［PYRO音乐的对话间］深圳地下音乐领域的引领者 Mantis Project 的创始人

［PYRO音乐的对话间］深圳地下音乐领域的引领者 Mantis Project 的创始人—Mantis

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PYRO音乐希望与在中国进行电子舞曲文化推广有着出色成绩的人，有更多的对话和了解，所以我们会开始找寻这些很酷的人进行一次次的对话，这次我们找到了Mantis。出生并长大于南非约翰内斯堡的Mantis是目前深圳地下音乐领域里最有影响力的人物之一，拥有多年在音乐和DJ专业领域的丰富经验，并且在中国的八年时间里，Mantis还建立了非常多的音乐项目，参与不同的音乐活动，充分影响到当地的音乐文化。他是Mantis Project 的创始人以及邦酒吧的音乐总监，就让我们和他聊一下关于中国的音乐这些事。

［PYRO音乐的对话间］深圳地下音乐领域的引领者 Mantis Project 的创始人—Mantis-PYRO音乐

Q：首先，给许多不熟悉你的人，自我介绍一下吧

A：大家好，我是Mantis，41岁。出生于南非的约翰内斯堡并在那里长大，而Club相关的事情几乎充满了我的生活。我不确定我是什么时候开始成为一个DJ的，那应该是很久以前的事情了。目前是深圳Bang Club的音乐总监和Mantis Project 的创始人。

Q：你在中国生活多久了？你对这里有什么看法？

A：在中国有近10年了，现在武汉呆了近5年，然后目前在深圳也有4年以上时间。在这个国家我去过很多不同城市演出，但是我只能说说我熟悉的地方，显然中国的音乐市场并没有国外如此的丰富多样，但是我认为这里有许多潜在的可能性，所以我选择留在这里，能看到这个市场许多的成长与变化。

Q：你第一次接触电子音乐是什么时候？是什么促使你开始组织派对的？

A：在我来到中国之前，我从未去过任何Club去放商业型的音乐和EDM Top 40。在我的家乡我喜欢听Electro Industrial、Techno、Dark Psy 等风格。当我来到这里，这里没有Club在做我喜欢的音乐风格，所以我决定自己成为DJ。但是有时候不得不播放商业型的音乐，于是我和我最好的朋友及搭档—DJ Mechnophile 开始组织活动，我们可以做我们喜欢的音乐风格，不过这过程比我们想象要困难很多。

［PYRO音乐的对话间］深圳地下音乐领域的引领者 Mantis Project 的创始人—Mantis-PYRO音乐

Q：当你第一次组织派对的时候，有什么困难是需要面对的？

A：很多困难是我们现在仍需要面对的，例如资金的缺乏、场地的缺乏、场地方过多的要求、club 老板的意识不够超前等等，还有一些法律许可方面的问题。我们面临更重要的问题是在深圳，缺乏支持我们的人。地下音乐的生存非常艰巨、很难与主流和商业Club进行竞争。

Q：你能分享一些有趣的事情或者出乎预料的事情吗？

A：我不能想到一些有趣的事，但是有一件事让我印象深刻。那天晚上是Richie Hawtin在深圳进行演出，他演出的地方正好是在我们活动的楼上。那天晚上对我们来说是一个漫长并且无聊的一晚，2点左右舞池里空无一人，我正准备要收工回家突然涌进了一大批人，之后人越来越多，我的音乐也受到了他们的喜欢。原来是Richie Hawtin 完成演出后那家Club又恢复了EDM的风格，而我们这里成为了他们新的聚点，我们一直狂欢痛饮到天亮，而那天我是唯一的DJ。

Q：什么样的派对氛围或者是风格是你想要去做的？

A：我并不是很确定，更多的注意力我放在音乐上，音乐会决定派对的氛围和整体的感觉。我认为这对所有DJ来说都是如此，我会给我派对上的DJ们更多表达自己的自由。以前也说过，我努力去邀请有着和我理念相同的DJ。

［PYRO音乐的对话间］深圳地下音乐领域的引领者 Mantis Project 的创始人—Mantis-PYRO音乐

Q：你有什么方法让这些活动去展现你的想法

A：我没有什么特别的方案或者方法，只是提供了一个平台，然后去邀请志同道合的DJ来，然后就看DJ们的本事了。我认为人们会通过派对上的DJ来评论整个活动。

Q：在你看来什么是成功的派对活动？

A：首先我是一名DJ，我看待活动会从一个DJ的视角出发。如果DJ觉得这个晚上的活动是有趣并且成功的，我认为这就足够了。这也意味着喜欢来我们派对的人能够享受今晚的音乐并且舞动起来，我比较容易满足和随性。

［PYRO音乐的对话间］深圳地下音乐领域的引领者 Mantis Project 的创始人—Mantis-PYRO音乐

Q：Mantis Project 的下一步是什么？今年是否完成了什么目标？

A：在两年前我们开始接手管理一家不是很出名的Bang Club，在前几个月我们开始了一些派对活动后，酒吧boss决定重新装修来符合我们的风格需求，而我作为音乐总监掌控着Bang的音乐风格。Bang位于深圳市的酒吧街Cocopark，在这里有许多的Club 他们做着商业的EDM或Hip Hop风格。

我们 Mantis Project 推崇地下音乐，比如Tech House、Techno、Drum & Bass、Psy Trance。自豪地说，我们用这种方式改变了Cocopark的音乐风向，更多的Club现在开始尝试Techno、Tech House等风格，其中一家著名的大型Club也开始经常邀请Techno DJ并且播放Psy Trance，这在以前是不可能的。

我的未来规划很简单，我想继续去影响和帮助越来越多的人去了解舞曲文化，选择自己喜欢的电子舞曲。我身后有一个非常棒的团队，在这两年我们邀请了将近100位非常优秀的DJ，我们还在努力寻找和发掘新的DJ给到他们平台和帮助。我希望继续与这些优秀的DJ们一起去推动和改变这个业界。

Q：很高兴和你聊了这么多，最后告诉我们一下接下来会有什么活动吧！

A：非常感谢你们，我们每周末都会有好的派对活动。这两个月都有非常好的DJ ，Ellbe Chan (Hong Kong)、Blood Dunza (HK)、Far East Lion (China and Japan)、BB Deng (Beijing)、Jeremy Cheung (Hong Kong) 、Alan Pak (Hong Kong) 和 Gordon (Macau)等等，更多信息可以查看我们的Bang Club Pyro 的活动页面。

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PYRO will begin featuring one venue or event organizer located in China to share with our followers. There are thousands of clubs throughout China with a steady growth of events and festivals inside and outside venues and the typical environment. This new feature will bring to light all their unique approaches to the nightlife scene.

Q：Hi Mantis! Its great to have you as our first feature, can you tell us a little about your background and where you’re from for those that may not know you?

A：Hey. I am Mantis, 41, born and raised in Johannesburg, South Africa, and I have been a clubber for pretty much all my life. Im not really sure exactly when I got into djing, but it is a very long time ago. Im the music Director of Bang Club in Shenzhen and the founder and team leader (for lack of better word) of The Mantis Project.

Q：How long have you been in China and what are your thoughts on the scene here?

A：I have been in China for close to a decade now. I lived in Wuhan for about 5 years, and have been living in Shenzhen for slightly over 4 years. I have played around the country in various different cities, but I can only comment in the parts that I am familiar with. Obviously the scene in China is not as sophisticated as in some other parts of the world, but I do think there is a lot of potential here. Certainly, in the time I have been here, I have seen a lot of growth and changes.

Q：When did you first get into electronic music and what motivated you to take the next step with organising events?

A：Before I came to China, I never went to any club that would play commercial music or top 40. I was very much into the Electro Industrial, Techno and Dark Psy scene back home. When I got here, there were no clubs that played the music I was familiar with and I soon realized that if I wanted to DJ here, I had to play commercial music. I came with my best friend, and DJ Partner at the time, Mechnophile, and we just wanted to create events where we could play the music we like. It turned out to be much more difficult than we thought.

［PYRO音乐的对话间］深圳地下音乐领域的引领者 Mantis Project 的创始人—Mantis-PYRO音乐

Q：What were some of the obstacles you had to overcome when you first got into throwing parties?

A：It’s probably the same obstacles we still face today. Lack of money; Lack of Venues; Venue owners whose expectations exceed reality; Club bosses who aren’t as open minded and forward thinking as one would expect; and definitely the fact that it is very hard to get proper permission and documentation to do Legal parties outside of already established clubs or venues. I’d say another major issue we face, especially in Shenzhen, is the lack of support from people in general. Underground music really struggle here, and it’s much harder to compete with the more mainstream events or clubs.

Q：Can you share a funny memory of an event that didn’t turn out as you expected?

A：I can’t really think of anything funny, but one night actually stands out for me. It was the night Richie Hawtin played in Shenzhen. He was booked to play at the club that’s directly above us. That night was a particularly slow night for us. By around 2am the club was almost completely empty. It really wasn’t that great. I was the only dj there that night and it was super boring. I was about to just call it a night, put in a mixtape and go home. Then suddenly a whole group of people came in at once, and then more came and then more and more and eventually our club was completely full off cool people who were very much into the music. Turned out after the Hawtin gig, the club went back to playing EDM and those techno fans found a new venue to party. We partied till way past sunrise. I was the only dj there that night.

Q：Is there any kind of vibe or ambiance you try to create at your parties?

A：Not really. Im more focused on the music. The music would dictate the vibe and overall feel. I think that is all up to the djs. I like to give the djs the freedom to express themselves in that way. Having said that, I do only book djs that I feel fit in with my general idea of what I am trying to do.

［PYRO音乐的对话间］深圳地下音乐领域的引领者 Mantis Project 的创始人—Mantis-PYRO音乐

Q：Can you list some tactics and methods that you use to achieve your goals with these events?

A：I have no specific tactics or methods. I just provide the platform and then book the djs. They do the rest, really. I think people often over look the role of the dj in events.

Q：How would you define a successful club event in your eyes?

A：Im a dj first and foremost, and I look at every event from a DJ’s perspective. If the djs had fun and felt like the night was a success, then I think that’s enough for me. Basically, that means that people were dancing, and enjoying themselves. Im really easy to please.

［PYRO音乐的对话间］深圳地下音乐领域的引领者 Mantis Project 的创始人—Mantis-PYRO音乐

Q：Whats next for The Mantis Project? Any big goals that you’re shooting for by the end of this year or so?

A：About two years ago or so, we took over events at an unknown small lounge bar called Bang Club. Within a few months after starting events there, I had the owner reinvesting in the bar and completely redecorate it to suit our needs. I have complete control over the music at Bang, and have been using this as our base for The Mantis Project. Bang is located right in the middle of the main “bar street” of Shenzhen, called Cocopark. Cocopark is a very commercial area, and previously, all the clubs only played Commercial club style music, edm and hip hop.

We (the mantis project) pushed only “underground” music - Tech house, Techno, Drum ‘n’ Bass and occasionally Psytrance. We did it in such a way that I am proud to say that we completely changed the music scene in Cocopark (and Shenzhen in general). More clubs are now experimenting with Techno and Tech house and even Psytrance. One of the more well known and big budget clubs is also now regularly booking techno djs and also plays psytrance on occasion. This would never have happened before we started there.

My future plans are very simple. I would like to continue to influence the music scene and to help expose more people to Alternative Dance music and culture. I have a great team behind me and I have had more than 100 awesome and very talented djs who have all played for me over the past 2 years. I also try to find new up and coming djs and try to help give exposure to more djs.

I am hoping yo continue to work with all these great djs and to just keep pushing and moving boundaries.

Q：Thank you for your time! Feel free to give a shout out with your next upcoming event!

A：Yes, thanks very much. We have events every weekend, so it’s hard to single out just one. For the rest of October and November I have a few awesome guest djs lined up which include (but not limited to), Ellbe Chan (Hong Kong), Blood Dunza (HK) and Far East Lion (China and Japan), BB Deng (Beijing), Jeremy Cheung (Hong Kong) Alan Pak (Hong Kong) and Gordon (Macau), along with Bang Resident DJs Daniel Power and Leevo. You can check our Bang Club Pyro account for more info.