[FEATURE] VIPER PRESENTS: OPPIDAN

Unstoppable UK producer Oppidan has rapidly become a shining star in a recent wave of producers translating UKG for today’s ravers with modern production techniques and sounds. Get familiar…

What five words define your sound? 

Diverse, ethereal, dark, transient, fun. All oxymorons almost, but I think it’s hard to explain.  

Tell me something unique about your creative process 

I’m not sure if this is unique, but I generally start with a melody, whether that’s a vocal that I chop, or a synth with little to no melodic movement, so I can get really funky with the harmonisation and chord writing. Less is definitely more with melody writing I find. 

Which song of yours would you like people to hear first? 

My collaboration with camoufly, called ‘see me’. 

What inspired you to make that song?

I was really inspired by a tune called ‘airwaves’ by insideinfo, and wanted to make a tune that took you on a proper journey. Seeing how many ways you can express one musical idea or motif, and taking influence from as many underground dance genres as possible. I made a VIP of ‘see me’ where it goes into Drum & Bass, which goes OFF in sets. It takes that idea just a step further. 

What’s the most vulnerable you’ve allowed yourself to be when writing/making music?

I don’t know if this is how the question was intended but as time goes on, the more vulnerable I feel. I think that when you start making music there’s no expectation as an artist to go down any lane or avenue musically, but as you gain more traction that expectation gets bigger and bigger. People know me for bouncy Garage beats so I should stick to that. My next project showcases more than that, and I felt quite vulnerable sending off tunes that people might not expect from me. I’m constantly making different music, not just UKG and I feel vulnerable releasing that to the world. 

What’s the best/worst experience you’ve had on stage? 

I’ve had a few bad but way more good. I’m really prone to nosebleeds when it’s hot. I did a set in the Manchester Arndale for Puma about a year ago. They gave me a fresh cream jumper to wear and the set was in a clothes shop so there were new clothes everywhere. I had a really bad nosebleed in the last 15 minutes, and had to DJ one handed and not get blood all over the decks or my jumper in a room full of influencers. That was not fun. The best has to be Project 6 this year. The crowd energy was absolutely insane, I’d just got back from Australia where the crowds are really hard to beat too. 

What is your favourite song to perform? 

At the moment it’s my remix of ‘a little closer’ by Diffrent. That one goes off. 

Which artist/song/album made you want to make music? 

I think I always have. When I was about eight, my mum got me an acoustic guitar for Christmas. I learnt like three chords and then recorded me singing over playing them. I would bounce the recordings into iTunes and burn them onto CDs, and then try and sell them to people at school. Dance-wise I came from a very bass heavy background. I loved Dubstep when I was younger and then Bassline in my teens and Drum & Bass. I remember my dad put ‘in silico’ by Pendulum and ‘invaders must die’ by The Prodigy on my iPod. Around the same time my older brother showed me the heavier side of Dubstep, with the later stream stuff, Cookie Monsta and Doctor P. I think he was showing me to annoy me, almost as like a ‘this is gonna blow ur ears off’ kinda thing. But I took to it and started trying to recreate the bass sounds on FL and make my own tunes. 

What’s the meaning behind your name?

I chose it when I was 15, cause I needed to call myself something. It’s a latin word for belonging to a town or place, so I felt that meant ‘an everyday citizen’ or an ‘anonymous character’. 

If you weren’t making music, what would you be doing instead?

I think I’d be a chef or a graphic designer. 

What’s success to you?

I think success is always something people reach for without recognising when they have it. There’s always more you could be doing, or bigger you could be getting. Musically, it’s an endless cycle until your Taylor Swift. So to me, I think success is when you’re happy and grateful for what you have, you’re able to support yourself and do what you love at the same time. 

What moment in your life/career forced you to change direction?

I’ve not changed direction as such, just broadened my horizons. With the latest EP, there’s a lot more versatility in the project, which I’m excited to share. 

Where can people keep in touch with you? 

I’m relatively active on instagram! @djoppidan