He started making trance music as a teenager. He then changed direction and was newly discovered when he collaborated with Alien Project on his debut album "Midnight Sun", released in 2001. Since then he released quite a few tracks with Alien Project, Atomic Pulse, Xerox, Domestic, Nomad and on his own. He produced some major hits and remixes that swept the trance skies like a comet. Astrix's tracks were released on labels such as T.I.P world (UK), Phantasm (UK), Millennium (UK) Sound Sorcery (Mexico), Universal (Mexico), EMI (Japan), Solstice (Japan), New Funk (Japan), TBA (Switzerland), Iboga (Denmark), Cyber (Holland), HOMmega (Israel), BNE (Israel), Phonokol (Israel) and more...Now he's due to release his debut album “ "Eye to eye" in October 2002

tokyokid: Who is Astrix? And Please tell us about your beginnings. How did you enter the trance scene?

Astrix: Astrix is Avi Shmailov, 21 years old, from Tel- Aviv “ Israel. In 1995 I started as a DJ, playing alternative music and 80's. In this I time learned about electronic music, and in 1997 I got myself a pc computer and started my first in-house studio recordings. In1997 I was invited to a trance party. At first it was a very new and strange experience for me and I couldn't find myself, but I was impressed by the energy and the impact that the music had made on the people at the party. I never felt like this before and I knew that I am going to love this kind of music forever!



tokyokid: Astrix was your first project?

Astrix: Yes. I started making music under this name (since 1997) and I will keep it forever!

tokyokid: How difficult was it to start as a new act in Israel? And are you able to pay your bills with music?

Astrix: I feel very lucky. I have the momentum and the reputation equal to artists who have been around much longer then I and released a few albums until now. I think the future looks bright and promising. I would like to thank Eyal Yankovich, Ido Ophir (Domestic) and Amit & Erez (Infected Mushroom) for a lot of support and knowledge that they gave me along the way. Yes, i am definitely able to finanze all my live with musik. But to live from your music means more then just releasing an album once a year. You have a wide range of income coming from your Album, your live acts/DJ sets and tracks that come out on various compilations.



tokyokid: Tell us your recipe to make a Track. And what is the special in your debut album..?

Astrix: I always start with a bass line and a kick. As soon as it sounds good enough I am moving on to different sounds, FX, melodies, ect... But the most important thing is the "surprises" in the track. It has to be captivating and always "on the move"! The name of the album is "Eye to eye". It will be released on October on the Israeli label “ HOMmega Productions. I have been working on this album for a whole year and it is packed with very "High Energy" tracks. What you would call "a fresh taste of Israeli Psychedelic Trance".

tokyokid: What music do you listen to besides yours? And is there a life apart from music?

Astrix: First of all, if I listen to trance music, it is Infected Mushroom. Usually I listen to Israeli rock and bands like Dream Theater, Pink Floyd, Depeche Mode, Enigma, Shpongle and a lot of Ambient music. I consider myself a musician. I live and breathe music all day long.




tokyokid: How much is the situation in Israel affecting your music?

Astrix: I don't think it has any affect at all. I try very hard not to listen to the news, and I am also a lot "on the road". So the situation does not affect my music and my inspiration.

tokyokid: What have you given to the world with your music?

Astrix: Peace, Love and positive energy. Lately there seems to be a new hype (or should I say BUZZ) about Israeli trance being back on its feet. I would like to think that I have a part in that global feeling.

tokyokid: What are your future plans?

Astrix: I want to try and renew the style of my music. Soon as I start to work on my second album, I will try to make it more Complex and diverse. I certainly want to keep entertaining my fans and party people around the world but I also want to explore various styles of music.

...more pics...

copyright: liese &