An Interview with Nghtmre

Tyler discusses his premiere of 'STREET' with MadDecent.com, musical influences, his first festival experience at EDC Vegas, and the upcoming NGHTMRE EP. Play the track, study the NGHTMRE.  

First, how'd you come up with the name NGHTMRE? 

My nickname growing up was Tmare. When I started producing I just kind of adopted that name as an alias. Then when I moved to LA and finally got my music to the point where I felt it was strong enough, I decided to re-brand with a new name. Nightmare was just one of the only words with "Tmare" in it, so I just abbreviated it so the T was in the middle (because my name is Tyler) and went with it!

The NGHTMRE project started 18 months ago, but you wrote that you've been producing for around 7 years! What was before NGHTMRE? 

Like I said, I was just producing more as a hobby before NGHTMRE. I went to a 4 year college and got a finance degree and during the entire time I was teaching myself Reason/Ableton and sound design stuff. Then when I graduated I decided I wanted to give music a chance full time so I moved to LA to pursue that. 

Love the recent album artwork - who does it? 

We do it in house usually. The last remix I did for Tep No we were provided the background and then we put our signature remix art text on it. I'm working with Chadwickmak on new visuals and logos though! Really excited to share those.

Golden State Warriors fan? Thoughts on the Iguodala Finals MVP!?

I used to follow sports a lot more but haven't been at all since I moved out here. I enjoy watching when I can but don't really get too into it haha.

Fair enough. Ok, music. You create such a huge sound from sampling vocals, to buildups, to everything. What did you listen to growing up? When did you decide you wanted to start producing?

I listened to a lot of rock and indie/alternative rock stuff. LOVED Red Hot Chili Peppers, Arctic Monkeys, Muse, Modest Mouse, Of Montreal... All kinds of stuff. Really early on I listened to a lot of classic rock like Led Zeppelin, The Doors, Jimi Hendrix, and stuff like that. Then near the end of high school I heard Girl Talk and he opened my mind to the whole world of music production and mash-ups. That's how I first started producing. I would use Reason and make beats with Redrum and then use them as a framework for sampling and making mash-ups. 

Your remixes are insane. How do you decide that you want to rework a track? 

Usually there is something that sticks out of an original track that makes me want to remix it. Most of the time it's the vocal, if you have a good vocal you can really create something fresh but keep the integrity of the original song. Sometimes its just a cool lead synth, vocal chop, drum patter or something else that grabs my attention though.

Tough question, what is the best show you've attended (not played) in the last 5 years? Why?

One of my favourites was seeing Big Gigantic at Camp Bisco in 2012. They were playing at a big dance tent and I remember just sitting in the back mesmerized. Those dudes absolutely kill it. 

EDC Vegas [ above photos ] was a ridiculous show. Describe the experience of your first festival.

It was insane. Just the size of the stage blew my mind. It's always crazy to watch from the stands but being up there is a whole different feeling. I got a chance to meet some other great artists who I have looked up to for a long time so that was amazing as well. 

Diplo and Skrillex played your track 'STREET' at the Spring Awakening Concert last month. That is about as big as it gets - did you know that was the plan? How did it feel?

Well, Skrillex has been playing it in a few of his sets here and there, I definitely didn't know that they were planning on playing it at Spring Awakening. I saw some videos though and the show looked absolutely mental. Those two dudes are probably my biggest inspiration so it meant a lot to hear that they were supporting it in their sets. Huge shoutout to Snails too, he was the one who got the track in Sonny's hands. 

'STREET' was released yesterday on MadDecent.com, that's HUGE, how did all of this come about?

Well, we had sent the idea over and were talking about a release date, and then once Skrillex and Snails started playing it in their sets we jumped on a call and locked down plans for the release. Having support from them really helped create the buzz necessary for it to make some noise.

2015 has been a big year for NGHTMRE. What's next? 

Well, I plan on releasing the "NGHTMRE EP" fairly soon. It will include everything from Trap to House to R&B. I even sang on a track! I've always been trying to push the boundaries of music in terms of genre so this is my chance to show you guys my versatility as a producer. I think fans are becoming more and more open to multi-genre artists. I plan on being one. 

Last question. You are currently on tour now in the US, when are you coming to Vancouver, Canada!? 

No plans yet! Hopefully we'll get some Canadian dates soon. I went up to Vancouver and Whistler for a week a couple years ago and it was amazing!!! I can't wait to get back. 

We look forward to that! Thank you so much for your time, Tyler. 

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