Boys Noize on Nine Inch Nails Collaboration, TRON, and His New Label, OAZ + Vinyl Crate Digging

Alex Ridha, the Berlin-based producer who performs as Boys Noize, has had an unusually varied year. He's been opening for Nine Inch Nails on the "Peel It Back" tour (hailed as one of the best live shows of 2025), co-produced the Grammy-winning TRON: Ares soundtrack alongside Trent Reznor and Atticus Ross, and still manages to find time for the underground techno shows that built his reputation in the first place.

Recorded at Waterloo Records in Austin, this interview covers his collaboration with Trent Reznor on Challengers & Tron: Ares, the creation of "Nine Inch Noize" for Coachella 2025, and exclusive crate digging featuring rare vinyl discoveries and influences.

TIMESTAMPS:

0:00 Intro
0:37 Record Store at 15 & $1000/month on Vinyl
3:16 Breaking Genre Boundaries
6:44 DJing vs Producing
8:45 Nine Inch Nails Tour Collaboration
10:03 Challengers soundtrack with Trent Reznor
11:09 Vision vs. Reality Playing Live with NIN
13:00 The Nine Inch Nails Concert Atmosphere
17:05 Power Ballads Moment
19:05  Decision Maker: "Is it cool or not? That's all"
19:25 Lady Gaga Remix story
21:27 Growing up in Berlin
22:38 Brazilian baile funk as "new punk"
24:30 "You don't need a label" - Ones and Zeros Label
27:23 "Snakes aren't real" Conspiracy Viral Marketing Campaign
28:25 Hidden Easter Eggs on Tour
31:12 CRATE DIGGING - Ministry Wax Trax Box Discovery
33:02 Berghain Vinyl Sets
42:00 First Vinyl Story at 6 Years Old
44:03 Peak Snoop Dogg Experience
45:44 Prince & Bowie Influences
48:12 25,000 records & Memories

📍 Recorded at Waterloo Records, Austin, Texas

🎧 BOYS NOIZE:
Instagram:  @boysnoize
Youtube:  @boysnoize
Label: @onesandzeros | onesandzeros.com

NIN Tour Tickets: https://bit.ly/4qAvmg5

All Boys Noize Tour Dates:
5. Feb 2026 NIN @ NEW ORLEANS, LA, SMOOTH KING CENTER
7. Feb 2026 NIN @ JACKSONVILLE, FL, VYSTAR VETERANS MEMORIAL ARENA
10. Feb 2026 NIN @ CHARLOTTE, NC, SPECTRUM CENTER
11. Feb 2026NIN @ WASHINGTON DC, CAPITAL ONE ARENA
13. Feb 2026 NIN @ BOSTON, MA, TD GARDEN
14. Feb 2026 NIN @ NEWARK, NJ, PRUDENTIAL CENTER
14. Feb 2026 BASEMENT, BROOKLYN, NYC
16. Feb 2026 NIN @ MONTREAL, QC, BELL CENTRE
18. Feb 2026NIN @ HAMILTON, ON, TD COLISEUM
20. Feb 2026NIN @ COLUMBUS, OH, SCHOTTENSTEIN CENTER
22. Feb 2026 NIN @ GRAND RAPIDS, MI, VAN ANDEL ARENA
23. Feb 2026 NIN @ MILWAUKEE, WI, FRISERV FORUM
25. Feb 2026 NIN @ ST. LOUIS, MO, ENTERPRISE CENTER
27. Feb 2026 NIN @ TULSA, OK, BOK CENTER
1. Mar 2026 NIN @ AUSTIN, TX, MOODY CENTER
3. Mar 2026 NIN @- DALLAS, TX, AMERICAN AIRLINES CENTER
6. Mar 2026 NIN @ GLENDALE, AZ, DESERT DIAMOND ARENA
7. Mar 2026 NIN @ LAS VEGAS, NV, MGM GRAND GARDEN ARENA
9. Mar 2026 NIN @ SAN DIEGO, CA, PECHANGA ARENA
10. Mar 2026 NIN @ ANAHEIM, CA, HONDA CENTER
13. Mar 2026 NIN @ SALT LAKE CITY, UT, DELTA CENTER
15. Mar 2026 NIN @ SAN FRANCISCO, CA, CHASE CENTER
16. Mar 2026 NIN @ SACRAMENTO, CA, GOLDEN 1 CENTER
28. Mar 2026 ULTRA MUSIC FESTIVAL, MIAMI. FL
10. & 11. Apr 2026 COACHELLA, CA (NINE INCH NOIZE)
17. & 18. Apr 2026 COACHELLA, CA (NINE INCH NOIZE)

🎤 ALL ACCESS WITH CLARISSA CARDENAS:
Partnership with  @spin Magazine
Instagram: @clarissacardenas_cq
Website: theconcertqueen.com

Thanks to:  @WaterlooRecords  

Transcript

Speaker: 00:00
Welcome to All Access with Clarissa Cardinus. Today's guest is stepping into one of the biggest moments of his career, as well as one of the most talked-about creative collaborations of the year. Boys Noise is currently performing as a live creative partner on the Nine-inch Nails Peel of Back Tour, not just as an opener, but as an integral part of the show. That collaboration has now evolved into 9-inch noise, which is a new joint promogenic set to make its debut with the headlining performance this year at Coachella. At the same time, Boys Noise also co-produced the Tron Ares soundtrack alongside Trent Reznor and Atticus Ross, further expanding a creative relationship that brings together Underground Techno, my personal favorite, industrial music, and cinematic sound design. Parallel to all of this, he continues to build his own world through ones and zeros. His label, launched in early 2025, spotlighting artists from the International Underground the Label represents. We recorded this rare, long-form sit-down inside Waterloo Records here in Austin, Texas. A full-circle moment for an artist who began his journey working in a record store, crate digging as a teenager, and laying the foundation for the sound he's now bringing to stages around the world. In this episode, Boys Noise speaks candidly about artistry, collaboration, independence, and what it truly means to build something lasting. And yes, we also uncover some hidden tour Easter eggs, a secret DJ alias you might recognize, and close with a crate-digging moment that just so happened to include his very first vinyl from childhood. All here on all access with Boys Noise. Enjoy. I'm here with the

Speaker: 01:47
 one and only Boys Noise. Alex, welcome.

Speaker 2: 01:51
How are you doing?

Speaker: 01:52
He's here in Austin, Waterloo Records, which is an iconic record store here in Austin. You have a background in record stores. It's kind of where you got your start, right?

Speaker 2: 02:01
True. Yeah. I worked in a record store myself. Um, you know, I started to buy a lot of house and techno records back in like, you know, 80.

Speaker 1: 02:10
80.

Speaker: 02:11
90. Like, what's your skin care? Tell me the skincare regimen.

Speaker 2: 02:14
98, 99, and you know, I just, you know, I I went there every day, and then the guy was like, Man, you you you're here every day. Why don't you work here? And I had other jobs to finance the vinyl back then, but then um, yeah, I started working there when I was 15. Wow. And it kind of got me started into, you know, everything more serious, other than trying to make cool mixtapes for, you know, the people I try to hook up with or whatever.

Speaker: 02:41
Yeah. Well, I'm sure you were exposed to a lot of music, and that's kind of you got first dibs, I'm sure, on seeing the newest. And has that kind of formed your music style now and how you kind of select tracks?

Speaker 2: 02:52
Yeah, it deeply shaped me. I mean, I was a fan of electronic music for a while, you know, going to the Love Parade in Berlin as a young raver and stuff like this, but there was always something special about in the in the record store in the community about it because the music you find there, you cannot listen to it anywhere else, especially back then. So, you know, it's not music you hear on the radio, it's not music that your friends listen to. No one has access to it. It's only on vinyl. It's you know, house and techno back then was still not really underground. You know, there's been big Eurodance movements even in the 90s and you know, early 90s, but still, you know, the the normal house record that would come out, it's only on vinyl, it's only for DJs. And I loved that. I loved finding music that no one else knows, and it's my own little thing, and you know, some other kids in my school thought I was gay because I was listening to house music and not rap or whatever, you know, like it's but I love being the outsider and I love finding music that no one else knew, and I love being in this community of people that all share that. Um yeah, and it definitely shaped me as a DJ. It shaped me as um running my own record label. I, you know, I always secretly, you know, I started secretly thinking about having my own record label, and I loved all the Chicago stuff and the producers that would put out records like a week every two weeks there's a new whatever, you know, DJPA record or you know, whatever it was at that time. And um just this this idea about making tools for the clubs and all of that, yeah. So good times.

Speaker: 04:40
So, how did you you just you mentioned something that I think a lot of people, especially nowadays, where they're exposed to all different types of music, but they feel like they have to stay in one lane or they feel like they can't really cross genres and we'll talk about obviously the big tour that you're on right now. But what kind of kept you going where you were you were unafraid to try different genres and like you said, to kind of go against the grain?

Speaker 2: 05:05
Yeah, maybe it's my problem with author authority. We started in school already, but you know, whenever whenever I see something, you know, someone telling like it's only this way or that way, I'm I'm immediately triggered. I don't know, I can't help it. And you know, back then when again when I started off the the the the house and techno scene, let's stay there, for instance, was quite divided. You know, the the let's say Berlin was techno, rave, and the real techno DJs, they're like we don't we don't mess with the house people, it's too soft, it's like handbag, you know, like you know, all the singing. And you know, I loved house music, I loved I loved all the origins of it. I love Soulful House, I love everything that's you know, it's basically the pre progression of disco music, which I absolutely love, and I have a huge disco collection. But you know, it it is true that at some point it just got so boring. And so I remember my first DJ gig, I was 16. My first proper DJ gig in a in a house club. Um, I I already as a warm-up DJ I started to mix in just everything, you know, like deep house. Obviously, as a warm-up DJ, you you stay chill, you know, you don't play the hits, you don't play anything that's too much, just get a vibe. Yeah, you know, it's I love being a I love I love being a warm-up DJ. But um truth is I I I from day one I like to mix things and it became more and more obvious the more I I experienced being in a club and hearing just DJs staying in one thing, and I I I get bored. And I always thought, you know, and there were records that allowed me to bridge these things, and I think that's the way you have to look at it as a DJ. Do you find a record how you can seamlessly bridge from one thing to another without feeling like you know, you're doing crazy like hip-hop cuts or whatever, or you know, like you know, you still want it to feel like one, um, which is the beauty of doing a constant techno set, you know. I love that too. If you have like, you know, they say they play like one record for like four hours, you know. I like I like that too. It's more a trancey kind of thing, but yeah, when I DJ myself, I like to I like to um to play different stuff, you know.

Speaker: 07:37
And and you really do, and we were talking earlier because I was first introduced to you on friendship, which for people who are not familiar, that is a rave. It's a very yeah, it's it's a giant rave cruise, and you're exposed to a lot of different types of of electronic dance music, and you were one of the ones who just, in my opinion, blew my mind because you were going through all the different genres. You'd be playing a techno set in one room, and then maybe, like you said, some disco or house or industrial techno, and that was the beauty of, and we were talking outside, is that you can go from not only DJing and being able to seamlessly transition between those genres, but also produce, which are two different skill sets that I feel like kind of gets lost among people sometimes because they feel like, okay, I I just want to produce, or I'm just good at that, or I just want to DJ. So, how has that been for you? Like doing not like where do you find the time to develop each of those skills? Because they are two different skill sets.

Speaker 2: 08:31
Um, it's you know, it kind of went hand in hand. I did start producing a little later than than DJing, but you know, it's DJing definitely f feeds my production a hundred percent. And um my I guess my

Speaker 2: 08:49
 main thing was and is when it comes to production was thinking that you know I'm playing all these records that I love, like a good new whatever techno record or house record. What's what's the point making something like that? Like someone else did it already, it sounds amazing, I'm a fan of it. I don't want to bite him, I don't want to like you know, steal his idea or whatever. So, you know, I guess my intuition was always to just do something that like what's my part, you know, what what can I do that you know feels different, you know, that someone else would be like, oh, this is fresh because it's like whatever. But it's it's also not the easiest, to be honest. It's it's you know, I know what I'm doing, and I know that I mess up a lot of people along the way where it's like, you know, they like my records, but they I remember one of the first feedbacks I got from DJs when I started my label, and you know, I sent out promos and I got an effax from Laurent Gagnier, one of the big, you know, European DJs from France. And he's like, Man, I love your record, but I can't mix it, you know, because you know, I would start the record right away with like a lot of information, and those are just little things, but but in general, I like to think about just you know, or I don't really think about it, it's just natural to me that I wouldn't just do what the others are doing, and and and that goes all along a lot of things in my life, basically.

Speaker: 10:30
Well, and speaking to today, because you are currently on tour with the legendary nine-inch nails, can you speak to that collaboration and how that came to be and what that means to you?

Speaker 2: 10:41
Yeah, it's um it's been it's been it's been a ride. It's it's really nice. Um, you know, the the band, Trend and Atticus, they're incredible. I've you know, I was a fan, obviously, before they, you know, there was a time I was I was banging, banging their music. But um, yeah, he reached out a few years ago um you know, with this idea about a project, and I've worked a little bit on it and he pulled out of it. So it never happened. And then um a few years later, uh he called back with the Challengers movie soundtrack and you know, basically saying, Hey, we've done the mus music for the movie, it's great, and the movie we don't want to release it like this. Can you do some sort of he was saying a DJ mix, so you know, a day later I send him, even though it was like, you know, it's all the different temples and styles. I was like, okay, cool. A day later I send him back a mixed version of it, and he's like, Oh yeah, it's cool, but you know, I like those parts where you edit actually production and stuff. So here are the stamps, try some stuff. I'm like, okay. So then I went in a few days, and um, you know, on on some more than others, I added some stuff, some I edited, and whatever I thought it needed to be more together, I did, and they released it. And um, and then you know, one thing just came to another. Then he was like, Man, we have this other project, you know, and maybe uh cool. So I'm hanging out with them more and more. Um, and then we worked on the you know the current single um and and the Tron stuff, and uh during that whole time and process, he came up with the idea

Speaker 2: 12:32
 of touring together, and you know, he explained the all the ideas he had, and I was really skeptical at first, you know.

Speaker: 12:40
Okay, well what was and so what was that like? Because like you said, this is something that I really feel is groundbreaking because you have not seen traditionally a DJ producer with an artist.

Speaker 2: 12:50
You know, I just I just you know at first at first I was I was just picturing me DJing and him MC next to me, you know, and and that was my absolute horror version of nine-inch nets. And I'm like, I don't want to be responsible for the end of myself. I'm exaggerating here, but you get what I'm saying. So um, but you know, he he um he's he's he's chill. He you know, he had this idea and and it's crazy how how amazing it turned out and how much fun it is. And I mean it's you know it's quite serial standing in front of him and he's you know right singing right in my face, and I'm like it's amazing to watch.

Speaker: 13:40
So not spoiler alert, not for everyone who hasn't seen the show yet, but I had the opportunity to see the one in Fort Worth at Dickie's Arena, and the show starts off with you just in the middle, again, the lighting, the stage design. How did that concept come to be of like you said? Because not only the the classic opener has the stage and then they kind of just you know remove the curtain and then the main stage setup, but you are actually in the show where you have your own kind of your DJ setup, and then there's that stage B where you're actually performing with them and performing songs with them.

Speaker 2: 14:15
Um a lot of it is is trend for sure. Um, you know, there's also a great uh designer who helped um Todd and um Mel. They're both incredible um creative minds, and you know, it's it's a lot of work, you know, but there's there's a lot of time you spend figuring that out, you know, and and I I wasn't a part of that. The only thing I would say is like, you know, I like first of all, I like to be coming to a concert and you don't hear random music. That was my main thing. Like, you know, you you you go in this this you know big places and before the first act comes on you hear some ACDC playing or whatever, you know, like you never know. No offense against A C D C, 

Speaker 2: 15:07
you know. But um, so I thought it would be cool to maybe design some sort of ambience for it. So I did that. So for 90 minutes you enter and it's like just ambient noise stuff, you know. And I'm actually the first to start a beat, and it's you know, I'm I'm DJing up there, but it's it's it's uh it's cool because I I had also a period a few years back when I made my plus minus album that I was really inspired by actually nine-inch nails, early nine inch nails, like you know, yeah, and so I was DJing in clubs doing like a four or five hour set, and the first hour would be 100 bpm, 110 bpm of these like tribal, slightly industrial, slow techno electro records, and so I had already a huge collection of that, and there was a lot of vinyl at that time that was kind of white label and kind of a new take on lo-fi-inspired stuff like that. And so, you know, trends point was to not feel like you come in and you you you're forced to dance, and I agreed with this, you know. So there's a lot of thoughts behind all of that, and you know, I I'll switch it up every night, but in general, it's just me creating a vibe, and I think what's so great about that versus for instance a band, a band would do everything they can to get people's attention and rock it out the hardest, and you know, which is all good, but I think in this this night and in this concept, it's it's cool that you know I don't need I don't need the hands in here. I don't get you know, I don't so you know I can I can just provide a basically like a good atmosphere um before before the the real show begins.

Speaker: 17:05
And what has the feedback been like? Because you are definitely you're getting in front of an audience that maybe you know they hadn't ever maybe heard of you, or maybe they're not exposed to that type, or they just again we talk about that this one track mind, like I just like nine-inch nails, and that's it. So you're exposing them to a different genre of music that maybe they hadn't been exposed to.

Speaker 2: 17:26
It's been surprisingly positive, to be honest. I've been, yeah, everybody's

Speaker 2: 17:31
 been so nice, and the the the nights have started off and always a pretty cool vibe. Um it's quite funny to me because a lot of the records that I play, you know, half of it is my own music, but another half I'm playing other people's music, you know, and and that music came out on small labels, you know, 500 vinyl only. So it's kind of crazy if you think it like a lot of these artists, they hear their the music that I'm playing from them, they hit me up, they're like, this is crazy. I'm hearing my stuff in these like giant arenas. This is so surreal. And I'm like, yeah, I know, because usually that sound doesn't work on a big floor, like in clubs, it's cool when I'm playing a club for a few hours, a few hundred people. I can play all of that for you know one, two hours. But to hear that music in in that that's quite cool, I thought. And um, you know, it's uh it's yeah, it's just it's it's fun, man. It's it's and and yeah, and coming back, the the feedback has been great. I mean, there's there's been all these surreal moments where people put up the lights, you know. I was I was posting I was posting on my whatever TikTok or whatever, um, you know, power ballots, because usually you put up lights for ballots, you know, when everybody's like, you know, sad song vibes, and uh and they put it up to these like random underground industrial techno records.

Speaker: 19:02
That's that's crazy. So, how when you were when you were younger, did you ever imagine that this was this kind of a trajectory that you felt like you were heading towards, or did you just kind of go with the flow?

Speaker 2: 19:13
I mean, to be completely honest, I didn't even think about being an international DJ. At that time when I started, my my only goal was, my first goal was to get back the money I was spending on vinyl, because I spent a thousand dollars a month for vinyl, and I worked hard for that. But the idea of an international DJ back then, and there were, you know, like Richie Hart and Felix the House Cat or DJ Hale who I admired, and they were all playing everywhere in the world in New York and Tokyo and all of that, it just seemed so big, you know, it seemed so far away, it seemed so like this is so far away, you know, and and so for and then even for many years after

Speaker 2: 20:03
 my first DJ gig when I was 16, you know, it took six, seven years till I had my first outsider Germany gig. And you know, I was DJing a lot already, just in Germany and maybe like you know, in Austria, Switzerland, maybe in Holland and Amsterdam or something like but my first London gig was you know in 2000 after I started my own label, so it took a while. Um I mean it's all relative, but you know, um coming back, yeah. I did not think about doing what I did even ten years then later, and and and now that's I mean, I didn't even know I was gonna do that a year ago, you know, and I didn't have it in my mind as a thing. But it's it's it's fun. I love it.

Speaker: 20:52
Do you have any kind of guiding principles or anything that like a filter for yourself to kind of decide which projects you're doing? So if someone's coming to you and they say, Hey, I have this idea, do you take it through your own kind of like checklist on that, or how do you it's it's basically myself thinking, is it cool or not?

Speaker 2: 21:10
That's all. I remember in the early days when I started to get a lot of remix requests, you know, after I did, you know, there was like a dipesh mode remix and long time ago, and then you know, more and more international acts started to remember in 2010 or 8 or 9, I don't know, uh Lady Gaga asked me to do a remix. And at that time I thought, hell no, I'm not I'm not gonna put my name to like this like pop, you know, artist with you know, I I love her now and we've worked together, you know. But just but that's how I thought back then. I just wanted to be only associated with stuff that I thought was cool, where I can put my name next to and I think it's cool. And but that also means I'm doing stuff for my friends, like I've done So many remixes for just the homies because I like their track. I don't care if they're big or not. And and and that's one thing I noticed now that not so many people do. It's you know, running running my own labels and having signed young artists that I think their music is incredible, and I'm trying to get other people to remix them or whatever or to collaborate. A lot of people are just here for the cloud, you know, and and and and I always think, man, if you make something good and if the music is great, if you think the music is great, you can create that cloud. Like, and that's been my philosophy. It's like, you know, I I I want to just make stuff with people that are cool and that make cool music, in my opinion, and that's all. And if it's not cool, I don't give a sh.

Speaker: 22:58
No, there is, and there's so much pressure, like you said. I feel like I've talked to a lot of artists and they say, you know, social media trying to keep up with that, or yeah, like you said, with infantry. There's so much noise. Yeah, there's a lot that you're being that they're being pressured to do, and it kind of takes them out of that creative space.

Speaker 2: 23:13
It's a cultural thing too, you know. I've um you know, I gotta I gotta be real. Obviously, living in Berlin makes it a little more easier. Growing up in Berlin makes it more easier being executing your creative ideas and having that freedom because you don't have to hustle that hard to pay your rent. That's just facts. If you live in New York, 

Speaker 2: 23:40
it's a lot harder and and also because of how the culture is telling you what is what is success, you know, that that's that can play with your mind, you know. Uh so a lot of young producers you you'd meet or or writers or musicians, you know, they they are looking to make something successful to get those numbers. And you know, that's already that's already putting your creative process in a different direction, I feel like, uh if you don't have to care. And so and now you hear that perfect example from all the producers from Brazil, for instance, like all the bailey crazy punk stuff, you know. I'm obsessed with it because they're just doing what they love and it's so uncompromised, you know, it's just badass. That's new punk to me. And and so, yeah, I've been lucky enough to you know evolve in that mind and and and have that those opinions and have that freedom to really just do what I love. And I would always encourage any young producers to do that, but I also, you know, I also know how hard it is, and especially today where you have I don't know how many songs are coming up on Spotify every day, you know, hundreds of thousands. So it ain't easy. I don't really have an answer to that today because you know it's it it is quite crazy how how it has evolved with with social media and all of that. And you know, most artists I know, they they didn't sign up to be a promoter, they didn't sign up to be a marketing person. Most of the producers and musicians I know they're not people that like to go out there and show their face, and especially in electronic music, we did it because it was faceless, you know. That that was my whole thing. No one knows how I look like, I don't have to promote anything, I'll just put out the record and you play it or you don't, I don't care. Um, so yeah, it's it ain't easy. Um but you know, if if there's a way to just you know do what you can what you feel and and and and and evolve your own thing, that's definitely the way to go, I think still.

Speaker: 26:01
So let's talk about your new label. So you currently have Boys Noise Records, and then you've started a new label, right? As of February, new can can you talk about that?

Speaker 2: 26:12
Yeah, it's a it's a whole new concept about a label. I think the reality is you you don't need a label. I think it's great that as a producer or a musician you're able to put out music yourself, just do online distribution, whatever. Tomorrow you can have your songs up on you know all the streaming platforms or whatever it is. That's great. I think that's amazing. Um what you what you don't have is a community, and so for me, the new label is more sort of a uh like uh creating a this like collective of you know like-minded people that are you know, we all do different stuff, but um, yeah, ones and zeros is kind of you know the name is also obviously it's the matrix, but it's it's meant to break the metrics because everything is uh ones and zeros, everything. You're everything is just you know a digital life, your digital identity, and it's kind of uh the idea is to break that and and with a collective and and just release release in a different way, you know. For me, one thing that's that I've been trying to figure out is what can you do to get excitement about a music release, other than I'm doing a post on Instagram, I'm doing a freaking whatever video, and then tomorrow your timeline's already something else, and you that's it. And that was it. That's the release of your music you've worked on for like months or whatever, you know, you bought all the stuff, what so um yeah, I'm just trying to figure out ways to get excitement for that part. I love creating music, but the release, and that goes for a lot of people, is is quite a difficult thing. Um, and

Speaker 2: 28:15
 so yeah, we're we're tapping into other concepts and and you know art, obviously, but um yeah, it's uh you should definitely check out the the the ones and zeros. You know, we we we I didn't even come out announcing that I have a new label. I never posted be like, hey guys, you know, yeah, it's time, you know. And so I didn't want to do any of that either. So my friend little internet and myself, um, we came up with this concept of just spreading lies. So that's what okay.

Speaker: 28:53
I was now that makes sense. So when you go and look at the Instagram, because like you said, you have I was like, wait, why snakes snakes aren't real? What does that mean? Because you have these different things, so this makes sense now, okay.

Speaker 2: 29:04
And you know, we so we made all these like crazy videos.

Speaker: 29:07
Um you got me for sure.

Speaker 2: 29:09
You got my yeah, a lot of people, it's it was honestly, it was crazy how it worked out, how perfectly it worked out, and you know, within days we had crazy views and and and and followers and all of that. We had we didn't do anything, we didn't hire anyone, it was just you know, the the three of us thinking about what what to do that is that's just you know, it goes a different way, and yeah, so we spread those lies and we put some music behind it, and the music hasn't still come out, and you know, it was a little coded. I love this idea of again me going back to the record store, you know, I'm just digging through music. It it you have to like put in effort to find the music you like. Like, what's what's that way today? You know, like are you going on iTunes or Spotify and go through playlists? Yeah,

Speaker 2: 30:00
 it's cool, it's not so fun. So it's it's it's a lot of that, like put in some effort, you know. And same on the tour. I have uh if you go to the Nine Inch Nails gigs, I have t-shirts there, and there's a barcode, and that's not so new, but you know, if you buy a t-shirt and you scan the barcode, you'll find like five albums of myself and three mixtapes, and yeah.

Speaker: 30:24
I wish I had known that Easter egg before.

Speaker 2: 30:26
Yeah, so you know, just yeah, you know, I I like to engage a little bit and and you'll see people appreciate that too, and it's it's cool.

Speaker: 30:35
That's amazing. So you have suck so many different influences as well, and you're speaking, you know, all these different sounds. When do you finally settle on the sound? Like, how do you narrow in and you're like, okay, this is gonna be something that I'm playing with versus this other one? Because I feel like you with someone that has your mind, your creative mind, and you get inspiration from everywhere. How do you know when to kind of take something and run with it? And when do you know to stop? Because I feel like people will just continue to add, add, and add. And then you have like the Rick Rubens that are like minimal, minimal, minimal.

Speaker 2: 31:06
So where do you find that balance? Yeah, it's all of it. It's it's it's it's a feeling in the end. You know, you you know when something's finished, and you kind of and whenever it's it's hard, you know. Sometimes, I mean, I sit on a lot of unreleased music as you know, a lot of my friends, and um one gift that I have is definitely being able to know when to finish stuff. I like to finish stuff. I I can't 

Speaker 2: 31:37
I don't know, even if I don't release the music, that's one thing, because you know, I make a lot of music and not everything is great, but but I like to have uh something that I can play already and you know get the idea of something that is closer to finish. And so yeah, I like to finish stuff. Um but yeah, it's I I don't really have a uh a cure for that for other people because man, there's amazing producers that I love and they just can't finish the the music. And then I'm like a lot of times I'm like just send it to me, I'll edit to you. I've had those moments done, let's go. I've had those moments a lot where I'm just editing something for a friend and then he can put it out. Um, because they know I'll I'm I'm quick with that. I think it again it brings it back to me being a DJ. It's it's really simple because a lot of what I do has still the main element is club music. And so, you know, I I get a structure idea, even though some some structures of my own songs are you know are weird because you know there's this part and then that, and then everything changes and there's a whole of that. But still, I'm maybe that helps me being just a DJ to put it together. I don't know.

Speaker: 32:57
Well, amazing DJ. Speaking of digging through the crates, you found something today when you were going through Waterloo Records. Let's talk about it.

Speaker 2: 33:05
I mean, I only spent five minutes, but I I I went straight to the the special box sets and I see that it says Ministry Tracks box. Yeah, so there's uh there's a famous label called Wax Tracks, um, kind of uh the one that did uh a lot of industrial records and you know slightly electronic EBM shit, mostly industrial and punk stuff. And yeah, and in this box there's just so many unreleased 12 inches and stuff, and uh and there's also this amazing artist called a thousand homo DJs. You gotta you gotta you gotta you gotta dig out who who that is.

Speaker: 33:48
So we'll let you um we'll let you figure that out.

Speaker 2: 33:50
Yeah, this is cool. This is really great. I've never seen that box before. And and yeah, again, there's there's a lot of I look for a lot of uh 12 inches usually because then the you know the production was different, the mixes are different, especially back in the day. They you know you had the single version and then the extended. 

Speaker 2: 34:11
And the extended you don't find that digitally anywhere. So that's one of the reasons why I still go to record stores is to find these exotic 12 inches and dub mixes, and I don't know, it's inspiration. Sometimes I sample stuff, I don't know, you know, you never know, but um in this box there's a lot of 12 inches and uh 100% a lot of stuff that I don't know. So yeah, this is great.

Speaker: 34:38
That's exciting. So how do you blend? Like you said, you have your vinyls, and then you have have you have you done any more vinyl like sets, or do you see?

Speaker 2: 34:46
Yeah, um, yeah, every now and then, you know, when I play in Berlin, you know, the last time I played at Berkhein, I played vinyl because actually that's one club where playing vinyl sounds better than digitally, weirdly enough. Um yeah, or I play in London. I've done like a vinyl set with my friend Errol Alcon, or we did a acid-only vinyl set. Yeah, I do I like it. The the only thing is really, you know, it's a convenient stuff. I mean I remember the change, and you know, I was I was a little late getting into CDs because I was like, man, vinyl, vinyl. But uh the problem was not the travel with the vinyl more that the clubs didn't have the right setup anymore. They they yeah, they just didn't really take care of the the turntables, they're all dusty. And then and now I mean now I'm traveling with the little tiny little USB stick with my entire library on it. It's amazing. I I can't lie. Um, but it's it's also a different way of DJing with vinyl, it's it's just feels different, and you know, and digitally I can skip parts and I'm jumping around and making cue points and all of that, which is great, makes it even better for me to be crazy. But yeah, I like a good vinyl set. Feels good.

Speaker: 36:08
What else is coming up for you? I know you you're about to where are you heading off to now on your world tour? I know you still got you know a whole kind of other leg of that.

Speaker 2: 36:16
Um, yeah, um, there's a few more gigs with nine-inch nails. Uh we still have to hit LA and Phoenix. That's that's where it's stops for now. Um, dot dot dot. Um and uh yeah, I have a few more gigs for myself, you know, a few festivals, crossed festival, for instance, great one in California. Um, and then um just working on a bunch of albums. It's crazy. I'm I'm producing a lot right now.

Speaker: 36:50
Where do you where's this energy come from? Because I feel like you have you went, I mean, you had a show Friday, then you're playing those after shows and Saturday. So where do you take the time or how do you take care of yourself on the road with with that kind of schedule? Because I know that's it's nonstop for you sometimes.

Speaker 2: 37:05
Yeah, you

Speaker 2: 37:05
 just have to take care of not sleeping and uh um, you know, a lot of coffee. A lot of coffee.

Speaker: 37:12
I walked in there yesterday to the concourse project. Shout out to Kelly and Andrew, and I I went in there and I had just gotten back from your show in Fort Worth. I was right there jumping till 2:30 in the morning. So it's like you said, you just that music was like.

Speaker 2: 37:26
It was incredible last night. Yeah, I love playing here in Austin. The shout out to the gang, yeah. Good energy, a lot of cool people. That gives me energy. The really the crowd, the the the nights, the music, as as weird as it sounds. I think that's actually where I gain a lot of energy, and then it's always a battle between the travel taking away energy. But again, when I'm traveling, it also gives me a good way to rest my mind and come up with ideas and you know think and meditate in a way. Um, but yeah, the people give me energy, the music gives me energy, and I love it. So amazing.

Speaker: 38:06
What is a type of like what's a perfect day for you? What does that look like?

Speaker 2: 38:10
Oh, well, that's a different thing.

Speaker: 38:13
Okay, well, I that's yeah, just seeing because again, like it's music, music, music, and you're about to go to the studio after this. So just is there what would you consider? What would be a perfect day for you?

Speaker 2: 38:24
Well, I love being home, be believe it or not. I um I love where I live, uh, it's quite remote, and I love to have my long mornings, um, you know, make my breakfast, feed the chicken, um, you know, and then just get my day started in the studio, talk to some people. Um, yeah, I'm pretty simple. I I don't need much, honestly. I um I I I love to get in my rhythm. When I'm on tour, I'm on a different rhythm. But when I'm home, I'm I'm I'm home. I'm like, I don't, yeah.

Speaker: 39:02
So you're able to kind of turn it off and kind of switch gears of tour mode versus being home rest.

Speaker 2: 39:09
So far, so good. Yeah, it's been it's been yeah, it's good, it's good. You have to. The the thing is on tour, so much stuff happens, you know, that can really annoy you on in

Speaker 2: 39:23
 all different levels. So you you know, you have to but you you can't go crazy over it because you know you have to mentally know that you're on tour. Different, you know, you you won't be able to sleep, perhaps. You know, maybe one night is two hours, and then you fly and another flight, and then two hours drive to the festival, you play at one in the morning, go back at three, and then you have to get up at eight, catch two flights, you're a blah blah blah. Oh then uh, you know, next week I love it, but you know, it's it's definitely takes takes out a lot of energy. But you know, it's it's like I don't know. You have to find you have to find a way to take small breaks and especially for your mind. Um, you know, the worst is that if you are a touring DJ or a band or whatever and you just start to hate it. And I've seen a lot of m people around me, they they they play a lot and they hate it. And I'm like, okay, so either you should slow down or play music that you love because that that also happens to a lot of DJs that play a lot, they play the same stuff every night. Of course, you start to hate it. I can't do that. So, you know, it's it's it's a lot of things, it's a personal thing. Everybody's built different too, so you know, can't judge.

Speaker: 40:52
Well, thank you so much for being here. I know, like I said, you've been on this crazy tour schedule, so we appreciate you taking the time out. Um, 

Speaker: 41:00
how can people find you? I guess on all the different things.

Speaker 2: 41:05
All the the regular stuff, you know, Instagram, boys, noise, tick tock, boys.

Speaker: 41:09
And the new rec and the label onesandzeros.com.

Speaker 2: 41:13
Definitely check out OAZ.

Speaker: 41:15
Also, probably something too for new music. If people want to send you music, how do they do that as well?

Speaker 2: 41:20
Um, good question. I think um DMing me actually works quite often. Um, SoundCloud works still. There's also a uh a day a demo email. I don't know what that software is called, track something, but if you dig for it, you'll find it on ones and zeros. And uh yeah, I'll listen to demos all the time. I um a lot of the stuff I release gets either sent already from producers I know or they recommend others, or I find something myself through cool people. Um I don't sign too much right now. I want to focus on the ones that you know are cool. And uh yeah, there's exciting stuff coming on Ones and Zero, so I'm really stoked about it.

Speaker: 42:09
Well, thank you so much for being here, Alex, aka Boys Noise, and stay tuned for all the exciting things that he has going on.

Speaker 2: 42:16
Oh, okay. Yeah, you got me right now. Oh, did we? Oh my god. This album is this is the first album I I bought.

Speaker: 42:26
Really?

Speaker 2: 42:26
Yeah, this so I got goosebumps. It's a cool, it's a cool story. So I have an older brother, nearly 10 years older, and so he was like breakdancing and stuff, and you know, he was into music, he had a lot of records, and I destroyed one of his records, leaving it in the sun. It was uh it was D Mob put your hands together. It was like a big hip hop rap house record back then. Anyways, it was like all like you know, because if you leave it in the sun, it melts and shit. So then he was like, Oh, you gotta. I was I mean, that was I was six or seven or something. So he was like, You gotta buy me a new one. And so, you know, I stole some money from my mother, or I don't know, like I got some, you know, a few dollars together, or whatever it was in Germany DMOX. I went to the record store, I found it, I bought it, and I just looked at that and it looks so cool. And it just came out, so I bought it, and it's one of my favorite albums of all time. And and the sampling on this one, I mean, Prince Paul really he is one of the best guys to pick samples. Great record. Yeah, I mean, you guys wait, you prepared this, you know, you know, you know, you know, no, no, no. Okay, so yes, I mean, this is all like my I gotta give credits to my brother because you know, I mean, you know, it was I was small. I was, you know, I was how old was I like six or seven or something like this, so or five, or I don't know, but this was just the Music I was listening to because my brother was listening to it. So all the early rap, you know, obviously Ron DMC for sure. And then this is this is me being a teenager buying this album. Wait, you you yeah, you definitely I mean, yeah. This is another cool story because you know, I made a song with Snoop Dogg, um, and uh, you know, I wanted to produce for him so bad, and we made this rap track, and then he became Snoop Lion.

Speaker: 44:31
Right, right, right.

Speaker 2: 44:31
And he's like, No more rap. So then I I put it out, but during that process, I got to meet him. We hang, and he passed me over his blunt.

Speaker: 44:39
Oh, please tell me.

Speaker 2: 44:40
And I was like, okay, I can stop making music now. Golds.

Speaker: 44:44
It doesn't get any better than that with Sleep Dog.

Speaker 2: 44:47
Yeah, I like D'Angela, actually. You know, I love Prince, so he had some vibes on Prince. I love Marvin Gay, love, love, love anything Marvin Gay. I love Shaka Khan. I sampled Shakka Khan, I'm sure, at some point. Amazing. My daughter loves Scissor. Shout out to her. Yeah, this is great. Yeah, all of this stuff is great. This is an amazing film, amazing um soundtrack.

Speaker: 45:19
Have you done a lot of movie soundtracks 

Speaker: 45:21
or have you gone into that world?

Speaker 2: 45:23
Not too much. I mean, I worked on the new Tron stuff, which is crazy. Um before that, I've done stuff for the um it was Oliver Stone's movie called Snowden. I've worked on that one. Basically, everything electronic in that movie. That was that was me. But um, not too much because the main guy, uh, what's his name? Craig Richards, I think. Craig, yeah. He he composed it. Um, and then I did a theme song for another hacker movie in Germany called Who Am I? Yeah, so somehow all like hacker, digital digital, yeah. Um, I mean, this is I have like two guys. It's Prince and it's Bowie. Those are like can't touch him.

Speaker: 46:09
So we have also two with David Bowie.

Speaker 2: 46:12
I mean, you you definitely studied me well. I mean, you know, this is yeah, I mean, this guy.

Speaker: 46:18
Yeah, then you had nine-inch nails that toured with David Bowie there for a little bit, and then he rewinded.

Speaker 2: 46:23
Have you seen the performance of Hurt, them two together?

Speaker: 46:26
I haven't seen, I've only heard it.

Speaker 2: 46:27
I can't take it, it puts you to tears immediately. Uh the peche mode, I love the pech mode. I just saw they have the box set, which I I bought digitally because I wanted to have it digitally, but it only it exists on I think on iTunes only, but they have this box set with a lot of remixes from the 80s and again 12 inches with different versions, and the box set is really good. Um, yeah, Kraftwerk, obviously, you know, I'm German, but in general, they kind of you know started it all with electronic music, so you have to listen to Kraftwerk. I love this album too. The first album management was great. Yeah, I love how how uncompromised the production was too. It's it's pretty aggressively produced, and I love it. And not in aggressive in like distorted or anything, but just like it's sounding bang. You know, Neu, yeah, that's some cult rock stuff from Germany as well. I mean, Connie Planck, one of the greatest producers from Germany, it was all around. He had this crazy community in Düsseldorf, and he produced, you know, Cannes and DAF, Deutsche Amerikanische Freundschaft to a huge influence on me as well. And uh, and I think he was I'm not sure if he was part of Neu. Um the the the hats will kill me if I say something wrong. But yeah, this is good German. There's not too much great German music, but but there is a good period um and especially in the psychedelic rock into electronic music, like late 60s into the 70s, into kraftwerk. Yeah, that was all really, really great, and then the last the last good German stuff was basically in the 80s with the wavy stuff, and then after that that's done. You know, good shit. Great shit. Cool, yeah, you got great records there. I mean, I I own most of them and they are part of that. Who I am. That's that's the last thing I'll say. Like with vinyl and why I'm so you know, on my birthday, I I love to go into a record store and just find stuff and just just the vibe. But really, when you when you buy a record and as a DJ or whatever, you you attach a memory to it, and it's so cool. I can like, yeah, I've 25,000 records at home, and I can tell you with every single one, 95% more or less, you know, when I bought it, did I play

Speaker 2: 49:12
 it? Maybe there's a night attached a moment. Yeah, so I forget a lot of things, but it's a good way for me to keep memory.

Speaker: 49:21
Yeah, so if you want him to remember something, make sure you give it to him attached to a music.

Speaker 2: 49:26
Yeah, I think something physical, right? It's like if you collect something, then uh it could be similar, but Marnos. Yeah, music is music is healing, music's always the answer. So music's the answer. There you go.

Speaker: 49:37
Thank you so much for being here. Enjoy the rest of your time in Austin, and we look forward to seeing you soon. Cheers. Awesome, cheers.