Some particles from an interview originally published in Plastic Passion #12, Spring/Summer 2000. Originally in Finnish, interviewed by Aku-Tuomas Mattila. Translated in a hurry.

Niko Skorpio 1999

Niko Skorpio has released a vinyl LP entitled Grey Bloom in the Autumn of 1998, a few compilation tracks last year and in March 2000 a CD-EP called Delta Amoeba. Musically Niko Skorpio is some kind of elektro with a lo-fi attitude, and it could be defined as organic funk or sick blues. Some of the material is pretty near a pop song flavoured with imaginative samples, but some of it is sound collages that recall snapshots from situations. A common denominator in the Skorpio products are little details the tracks have been filled with. It’s a good topic to start with:

PP: Where do you find all the samples? Do they just come up by accident?

My sources are everywhere (CDs, TV, radio, web, balcony etc.), I just record all kinds of sounds usually with no actual plans for further use. Sometimes when watching a movie something in my head says click and I know the scene could fit somewhere. I may forget the stuff for months until I play around with something totally else and suddenly rediscover the things I had put aside. With picking samples (and pretty much everything else) I guess I’m led by my sense of humour and a certain kind of attitude towards life in general. I guess I’m just trying to explain the oddities of life to myself by doing what I do.

PP: How do you make the music in practice? Seemingly the computer and its accessories are the most important tool?

Most often the music is born of accidents and coincidences. However detailed plans or ideas I may have for a finished track, it always turns on a very different track at some point. It is a daemonic or seraphic intervention on some level, it gives the track a life of its own. It’s no use to fight it so I rather follow the traces and see where they go.

PC is a friend. I rarely touch a “real” instrument nowadays, but rather sample, cut, paste and fool around with sounds. Plus some virtual inStromEnts etc. Geek stuff. The only problem is how to do it all in a live situation. A problem that’s yet waiting to be solved.

PP: One can hear a connection between Grey Bloom and the Deal Amoeba e.p., but on the other hand lots of changes have occured in the timeline of a year and a half. Do you have an idea of what kind of stuff you’ll release next? And, when? On what format?

The work on some of the Delta material was started already in ‘97, that is prior to the release of Grey Bloom, so I wouldn’t necessarily start predicting any evolution based on these releases alone. In the process of making a record I always keep a kind of an overall theme in mind, however loose it might be. Anyway it seems I’m going towards a more rhythmic, more active sound; there’s got to happen a lot all the time during the track (even though it might sound like a 10 minute constant drone on the first listen…)!

Many things are being planned and worked on all the time, but before anything is close to being finished, it’s useless to reveal details. But at least the Delta Amoeba web extensions should be unleashed – finally! – in near future, that is a couple of new/unreleased tracks that relate to the theme of the e.p., plus several remixes/recyclings made by friends. Well I can reveal something; the twin sister release to Grey Bloom that was being announced back in ‘98 is still on the “to do” list. There are also plans for a 10″ called Chamber Mu Sick, and also the next so-called “full length album”, pre-titled Aura Bulk, I’m told. Also some remixes are in the works, and some tracks with no further plans etc. My label also asked for a remix or two for A\H (label mates) for a forthcoming vinyl release or something.

Whatever I just told about possible titles, formats, contents, schedules or overall existence shouldn’t be taken for granted. Projects always have the tendency to live their own life and change, so I should shut up now before things are ready.

PP: Your music is quite far from the mainstream. I guess only minority of the promos from your releases ever reach the mainstream circles, but are there any humorous comments, opinions or other occurences from the mainstream consumers or crtitics?

The mainstream press is actively ignoring the promo stuff the label sends out (I’m glad there are a few exceptions however…). Whether it’s because the music is too dull to write about or because they don’t know how to deal with it, remains unclear. Not that it matters much anyway, I prefer dealing with those who already have some kind of an idea what this stuff is about. I hate explaining what I’m doing and why. If the music leaves you totally cold, talking about it won’t change it.

Unfortunately I cannot recall any humorous comments right now. “This disc is faulty” and such begin to wear out.