Varien is an insanely talented artist and someone who truly has no limits to their creativity. From releasing a wide variety of genres on Monstercat Records, to producing for metal, hip-hop and K-pop artists, and scoring music for film, TV and games like John Wick, The Walking Dead and Overwatch, their catalogue of credits runs deep.
Follow Varien here:
https://www.instagram.com/variendarkgirl
https://twitter.com/variendarkgirl
And visit my site to join the mailing list, book a free coaching call or get in touch:
https://www.nikcherwink.com
Varien is an insanely talented artist and someone who truly has no limits to their creativity. From releasing a wide variety of genres on Monstercat Records, to producing for metal, hip-hop and K-pop artists, and scoring music for film, TV and games like John Wick, The Walking Dead and Overwatch, their catalogue of credits runs deep.
Follow Varien here:
https://www.instagram.com/variendarkgirl
https://twitter.com/variendarkgirl
And visit my site to join the mailing list, book a free coaching call or get in touch:
https://www.nikcherwink.com
just a quick piece of advice is to go like, enjoy the show before and after you're set. Shake some hands, give some hugs, take some pictures. if people wanna pat you on the back and say, good set, say thank you. You know, like people remember that. the conversation aspect of playing music and receiving energy back like this. Back and forth is quite beautiful. And so personalize it as much as possible
What's up everybody? Welcome to the Headliner Mindset podcast. Today's guest is an insanely talented artist and someone who truly has no limits to their creativity. From releasing a wide variety of genres on monstercat records to producing for metal, hip hop, and k-pop artists, and also doing sound design and compositions for movies like John Wick and video games like Overwatch. This is Varian.
Nik:what is up? Great to see you.
Track 1:Live from Helsinki, Finland. It's me just chilling, just chilling.
Nik:the way across globe on the other, other side of the world. Now tell me again, how did you end up in Helsinki? It's so far away.
Track 1:It's, uh, yeah. Yeah. I mean, I, uh, I mean, just from like the paleness alone, I don't think it, it like surprises anyone that I've got just pure Nordic through the, the veins. So, um, I've always had like a tie to, uh, like Sweden and Ancestry puts it back like 400 years, man. Uh, Sweden, east Sweden, which is now known as Finland. I'm not claiming Finland, but I have friends here. and I first lived here in 2019 just for a little bit, but I've been here for about a year kind of came here to reset, Kind of do the thing when you hit your thirties where you're just like, I want to travel. I wanna see this globe that we're on. And luckily for me, I can bring what I do anywhere in the world and I have, uh, plenty of places, but this is definitely, like I have residents here now, so, yeah, this is sort of like a second home.
Nik:live in such a cool time where you can work from anywhere. And if you have a
Track 1:Yeah.
Nik:an internet connection or, or a studio,
Track 1:Yeah.
Nik:we're, we're not limited. And it's funny, man, I, I only am in Texas just a little bit away from California where I've, where I was born and raised and it's my first time living outside of the state that I had grown up in. And it was just a little bit
Track 1:Yeah.
Nik:Like, wait, there's
Track 1:Mm-Hmm.
Nik:that you can live, you don't have to live in, you know, the same place that you were born. It's a big world out there. And I haven't ever lived abroad internationally yet. Uh, I don't know if I
Track 1:yeah,
Nik:I don't know. But it's just so cool that you can, like, that's awesome. So
Track 1:yeah, yeah. Um, it's an adventure and it's something that, realistically, um, you kind of have to clear your expectations and fully go into it knowing that. You're, you're gonna have some form of culture shock, and it's not gonna happen one time. It's gonna happen like every other day, and that's gonna leave you. Disillusioned or more in love with the place that you're in. But, um, as of this interview, uh, you know, in 2024, I will be moving back to the states just because, um, family, like my immediate family is in Florida and, uh, I want to be with them, uh, at this time since I've pretty much just, uh, been on my like solo traveling, arc the past year, just. Going wherever, doing whatever. So now I'm looking for a little, little stability and, um, really, uh, getting into, setting up like the rest of, um, this year and next year, not only well with backend projects, but I'm sure we're gonna get into it, the sort of, uh, next wave of Varian as a front facing artist thing.
Nik:yes yes, That's what I'm excited to talk about. So first off, get your ass back here to America. We need you. We need a variant back in the States, and I'm really excited to talk about. 2024 and what's next for you and what you're creating. But before we get there, I want to, I wanna start at the beginning.'cause I think that
Track 1:Okay.
Nik:have had such a cool career. You've done so many different things with it. And also you're just such a fucking badass artist. Like you are a true
Track 1:Oh, geez.
Nik:at your core. Somebody I think, who really just has been marching to the beat of their own drum and just creating really cool
Track 1:Hmm
Nik:the way. so many guests that I've had on this show are, are friends like yourself that,
Track 1:mm-Hmm.
Nik:from a long time ago. And,
Track 1:Yeah, we go back.
Nik:A lot of things have happened
Track 1:go back.
Nik:In the last decade or more. So I'm just excited to, to get filled in. And I think that you are gonna have a lot of, a lot of insight and wisdom for people that are listening, that are building their careers. And I'm excited
Track 1:Hmm.
Nik:people to hear your story, just so that they can see what's possible and, and also for us to hear
Track 1:Yeah.
Nik:for you. So when we met, the first time I had heard about you,
Track 1:Mm-Hmm.
Nik:from Capital Records was helping with your project and you had made a, even know what to call it. It was a remix.
Track 1:It was just so.
Nik:down. Basically you took Justin Bieber's song and slowed it down and, and it became like, it was like a viral moment. It was like a viral sensation around it. So let's, let's just start there.'cause that kind of, I feel like that kind of launched your career in a, in a way, right? Like
Track 1:No, it was, it was weird. It, it, it was a joke. But I mean, like, uh, it was interesting to see like, you know, it's interesting to see now a lot of Zoomers, which I really like to pay attention to what the youth is doing. Something that I'll always do. Um, you know, I'm gonna be 34 this year, which is, I mean, it is what it is. I never feel my age, but, uh.
Nik:Still a youngin. We're just
Track 1:Oh, oh yeah. Oh yeah. But at heart I'm always gonna be interested in what like the youth is doing, even though like I'm into my own thing. Um, I think that the youth is really, it. It's funny to tie the sort of, um, packages that artists roll out for TikTok where things are slowed and reverbed.
Nik:Mm
Track 1:To go all the way back to 2011 with a joke of mine just slowing down.'cause I found some plugin and threw in songs and I realized you could put in anything and it would kind of, uh, have this algorithm of delay and reverb and it could make any song in ambient tune. And that sort of spread as a meme like on Reddit. But it got so far that, um, the movie Dread, like Judge Dread, uh, they were using that plugin for the slowmo scenes. So, uh, yeah, I mean, that didn't really launch my career. Kind of one of the coolest things was, it was, I think IT certified, was the first song on SoundCloud to hit a million plays. SoundCloud had just come out. And the CEO messaged me with a permanently, you know, pro account, which, I pay now for, but for, for a very long time I had a free SoundCloud account, just like as a thank you for bringing a lot of traffic to the site. So that's how like, yeah, it was, it was interesting. Um, no, I mean in terms of like launching my career, there's so many things because I realized I. That, you know, I had been playing around with FL Studio and I had already had classically trained jazz and music theory and all this sort of stuff. I just, I had, even if you listen to like the earliest sketches of production, like the production is awful, but the writing is good. And so it's funny'cause like sometimes, uh, I have been like, in the past some songs that people know from Variant are actually remakes of songs I made in like 2010, 2000 nine like early demos I've just like, oh no, that's a good melody. Let's go ahead and carry that and really fluff it out kind of thing. But no, um, I knew that. If I was going to actually make it as a career musician that I could not just do one thing, that I really had to plant all the seeds I could at any given moment. Any time there was like a new thing, I had to plant a seed in it, and if it went nowhere, that's fine because I had planted like five other seeds that same month or run so.
Nik:that you were planting around
Track 1:Yeah, so I mean like one of the very first things that like really started paying bills right away was making sounds, libraries for trailer, uh, movie trailers and trailer music, uh, composers. and a lot of those sounds. You know, made it into big budget films. Um, made a custom library that ended up being, uh, like the Overwatch, UI sound effects. so like while that was happening, Monstercat was popping off. And then like throughout the years it was just kind of like, okay, now I'm working on movie soundtracks, just like helping out the composer or. Editing, arranging that kind of stuff for Hollywood guys. I got some offers to like be assistance. One of'em, was like a full-time thing. But the thing about like being an artist is there's like a, a sense of like rebellion at all times. And so it's really hard to lock me down as like an employee full time for this kind of thing, you know? Because I will want to do like 12 things and I can't, I can't just do one, uh, even if, even if you're gonna pay me like a six figure salary, which was, it was, it was not worth it.'cause I knew I would just be miserable within a month. So, yeah. And then just real quick, like, you know, I grew up with like, you know, anime and video games, so I was just constantly throwing like. Seeds, a lot of my early stuff, uh, wound up with like, uh, mobile games when that was like the, the rise of the mobile games on like the earliest like iPhones and the earliest Android. Um, like you remember that rush of apps, angry Birds, subway surfers, like, and everyone wanted, yeah, there's a few like demos still from, like games that wound up, um. You know, those like, uh, those things at restaurants, like when you order, you can like play games while you wait for your, like there's like a few apps on there where it's like, I did the music for that. You can't hear it in the restaurant, but you can hear it if you downloaded it. And yeah. And then like even just, um, one time tuning into like the K-pop music awards, I'm like, this stuff is really cool. And then two years of kind of learning how to do that. Now I have a platinum and three golden records for uh, K-pop. So I'm just always, I'm always just curious, just, yeah. Sometimes it doesn't work out and sometimes it really works out.
Nik:And curious about this curiosity because I think
Track 1:yeah,
Nik:I see, I. different types of producers out there, one of them is looking for the formula. One of them
Track 1:Hmm.
Nik:can I crack the code on maybe how to make this particular style of music or whatever style of music it is that is going to launch my career and get a lot of
Track 1:Right,
Nik:and get a lot of views and plays or whatever. And it's like they're, everyone's looking for, I wanna find my sound, right? Like there's this one thing and this
Track 1:right.
Nik:they're looking for. And then I see these other producers, which I think is a little bit more of a rare breed, which is kind of like, always on this quest for something new in experimentation. And like, once I've done things a certain way,
Track 1:Mm-Hmm
Nik:wanna ever want to do it that way again. I'm always looking for sort of this next thing and I, I feel like you kind of fall into that, that second category a bit more and, and I'm curious about like what it is that. really driving you and has been driving you, because I think some people are just chasing the, you know, chasing the formula. Like, what's working? How can I just make my shit pop and build my career? Uh, so what are you chasing or following or looking for as an artist that's driving you into these different directions? Like what's your, what's your GPS? What's your compass? You know?
Track 1:I think. With the curiosity aspect, we have to go back to who I am as a person by default. And when I was younger and when I was in high school, I wanted to hang out with the goths. And this is when school was like still cliquey. You know, I wanted to hang out with the preps, I wanted to hang out with the scene kids. I wanted to hang out with everyone because I was, and I wanted to share music and like I wanted to get. The guys who were listening to like bling era hip hop, I wanted to get them into like dragon force. And I wanted, you know, like vice versa. I wanted the goth kids to appreciate like hip hop and, there's always been a sense of like, curation in my life. I want, I want people to understand what makes things cool and like why I am excited about a specific thing. Because it's not just music, it's video games and fashion and all sorts of expression. So when it goes into my professional life, it feels like I wake up every day and one minute I'll be listening to UK drill music, and the next I'll be listening to psychedelic ambient music. Or jungle and my mix tapes like that, you know, I would give to like high school crushes were all over the place. It was Miles Davis right into like infant annihilator and cannibal corpse, and it was just like hilarious looking back, but also like it, that's still so me, and to answer your question in terms of like where is my GPS oriented? I think that it's just constantly spinning because in the same way that I think like astrophysicists look at space or psycho knotts, look at like inner space and like how infinite it seems. That's the way that I sort of view like the realm of art and expression is like there is no end. And you, you cannot pin me down to like one or even like 10 things. And I just want to be frank and say that I'm glad that now, and this is, we'll get into this more now. A lot of people are into multi genre, but. For a very long time, the majority of my career professionals have looked at me and said, we don't know what to do with you. What are you, and I always wrestled with that because I just wanted to scream. What? What do you mean I'm an artist? Like if you want me to work with. Rap artists, I got beats if you want me to work on a game or a film. Been there, done that. I got composing like down so much that now I'm kind of doing a lot of the, I'm, I'm more interested in like the experimental side of things, pushing what I know. So I hope that answers your question in sort of like a holistic way that it's not an artistic decision, it's just who I am.
Nik:yeah, yeah. It not only answers my question, it just gets me really excited I think a lot of people are for where do they fit in,
Track 1:Yeah.
Nik:people? What click I be a part
Track 1:Yeah.
Nik:in best with, and, and I just love that you know, your mindset. I love the piece about. people to new stuff and showing
Track 1:yeah.
Nik:to share this with you. I want to bring this to you rather than I want to, I want to fit myself in here
Track 1:Mm-Hmm.
Nik:into what's already kind of going on. It's like, no, I want
Track 1:Yeah.
Nik:be the one that is introducing people to, to new stuff. I think that's so cool. And, and other piece of it as well is, you know, I think about how the nature of life is not Nothing is actually solid, like literally on a physical
Track 1:Mm-Hmm.
Nik:This table that is in front of me right now, this isn't actually solid. It's a bunch of little tiny atoms that are moving,
Track 1:Right
Nik:is expanding forever. is in a constant state of change and
Track 1:Of evolution and change, correct.
Nik:we shouldn't be searching for. How do I fit myself in and lock myself into this template or into this group, or into this lane? It's, it's actually against the nature of who and what we are as human beings, or as I say, spiritual beings. Having this human experience. It's where it's a constant process of evolution and growth and change and, and also just infinite, abundance and infinite possibility. So rather than
Track 1:Right.
Nik:being just, oh, here's this little lane that I'm in, it's like, whoa, look at this full spectrum of life and music and art and fashion and creativity. Look at all this cool shit that's out there. And I think a true artist
Track 1:Right.
Nik:yourself is gonna go out there and explore that whole spectrum. And
Track 1:Mm-Hmm.
Nik:the curator to bring that back to the world and say, Hey, look at all this other cool shit. Or, Hey, look at how you can combine these things together in a cool way that hasn't been done before.
Track 1:Yeah, you nailed it. I mean, I have with my professional career and sort of dipping my toes into cliques because I do have to be honest that sort of the, like embracing the tropic, uh. Aspect of life that things are changing. And, uh, especially when you have like some, a more like artist oriented brain and you see like art in everything or you're inspired, maybe you're like sensitive or neurodivergent, which I definitely, and both of those things, it can be lonely, but I have seen like six generations of producers. Come and go,
Nik:Yeah,
Track 1:and I, I remain, and that's not an egoic statement. It's more of like a sort of Buddhist approach that like, I'm not attached to genre, I'm not attached to cliques. Or brands. I like making music. I like fashion. I am very interested in things like geography and history and all sorts of, you know, aspects of life and this is part of that. And to touch on, kind of like that sharing aspect. And combining things. You know, my, my two biggest influences and, and yesterday, three years ago we lost one. Uh, well, first of all, Timberland, that is my, one of my biggest influences of all time.
Nik:example of an artist and producer who is pushing the boundaries and looking for experimentation and, and new ways to do
Track 1:And he's, he's streaming and he's, uh, he's tapping into the youth and he's constantly looking for other artists. And, uh, the one that we lost, uh, three years ago today was Sophie, who given enough time. Before her, you know, very like untimely death. She had already accomplished a lot. You know, she was, pegged to completely work on Chromatica, uh, lady Gaga's latest album, um, from two years ago or whatever. But. You know, working with Rihanna and Vince Staples and Kendrick Lamar, like, it's absolutely insane, but like doing these really like industrial. sort of stuff and, and just the whole PC movement, PC music, uh, movement with like Ag g. Cook at the, at the helm. These are the people to me, Sophie in particular, who move the needle, and that's what I pay attention to. Who's moving the needle versus like, who is just kind of following the needle around the record. And then the record reaches to the end and you know, then they start a studio in Burbank and master music for a living for the rest of their life. but you know, these are the people that I look, obviously Trent Resner, who I've been compared to, but I would rather, you know, be my own thing. I love Trent Resner. I love Nine Inch Nails. I love Atticus Frost and him working on, on on film soundtracks, but I, I would rather just have my own spot. You know, I, I'm, I'm grateful that I've been, um, called that by like PR outlets and stuff like that, but. That's another reason for bringing Varian back into 2024 is to kind of build that road where I can earn my own flowers.
Nik:on the touring artist side.
Track 1:Yeah.
Nik:So let's, let's talk
Track 1:Yeah.
Nik:because you had a run for a while earlier in your
Track 1:Hmm.
Nik:where you were releasing music on Monster Cat. Obviously one of the, you know, biggest dance labels in the scene. and also an interesting label though as well, because they generally do cater to a little bit of a younger audience. It's a lot of the gamer audience, and it's a lot of kids that aren't even old enough to go to shows and a demographic that also might not necessarily go to shows. Tell me a,
Track 1:All right.
Nik:about that stage in your, career and what were, the things that were going well at that point also, the, the, the, the challenges perhaps that you faced. Because I, a, a lot of my audience, a lot of the people that are listening now are definitely, you know, people that are wanting to get out there and DJ and tour. So, uh,
Track 1:Right.
Nik:let's go back to that because then I know you pivoted and, and got into more the gaming side and the TV side. Uh, so I was just, I'm curious about what was happening in your career and what your experience was like as a touring DJ and artist.
Varien-1:Right. So, so touring back then, which is 10 years ago now, when I was with like Monstercat, uh, there was quite a lot of. Confusion about what to do with me. There's that, you know, dilemma again, and booking agents didn't know where to put me because on Monstercat it was very liberal at the time, but I was putting out like, you know, progressive rock trilogies. And then the next be psychedelic, ambient stuff. And where, where do, where, where do we put you? Do we put you in the chill out? room do we book you for dubstep shows? And people confused and it annoyed me because I was, I, the people that I was looking at were doing different genres and they were getting books just fine. I think it was just a sort of limitation of sort of insomniac disco, Donny like mindset of 2014. Versus today where it's not at all hard to be a multi-gen and get because you will style at Dove step shows and you'll hear drum and bass and you'll hear, know, techno at, you know, like space laces is a great example of someone who is all over the map his sound. And people know exactly where to put him, and they, people know what, what to expect. and I would say that nowadays, it is so, uh, so different than than 10 years ago since, uh, you know, the sort of appeal of multi generalism, the longevity of it appealing. I. And I'm, I'm, I'm grateful for that. It's one of the reasons I'm putting Arian back on the road and stuff like
Nik:Yeah. Yeah.
Varien-1:uh, you know, my message to people who are kind of entering into that is, you know, go experiment. Because there will be the spot for you at, at some shows. You're gonna have at the bottom of the flyer, but. You keep chipping away at it and you make your own lane and you will absolutely, do it. It's so much better now than it was. It was so boxed in and it frustrated me so much because,
Nik:Yeah.
Varien-1:you know, there were other acts that. I could see myself being like, but other people couldn't see that, and it was very So
Nik:it's hard to find people that really believe in the bigger picture vision.'cause it's like certain genres are hot right now and this is what's getting booked right now. So it, can be much more short term, uh, as opposed to like having a really good team, you know, when you have a manager and also an agent, an agent more. So, you know, they've gotta, be thinking also about where, where are we gonna be five years from now? What are we building five years from now? I just had a really great episode with, uh, Ben Hogan two weeks ago, who's a talent agent at, UTA. And, you know, he, he really emphasized the point of. thinking long term, right? And so, okay, maybe this little flash in the pan genre is hot right now, but like, yeah. Who are you trying to be as an artist? and getting people behind you that can really understand what you're wanting to create on a bigger picture and not just, you know, not just capitalizing on these, you know, like what's happening this month or this six months, right?
Varien-1:right. again, I've, I've watched like six generations of producers come and go because of the flash in the pants stuff, slap house and big room house, and you know, all these sort of, um, micro genres that like happened. Mumba tone.
Nik:Oh, yeah.
Varien-1:there all these artists getting, all these artists getting booked where it's like, um. You know, if, if you don't like evolve into something longer, like realistically, also like aggravated me at the time was I could explain it in a business sense why, why you should work with, you know, Varian as a multi-gen artist is because we will never run. We will never run into the wall of this genre's over, therefore your career is over. and a, again, the reception to both like more. You know, IDM jungle stuff all the way to nineties rave music and mid tempo this year. the reception to like, yes, give us it all is kind of like a green flag for me to be like, oh, freaking, finally,
Nik:yeah, yeah.
Varien-1:this Let's try this Because I've played a few shows here in Finland and I've just, like any show that I've played in the past, multi genre. And the whole point of like a variance show, like, I know how to throw a party. Come on,
Nik:Yeah. Yeah. Fuck yeah.
Varien-1:You think that's like hard, but I don't mean that like in a, in, um, in like an egoic way. It's just, when you have like the multi-genre card to play, can experiences where people. At Minute zero, your first song all the way to when you're finishing, we're like, damn. That was like a whole, was a whole
Nik:A journey I. Totally. Totally. That's the, that's the thing that, you know, I, I, like, I love, I love techno, you know, like I'm a big techno fan. Um, but, going to a techno show and just seeing like three hours of techno straight, like back to back, I was like, I've, I've left shows early.'cause I was just like, damn. Like, all right. I, I feel like I'm hearing the same song now. Especially in, you know, the, that genre, you know, where it just can be a bit repetitive. So I think, I think there is a demand for that. I do see so many more artists. Breaking the boundaries. I mean, I think, I mean, laid back, Luke was the first artist I ever saw come out and just be like, yo, I'm gonna drop chop suey by system of a down in the middle of my set at EDC, not even a fucking remix. And then I'm gonna drop, Dr. Dre next episode in between all these house tracks. I was like, he was definitely a pioneer of doing that. I think, you know, seven Lions was one of the guys that I saw come along that really did a good job too. Were like, yo, you just dropped nine genres in a fucking hour. Right? So you're, we definitely are living in a, in a different era and different, different stage, you know? And I think you know, you're gonna be so much more positioned now than Yeah, back in what, 2015 where there were so many rules of like what you could play. Right? Yeah.
Varien-1:And you know what, like in terms of playing System of A Down or AVR Levine at a d at a DJ you know what? It all comes down to, man, curating a good time.
Nik:Yeah. Thousand percent. A thousand percent. You know, I just, I just made a post on my Instagram yesterday because I had a client this week that came to, to our session and he had a really big breakthrough'cause he was like, you know, I, played a show this week. And rather than showing up at this show, which normally when he would play, he was so excited to go out and to like party and have fun and have a good time. And it was like he was there for himself. He was showing up to that show because he was like, I get to DJ and I get to party and I get to be like the cool guy tonight and I get to take some shots and have fun. He's like, I went in this night and I didn't drink. I came in with a super clear focus and intention of. I'm here to put on the best show possible for them. I'm here to curate good time and to curate fun. And he said, man, I not only was the set so much better, everybody came up and complimented him more, but he was so much more fulfilled.'cause he was like, I'm doing this for you guys, not just for me. And that's something I think is really important for artists and DJs to think about.'cause it's easy to just go out and have fun. And of course you're going to have fun. It's, it is fun. That's why you're doing it. It's fun. But also to have, you know, your eye on the crowd and, and have the intention really pure of like, why you're there. Like, I'm here to curate this journey for the audience. And I, I just, I just have to say that.'cause I think some people forget that, you know?
Varien-1:I think you're entirely correct. And, and, and what it comes down to is, um, like a conversation, like there's,
Nik:Hmm.
Varien-1:moment when I'm having a good set and I can tell the crowd is also enjoying it. Where there is like this, almost like spiritual
Nik:Mm.
Varien-1:where dissolved. And like, I'm feeling the crowd and the crowd is feeling what I'm playing
Nik:Yeah.
Varien-1:nothing better. And you know, just a quick piece of advice is to go, go like, enjoy the show before and after you're set. Shake some hands, give some hugs, take some pictures. like, if no one, you know, if, if people wanna pat you on the back and say, good set, say thank you. You know, like people remember that. And I also understand, you know, if you just had an insane flight,'cause you played a show the night before and you're tired. not saying you have to do this every night, but the conversation aspect of playing music and receiving energy back like this. Back and forth is quite beautiful. And so to personalize it as much as possible, like again by
Nik:Yeah.
Varien-1:um, going into the audience and, and being part of it,
Nik:mm
Varien-1:I've, to like the next DJ goes on, I'm in the crowd for, for 20, 30 minutes just enjoying music, supporting them.'cause we gotta support each other. It's artists just like out with fans.
Nik:yeah, and I think it's so important too, to be. In the crowd and feel that energy. Right? That was one of the coolest moments I had, and I think I've spoke about this before, but I was in Amsterdam for the Amsterdam dance event, a DE, and I was with Pasquale. I had probably, probably the coolest, most like baller moment of my career was getting to go out. Literally just one-on-One Pascoal took me out and we went to this big show and we had all access passes and it was like, yeah, okay, I'm, we're gonna beeline it for the backstage and go to where the industry people are and you know, schmooze and shake hands. And he grabs me and he fucking pulls me right into the middle of the crowd and I could see him soaking up the energy of being around the people and he was looking at like the clothes and the outfits they, they were wearing and he was looking up at the stage and the production. And I was like, oh. I'm like, this is how this guy gets his fucking genius Mastermind vision is, he's like, still so tapped in to the audience and to the crowd. And I think that's an important thing for the, you know, artists and DJs to also remember too, is it's, it's not just about being backstage and being on stage and being, you know, networking and drinking and partying. It's like, yeah, you get to have that, but like stay tapped in. The more you're tapped into your audience, your fans, like, the better you're gonna be connected with them, the better music you're gonna make, the better sets you're gonna play. So you can't lose sight of that.
Varien-1:Well, he is who he is
Nik:Yeah,
Varien-1:he is engaging, he
Nik:totally.
Varien-1:with the, the vibes. And I totally understand like what are the people wearing, what are the people even like drinking? Like it's, it's, it's, it seems almost, um. but it all paints a picture. And that's why, is, who he is, is because he understands how to, how to work that. And I, you as someone who's done a lot of, like the more of the business side of stuff, it, it totally makes sense. So, yeah.
Nik:Yeah. So let's talk about the business side of stuff. You know, you had this, you had this run at a, as a, as a touring artist, and then you really got into the, the gaming side of things and the,
Varien-1:Right.
Nik:TV and, and movies as well, right? Yeah. K-pop. So, um, I know that there's a lot of people that dream of producing music for a movie someday, or for a TV show or for a video game. So I'm just curious about how you broke into that and if you have any tips for people that might want to make an entrance into that world.
Varien-1:Yeah. Well, I, I get a lot of dms from, from, from people. of all, uh, backgrounds, how do I, you know, get started? sometimes I, I, I don't, I don't really have a, have a good answer because it's not the answer people want to hear, which is you gotta kinda, like start, you, you have to cut your teeth on bs, like just grunt work.
Nik:Mm-Hmm.
Varien-1:I, I got started very early making sound libraries, and that was basically like data entry.
Nik:yeah.
Varien-1:basically like beep, okay. Bounce that out to a wave, program that into contact libraries and do that for like three years and then someone hears about you through someone and, Yeah. You know, I've been, I've been very blessed to on, uh, quite a few games and I actually achieved my life goal of, uh,'cause when I was, I was in kindergarten, so I was six, and I, uh, said that, you know, I, I want to make music for video games. And in 1996 in kindergarten, people were like, there's. Music and video games. And um, I turned 30, I did my first soundtrack for a Nintendo game, which was Do Dokey dokey Literature Club, which is a huge game. but it was funny because it's like the, the sort of the Buddhist idea of like. Uh, before enlightenment, uh, chop and carry water after enlightenment, chop and carry water, like I'm still doing business. I'm still thinking of I've like achieved a lot of dreams and a lot of like goals I've set for myself. Then like nuance pop up and that kind of also is the drive is, you know,
Nik:hmm.
Varien-1:it's not necessarily never being happy with what you have. There's maybe a touch of
Nik:Yeah.
Varien-1:Artists are kind of divas. We, we like things to be nice and perfect and tied up. Um, and when one goal is done, then it's like, oh, but I wanna do this too. my advice for people getting into these sort of auxiliary, uh, backend, whether it's K-pop, j-pop writing for other people, for record labels, sync licensing, I. Is just research, research, research. Throw yourself at people and see what sticks. Because doing the Skrillex orchestral suite, I was doing dubstep, orchestral remixes for fun, and I sent one to sri's manager and I didn't expect anything. And then eight months later he's like, Sonny's gonna call you in like the next hour. And I was like, what? So. You know,
Nik:Yeah.
Varien-1:a lot of people give up really easily and I just am very stubborn and so I kind of advocate for just like get in there. I. Like
Nik:Shoot your shot.
Varien-1:afraid to. A lot of people are afraid to like rock the boat. I'm not. And, and that has rubbed people the wrong way. But, uh, I am stubborn and that, I think that just going for it constantly has really helped me.
Nik:yeah. It's like that saying, closed mouths don't get fed. You know, I, I always like to think that I, I like to think that it's like there's this huge hallway full of doors, all these different doorways that you could go through. It's up to you to walk down that hallway and jiggle every single handle to see which one is unlocked. a lot of them are gonna be locked,
Varien-1:Right. Mm-Hmm,
Nik:going and, and, and keep fucking turning knobs until you find the ones that are open. But like, there is so much opportunity out there. And, and also, you know, you gotta be prepared for that opportunity too. You gotta be able to bring it, you know, you, you put in those, those, those three years of doing sound design to be able to have that door open. But when it opened you brought your fucking A game and were like, Hey, I'm really good and I'm really talented. That's why it worked out for you. I, I love that you said. This idea of chop wood and carry water, That's like, it's like, do the fundamentals. Do the basics, keep your head down and, and keep working. I mean, What did chopping wood and what does chopping wood and carrying water look like specifically for you as an artist, as a producer? theory?
Varien-1:Music theory. People hate that answer. People hate answer. Just like in the world of cybersecurity network fundamentals, wants to get into hacking. No one how routers work.
Nik:Mm. It's like, it's like not the sexy stuff.
Varien-1:No, it the sexy stuff. It leads to understanding why the sexy stuff works and. Music theory is the reason that I can look at a genre and understand how it's made. then production wise, it's just a matter of bashing stuff together. And then it's like, okay, that's why this works. really people don't need to learn theory, but the people who say they don't need to learn theory because they've already, you know, done X, Y, and z. For instance, I think maybe on said, uh, you know, he doesn't know music theory. It's like, well, there's a part of you that like second nature, you, you kind of do know what you're, what you're doing. You know what go together. You know what notes go together. You can't write it down on sheet music or explain, you know, what a c mixolydian mode looks like. But you know what, what sounds good together? Um. To me, the chop wood and carry water fundamentals of music is just music theory. Music theory, music theory. Because production, look how many genres. I mean, even we're seeing this in rock and metal with like a lot of shoe gaze, DIY projects where it's mixed awful
Nik:Yeah.
Varien-1:Free, free software. No one cares about your fricking mix, man. No one cares. People just want the vibe. And so it's just kind of like the production can kind of like come second. And this is coming from someone who's been doing it for 13 years and I have stuff coming up that's like the production. Some songs like the production is like. Very high level. And then there's other stuff where it's like, no, it's just like five, like things max like stems. If I were to stem it out for you, it's just five things happening, but together. In a way that it's interesting and the vibe is good. I noticed that like Zoomers and like the new, uh, wave of producers and artists in general are very much more interested in the vibes than like the more technical Uh, no one really cares so much for like the more producer, flexing. They just want to
Nik:Yeah. Yeah, yeah. I think that's. makes great music great. You know, people want to feel something. and as an artist, you want your fans to feel something too. But if you want them to feel something, you gotta feel something. You gotta be like living your life and being, you know, being in your feelings and in touch with just like what your vibe is. Right? Because and, and I think, like when I say vibe. Yeah. And it's not, it's not coming from your mind. What is coming from your mind is like the math and the science and the formulaic, uh, you know, equation of music that you can put together. And that's fine. You can put that out there. And maybe there's a vibe, but like, your vibe is your fucking, your heart, your soul, your personality, your energy. You know what I mean? Like, I don't speak super articulately all the time. I stumble over my words. I cuss a lot. Right? It's like I'm not maybe technically proficient in how I show up, but you can feel my fucking vibe. You can feel my energy. Right? And, and so you gotta bring that as, as, as a artist too. Yeah. Get over it. Needing to be perfect and polished. Like what are you actually saying? What are you actually bringing to the table?
Varien-1:So two things. One, the biggest thing that's helped me since the beginning. Is having this mentality of associating art with other art.
Nik:Hmm.
Varien-1:I want this song to sound like the way Aon flux the anime looks.
Nik:Yeah.
Varien-1:I want my outfit to feel like nausea. I don't know. I just made that up. But you see what I mean? Is. It is not like a one-to-one. I want to make a, you know, of course I'll hear a song and be like, I wanna try something like this. But you know, by keeping your eyes and your ears open to new art, form and experimenting, you can sort of escape this idea of, um, like X, Y, and Z. The way you sort your lane is all of your influences from the sneakers you wear, the comic books you read, and just trying to. Sort of be like a chemist about it, A little drop of this, a dash of that. That's how I always write, like my, my pressors is like, you know, oh yeah, we got a little dash of cereal experiments lane, and we got a little, you know, spice of Y 2K, um, you know, late, late nineties industrial, like, it's almost like a recipe for the full thing versus sounds. Like, enigma or Enya, like this sounds like noisy or skrillex. Like that's just so to me, close-minded. and so that's something I would also recommend to people is to take step back and like look at all like what makes you tick? do you like, and, try to distill that into the experience of the art that you're making.
Nik:Beautifully said, and you have been making a lot of great art lately. You sent me a private SoundCloud link that I feel privileged to have listened to and gotten a sneak peek of. You've got some really, really cool music in the works and you know, after, obviously I'm, I'm assuming you're still gonna be working on your backend projects and all the cool, you know, gaming work and, and stuff that you're doing. Uh, but you're also ready to
Varien-1:year
Nik:Yeah, yeah. Always, staying busy. Yeah. And, and you're, you're ready to put yourself back out there and, and really, you know, start playing shows again and releasing music on labels again, doing it. Now at this stage, at a later point in your career, uh, I'm not gonna call it a comeback, but just at this, in this next chapter, how are you gonna approach things differently, if at all?
Varien-1:it's, it's funny that you say the word comeback because I can literally, like last year I just, I put out like an ep. Um, I was really busy with like a backend work and, uh, just living life, kind of taking a break from
Nik:I,
Varien-1:social media and all of that, and just living in Finland, like, you know, it's a,
Nik:yeah.
Varien-1:different experience than growing up in Florida. but it was funny because anytime I put anything out Varian's back, I'm like, I never left.
Nik:Yeah.
Varien-1:So, so, uh, to answer your question, um, I think at this age I don't have a concept of selling out. I just do what I want to do if. This artist or that artist, or this manager, or like, I'm just open. I am to anything because now as an adult I'm less of an elitist. And more of a seeker in terms, uh, very like a podcast TEDx type label. But am looking for experiences where maybe I have a initial egoic judgment about it, but it actually might be the door to things I've never for my life.
Nik:Hmm.
Varien-1:open I am. The more these experiences can come to me. So that's my approach
Nik:Yeah.
Varien-1:um, putting my best foot forward, being extremely optimistic and positive and open-minded, and just having a good attitude not bringing down other people and just, you know, smiling and saying, I'm ready anything.
Nik:Yeah. Hell yeah. Well, I am happy to reconnect with you and so excited to see what this next stage of your artistic evolution holds.'cause it's just been, it's been fun to just witness Yeah. Your journey. And I really, I really, really. Want to commend you for your commitment to true artistry and to just fucking being you and doing you. And, and I really love what you just said about like, yeah, all, all you can do is put your best foot forward and be optimistic. Be open-minded, see what's out there, see what's available. And yeah, not, not try to fit yourself in a box or have a, have expectations and attachments and I just know whatever you do and whatever you touch is gonna turn to fucking gold'cause that's who you are. So excited for you.
Varien-1:I really app. I appreciate that. One thing that I want to say about, you know, focusing on, on, on, on being an artist is that there's a lot of traps that you have to avoid. There's a lot of these egoic traps that, like you think that you're better this project, you're better than this opportunity. you're cynical about the way music is going. You're nihilistic about your own career because there's a down points and up points. you take things personally, and it, it can be hard because you see your value, but other people might not, and that might go on for years. My journey might be unorthodox, I have seen things, done, things experienced things that people in this industry will never do, and I'm, I'm proud of that. And this next chapter, I'm just bundle of joy. I'm older, I'm wiser, and I'm ready for any and all open doors.
Nik:Hmm. Hell yeah. Amen to that. Well, thank you so much for taking the time to share some of your older, wiser wisdom and experience with, uh, with, with me and the rest of us. You're amazing and, uh, it's really great to reconnect with you.
Varien-1:Thanks, man. Always good to reconnect with you.