Samiyam is an extremely talented producer hailing from Michigan, who started releasing music via the internet in 2007 and has since garnered strong praise from the most progressive music makers in Los Angeles and beyond. Mixing some 8-bit sounds with samples from old Italian horror film soundtracks, soul, funk and 1990s hip hop, he has created a whole new world that sets him a mile away from other producers around.

Coming to China for the first time to play a Brainfeeder show on the top of the Shanghai Art Museum on the 11^th of September together with Ques - who will be doing live art painting during his shows – he is set to surprise and amaze everybody with his baaaad assss tunes. We talked to the man to find out more about his shows in China, his life and his music... Here is what he had to say.

FREE the WAX: It seems like you are a film enthusiast of arguable taste… have you ever seen your music itself being a soundtrack to a movie?

SAMIYAM: I feel like my music is more like a moving soundtrack of my life rather than a movie soundtrack. I make music based on how I'm feeling for the most part. However if my music was a movie soundtrack, I would be the main character and it would be kind of like 'Die Hard' but with zombies!

FTW: Can you describe it more humm… what does that sound like?

SAM: My music sounds like a bag of jagged and sometimes clashing feelings attached to an object made of concrete being thrown and smashed through a large window.

FTW: Nice… I think. When did you start making music that sounds like the stuff that came out on Rap Beats Vol. 1, then?

SAM: I've been making stuff like that since about 2004. Not all of those tracks were new at the time I started selling the CD-Rs I burned myself. I think the oldest tracks on vol.1 might date back almost to '04.

FTW: That’s right… you burned each CD-R for “Rap Beats” and did each album cover by hand! Man, it must have taken ages…  

SAM: The idea for the Rap Beats hand made covers was conceived when I was about 10 years old! I used to pick up newspapers and magazines I would find in my parents house and draw all over peoples face with pens. One day I just remembered doing that as a little kid and decided it would be fun to do it again and actually be able to share it with people. I'm no longer doing those handmade covers, though. I started feeling like I had made enough of them. I think I did over a thousand of those covers! Also my CD burner expired after burning all of those CDs so I couldn't make them at home anymore!

FTW: So, on “Rap Beats Vol 1” you had all those songs that were below the the 2-minute mark. Was there an intention to leave them out as seemingly semi-finished ideas?

SAM: Yeah, I wanted Vol.1 to be like an overview. I didn't want it to stay on one idea for too long. I guess when I listen back to Vol.1 it does seem to move abruptly from one idea to the next but I like it like that. It's like a collection of short cartoons.

FTW: And how do the equipments you use influence the way you made that music?

SAM: My set up consists of some records, a couple small synthesizers, the Roland SP303 and SP404 digital samplers. I actually started out on an MPC drum machine but I didn't really like working on it so much.  I feel like I'm working by ear on the SPs. The MPC seemed more visual. With either SP I can just sample some sounds and start working without having to navigate through any menus. Every sound, whether I'm sampling stuff or making my own sounds, goes into the SP. It’s the most important part of my set up.

FTW: Can you give us a little idea of the weirdest sounds you have sampled?

SAM: I'll sample anything really… From my own home recordings to music to feedback from a broken machine… Anything that makes a sound I can get into the machine. I'm not sure it's the weirdest thing I've ever sampled, but once I sampled a zombie getting its head smashed from an old Italian horror movie. I sampled it not only because I love old horror movies and watch them all the time but also because I thought it would sound cool as a clap/snare!

FTW: And what are your favorite Nintendo games to sample?

SAM: I wouldn't really say I have any favorite Nintendo games to sample. I've actually only sampled a few of those games. I think some people are under the impression that I use way more sounds from Nintendo games than I actually do. Occasionally someone will ask me "what game did you sample for that?" about a beat with no samples whatsoever in it! A lot of my favorite NES music is from Megaman games. That stuff is really dope. It's like 8-bit heavy metal!

FTW: Since Rap Beats, how do you reckon your sound’s been evolving? 

SAM: Since the release of Rap Beats Vol.1 I've been making more music without samples. Most of the Vol.1 stuff is mainly sample-based. Lately I've been playing out my own chord progressions and making my own sounds more often than completely basing tracks around samples. As for my live sets, I've been playing more diverse music. I've been including a lot of new music I'm working on as well as incorporating music by friends of mine and other artists whose music I enjoy and which I also feel fits in with my sound.

FTW: A couple of years back, you moved to LA from the cold heartland of Michigan. What sparked that dramatic change of scenery?

SAM: During the time leading up to my move to LA, I was really feeling like I needed a big change in my life. I felt like I wasn't in the most inspirational setting and I thought it would help me a lot to completely change my surroundings. I had been collaborating with my friend, Flying Lotus, on the FLYamSAM stuff for more than a year before I moved to LA. I went out there a couple times just to see how it would be. I really liked it and was amazed and inspired by the music scene. I decided to move out there just over 2 years ago. At the moment, I feel like it's the best place for me to live. For me it's not so much about the city itself but about the amazing people I've met and gotten to know and the abundance of dope art and music! I do feel like LA is the place for me to be right now!

FTW: How is the collaboration between you and Flying Lotus, the FLYamSAM thing coming about… The album you are both releasing under the Brainfeeder umbrella contains only new stuff?

SAM: There is a completed FLYamSAM album! We have plans to release it this year on Brainfeeder. It has some of our favorite stuff that we've made together on there. Soon there will be my 10" 'Man vs. Machine' EP on Poo-Bah records, Rap Beats vol.2, and the FLYamSAM EP. I'm also working on a full length album to hopefully release this year!

FTW: How do you feel about performing as the main act with your fellow Brainfeeder friend Ques, who’s doing a Live painting while you play?

SAM: I'm really looking forward to performing with Ques. I think he's a really cool artist. It's always dope to perform or work with someone who you're not only friends with but admire as an artist. It's been really cool the few times Ques has done live art at shows I've gone to or played at.

FTW: What do you expect from your first trip in Asia in general?

SAM: This trip to Korea and China will be my second time in Asia. I was in Tokyo last year in October. I'm still not exactly sure what to expect apart from the fact that this trip will be new and exciting to me. I'm hoping to enjoy the local food, get some little souvenirs to bring back, get a taste of the culture and see the locals at the shows!

Catch BRAINFEEDER showcase: SAMIYAM and QUES on the 11^th of September in Shanghai