB idols, I started making a lot more avant-garde music. It wasn't till recently that I started dabbling back into Dubstep and Moombahton, so it is really coming full circle for me.

RYB: At what point did you start to turn your focus toward producing new styles in the electric music scene?

SK: It was a natural progression when it comes to producing other genres. As I became more experienced in producing, I started venturing out and kept pushing the envelope in various creative ways. My aim is to infuse different styles and showcase them through my interpretation.

RR: I always liked hard electronic music, but was always to scatterbrained to stick with a genre. About a year ago I got tired of hearing my friends say "dude you'd be soooooooo good at making Dubstep, dude, why don't you do it?!?!" So I tried my hand at it, and it appears as though they were at least a little bit right. I have learned a lot since then.

RYB: How did you meet each other, and when was it clear you needed to start working together?

SK: My friend introduced me Rex’s music. I liked what I heard and I reached out to him for a possible future release for Herd Killing. We exchanged ideas and everything came together instantly. I guess it was meant to be.

RR: I think musicians are the last bastion of AOL Instant Messenger users on the planet. A mutual friend on there put us in touch and it wasn't long before we were shooting ideas back and forth. When I heard the inspiration for "Head Vice" I knew it was just something I had to run with.

RYB: Who inspires you when you write, who do you look to as leaders/peers in the scene?

SK: To be honest, I don’t listen to Drum 'n' Bass at all except the few artists who’s work I admire like Noisia, Counterstrike, Technical Itch and Kemal and Rob Data. I try to keep myself detached for the most part.

RR: Music for me is really an expression of myself and the things around me above all else. For better or for worse, my writing really tends to give a good snapshot of my mental state at the moment. In our scene, I have always had a huge respect for Noisia (surprise surprise) their mixes are always incredible. Feed Me as well, for both his production value and the continual musicality he brings to a genre that is sometimes lacking in that department. On that note, all the french guys too… Mr. Oizo, SebastiAn, Justice, Daft Punk… anyone within shouting distance of Busy P, I love their aesthetic. I know I draw a lot of inspiration from indie-rock/post-rock bands like Blonde Redhead, Do Make Say Think, The Mars Volta, Mono, etc. Even further off topic, I love the late romantic period in Russian music, Tchaikovsky, Mussorgsky, and some of the earlier Austrian/German stuff. Jazz, Charles Mingus has always been a huge inspiration… There's just so much awesome music out there.

RYB: SK, you have been writing music for over 10 years, can you tell us a little about how you have evolved as an artist?

SK: It’s been an adventure for me and I learned a great deal by working with several musicians who helped me nurture my sound to its full potential. I started out producing and I never realized I was going to get this far. Honestly, I just wanted to produce music and see if I can push myself to be one of the greats. I grew up in a different culture which influenced my taste in music growing up. My philosophy is to separate my approach from what is currently considered mainstream and eliminate the stress of production by the confines of musical genre. With "Head Vice" being released on Herd Killing, I see this as an opportunity to introduce myself to the new audiences.

RYB: The track "Head Vice" is a collaborative writing endeavor completed in parts that you two took on together. Is this the first time the two of you have worked like this, what was the process like?

SK: I love Rex’s style, so I reached out to him and asked him to collaborate. He loved the idea and everything came together. I sent him a concept and it went through a transformation and the end result became something very unique and special.

RR: Well, when Silent Killer approached me with the original idea of "Head Vice" it was a very different concept, but from right then I really heard the track it became hiding inside. SK was all about it too, which is great, because I know first hand that sometimes it's really hard to accept drastic changes to your original. After some bouncing back and forth of ideas and of audio, I'm really happy with how it came out. The internet is a wonderful thing.

RYB: What are the chances you will be writing together again?

SK: Absolutely. Rex is awesome.

RR: ZERO!… no, in all seriousness, I think we're both really excited for the next one. There's nothing like finding an artist that you can really work with.

RYB: How did you two come up with your artist names, both of them are big and powerful, what's the inspiration?

SK: Well it was a screen name I was using on AOL instant messenger and message boards and I thought it will be a cool name to use for music production.

RR: Well my name is Rex in real life too, so that's half the battle. I always joked that my parents gave me a classical composer name "Nicholas Rex Valente", but as much as I love classical music I needed to find a name with a little more edge (plus, little 18-year-old Rex still had some teen-angst left over), so Rex Riot it is!

RYB: SK, I know some of your music is available on Spotify. How do you plan to release "Head Vice" and where can we find more of your music?

SK: "Head Vice" is going to be released on my new label, Herd Killing. It’s going to be released as a digital release, accompanied by another tune called “Liquid Metal” which was produced by Blaqcix and Breaker. I’m currently working on my new solo album which has been delayed till January and It will be released on Herd Killing as well. I have a single and a collaboration record coming out on Guerilla Recordings at the end of this year.

RYB: Are you guys aligned with any other labels?

SK: I have worked with several different labels over the years but my home base at the moment is Guerilla Recordings. Also Herd Killing when its launched at November 1st 2012.

RR: Yes, my first Dubstep EP came out on Heavy Artillery Recordings, and it was very… dubsteppy. After that, my next release "Beyond" came out on Play Me Records and though still Dubstep, was a bit more experimental. Since then I've had some other remixes come out as well on El Cuco, Moveltraxx, and others… not to mention a lot of stuff I put up for FREE!

RYB: Lastly, any new releases or artists you are excited to talk about?

SK: I’m excited about working on my new album for Herd Killing. It sounds fantastic. Another release I’m currently working on is with DJ DARA & Breaker. And last but not least, collaboration with Counterstrike and Gein. Oh yeah! single coming out on Guerilla Recordings as well.

RR: I have a really exciting remix on the next Des McMahon EP on T&A Records, kind of a dystopian garage rock meets dubstep sort of feel as well as an original on a compilation album hosted by David Heartbreak, which isn't Dubstep in the least (but very cool I think). Both should be out in November.