Space, Time & Techno with Move D
We had a fascinating Skype call with the legend that is Move D. He is a true space fanatic, as well as an amazing DJ, so we decided to tie these two worlds together for the interview and indulge in some of our own cosmic interests along the way. Beginning with a chat about '2001: A Space Odyssey', the conversation flows from topics of artificial intelligence and the 11 different dimensions, to creativity and eclecticism in music. Move D has been a mainstay in the electronic music scene for the past three decades. He has constantly reinvented himself with new sounds and produces under several different aliases. The man from Heidelberg is an extra-ordinary talent and it was a real coup to chat to him. Buckle up, we go deep...
To begin, when did your obsession with space start?
It began with '2001: A Space Odyssey'. My dad took me to see the movie when I was 4 and it was a real life-changing experience. I was totally overwhelmed by it and I actually understood quite a lot about it, even though it’s quite open and mythical. One of the central topics is artificial intelligence and this computer [HAL], which develops feelings. These ideas are super up to date with our time, when in the late sixties it was still a vision. For me, on a technical side, it’s the one sci-fi movie that stands the test of time and still looks legit and cool. It pays so much attention to detail. When every other sci-fi movie at the time had a thunder noise when the spaceship flies by, Stanley Kubrick ]director] had silence like it is in space. It wowed me aesthetically, philosophically, the music they used, the whole story behind it... I think it’s just such a complete, puzzling piece of master art in all respects. Everything is subliminal, but it gets so serious when one of the two crew members wants to return to the spaceship, but the computer refuses to open the door...
It’s slow-paced and fascinating up until that point, then everything changes; the computer that controls the spacecraft, decides to betray the two crew members. What faith do you place in artificial intelligence and technology? Do you think it will further our advancement as a race, or do you think there will be a point where it takes over to pursue its own goals?
I’m a bit sceptical about the whole AI thing and it’s less the technology, but more the human behind it. I’m super wary of Siri on the iPhone or Alexa speakers. All this shit is basically there to monitor us. On the other hand, there is good use for artificial intelligence, and I think we will benefit from it. I think it's dangerous if it's a substitute for a human being. Artificial intelligence deludes people into having relationships that they don’t really have. Often on social media, especially Instagram, even if I do know the person, I will forget eventually who it is in the real world. Sometimes through some coincidence I’m reminded that it's actually this guy or this girl, when the whole time, I haven’t been aware of it. So, this makes me really aware how second-hand the communication is. You don’t really even know who you’re talking to!
You could be chatting to anyone… The world will inevitably become more and more populated with artificial intelligence and robots, which is scary, because if it gets out of hand, we can’t just turn it all off!
If you’re fed up with it, what do you do with it? Do you kill it? Put it in a dump yard? What would be their rights? That is really scary and far away still... I think with the progress in science and medicine we will become more like robots ourselves, with artificial hearts. This is going to be really interesting; the soul and brain should remain human, but maybe science and technology will find new custom bodies for old brains so that they continue to live… Man will do everything to extend its lifetime and options…
Yeah, so you would think we might’ve explored space more and found another planet to inhabit by now. When you grew up, space must’ve felt like the next logical step for mankind?
It was very mainstream, like techno! It was amazing that Kubrick made the movie a year before the lunar landing, he was really on a lot of NASA technology. They were making deals with him and supporting him. When it came to Germany in 1970, the whole Apollo mission was still going. I have memories of Apollo 11 and more so of Apollo 13, when they were stuck in space. This was something very unifying. People were affected by it, suffering with the astronauts regardless of politics and nationality. It was really something global. You could feel it. The early Apollo thing was one of the earliest kinds of mass media phenomena’s that people were interested in, more so than the Super Bowl…
There was so much going on during that period, with a succession of moon missions, but lately space feels like it is getting farther and farther away with the NASA budget shrinking. Last year we celebrated the 50th anniversary of the moon landing but we haven’t been back since.
It is economics I guess. There’s not enough to be gained. It’s too hard to set up some bases there. However, as it turns out, they will need the moon as a rocket base for mars, so it’s not a surprise everyone is talking about going there again. I think it’s going to happen soon and it leads to the next step which is man on Mars, but it’s probably equal as it was with the moon. It will help science but if you look at the scale of the universe it's nothing…
What do you think is the extent to which man can travel space?
I think for now we are still locked in the Einstein model about the speed of light and we won’t be able to overcome it so soon, but science and physics know about the existence of more than the dimensions we can visualise or sense. We have proof of at least 11 different dimensions, by now. We can’t visualise them, but they are existent. So, I think there might be a way of tapping in to this and bypassing the Einstein laws, but I think we’re far away still…
It's so difficult to comprehend the scale of the universe.
It is infinite, but they can estimate how much it weighs. So maybe that makes us think that it does have an ending. You can weigh it so it can’t be endless. My dad, who was an astrophysicist, said if you had a super strong flashlight and you point it into the night sky, the light would travel and come back to us. It is infinite, but there are some kind of borders. But what are around these borders? Other universes? We now know our universe is singular, but there could be many universes…
I think the closest I come to experiencing outer space is when I'm clubbing. Futuristic music, in a dark room, trippy lights... it all feels like a microcosm of the wider universe. Do you feel a connection between certain dancefloor environments and space when you're DJing or dancing in a club?
Definitely, on many levels. As a child after the 2001 experience I wanted to be an astronaut, but my dad explained I couldn't because of my bad eyesight. I was disappointed, but looking at my life now and looking around in the studio with all the hardware and the blinking lights, it’s so much like a spaceship cockpit, so, it nurtures that desire. The whole design in a nightclub with the fancy lights and smoke machines, the music is like machine or AI music, not human, it all enhances this feeling. It’s also a bit like being in a floatation tank; if it’s a good party the hours can fly by you and you can really lose sense of time. You’re isolated from the outside world. It’s very much like a spaceship, a very fortunate one because you’ve got other ravers on board, not dry scientists!
There’s more to clubbing than just business.
Definitely, a good party and get together of humans creates a soul. There is definitely more to clubbing than making promoters rich and looking at it in a solely profane perspective. Clearly this world needs attention to climate, which is happening, but it also needs attention in how humans deal with each other and how they treat each other. In many interviews people ask me how I got into techno and electronic music and I say it wasn’t the beats that attracted me in the beginning, it was the spirit of the people being different and caring for each other. From my previous experience at rock festivals or main street discotheques, people didn’t care for their neighbour as much. I think this whole attitude and the kind of techno ethics (even though its 20, 30 years later and its been commercialised and capitalised on) still exists. I still feel it and I feel proud. It is a good example of humanity; we don’t have to be ashamed of who we are or what we do.
As a musician, you’ve produced all sorts, from spaced-out ambience and downtempo techno released under Deep Space Network and Reagenz to laidback house grooves, and minimal dance music as Move D… Do you have certain methods of getting into the right headspace to be creative in the studio?
Well, is there a method? The first order is the experiment; I try to avoid being too methodic about how I approach things, because then I would probably keep making the same track over and over. Sometimes I just mess about on a synthesiser and it’s more the sound of the thing that hits me somewhere. Sometimes there's a concept of what you’re doing, especially when it’s commissioned work; a remix, a label waiting for a single or something. But these are not the ideal preconditions to making music. I think the artists who really excel piss off their fanbase a bit by migrating somewhere… from jazz to electronic stuff… from a piano to a machine…
So, it’s good to take risks?
You’ve got to take risks; you’ve got to be daring to kind of really do something new. That’s something I really want to do and that’s why I try so many things. My recent productions are more formal, and functional, but I’m also doing super far out weird records which people don’t notice as much. I’m still experimenting and am very open to all kinds of music from classical, sixties pop, psychedelic, jazz, funk and what not, so it’s natural for me to be interested and curious. I don’t want to restrict myself to one kind of genre, or one method that works…
Is having that kind of identity important to you?
Yeah, very important. I'm happy that people respect eclecticism these days. With all the nostalgia about how great the 90s were, I think people were thinking more in categories back then, I think that was a problem with the music I produced and the music I DJ'd. For a lot of people, it wouldn’t go together, and it was holding me back from wider success because these ends didn’t meet. Generally, people are more open-minded when it comes to music these days, I think it's also to do with the fact that music is less important to the average person than it used to be. If you compare to the 70s/80s; in those times, music was the number one identifier of who you are and what you are. More than the clothes you wore. If you liked the stones it was not cool to like the Beatles, if you were a mod you couldn’t like some other music…
Very loyal fan bases...
Mental barriers, no go areas, but it was very important that everyone had a music collection and they would try to impress their friends with it. Nowadays, this is totally swept away, people don’t own record collections anymore, they are happy to subscribe to some kind of app where they can stream music. So, it has lost its value as something personal archive that you can share with friends…
We live in an era of instant information…
It’s great, it brings information so much quicker, especially for underground music, it’s essential that people have a chance to connect with you. I think social media is also essential and I will be a nice guy and try to reply as much as I can and take as many selfies as possible. I’m always super grateful, it's these people asking for a selfie who make it possible for me to live this life I’m living and not have to work in an office.
Plus, social media continues to evolve.
Nothing lasted forever, we had MP3.com, myspace, now we have Facebook, Instagram, it will keep changing…
Do you think that dance music will keep evolving as well?
It's evolving but at the same time it is feeding from the past, as you find it in fashion, all of a sudden the sixties are here again, it’s always feeding back. When me and Jonas Grossman started Source Records in 1990, we talked about how music would evolve from the year 2000. Jonas said, whatever it is they will have some four on the floor accompanied by some synths and sounds. It sounds a bit lame but essentially he was right. I think it’s because there are rhythms that have been going longer than language. They universally work and they will continue to work in the future. I’m super into the resurgence of breakbeat that’s happening currently, especially if its not up-tempo, but more like the house/garage tempo. Early 90s stuff with just a broken beat, its cool. I’m glad it’s back. For the most part, dance music has been dominated by the four on the floor and it’s still not dead. I don’t think it will ever die....
If you have any questions or would like to discuss this article or any other with us - don't hesitate to get in touch.