A new-school take on the golden days of dubstep by NESSTRAK.
From the heart of Ciudad Juárez, Nesstrak has been a cornerstone of the Mexican dubstep scene for a decade. Capturing my attention with his 2021 release of ‘CHANTS’, a psychedelic take on dubstep, NESSTRAK has recently returned with new music, landing on Mexico City based label Ineffable with the huge EP, ‘Mudskipper’. He’s also part of the Lowers collective which was started in the early 2010s with a group of friends where they would hang out and work on live sessions together. Eventually leading to crafting their own productions, Lowers was founded as a platform to release their own music as well as those around Mexico, in order to help grow the bass scene in the country.
In the accompanying interview, we chat to NESSTRAK about the scene in Ciudad Juarez, forming Lowers Collective, the concept and ideas behind his recent EP ‘Mudskipper’ and what he’s most looking forward to at the moment.
Hey! How are you doing? What have you been up to lately?
Whats up my people! Im doing fine thanks, just a lot of stuff i gotta take care of, couple dubs in the oven though.
Let’s start from the very beginning, what was your first introduction to music in general and then more specifically electronic music?
Well its been a long journey because basically i grew up listening to music thanks to my father, so i grew up listening to classic rock music, ELO, Queen, Los Apson, that sort of thing. Eventually when i was a teenager i wanted to find my own identity like any other teenager and started listening metal bands like Slipknot, Korn, Limp Bizkit and not gonna lie i grew up in the emo era around the 2005’s so i was also into grindcore and screamo music, but we will skip that part lol.
When it comes to electronic music my first introduction i would say it was around 2007 when i was 14 years old, i was a myspace kid and there was this new trend called nu-rave so me and my friends started listening bands like MSTRKRFT, Mightyfools, Kavinsky, Crookers and that kind of electro style until i listened to dubstep thanks to a close friend of mine and thats when i found myself. since then, around 2009 i started to get familiarised with the DMZ movement, artists like Coki, Benga, Mala, Rusko and Caspa to name a few, thats when i really felt the need to create my own beats almost as if my brain always been wired to subs and midbasses lol i could almost feel the neurons doing some new connections inside my brain so thats when i released my first album in 2010 which it was also the first album released on Lowers bandcamp. I will never stop loving this, bass is a real fundamental part of my life, is deeply embedded in my DNA, not gonna lie though, occasionally i do enjoy listening to heavy metal or rap music
Who was the first artist or band that you were a fan of?
I believe it was Linkin Park, also Limp Bizkit is up there!
Was there a formative moment growing up, whether that’s seeing your favourite band live or an incredible DJ set, that led you to this path?
The first that comes to mind was when i opened for Goth-Trad in Guadalajara and Mexico City (CDMX) back in 2014, also Youngsta and Truth in that same year, definitely a big inspiration for me, it changed my rookie perspective of music i had back then.
You’re part of the Lowers collective which has been around since the early 2010’s. How did the collective form and how has being part of it influenced your artistry?
Basically we had the idea because most of the weekends we would get together on a friends house and started making our own live sessions and eventually we learned on how to craft our own music so we decided to have make our own alias so we can all create on our beats and upload it to soundcloud so we did it for a couple months and we started playing in different cities around the state, so we had the idea of making our own label because we wanted a place to release our music, we also started reaching out to more producers around Mexico because the bass scene over here was pretty weak and we wanted to grow it, so i think we did our part there.
You’re based in Ciudad Juarez right? What can you tell us about the scene there?
Yes, border with Texas. The scene over here is mainly based on techno/house music and there’s really only a very few places that you can go to a rave, specially in Juarez, is more like a private-house-party type thing, and there’s really not much to it, its a small place and everybody knows everybody, thats why we call it “rancho ladrillo”, which translates as “Ranch Brick”.
How does your environment inform your work?
I think im in a place where i cant stay consistent on my music since im also on college and that kinda holds me up a little, had to quit my day job because of schedules and barely have time to produce now since im in last semesters so homework is crazy. But when that school thing is out of my way, better days will come.
Where do you look for sources of inspiration outside of music?
I like to be in a quiet place so i can relax my ears and my mind, i also like to take my dogie for a walk, watching a good ol’ scifi/terror film or documentaries about serial killers always with my ears open for any voice sample i can use, and just chillin with my homies watching UFC is really inspirational for me too haha.
What has been your most recent musical discovery that you’re obsessed with?
I’ve been obsessed with Leo Cap lately, his tunes are crazy work.
What’s your journey been like with production?
Its been mainly focused on bass music, on my early days, i started making all sorts of music within the bass focused genres like drum and bass, trip hop, 8-bit even trap but with that dubstep touch, lately i been trying to focus on one genre only, and thats 140, deep dubstep music, which i always been inspired by that to be honest but i feel like it just keeps evolving and getting better every year and right now its at this point where is just insane thats why im locked with it.
You’ve recently released a new EP, ‘Mudskipper’, on Mexico City label Ineffeble. What is the story behind this record? Any specific influences?
That record on Ineffable and basically everything i been releasing on my bandcamp since 2020 has been influenced by this new sound of the 140 movement and i feel like it will stay like that for a long time because it just keeps getting better.
How did the connection with Ineffeble come about?
Basically they contacted me via email because before that release, i had released another album on my bandcamp called “Sloppy Joe EP”, feel free to check it out!
You’ve also contributed a mix for the 909 series, what’s the concept behind this one?
Its a high-driven, pulse-hypnotic bass mix, tune after tune, this is what i mean when i say that dubstep is evolving, or maybe just in my head, either way, im glad i can mix my tunes without problem with such talented producers.
When was the last time you were on the dance floor?
Couple weeks ago at El paso, tx. Place called Monarch, had a couple gigs there, thanks to Industrial for having me there!
What are you most excited about right now?
Right now im excited because im learning lots of new skills so i can make better music, also im about to finish my college degree! Haha took me long enough.
What’s on your vision board at the moment?
Right now im focused on learning new skills and release some music, i really don’t mind whether it sells or not, but because i feel like it’s important for my mental health. Also, i try not to think to ahead of me, because most of the times things don’t go our way so u gotta be prepared for that and by that i mean save some money lol but basically im just trying to improve in every area of my life.
‘Mudskipper’ by NESSTRAK is out now via Ineffable – buy here.