As one half of Tegma, Omar Chelly had a major influence on the development of Progressive Trance right from the beginning of the new century. After it got a little quiet around that very popular project recently, Mr. Chelly is back with a new project: Solid Snake. Time to have a little chat with that friendly dude from Malmoe, Sweden.

Roberdo: It seems like quite anybody who is anybody in the Trance scene has a club and Techno music orientated project nowadays – So where is yours?

Omar: As always I have been inspired by other electronic music scenes than only the Psytrance one, so sure I love techno and whatever the club DJs are playing at the moment.
However I feel that I belong best in the Psytrance scene, considering it gives more freedom for the type of ideas I want to make when it comes to music. Also, I feel comfortable in this scene considering my long experience with it. That doesn’t mean I wouldn’t like to try out other genres of music, but I’m not writing music on a fulltime basis, so finding the time to dig into another genre is impossible at this moment.

Roberdo: What inspired you for this album: How would you describe your musical development that made you producing this album?

Omar: Sometime in early 2008 I had an idea for a new project, a project that would
draw inspiration from past and future sounds with a dose of twisted ideas.
I also wanted to experiment with sounds I haven't used in my other projects.
While I started to work on the structure of the first tracks alone, I didn’t really have a clear goal of what direction they should take.

I returned to them after a couple of months, and had just met Anders for the first time in many years. I decided to bring him along on the project, and from that it was easy. Most of the tracks were done quite quickly.
As for the musical development, I think I have learned a lot on this journey, by working with a new partner and also by trying to create a deeper sound.

Roberdo: How would you describe the style of this album? Please give us a drawer resp. create a new one!

Omar: First of all the “Unleashed” album would go under the regular Progressive Psytrance genre, but I think the sound is quite different from what’s being released now. I better let the listeners describe the style of the album.

Roberdo: Do you think one can still be innovative today? Do you regard your self to be innovative? Why?

Omar: Yes, of course one can be innovative, I think the key to be innovative is to analyze your own music. For instance when writing a new track, if you feel you’re just repeating the same sounds then you just should start over. Moreover, one should not be afraid to put a personal touch to the music and be afraid of experimenting with sounds. As for myself, I feel I have realized some new sounds on this album.

Roberdo: Talking to one the founders of classical “Nordic Progressive Trance”: What do you think- will Progressive Trance in its classical form survive? Or will the new skool sounds establish?

Omar: I think Progressive Trance is here to stay, as long as there are psychedelic festivals and gatherings going on. There is a need for a slower form of psychedelic trance in these parties, and I don’t really think that electro and techno and other clubbier sounds can take this spot away. However, I feel that progressive trance is always influenced by the club scene, so the new school sounds are surely present in one way or another.

Roberdo: Apropos founder of Progressive Trance: Is the Tegma project still active?

Omar: Yes, the project is still active but we decided to take a small break to find out where the project should go next music-wise.

Roberdo: Which musicians inspired you during the last year? Which were your favourite records?

Omar: Too many musicians to mention here, as I have a broad taste I like listen to many things from Reggae to World Music. However, I like to listen to the latest electronic dance music releases to see what’s going on, what new production techniques they are using etc… This inspires me on the technical front at least.

Roberdo: Any other sources of inspiration beside music?

Omar: Yes many like weather, nature, life and love. I actually think I’m more influenced by feelings and mood when it comes to writing music.

Roberdo: What are your plans and visions for the future in a musical and in a non-musical respect?

Omar: For the moment I’m working on a new project with Anders, it’s called Crossfeed and will also be in the same genre. But the sound will be different from Solid Snake as it will be a bit more dub orientated and melodic.

Roberdo: Thanks a lot for the interview!

Omar: Thank you for the interest!

http://www.myspace.com/solidsnakemusic