(QUESTION) It’s been a few months since your last release, Hooverman. This new EP, Original Style, feels very different from that one. Tell us more about the inspiration and concept behind it.

(ANSWER) Well first, I decided to stick with the faster tempo as it seems to fit with my current style. With both tracks, I wanted to produce something more melodic, but stick with the harder vibes.

Ya Feeling This, was the first one I produced and I wanted to take you on a bit of a journey before really dropping the pressure, yet keep that playful melody going. I also wanted to add some surprise in the end with that badass bass line, changing up the rhythm as well.

Original Style, is just straight up letting loose and dropping the pressure from start to end. That badass bass from the previous track was so good, I wanted to explore further with it in this track, thus essentially making it the main focus of the song.

(QUESTION) What’s next after this release?

(ANSWER) Well, COVID restrictions are less intense in Japan now, so I can get back to doing some gigs again. So I’ve mainly been focusing on building a new live setup for an upcoming tour.

The next release will be Chapter 3 from the 20 Years Of Damage Series, while I work on the next EP. Hope you dig it.

(QUESTION) You’ve always been very creative in your music, yet sticking to a more traditional style of Psytrance, however, there seem to have been a significant change in the vibe of this EP. Faster pace with a Pop vibe in Driving Me Crazy. Dark and sinister vibes in Super Vision. Really strong and exciting basslines. What inspired all of this?

(ANSWER) I have a bunch of other music projects and have been making more radio friendly tracks in the past 10 years. So now it’s probably slowly leaking into my Psytrance tunes as well.

Also, my life has changed a lot these past few months, with me finding the love of my life who keeps a smile on my face and light in my heart and always inspires and supports me.

My style has always been a bit of a mix of moods, contrasts and feelings and this is what I’m feeling right now, uplifted. The choice in more exciting basslines is just me making as groovy stuff as I play when I DJ because I like to keep things interesting.

(QUESTION) What was the inspiration behind this EP?

(ANSWER) After the release of my Debut Album, around 2005, I started a new life in Tokyo, Japan. This was a wild time in my life. A lot of partying and living completely irresponsibly. However, I managed to produce a decent amount of tracks at the time. My focus was not so much on creating anything too musical as my knowledge of music theory was almost non-existent. I did everything by ear, but seeing as there was a lot of partying involved, that ear was not the best at times. What came out of my studio, were out of control, high energy, crazy sounding tracks that people seemed to enjoy.

For this EP, I tried to capture the vibes of those days (without the partying), but with a more refined production and musical knowledge. Fast and out of control sounding Psy tunes. With Hooverman, I was creating a whole bunch of hoover patches on my Nord Lead 4, inspired by the 90’s rave music. I wanted to produce a track full of those hoovers. With Destined To Do More, I wanted to go louder and faster, with a lead similar to the one I did in a track called, Fuck’em All, produced with N.R.S.

(QUESTION) Can we expect more from you in 2022?

(ANSWER) I`m almost done with the next EP, which will be 2 tracks as well. Just making some fine adjustments. It`s not confirmed yet, but I might release Chapter 3 of the 20 Years Of Damage series before the next EP.

[Question] Please tell us something about the City or Town you are from.

[Answer] I live in the city of Stockholm where I was born and raised. It`s the capitol of Sweden and is known for it’s rich culture of art in many forms, such as music.

[Question] When did you first decide to become a DJ?

[Answer] I decide to become a DJ after attending parties and festivals around 2003 and I grew up with Electronic Music. I was amazed at how the power of music can have such a big impact on people`s emotions and state of mind.

[Question] How often are you DJing these days during the pandemic?

[Answer] During the pandemic, I haven`t had as many gigs as I had hoped to do, but I played a few really good ones. The COVID restrictions in Sweden are finally removed, so now the bookings are coming back more and more.

[Question] What kind of changes, if any, have you noticed at the parties in the past 2 years?

[Answer] Yes, I have noticed some changes in the scene. I feel that people have more respect for each other and there are more mixed musical styles at events. A lot of new organizers have popped up as well.

[Question] Tell us about the style of Psytrance you normally play during your set. Does it change depending on where or when you perform?

[Answer] Most of the time when I play, my choice of Psytrance is Progressive, Melodic Morning Full On or Night Full On. I love to combine Prog and Full On in my sets. Depending on the hour of the set or the crowd, I sometimes like to surprise the audience with harder Psy tunes such as Dark Psy, Forest or Hi-Tech/Psycore. Variations is the key in my opinion.

[Question] Who are your favorite Psytrance artists at the moment?

[Answer] Haha, hard question indeed. There are so many awesome Psytrance artists out there and new talents are born everyday. But at the moment my favorites are Invader Space, Examelodica, Marfel, Eternal Wonder, Psilocybe Project and Sienis, just to mention a few.

[Question] Thinking back on your DJ career, do you have any memorable moments that stood out from the rest?

[Answer] One memorable moment that comes to mind, is when I had the honor of doing the opening set at Yaga Gathering, Main Floor back in 2014. Beautiful, located deep in the woods of Lituania. The best feeling to play at festivals in other countries.

[Question] What kind of gear do you use during your set. Standard 2 decks and a mixer, or do you have something extra going on?

[Answer]  I try to always expand my mixing skills and dance skills, haha. Right now I actually have a controller at home, but at parties, I mix with USB or CD on decks. During sets, I use some effects, but not to many and I beat mix at least 2 tracks.

[Question] Besides being known as DJ Daniel Deer, you also have another stage name. Tell us more about that.

[Answer] Yeah, my other alias, TaleSpin, is a Techno/Tech House/Minimal Prog DJ project I started in 2019, to separate my Deer name, because it was too attached to Psytrance. I wanted to show a different side that was deeper, darker and with more intensity.

[Question] From your perspective, what is the meaning of life?

[Answer] The meaning of life to me, is happiness in all forms. Mind blowing music, family, partner, friends and be together with the ones you love, reaching another level of being.

[Question] Tell us about your studio. What synths do you have in there and which do you use the most?

[Answer] I like to keep my studio minimal so i´m rocking the Access Virus TI Snow, been using Virus synths since i started cause i love the sound.

[Question] What about other external hardware? Do you have any favorites?

[Answer] That would be my Eventide H7600, it has everything i could ever need in hardware FX in the best possible quality.

[Question] Sweden is well known for it’s legendary producers of Pop music and bands like ABBA, which made big waves around the globe. Tell us about the Psytrance scene over there and how it has been affected by the pandemic and perhaps yourself as well.

[Answer] Psytrance in Sweden is going strong, more and more parties coming up again but the pandemic doesn´t really affect the life of an introvert much, “I gotta stay home in my studio and away from crowds? ok then!” On the other hand people in Sweden barely care about masks and distance or anything like that, overall life is pretty normal here.

[Question] What made you want to produce this music?

[Answer] I´ve always been fascinated by melodies and beats since a kid but i think it started after thinking that I can do it better after hearing some tracks.

[Question] You are also known for producing other genres and working on post production for movies. Do you want to tell us a little something about that?

[Answer] Yea, i like to play around with all kinds of genres, pretty much done most of the electronic genres just to expand on my knowledge and to see if i could do it. The movie audio work is what pays bills tho and i really love working with foley, sfx and mixing.

[Question] Now let’s talk about your upcoming EP, Kill Confirmed. What kind of inspiration is behind this EP?

[Answer] My inspiration for my latest tracks come from making a few co-op tunes with Damage, I wanted to make something more powerful.

[Question] You seem to be really good at online FPS games. Do you think it has something to do with your military background?

[Answer] Me and my buddy have been playing Call Of Duty since the first one came out and most other FPS games since pretty much, way before i ever was in the army.

[Question] What can we expect to hear or see from you in the near future? Are there any other projects or music you are currently working on?

[Answer] Hard to say, got a few psy tracks for maybe another EP at some point. Most other projects are kind of on hold since i´m working construction to pay the bills.

[Question] Do you have some advice for younger producers?

[Answer] If you´re new to producing music then EXPERIMENT!! Turn the knobs all the way to hear what they really do. Learn from all genres of music. Get proper monitors, fix your room acoustics and buy one good hardware synth because software isn´t quite there yet in comparison.

[Question] From your perspective, what is the meaning of life?

[Answer] The meaning of life is to live it and enjoy it.