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beatsfortheillperth · 5 years

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Words with Somanyfeels Part 2

Shot by @samuel_thecanadian⁣⁣

Julian aka Somanyfeels abilities with self-directed piecing of artistic trinkets is something we here at beatsfortheill admire about the various artists we get the opportunity to explore future readings and words with, and the big moves Julian is making under his accomplice is beyond the appreciation we are able to give via our blog, but this globetrotter isn't far of more global recognition.

As with writers' block on the mind for myself and then to suddenly, with true suave, have Julian, display his skills toying with human mood after my rough couple of weeks with a mix that truly helped me explore the various healing avenues that music can relate to us as individuals, going through everyday struggles.

So without further delay, let us take a moment to re-explore words with Julian a good friend and previous words with, and found out more about what his mix segment- "Endeavour v1" means to him and let us also dabble in his future endeavors and dreams, so with appreciate enjoy the following words with Somanyfeels.

Let us start with a few random generals to get the conversation flowing, a bit like a repeat from the last time we shared words, so let us see if things have changed up since then?

Favorite Food: A plate full of Al Pastor Tacos with a lot of lime and some horchata.

Favorite Beverage: Matcha tea

Favorite thing to do when you get downtime by yourself: Take a Nap

Best place to enjoy a wine and view in Las Vegas: Highly recommend any desert area outside of Las Vegas. I love taking pictures and being outdoors with friends. There are some amazing views of the sunset at this place I go right by my house. My friends and I head down to the wash area by this singular tiny mountain and we just talk about life as the golden hour begins and ends.

Favorite piece of clothing and, why you hold a special bond with it: My favorite piece of clothing is actually jewelry. I have this blue-painted silver medallion that I received as a gift while exploring the medina in Fez, Morocco. It reminds me there is more going on in this world than what you see before you, and to try travel as much as you can.

Best song to break it down to at the moment: I would like to mention two tracks for this topic… KALI YUGA - GHOSTMANE & CLAMS CASINO & ANYMORE - FLAUNT EDWARDS

Best song to chill to on a hectic day: THUNDERSTORM - PRODUCERBOIBRAD

Favorite song to listen to at the moment: EARL (INSTRUMENTAL) - EARL SWEATSHIRT

Best Genre of music to listen to when craving emotional connection with one's self: Ambient music heals the soul.

Views on politics: American politicians should be prioritizing the environment over all other political issues. I also believe Americans bought into the illusion that we are in control of what our government does for the countries best interests. I’m not entirely sure about the rest of the world though, so I doubt my opinion has much weight with how things are going nationally and internationally. I think we need to just keep ourselves informed with the use of reliable news resources and we should also put more focus on keeping our planet as clean as we can.

Views on drinking milk throughout the day: Almond milk in a coffee, of course, but if it’s hot often where you are, like it is in Vegas, I would suggest sticking to water. I also think about that scene in Anchorman when Ron loses Baxter!

The Rabbit Hole - Shot By Rosemary Fajardo

Thanks for answering those little rants, so let us get onto your music.

You have been guest hosting on radio, sharing tunes with the world,

and also making some of the best blends and mixes I have ever had the privilege of listening to, much love.

What keeps you moving forward with your goals within the music scene?

Also what have been some of the best tools you have had at hand reach when it comes to creating and delivering quality sets and blends?

Thank you so much for the kind words about this particular craft of mine <3 I definitely feel that my friends who also make music in my circle, are the people who keep me closest to my love of mixing music and playing shows.

Witnessing their work ethic grow with wisdom is some type of magic.

I certainly was not expecting to reach this magnitude within the Las Vegas music culture and I was at one time hosting my own radio show but decided to pursue a different route and become more intimate and technical with my musical presentations.

Hosting your own radio show takes A LOT of time, which at the time was stressing me out. I felt like the quality of work I was putting out on a weekly became biweekly then seldom the basis was in decline.

To people out there looking to pick up radio, it is extremely fun and teaches you a lot about communication and self-reliance.

I also think it's totally fine to hit the reset button to keep your spirit up. You can always revisit your past projects and continue to pursue your love for the craft.

Mixing live in front of crowds while on stage is what I love doing now.

When mixing, I can use all Traktor controllers but am also familiar with Pioneer CDJ’s and controllers.

Traktor is my main resource for feeling comfortable, well most comfortable on stage.

I stick to using remix decks, 2-4 channels depending on the routine, with effects from both my controller and the house mixer.

Do you always have to schedule in time or does it just fall into a routine, creating I mean?

It is at random for mixes I create at home. When I feel it, I'll just go for it, but for shows, it does take a sort of scheduling presence and sorting of skills to make sure I feel prepared for the upcoming event.

Keep in mind, not all shows are the same, so you have to really organize and then re-organize your playlists depending on the crowds you will be playing for and the vibe the event promoter will be expecting.

In the end, as a DJ I believe firmly that it is your job to be the glue between artists before and after you.

You have to learn to look up at the faces in front of you too, sort of read how people are reacting to your song selection and with that, you have to try and adapt on the fly as much as possible.

I’m still trying to perfect this lol.

It has to be mentioned, you are quite a gifted photographer.

I had a scroll with a good friend through your shoots and you def know your angles, much love.

How far do you feel you've come from first experimenting with a camera to what I believe you are now, a self-proclaimed skill shooter down the lens?

Also, what is your favorite style of shoot to portray a scene via the lens?

Also, what's your preference time to shoot: Night or Day?

You are always learning and adapting with a cam.

I absolutely love it.

I don’t think that I am that profound just yet since there is so much more I need to understand, but if you enjoy light painting images, then I would reference my work to you :) I am a night-time shooter mostly so I'd say night time with the exception of a good golden hour or blue hour shoot. Night shots feel like you and your subject are the only ones on the planet, and the ability to light up the night with a light source is pure sorcery!

It reminds me a lot of Magic: The Gathering. a lot of the graphics from those cards inspire me to utilize an experimental light source.

Let's bring it back to the reason I am asking to have words with you again, and that reason is your creation, with essence -a new mix, titled "Endeavor v1".

It has to be one of my favorites, of many great mixes by yourself, and I am privileged to be featuring "Endeavor v1" on our SoundCloud alongside this interview, link to the mix is here.

Honestly, thank you!, you actually got me onto a few new artists that I had never heard of thanks to the beauty.

People like marrow with Kafia, Otrapic, and Carlo Frick; all artists that are truly pushing diverse waves and instilling moods all over, that I was yet to hear before Endeavor thank you! While we are on the topic, what are your personal views on these artists in the making?

These artists are great and I highly recommend that you listen to them!

Otrapic’s sound resonates with me so much. As much as I love that hard gritty and ground splitting bass sound from artists in my library, the storytelling element that Otrapic has just levels me out and makes me want to tell my emotions to someone close.

Carlo Frick makes your brain swivel in place. I’ve opened many sets with his music at the forefront of the tracklist- in fact - I think any hard set I play will include a sound from his discography.

Kafia has that haunting element of like a siren’s presence underwater in her musical style.

Keep in mind, these artists you’ve mentioned from Endeavor v1s tracklist are particularly underrated.

Kafia shows that you have to really let loose upon yourself when digging deep into Soundcloud, Bandcamp, Spotify etc.

Trust the flow of the search for music and you will find those gem artists turn-by-turn.

On the subject, again, what bought you to your mix concept for "Endeavors"? What type of day/night was it, and what had been playing in your head before you even thought to put the playlist together?

It was super late. I came home after a night out in The Arts District of Las Vegas, and I just felt really sad. Anyone get that way after drinking too much and you’re like super on the edge of blacking out but have loads of energy that has been held so close for too long?

I had to let it out and went into my little corner area in my house where all my plants and records are and just turned on the controller and played what I thought would express my feelings inside. I woke up the next morning and played it back and thought "oh shit this went fairly well", lol. Sometimes sadness can drive you to make some really interesting projects. It's okay to feel these feelings.

Will, there be follow on concepts for Endeavor? Like how you dabbled in your previous works "HUNT//GATHER which came in a 5 volume mix of ambient allure, much love again for that. I loved what HUNT//GATHER represented. I remember you saying "It is intended to put the listener out of their element and into something wild and untamed" talking about the five-volume.

Truly a unique artist you are my friend, much gratitude.

If you do plan the volume for Endeavour, what would your goals and visions be for the project? Also what journey are you hoping to take your listeners on with works to come?

I appreciate the kind words on my previous mix series <3 <3 <3

and I think I would love to do something like that series again!!

Sure why not ;) This sound could work, I have loads more of this sound just sitting there looking for a home.

I think that could be the theme too!

“Searching for home, all the while achieving the tasks you set before you to prepare for your arrival”.

Something like that?

A goal of mine would be to make it a journey for the listener to enjoy.

With Endeavor, if you could give one descriptive paragraph for all it embodies from your point of view what would you state?

It’s your interaction with the elements in our world.

It's packed with all beats airy, wavy and blissful to help tell the story of…whatever it is you see after hearing the track order, to be honest! Find someplace relaxing to you, maybe a productive place and play this out.

I think it’ll bring you into some sort of meditative state :)

Any up and coming artists, music and beyond you could recommend and give us links to?

INDESCRIBABLE INDY

https://indescribable.bandcamp.com/

WEIRDDOUGH

https://weirddough.bandcamp.com/

ONEONTHEBEAT

https://1blaps.bandcamp.com/

MATT NISH

https://open.spotify.com/artist/5IcGFKFypLHBm9fUCbhl1u

OUMUAMUA

https://soundcloud.com/oumuamua

LO THE DINO

https://soundcloud.com/lothedino

One of my favorite questions to ask, any musical recommendations?

Albums, songs, or a blessed mix like your own for example?

I would personally recommend an artist by the name of Terekke.

His "Improvisational Loops" Album is filled with some of the most amazing ambient music I’ve heard.

https://www.musicfrommemory.com/release/6031/terekke/improvisational-loops

How have your previous experiences with doing live sets been going?

I can only imagine the mood you would set. What has been your favorite experience as of late?

Well.. to be clear, I haven’t really done a full live set just yet.

With remix decks on traktor, switching over to those can be a kinetic experience with the audience.

My real joy is to present sounds as a vibe selection - something that tells a story with energy exchange.

My challenge lately is looking at the crowd and reading their movements and my most favorite experience playing live is just glancing up after a transition and seeing a guy (pristinely dress) spilling his beer all over the floor while getting down.

I just really loved seeing that reaction to music. He didn’t care one bit and was just wayyyy into the song that was playing.

An old memory would have to be from a Halloween show years back at this venue called Velveteen Rabbit in the Arts District of LV.

I specifically remember just dancing harder than I’ve ever danced while dj’ing. Right in front of the small fold up table with my gear with all my friends just throwing their hands at me.

It felt like I was inside of a fireball.

I will forever cherish that night. connection to the crowd, close friends or newly met ones, that will always fuel me to play music.

Any up and coming shows or gigs you'd like to brief us on that you feel readers would be intrigued with checking out?

I just finished 2 sets for the end of October.

My birthday is Halloween, so I just want to spend time with friends and take photos throughout November.

I have a couple of collaborations in the works rn with some friends who need some photos; just have to see how they turn out.

As for music, I’m taking a month off from shows but I would like to play one for NYE. ;)

Any Last Words?

Please bear in mind that life is fragile.

We are on a rock that is highly susceptible to an array of destruction from uncontrollable forces we can’t even see coming from beyond the known cosmos.

Your milliseconds here are precious. what can you do to make the best of those moments?

Support Somanyfeels Here:

Somanyfeels Soundcloud - https://soundcloud.com/somanyfeelsmusic

Somanyfeels Instagram - https://www.instagram.com/_somanyfeels_/?hl=en

Somanyfeels Facebook - https://www.facebook.com/somanyfeelsphoto/

#BEATSFORTHEILL #INTERVIEW #SOMANYFEELS

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empireintheair · 6 years

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-By Sam@Empire-

Last month I took on a The Speed Project. I wrote about the race a year ago, observing from the outside, but this year I got to live it myself.

The Speed Project is an ultra relay. 344-something miles from Santa Monica Pier to the “Fabulous” Las Vegas sign. Crazy right? Crazy enough for almost 40 teams, and some hundred runners to fly from 20 different countries to participate. There’s no monetary win. Just, a pool party, a cool vintage medal and of course bragging rights.

What started as a dream project turned into this ridiculous challenge to be apart of a TSP legacy.

This year I got to join the Mission I’m Possible family. Unlike most teams that stuck to 6 runners, we had about 12 runners + crew. Being the third year participating in this race, we had a few seasoned runners who knew what to expect out of this race and call the shots on segments.

What made this race different from others was that being nearly 40 teams, this race was going to become more competitive.

Thursday March 29th, 2018

Teams gathered at TSP HQ for briefing, packet pickup and to kindly meet the competition. I was getting goosebumps seeing all the RVs and chaser vans lined up in the tight parking lot and seeing the excitement in all the runners. Kraft Runners one of the anticipated leaders of the race, get awarded most low key RV by hiring an artist to tape up their vehicle (and lost their $1000 deposit as well… lol)

During the meeting Nils, founder of TSP had to be stern about listening to cops and not ending up arrested. Unlike other countries, we gotta take our authority more seriously.

“There are no rules, but there are laws”

Being at the briefing, we realized how small the running community was, and saw some familiar faces from the Bay Area including @concreterunners and female team @dthxsqd. Our friend Jenny @sherunsf, who we haven’t seen all year even stated “Is this what it takes to see each other? TSP just to run with each other again?!” I guess so.

Friday March 30th, 2018

It was about 3:30am as we were pulling up to the Santa Monica Pier sign. From what it looked like, some teams had been there for some time, maybe even slept at the start.

The starting line looked eerie. The plan was to start an hour earlier than previous years to get out of LA sooner and avoid traffic. There was still some fog rolling in from the beach but it just made the whole atmosphere look THAT more epic. The TSP media team was giving their final speeches, and this was probably the last time we would see all runners together until we got to the Vegas.

At 4am the race began! I was nervous, jittery, anxious but also excited. MIP decided we wanted to start with sisterhood so Jenay and I would be starting off the first leg. Although I wasn’t the very first runner, I would be meeting Jenay 3miles in to finish up the first segment. Our strategy was to keep each leg mileage short so that we could recover quicker.

Half our team went ahead where we would meet later that morning. Throughout TSP, we had two vehicles: a chaser van support vehicle to hold runners on deck and an RV for food and sleeping when you weren’t running.

Around 9 am, we linked up with the RV and switched runners from the RV and the chaser van. Sophia mentioned that we were already so much ahead of our time the previous year, but also, the race being an hour earlier than last year made a huge difference and allowed us to get out of LA traffic much sooner.

When in the RV, one of the most important things to focus on is recovery. With the sun being up and the energy still giving you that runner’s high high, you want to be awake (because FOMO) and recover your calories. However, you don’t want to eat too much so you don’t have to take poops in the wilderness. Rule #1: no pooping in the RV. Tuna Cracker Snacks, and Smucker’s Uncrustables were my food of choice for majority of the trip. (I’m pretty sure I ate most of them… sorry team)

As we were waiting for another switch, we parked in this vacant lot somewhere in Palmdale where we were caught up with Concrete, Death Squad, and I think AM:PM(Australia). In the middle of our break, the homeowner of the property came out and initially we thought he was going to kick us out of the lot. Rather than scolding at all these runners, he basically, opened up his home to us offering water, food, (but most importantly, a toilet) after a little curious questioning of what the hell we were doing causing traffic in their quiet town. He also had the cutest puppers that just wanted to play with some humans. Turns out, his kind soul was just home cooking for his friends that are at work all day so that they don’t have to worry about it when they come home. That’s friendship.

By 2pm, MIP was reeling in to the RV again. I myself wasn’t going to run in this next segment so I got to relax for another 5-6 hours. We drove ahead and made our way to the next rest stop before entering the Airplane grave yard.

This area was one that were highly briefed about at the meeting. It was known for stray dogs, rattlesnakes and also meth heads. In the handbook, it pointed out specific directions to stay close to the runner, just in case something/someone starts attacking. Just to be safe.

It was roughly 7pm, but it was light enough that we were still able to see the graveyard of huge airplanes and broken down cars. We were also running along another team, and we were trying our best to stay close by. As if playing catch up with Vans and RVs. Again, we were way ahead of MIP’s time last year that we got to see the TSP course in a different but also competitive light- literally. Throughout the night we continued being neck and neck with these other teams.

Due to a high volume of complaints leaving Palmdale, support vehicles were asked to drive ahead and not follow too close behind runners when we got back to the paved paths. If you thought you were afraid of the dark, try running a mile in it by yourself with no support. Although I had the full moon and a headlamp to light the way, it was so spooky just being alone on the road, when all you can hear is the water in your hand held bottle swooshing back and fourth and your feet hitting the pavement. It was meditative, but still spooky-A…F.

Once we got to the next transfer location close to midnight I was so happy to hear that the rest stop had showers. I wasn’t a fan of the idea of having to shower in dinky RV shower (shout out to Body Wipes) , but had to balance with the fact that the showers would only have ice cold water to bathe in. Good for recovery, I guess. I then treated myself to a strawberry shortcake ice cream because day one was over and yea, I damn well deserved it.

Saturday March 31st

Overnight, the majority of brothers of MIP covered trail portions in the dark.

Simeon Ran this same unsupported 9 mile leg 2 years ago and had to have a support vehicle come find him- he didn’t complete his leg that time. This year, he needed and wanted to redeem himself.

During that same leg, our van found another runner going the wrong way. In true MIP spirit, we picked him up, and dropped him off with our runner. We had them stick together for the rest of segment since it honestly didn’t matter at this point who was ahead or not. Coincidentally, Sim was wearing his volt Nike Pacer shirt not only for visibility, but acting upon that life role for the other runner. Their team was so thankful for us saving their mate.

I tried to get a good sleep, but was restless. You kinda stress about about having to get up to run your next segment. It was still pitch black outside, close to 4am. At the rest stop, we were waiting on Bryan, who was in the middle of a tough trail portion. Yea, I’m the dark. He described this portion like he was running but not going anywhere- as he compared it to running in quicksand. But like him, still had a smile on his face the entire time. We saw nothing but little flashlights in the distance so Julian went out and met him a few meters in for the exchange. Next was Ozzie and DZ.

By 6am we were heading into an even tougher trail portion. There was this one specific hill during the entire race that we have been warned about. No support unless you have a 4Runner.

In the chaser van, we were strategizing that I would take on the beginning half, have the van meet on the other side of the hill and Sophia run the second. Just before my portion, we stopped by a gas station as DZ was running his portion. Everyone needed this rest stop to restock on water, ice, and snacks and the toilet.

As we were driving back, we see some runners hopping over the hill thinking “DAMN, they got here quick!” Knowing DZ, we figured he would make it to our checkpoint fast, but for some reason, waiting, he was no where in sight. we then realized… what if he was one of those runners we saw over the hill?

We drove ahead on the highway, looking out for our runner in his gray shirt and there he was! Thankfully this portion was in viewing distance of the highway. Jupiter, our driver, was contemplating if we should drive ahead and meet him where we had originally planned to exchange Sophia, but next thing you know he makes a U-Turn along the dirt median, cuts traffic and pulls over. I then had to hop out of the Van with little to no thought, jump under barbed wire slide down a rocky path and meet up with DZ on the trail. All he said was “WE’RE AHEAD!!” as he was trailing another runner.

That runner happened to be Sandra Villines, of Firepower -Ultra Marathoner and Bad Water 2017 Winner, an ultra race through Death Valley… no big deal. For a team of Top females and 6 ultra runners, this group was hanging on to our team of 12+. I think at the moment I passed her on this trail portion-(hell yea i passed a champion), things began to get more competitive en route to Vegas.

In the light of things, DZ and I found a slab of wood on the ground that was an accurate shape of the state of Nevada, so of course we took it home with us.

During Jr’s portion, a 6-mile unsupported trail just before Baker, he called me saying his back was killing him, and I can tell he was in pain. Being the worried girlfriend that I am, I asked if anyone from the team could rescue andtake over the last portion of his leg for integrity purposes . Bryan, still tired from almost 10 hours of back to back segments still hadn’t recovered but knew he had to help Jr out. He described running to him as running into nothing but salt flats. It was tough running 2 miles out and back.

When we got to Baker to fill up on gas, SammyJo, Alexa, and Tony from MIP LV met up with us and something about their high energy gave us our second wind. Aka “fresh legs.”

It was about 11am, and Bryan said it was getting real, we were now entering the “Gates of Death Valley.” For the next 6 hours or so, the brothers would be running the desert through the hottest portion of the day. It was a segment that would take all heart. Thankfully, both SammyJo and Mia are trainers so they were able to help our runners recover in between legs.

We heard stories of the guys turning 2 mile segments into 1/2 mile segments since it was getting so hot and unbearable throughout the day. Everyone was out of it but they knew they shouldn’t even think about the mileage they had to cover and just run to get it over with.

Tony who was water boy even got in a mile to help the team recover just that much longer, however being water boy, the team forgot to get him water… lol.

The RV was parked at the end of the segment and we really used this time sleep and finish up RV decals. Crazy, but we saw Coach Raul of Nike Run Club LA, but also a TSP veteran just running on his own as he was training for Boston Marathon. WHO DOES THAT?

By 6pm, the Death Valley Squad was coming in for the exchange. While we went ahead, they said @wmnruntsp team met them on top of our RV without invitation. But rather than a hostile environment, it was a moment of peace and camaraderie. With the race being so competitive and nearly two days in, it was nice to just sit and enjoy each other’s company.

While running through Tecopa, the latter half of Death Valley, we were reaching higher elevation and got to enjoy a beautiful golden hour. Sammy Jo who only ran 2 miles said she was having trouble breathing! I even ended up getting a bloody nose due to the altitude during my segment and could tell my quads were giving out. Probably the slowest I ran the entire race at this point. Everyone was reaching their peak and exhausted, but knew we just about 6 miles each to run until the next exchange. I was also getting hangry.

More than 40 hours had passed by and closer to midnight, Jupiter was the last to exchange with those who were not even rested in the RV. This was the 30-something miles before the Las Vegas sign. I don’t know why we were stalling, but Simeon took off before we knew it. We had to catch up to Firepower who was just a couple miles ahead.

It was a continuous uphill segment, and Bryan said it felt like he was just walking(which Im sure was still probably 8min/mile pace) but once we got over the hill you could see the lights of the Vegas Strip. HOME STRETCH!

During that uphill, we took a lead on Firepower, but they were still on our tail.

With less than 20 miles left in the race, the guys were doing mile segments to quicken the pace. By the time Bryan was even able to get his things together in the Van, you hear DZ slamming on the van for the next runner to go!

“She’s right there!”

Adrenaline was pumping! Once we caught up to this team, there was nothing holding the guys back. Roy even texted us in the RV “if anyone can put in a 7-8 minute mile it would help us rest our legs” — but yea, at this point, us slower runners wouldn’t really contribute.

Not that we didn’t want to help the team, but we couldn’t maintain the pace they were already going. Eventually Jenay and Laila joined van to get in their last miles.

5:03am

The Finish Line. It was a close race. We met up with the MIP 400 meters out to run them into the Fabulous Las Vegas sign. Compared to the year prior, we had a 12 hr PR! It was early in the morning, and although we didn’t have Vegas family and friends waiting for us like previous years, there was something about the intimacy of just have the team and a few spectators that made this moment so special.

They say there may not be a Speed Project next year, but we’ve heard that before. Until we meet again on the RUNway…

Sam@Empire.

The Speed Project 4.0 -By Sam@Empire- Last month I took on a The Speed Project. I wrote about the race a year ago, observing from the outside, but this year I got to live it myself.

#MyEmpireInTheAir #death valley #las vegas #MIPWorldwide #Nikerunning #pacerlife #relay #runcation #running #santa monica #the speed project #tsp4.0 #ultrarunning #vegas

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