Smash TV: “We are finally working on our label”

Smash TV are Holger Zilske and Kai Preussner they are passionate gardeners, amateur-baristas, dating coaches and an internationally renowned Liveact-, DJ- and Producer-Team that presents their tongue-in-cheek Hugh Hefner meets Dart Vader-attitude in shows across the globe every weekend.

We recently spoke with the guys about the current work and some history lessons.

Electronic Groove: Hello Smash TV, how are you today? Our audience would like to know a little bit about your history in the electronic dance music scene and who and what first inspired you to get into it?

Smash TV: We are very good, thanks. The project Smash TV exists already since 2001. In this year we started releasing on Bpitch Control. I – Holger Zilske – was releasing music since 1995 and started to work with Ellen Alien in 1999 on some EP’s for her and later her Sadtkind, Berlinette and her thrills album. She surely was my biggest influence by then and she gave me the opportunity to develop my own sound and a platform to release my music. In 2006 I started to concentrate on my solo project, which was mainly released on Playhouse, and a project called Yoko Duo with a singer from Stockholm which found a home on Fauxpas.

In 2010 Kai Preussner and I went back to the studio more often and searched for a new platform and a new direction music-wise for SMASH TV. We found a good partner in Get Physical Music where we made a couple of releases, remixes, and the 3rd SMASH TV album, ‘Noise & Girls’, released in 2013. Since then we decided to untighten our bands to the label and released on labels like Hive Audio, Katermukke, Culprit, My Favorite Robot and many others while constantly being on the road.

Electronic Groove: How did you come up with the name Smash TV?

Smash TV: The name comes from our collective TV addiction, which we thought could only be cured by literally smashing the TV set, it has later been cured by the terrible German TV programming.

Electronic Groove: Tell us a bit about your studio set up? What are your favorite pieces of kit and what makes them so special?

Holger: We have 2 studios. I’m constantly improving my studio since more than 20 years, and I have everything you need to make a proper electronic music record. My favorite pieces are my modular synth, the modal 002 and the Toraiz sp16. The modular synth is just the best thing to surprise yourself with sounds and sequences that you never thought of. The modal is just perfect for chords. Sounds super fat and its super intuitive to program. The Toraiz is the heart of my “idea collecting corner”. It’s controlling my drum-machines and is the basis of everything I do at the moment.

Kai: My studio is more digital, I work with maschine, maschine Jam, TR 8, Novation circuit, some controllers and VST synths and fx, also like to use samples.

All tracks get finished in the grand studio in Holgers basement in the end!

Electronic Groove: How do you go about creating your tracks?

Smash TV: Well mostly one of us comes up with an idea, some chords or just a concept and we work it out together – sometimes we start together from scratch, with remixes that’s how we always do it.

“Berlin is so special because it is a uniquely tolerant and open place where you can be whoever you want.”

Electronic Groove: Why do you favor Berlin as your place of residence and what makes the city so special?

Smash TV: Well we were both born here and have our families and friends here so it’s our home. It has always been a very inspiring place, especially after the reunification, when the techno scene emerged and we discovered clubbing in places like E-werk or Tresor, so we have lots of personal memories involved here.

Berlin is so special because it is a uniquely tolerant and open place where you can be whoever you want.

Electronic Groove: How has the Berlin changed over the years? What makes playing at the Betriebsfeier parties so special?

Smash TV: Berlin surely has changed due to the fact that the whole clubbing thing has gotten so huge, parties every day that never ends… it feels like there have never been more tourists… and that is what makes it all possible, this diversity of old and new places – what hasn’t changed is the feeling that anything goes.

Betriebsfeier has a big tradition we think, it’s a party where you always meet the same people over the years which has become a rare thing lately. You have people coming that normally don’t go out anymore, we love playing there.

Electronic Groove: What does the future hold for you guys and do you have any exciting plans in the pipeline?

Smash TV: For sure! We have an EP coming up on Little Helpers on the end of November, we are really excited about!

Then we have our party series called Smash Invaders which is monthly at Suicide Circus and quarterly at Folklor in Lausanne. We are currently working on expanding it to many more cities, so stay tuned for that!

Furthermore, we are finally working on our label, with this we are still working on the concept.