Nostre has been making moves over the last year, honing his style of emotional liquid via some impressive releases for labels like Omni Music, Influenza Media & DNBB Digital. With an EP coming up on Celsius later in 2019, we grabbed him for a chat about musical influences, the scene in Norway and what he has in store for the rest of 2019…

DNB Dojo: Hi Joachim, thanks for chatting! Where in the world are you today, and how are you doing?

Nostre: Hello Dojo, thanks for having me. I’m in my hometown, Drammen, which is located in Norway where it’s still cold outside. Other than that, I’m doing great, thanks! 

DD: So, let’s go back to the start…how did you first get into Drum & Bass?

N: Well, I fell in love with drum and bass during primary school. I used to spend a lot of my “alone” time listening to music. So, one day I was just scrolling through some new music, then suddenly I found this fast paced music, with a lot of high energy! I can still remember when I first heard Wilkinson’s remix of Example – Midnight Run. My god, what a rush! Anyways, later that year I dug deeper into the drum and bass world and found out that liquid would be my go-to style of music.

DD: And from there, what inspired you to start producing your own tracks?

N: So, when I was about 12 years old, my friend showed me this music program called FL studio. And I can remember us starting up as a duo. We spent hours upon hours experimenting…it was a really exciting time! But soon we discovered different genres, I found drum and bass and we both went solo. He’s still one of my best friends to this date and we’re going to Liquicity together this year, should be fun! 

DD: What’s the Drum & Bass scene like in your native Norway? Do you get the opportunity to play your music out much?

N: It doesn’t quite exist here… 

I mean, we got a few clubs in Oslo and Bergen, which seem OK. The D&B scene is very underground, and drum and bass can sometimes feel taboo here in Norway. But we are lucky enough to have TeeBee from Norway, and we’ve got a small, but very loving D&B community. 

So yeah, I can see the opportunity to play some gigs really soon, but for now I have to focus on making a living, so I’m working on it, hah. I can see myself playing in some other country like Germany, The Netherlands or Serbia soon!

DD: Listening to your recent tracks like Stay With Me and Autumn Winds, you’re hitting quite an uplifting vibe but still keeping things deep. How do you achieve that exuberance without tracks sounding cheesy? 

N: Thanks. I think it has something to do with scenery I tend to go after in my tunes. I always try to put my emotions into play when I produce music, and I want that cold, sad, perhaps mystical feeling to be more positive and uplifting – if that makes any sense! Other than that, I always try not to over-do things, simplicity is sometimes the key. Take Calibre for an instance, simplicity at it’s best if you ask me.

DD: What would you consider your most significant musical influences?

N: Oh man, that’s a tough one…I would say Silence Groove and Nelver are the ones who inspire me most at the moment. Their songs provide such strong feelings and emotions, but I change my influences from time to time, I’m open minded like that. 

DD: So, looking forward we hear you have an EP coming on Celsius with some interesting collaborations. What can you tell us about that? 

N: Oh yes! I’m super excited for you to hear em’. This time I have been teaming up with Henry. Dude has skills, and making a few songs with him went super smoothly. We’ve also included a vocalist on one of them, her name is CHAR and she has the loveliest voice. Massive shout outs to them!

So yeah, another release on Celsius is super cool, I never thought I’d be a part of the Fokuz family a few years back, but now that I am, I’m super grateful for it and I’ll do my best to keep making music that people appreciate.

DD: Any upcoming gigs, shout outs or other things you want to mention?

N: Yeah, a massive shout out to my Norwegian drum and bass friend and talent, Fishy. Got a few releases with him as well, coming up this year. I will also give a shout out to my friend Fearbace, he’s a great collab partner and one of the best producers I’ve known. 

Leniz, Aetherial, Valèsque and Cosmic Sequence are also worth mentioning. I think that’s it! Thanks for having me, cheers!

Look out for Nostre’s EP with Henry and CHAR coming to Celsius later this year…in the meantime you can check out Stay With Me below.