Artist Profile – KNARS – (Netherlands)

Netherlands based KNARS wears many musical hats and produces everything from Prodigy-esque rave rock to kick ass drum and bass. Rising as a one piece outfit from the ashes of the band Knarsetand (Teethgrinder in Dutch), he also writes and creates his own video compositions. With a new track ‘Keep Running’ released very recently (with accompanying video – see below) and with a punk n bass ethic running through his core very similar to our own, we thought we’d find out a bit more about this intriguing Dutchman.

KNARS! Welcome in!

Thanks for having me!

You used to be known as Knarsetand, which means Teethgrinder in Dutch, so what is left now, the teeth or the grinder, and what happened to the rest of it?

It’s the grinding part, which sounds like it has a homosexual overtone if you put it like that, but we had the name way before that App became a thing. In the Netherlands the industry runs in a 3 year cycle and then you’re either big and happening, or an underground niche thing. We became the latter 🙂 We started off just about when Skrillex became a thing. We had a 10 piece live reggae/dubstep/gypsy/Balkan crossover Orchestra back then with all of my musical fascinations. After a while, I felt like that party vibe was no good for a world that is this fucked up, so I went more mad with punk and breakbeat.

Looking back through your Soundcloud account, there is A LOT of different genres in there. You are clearly not confined to just one musical style, and the vast majority of current digital styles are represented through your body of work. You are truly a multi genre artist!

Damn that’s right! I actually have three aliases that I keep secret 🙂 and made music in many genres. Each has its beauty. But I’d love to do a reggea project. You have to make choices with what you profile as an act. Although I love many genres, it’s not really a clear cut story. The gatekeepers really want a well focused musical story to tell. Even now we’ve gone more electronic, I still hear people in the bass music genres bitch about the specific style elements….

We don’t know a lot about the underground scene in the Netherlands, so how would you describe things there right now?

It’s dominated by a few cities that have their own parties and programmers, and there are a few big key overarching players as well that do more label/sound focussed stuff, like Korsakov and PRSPCT. Liquid (Liquicity) is huge here, and then you have the major players like Noisia, Black Sun Empire and Multiplex that originated here too. There is a band circuit as well with a lot of small concert venues.

The Netherlands has certainly made its mark on the DNB scene, that’s for sure! You’re not only into making music though? You’re also into film production as well? Which journey started first? Film or Music?

True! I directed, wrote and produced most music videos myself. After that I felt like my movie fascinations were a bit too stuck on music videos while I was also writing short stories, so I developed my medieval short film last year. Its coming online in 2024…. 🙂 I might edit it into a music video.

So, I guess when you first develop the ideas for a new project, you’re simultaneously thinking about the way it will look as well as the way it will sound?

The looks follow the first ideas. I have like, 5 music video ideas in my head right now, but I also have to be realistic. Honestly, it’s quite hard to get people to watch videos. It’s all short form format now, so I feel kinda stuck, having grown up with the MTV music video format and fully adapted that. Now the whole world has basically moved on in terms of consumption patterns, but it presents some fun new challenges, like trying to be authentic within the space of 15 seconds and be funny as well.

I do think it creates a lot of new pressure for artists though. You used to be able to just make beats and be a talented musician, but now you have to be a marketeer, manager, booking agent, content librarian, content creator, editor, camera man and director! TikTok has done some insane developments this year, so I also think you kinda have no excuse to not try that as well. It has become streamlined, but the pressure is high. It’s just the way the human brain works.

Talk us through your journey so far then. You’ve been active since 2017 and have played at some big Dutch festivals including Paaspop?

I kinda see KNARS as a two step project, with 2017-2020 being our first steps with the raw electronic sounds, and 2020 to the present day being more of a solo driven version. I worked with a vocalist but after a while felt too much conflict. I noticed I didn’t have the self confidence to do it fully myself, so I stepped up my game and confronted my fears about why, because I’ve been lyrics for years. Now I’m happy that I pushed myself and have got some sick tunes waiting for a release as a result.

Lots of digital artists perform live now, but how do YOU do it? I can imagine you being quite enigmatic on stage?

We play with a full live band but are looking into doing more smaller gigs with a DJ setup as well. Think Pendulum X The Prodigy X Noisia!

There has been a lot of other activity based around your output too though, with video game inclusions and via Netflix too! This is an amazing achievement. How the heck did you manage to get your name out there to such an extent? You must have an amazing publicist!

I worked with a sync manager for years and remixed the big A names officially for movie and trailer purposes, but it’s a hard business with a shitty model for producers who do a lot of pitching without any dough. I don’t recommend it, but we had some great surprises with the Borderlands trailer and a movie placement.

You’ve been quite prolific in public about capitalist greed and destructive but pointless human violence, of which the world is witnessing an awful lot at the moment. Your music definitely carries this message and the anger and frustration is clearly audible in your sound. Do you find it helps you personally to release these feelings out into the ether?

I DO! And I find it insane that not enough people do it! There is so much to be insanely mad about! The rich get soooo rich with everything in place to keep our wealth flowing to them! Are you nuts? They lie to you about everything. Create wars and get all the profit. They point to the immigrants eating your single cookie while they have a pile. It’s the biggest widening of the wealth gap since the Second World War. Are you nuts?! We, You, I, should be on the barricades, burning down banks and arms dealers, God damnit.

On the flipside to that though, do you find that you have a specific audience that relates directly to it in return, in the way that say, punk was very much a two way street?

I hope so. It’s hard though. People consume social media to escape the madness, not to be in it. So, I walk a thin line of providing content of value of my own and my music, and sharing background information about WHY I feel that way. I hope it helps, but I sometimes feel it doesn’t cut it in every direction. But then again, would you want to listen to a Rage Against The Machine with songs that try to compromise?

Punk clearly runs through your veins. That’s clear to see. Punk/DNB crossover acts have seemed to gravitate towards this website, which is fantastic because one half of us (me) is very much a punk. There’s a definite market out there for Punk/DNB right?

Thanks mate! I would say there is. Some great acts try to combine it. It’s interesting to see acts like IDLES become so big. I relate more to a Prodigy-esque approach. I don’t want to stick to genres too much. I also wish I was a better sound designer. If people like IMANU would do a punk record like Slowthai’s ‘Doorman’ the world would go maaaaad!

When I first heard your latest single with that clonking snare and the Dominator sample it had me hooked instantly. I’m a huge fan of old skool Belgian techno circa 1991, and that sound was HUGELY important to the UK rave scene during it’s early development, but how is that scene viewed now by the Dutch in 2023? It’s a staple part of UK heritage and birthed jungle tekno, so I’m very interested to now if it is still a part of Benelux culture?

Well, the Dutch are extremely proud of their own genre: Gabber Hardcore. It’s the only genre that is originally Dutch, and I think you refer to the Belgian techno of that era that was inspired by the Dutch (they kind of coincided) It was a huge movement and also defines the Dutch boldness very well. Besides that, the Dutch only get fed mainstream drum and bass or the underground scene. There is NOTHING in between. It’s either Rita Ora and Rudimental or its Noisia at your local venue.

When it comes to sounds and using them, are you a sample collector or are you more into making your own sounds with technology?

I love to collect samples! But I also love sound design. I try to get the track as far as I can composition wise, and when it’s all done and stemmed, I send it out to mix engineers who do a bit more sound design as well, doing snare and bass replacements to get it all sounding super tight. For the ‘Keep Running’ hoover sound you referred to, it was done by a dubstep producer called Lifecycle.

That’s a very interesting way of working. So, with the single itself then, tell us a bit about the story and the journey behind it? It’s titled ‘Keep Running’, but keep running from what?

It’s about the rat race of capitalism, and also about my own mind and stress that has to try to survive. Running from one project to the next. In a sense it’s the story of humanity running itself to oblivion and destruction, and at the same time it’s also very personal. I keep running away from rest and confrontations while forgetting to experience the beauty all around me.

I noticed that there’s no LP from KNARS yet? Is this something you might consider going forward? I think a full long player highlighting the full extent of your musical styles would be pretty cool!

There was an album in 2018 with bangers like Bad Trip and Fuckup, but it’s on vinyl and CD. With the recent singles I’m now contemplating releasing it on another LP honestly. But, I also think there has to be a moment for it: some more following/demand before I put my lifesavings into another vinyl pressing again.

Understood. Vinyl is an expensive and risky business these days. Are we going to see you over here in the UK at any point in the future? I could see KNARS supporting The Prodigy quite easily, and going down very well too!!

I would love to! We could, but we need to meet the right people to make this happen. So hook me up!

As a parting shot then, try and give us an insight into what 2024 might look like for KNARS?

We got way too much releasing coming up. There’s a sick UK Garage banger with a sexy lady video coming in January, and drum and bass roller with a sick 808 bass due in March.

Wikked! Sounds good. We look forward to that!

FIND OUT MORE HERE:

https://www.instagram.com/knarsmusic

Stream KNARS music | Listen to songs, albums, playlists for free on SoundCloud

Music | KNARS (bandcamp.com)