A Chat with Mystic Waxx (11.07.2020)
Mystic Waxx is the electronic indie-pop duo Admir Hyka and Andrea Skalec. The duo has released their concept EP ‘Kayla’ showcasing everything they have to offer. We sat down with Admir Hyka (AH) and Andrea Skalec (AS) to talk about the EP, their music and much more!
OSR: What first got you interested in music?
AH: In primary school, my music teacher picked up that I have an ear for music. He encouraged me to participate in a music competition, which I won. That was the first spark of my interest in the music world.
AS: My grandma, she loved to sing and dance herself. I remember singing with her and my sisters to some 50/60/70s classics during the summer holidays. She believed I got my musicality from her.
OSR: If you didn’t become a musician, what would you be doing right now?
AH: I would have become a physicist, I absolutely love quantum physics
AS: Would be a graphic designer, love the creative side of it.
OSR: How did the band get together?
AS: I applied for a job as a singer in Surrey for the music evenings on the weekends. Admir was the one who posted the offer.
AH: After I heard Andrea’s voice I realized it would fit perfectly with my music so I asked her whether she would be interested to work together – that’s how we recorded our first EP.
OSR: How did the concept for the new EP Kayla come about?
AS: When we met, we were both just passing some life-changing events. We finished together first EP Liquid Love which was more of the music experiment and years of Admir’s work, that he finally had a chance to finish, but we felt like there is a room for something more personal. We didn’t want to address all the private experiences directly, that’s how the character of Kayla was born. Behind her, we expressed all the emotions we went through in the past few years.
OSR: Is there a common theme to the songs in the EP?
AS: Kayla’s tracks seem to be different in style but if you listen carefully you can hear that Admir’s music composition glues it all together. He’s got a completely different way of thinking when it comes to music. I have worked with other composers and producers before but Admir’s style is unique and you can clearly hear classical music influence there.
AH: Yes, because my writing is heavily influenced by classical music arrangement. The only way to tell the story of Kayla was through a dark themed idea powered by crying electronic sounds and abstract beat changes. She is a grown-up girl who experiences the world through the music box of unaffected simplicity of nature, unaware of the emotional danger that comes with it.
OSR: Do you have a favourite track from Kayla?
AS: I love them all but if I have to specify I would choose the one I like to sing the most ‘Abandoned Church’.
AH: My favourite tune at the moment is ‘The Dreamer’.
OSR: Are there any aspects of your life such as hobbies that affect your music?
AS: I’m actually a professional dancer and choreographer and this influences my taste in music. Although my voice is far from funky I sometimes try to convince Admir to “funk-things-up” in our songs. We made a great team with our co-producer Hugo Maya, who was brilliant in creating those juicy beats. Check out in ‘The Dreamer’ the beat drop in the middle, personally I love it!
AH: Travelling, meeting other people and experiencing different cultures inspires me.
OSR: If your music was a bird, which would it be and why?
AS: Can I say male duck? From far away it looks normal but if you come closer you can see in the sun, reflections of different colours, the green, purple, gold feathers. Same with our music, there are so many sounds hidden in the composition, which you would only hear after another listen and when you “get closer” to the track.
AH: Euro-Asian Black Bird because it’s a territorial bird yet loves to migrate and it’s one of the very first birds that twits in my garden in the early days of the spring, which is very inspiring after the long cold winter.
OSR: If you could collaborate with any musician, past or present, who would it be and why?
AS: I will be boring but Michael Jackson, I could even change my style just to have a chance to work with the legend.
AH: It would probably be Vivaldi. He is by far the most complex composer of all times and has a unique way of making a connection between your personal world and his music.
OSR: What are your plans for the future?
AS: We want to release more music, still experiment with the sound, try new things. Our aim for the next release is to perfectly balance on the edge of pop and alternative. We would love to reach a bigger audience, possibly of those people who considered our previous releases as “too alternative” for their taste. Let’s say it would be a little romance with mainstream music.
AH: We are working on a new single which is slightly different from what we normally do. It’s basically, back to the 80s with a dash of modern touch. We are hoping to get it out by the end of August and then we will be back in the studio working on our 3rd EP which hopefully will be released by December.
Thanks to Mystic Waxx for chatting with us! You can find more about them on their website, Facebook, Instagram and Spotify.
