Interview withGrzegorz Szyma (DJ, Composer) from Hiroszyma
Multimedia artist HIROSZYMA born in Warsaw is a painter, graphic designer, DJ, and musician, holding a degree from the Academy of Fine Arts in Warsaw. Since 2002, he has been active in the music scene, co-founding the RH+ collective with Marek Musiol, which later evolved into DAS MOON upon joining Daisy K. DAS MOON performed at major festivals in Poland and internationally, contributing to the Dark Synth Wave scene. HIROSZYMA has been a fixture in the Polish DJ scene since 2003, with over 2,000 club and event performances to his name. In 2008, he represented Poland at the International Club Night in Berlin.
Grzegorz’s journey into music began during the grey 80s in Poland, where the radio served as his window to Western music. Influenced by bands like KRAFTWERK and DEPECHE MODE, he dreamt of creating his own music. His stage name, HIROSZYMA, nods to Hiroshima, reflecting the dark mood of his music. Grzegorz draws inspiration from his surroundings, experiences, and available technology. As a self-taught musician, he crafts his tracks on a laptop, valuing the independence it offers. While he separates his roles as a DJ and musician, both activities fulfil him creatively. Reflecting on memorable moments, he recounts extreme tour schedules and standout performances. Grzegorz’s solo work includes tracks like ‘Empty Soul’ and ‘Disaster’, each bearing personal significance. Looking ahead, he plans to release two solo albums and embark on tours, aspiring to reach a wider audience in Western Europe.
Reflections of Darkness [RoD]: To start, I’d like to ask how it all began for you - how did you get interested in music and decide to become a DJ and create your own music? What came first?
Grzegorz: My childhood in Poland was in the grey 80s. Europe was divided into two blocs. I grew up behind the iron curtain. In 1981, martial law was imposed in our country. Empty shops. We had no access to the open circulation of culture and the only window to the world at that time was the radio. Listening to Western stations and one relatively progressive program on Polish Radio, PR3, I could get to know Western music. As a child, I grew up on music like THE BEATLES, ABBA, ELVIS PRESLEY but I quickly became fascinated by new bands that played on electronic instruments like KRAFTWERK, DEPECHE MODE or THROBBING GRISTLE. It was a shock for me that music could sound like that. Their sounds heard in Poland in the 80s were like from outer space and stimulated my imagination. I dreamed of being able to create someday. A lot of time had to pass before that happened...
RoD: I have to ask - is your stage name, being a word play, in any way related to Hiroshima, which, obviously, is a symbol of its own?
Grzegorz: My nick refers to a city in Japan and its history, which is dark like the mood of my music. Instead of the original spelling, I incorporated my surname Szyma into this name, and that’s why I am HIROSZYMA and not Hiroshima.
RoD: What inspires you in music and how does it influence your DJing and music production? I’m also curious about how you compose your tracks. Where do you get your ideas from and how do you turn them into finished songs?
Grzegorz: Well... I am inspired by the times I live in... by what surrounds me, what I experience and the available technology that allows me to create in a simple and intuitive way. Certainly, a big influence on what I play now were the bands that I met in my youth, like BAUHAUS, THE CURE and CABARET VOLTAIRE. I am a self-taught musician. Most of my music is created on a laptop, which is my portable recording studio. This is a brilliant situation. I only connect to the laptop some additional necessary instruments, a microphone and that’s it. A sign of our times. In the past, I would need to rent a studio, a sound engineer, a producer. Now everything can be done by the creator himself. Full independence. My songs are created in a certain scheme. Always at the beginning there is a thought about a certain general atmosphere of the song. Then the rhythm. Then the melody and at the end the words and the vocal. My visions are coherent and I do not need third parties to process my ideas. I know what I want and how it should sound.
RoD: What are the biggest challenges when you’re trying to be both a DJ and a musician at the same time?
Grzegorz: I strongly separate these two activities of mine, even though I use the same pseudonym HIROSZYMA for both of them. It can be confusing for the listeners (sic!). As a DJ, I am a performer - using someone else’s creativity. I do it mainly for money, but it also gives me pleasure. As a musician, however, I fully express myself artistically. Sometimes independent musicians have to take up some extra jobs not related to music and art, in order to earn money for their creativity and the possibility of functioning. I am lucky to live exclusively from music and graphic design, because I am an artist from the Warsaw Academy of Fine Arts. So, I not only create my music, but also provide it with my own visual design.
RoD: You operate in Warsaw, but you also travel a lot - tell us how it looks from your perspective, such an intense life? Do you remember any interesting, funny, or difficult moments in your career? Is there a particular performance that stands out in your memory?
Grzegorz: It’s true... I travel a lot and I like to move around. It’s an opportunity to compare how people live and have fun in different places. As a person with ADHD, I like this movement. It drives me to action. I create mostly in solitude, so concerts and DJ sets are a chance to meet other people. When I was still playing with my band DAS MOON, we played at one of the editions of Wave Gotik Treffen and the situation of moving around was extreme, because on Thursday I played a DJ set in Krakow, on Friday a concert in Leipzig at the festival, and on Saturday in Warsaw I had a vernissage of my painting exhibition combined with a solo concert. I did this whole tour by myself by car, so I wouldn’t be dependent on train or plane schedules and make it everywhere on time. It exhausted me terribly. Now I have given up the car, so I don’t fall into such loops where I have to be an artist and a driver. The time of moving around is the time of rest and I stick to that. I also try to arrange my schedule so that I don’t have to hurry and I can absorb the atmosphere of the places I visit. As for memorable concerts, there was, for example, a performance at one of the editions of Mayday in the Katowice Spodek, where there was an amazing atmosphere of the hall filled to the brim with techno fans and a great visual setting.
RoD: Which of the songs that you created is your personal best or most important?
Grzegorz: Hmm... a very difficult question. When I create, I always try to put the maximum of my creative energy. I never create in a hurry. Of course, I am aware that time verifies a lot and some of the songs are more successful, and others less. From the times when I created with Das Moon, I was only responsible for the music, because the lyrics of the songs were written by our vocalist. From those times, musically, I value very much the song ‘City Will’ which is kept in a minimalist style and a bit experimental song ‘Forest’ because of its mysterious aura. From my solo work, I am more satisfied, because I fully identify with it. I don’t have to consult anything with anyone. I will highlight three important songs for me: ‘Empty Soul’ which was created at the very beginning of the COVID pandemic when I felt a great anxiety and senselessness of our times. ‘Secret Life’ which is basically an electronic lo-fi ballad about the fact that each of us carries some small secrets inside that we don’t share with anyone. The last song I would highlight is my latest single ‘Disaster’ which is about how wonderful it is to be in a relationship, but that it is also a huge challenge of often giving up personal freedom. Apart from the lyrical layer, I am happy with their purely musical layer. I like these songs.
RoD: You recently released a video for ‘Disaster’ - can you tell me about the work on set? Are there people you work with regularly? Are there any you would like to collaborate with in the future?
Grzegorz: I attach great importance to the visual layer of my music videos, which are supposed to co-create and enhance the atmosphere of the songs. It was the same with ‘Disaster’. We shot the footage in a non-existent club arranged on Warsaw’s Żoliborz. The graphics on the walls were specially printed. The extras were specially painted to emphasize the “stifling” and slightly erotic atmosphere of this place. The two main characters are my friends Ania and Piotr, who, although they play a couple in the video, are not one in real life. They were very brave. The second part of the video was shot in winter by the sea on the beach in Sopot, at a temperature of -15 degrees Celsius. We all totally froze, but the point was to capture the cold sea in contrast to the hot atmosphere in the red club. The video was directed by a duo of young talented creators: Kamila Budyńczuk and Leopold Mazurkiewicz.
RoD: Have you noticed that your musical style has changed since you started, and if so, how?
Grzegorz: Currently I create almost entirely solo - I am the composer, performer and producer of my own music, which does not mean that I do not like to confront myself with other artists. Currently I am recording vocals for a new production of the band Wrong! It will be a cover of FAD GADGET’s ‘Back To Nature’. I also remixed one of their songs recently. Who would I potentially like to collaborate with? Currently I am thinking about a musician... a cellist with whom I could create music for the legendary silent film ‘Nosferatu’. I am still fascinated by this image.
RoD: What skills do you consider most important for a DJ who also wants to make their own music?
Grzegorz: As a musician, I started my musical adventure playing in a school Rock band. Then I founded my first serious band RH+ with which I recorded three albums in a very experimental style... I was inspired by Krautrock music then, like CAN, FAUST and early KRAFTWERK. Finally, in 2010, DAS MOON was born, with which I played Electro-Pop music. Currently, I create at the crossroads of Dark Electro and Cold Wave. This is the formula in which I feel best and fully expresses me. However, this does not mean that I will not look for changes in the future. I am already recording two albums in parallel, one of which will be a continuation of my solo debut ‘Inside Isolation’ and the other one a conceptual trance-electronic album with Berlin and Warsaw in the background. For now, I can’t say more.
RoD: Do you prefer playing live or spending time in the studio working on new tracks?
Grzegorz: To create your own music, you need to feel an irresistible urge to create. Being a DJ for many years helps in making the transition to your own creativity, because you simply listen to a lot of productions by other artists. It’s like reading many books... to finally be able to write your own. It’s invaluable knowledge. A true university. Of course, apart from the vision of your music, there is still a whole knowledge of music production that you need to acquire. I learned it from the producer of DAS MOON records, Pawel Gawlik, with whom I spent dozens of hours in the studio, seeing how he works.
RoD: Share your experiences related to live performances and studio work. What gives you the greatest pleasure in all of this?
Grzegorz: These are completely two different activities so different from each other, but I like them both.
RoD: Is there anything you currently dream about? In terms of professional goals - what would you like to achieve with your project?
Grzegorz: Live playing is unpredictable emotions, excitement and a shot of adrenaline from which I am probably addicted. On the other hand, working in the studio is fascinating in its calmness, virtually unlimited time and the fact that I create things that are polished and recorded are the trace left after my stay here on Earth. Creating and playing is my life, so it is a goal in itself. This is how I express myself. I like to perform and play DJ sets. It gives me almost physical pleasure. On the other hand, creating is a need to record my thoughts and the atmosphere that sits in my head. I think that some people write diaries and I just create music and... create images, because this part of my creativity is also important. As for the goals, of course I would like to be able to do what I do for as long as possible. To keep developing. To be able to play in cool club and festival venues. To travel the world, that is, to share my creativity with as many people as possible.
RoD: Finally - what can we expect in the coming months? I know you’re hitting the road again.
Grzegorz: As I mentioned, I’m working on two new solo albums simultaneously. I have a lot of DJ sets ahead of me at various club events. As for concerts, in the autumn I’m going on a small joint tour with Wrong! and Nun Electro bands as part of the flying NOIR FEST festival. At the same time, I’m looking for an agent or a concert agency that will help me reach a larger audience of fans of dark music in Western Europe.
RoD: Thank you for your time.
https://zyma.art.pl / https://dasmoon.pl / https://www.facebook.com/dasmoonband / https://www.facebook.com/Hirozyma / https://www.instagram.com/hiroszyma_dj / https://www.youtube.com/channel/UC8q3U6FVOnc2WVZt4U87RtQ
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