ALL CREWS INTERNATIONAL: HUNGARY
- adancecalledhardwe
- Feb 17
- 20 min read
This week we’re off to the plains of Hungary for a debrief about Hungarian Bass..
MNDSCP
You're a prolific producer, please pick out 3 of your tracks that are the most meaningful to you and tell us why.
All the tracks I've ever made are little parts of myself and my 'children' after all. Usually feel like the very latest tracks or the one I'm actually working on at the moment are the best, so here's a few of my recent tunes I have special feelings for:
'Werewolf' - Tunes with a theme tend to be more distinctive and memorable, when I had this werewolf idea, the track took shape quickly. It's dark and evil, but not super serious, loud, clean but grimy, just how I like it.
'Non Stop' - Simple but effective, relentless evolving acid vibes, maximum rave mode, it's one of my favourite DJ tools these days.
'Friday the 13th VIP' - Okay, here's an old one too, another thematic tune. This and the original version are still doing rounds on every Friday the 13th. I still remember working on this with Jade in his studio, we had so much fun with Coppa's amazing vocals, and the VIP is the same thing just updated, with a twist.
How has your sound evolved from when you first started producing?
In the early days before proper internet we learned all the new skills and tricks from friends, from each other. There were a lot more technical limitations as well, which in a way can be a good thing, but still, limitations. There are far more possibilities these days. Advanced hardware and software and if you have any questions or just want to learn new things, you can find everything online, and I still love to learn and experiment with new stuff and keep myself updated with new technologies.
Back then I relied a lot more on samples, trying to find the exact pitch by ear, clean them up and improve their overall quality, nowadays it's a lot easier to manipulate them with modern tools, but there's the opportunity to open one of my favourite VST instruments and just create the thing I have in mind. I still love to work with samples of course, but I prefer to tweak synths more than digging for the perfect sample for ages. It's more straightforward to turn my thoughts into sounds now, so my tunes might be more defined, stripped-back, cleaner, and more clinical and precise now, but I still love to mix 'old' with 'new' and still love dirty, raw sounds and weird spooky chords and atmospheres, just now I can control those properties properly.
What can we expect to hear from MNDSCP in 2026?
The most exciting thing this year is my new fifth album — The Cult of Bass — which will be out soon on Eatbrain.
It was a huge project for me and despite all the difficulties, like losing a hard drive full of project files, my presets and samples or moving to a new flat / studio and a personal tragedy. I'm even more inspired technically and musically to make as many sick tracks as possible.
There are way more dubs here than what's needed for the album and I keep working on new music non-stop, so soon, when the LP is wrapped I'll try to find home for those as well. If you'd like to hear all my newest dubs very first, as always, you can catch my DJ sets at your local club or festival.
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CHRIS. SU
Please tell us about FATE Recordings.
FATE Recordings is my own imprint mainly for my own production, but I'm also planning to release other artists' music in the future. The label started in 2013 and I try to focus on releasing quality over quantity, and when the time is right. Our most successful song 'Together in the Night' ft. Myra Monoka has recently hit 1 million plays on Spotify, and although I don't really put significance on numbers, it's a proud moment for us.
You are a pillar of the Hungarian Drum n' Bass/Jungle scene, how do you see it evolving in the next 5-10 years?
The Hungarian scene is one of the oldest in Europe, we've had the first full drum & bass / jungle event here in 1996, and I feel honored and lucky to be a part of it since 2000 which was 26 years ago, crazy! I hope more and more producers and DJs come into our scene, and come in for the right reasons. Hopefully the club scene will still be alive with multiple front "attacks" from AI, and virtual space parties. I believe nothing beats the energy of being together with other people in the same room and our chests shaken by big basslines.
Who are some of your musical inspirations both in Drum n' Bass/Jungle and outside of those genres?
I come from a classical musical background (I played the cello as a kid) so for me emotions are very important. I used to listen to techno, hardcore, house, hip hop and all sorts of stuff before I got into DNB. My biggest inspirations were Ed Rush & Optical, Bad Company and Kemal &
Rob Data early on. Outside of DNB I like to listen to some orchestral/electronic hybrid soundtracks, or some more experimental stuff like Tipper, or whatever my daughter wants to listen to in the car (lke Kpop Demon Hunters - haha :)
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Eklekt1k
Please tell us about your show on Subtle Radio.
My monthly show on Subtle Radio is all about bass heavy selection, from halftime to jungle, dubstep to grime and footwork and some experimental bits as well.
It depends really on my current mood and the tunes I am digging at the time of the show. Sometimes it’s less about the dancefloor feels and more about exploring those introspective, low-end frequency sounds.
Being on Subtle Radio has opened up for me a whole world of emerging producers and forward-thinking labels. I feel a sort of need and responsibility to spotlight their work. I guess that’s a huge part of being in an underground radio community to keep welcoming newcomers. And honestly the Subtle crew is a lovely bunch. Super supportive and creative music heads. Big up every time!
I know that you are now in Berlin, Germany, but you're originally from Hungary, please tell us about your recent experience with your visit to Hungary and some things you miss most about your home country.
My last visit to Hungary was more of a recharge mission than anything else. We got hit with some pretty insane snowstorms that basically shut down the whole country, so it forced me to slow down, which I actually needed. I spent time catching up with friends, hitting a party, and connected with some of the local resident DJs. I also spent lots of time in nature with my dog, which is always so grounding. One of the highlight from the 4 weeks spent home was digging through my CD collection from 2000-2010 and finding all the dubstep gems from Shackleton, Benga, Benny III, Distance, Skream, DMZ, Plasticman (now Plastician) and many more, can't wait to spin them soon.
What I miss most about home? Definitely my friends and family, the language, and that unmistakable Hungarian sense of humour! Oh, and all the sunshine :
What are some goals that you have musically for 2026?
This year I really want to focus on producing more music and actually finishing them, not just keeping a folder full of ‘unfinished business’ alive. Apart from that I want to start developing my own visual work so I can eventually bring a full AV setup with me. One of my biggest goals is to play internationally this year and especially coming over to the UK.
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Shaymi
Please tell us about your residency with Bladerunnaz.
Bladerunnaz is a really strong professional and personal connection for me. As a resident, it’s not just about playing gigs, but about the energy and mindset the crew represents. I strongly connect with the underground, no-compromise Drum & Bass sound, and this is a space where I can be fully authentic musically. Every event is an opportunity to push my limits and play for a crowd that truly understands and feels this music.
Tell us about DNB Backstage.
DNB Backstage is a much-needed initiative within the Hungarian drum & bass scene. It’s not only about the parties, but also about what happens behind the scenes showing the real faces of DJs, organisers, and creators. I think it’s important to have a platform like this that connects the community, supports upcoming artists, and adds real value to the culture, not just content.
How did you first get into Drum n' Bass/Jungle?
Drum & Bass completely grabbed me from the very first moment. The energy, the tempo, and the bass had an impact on me like no other genre ever had. I started out as a listener, then gradually and more consciously began to dive deeper into it as a DJ. For me, DNB represents freedom, a tool through which I can express myself and pass on the same energy that this music gave me.
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MC FEDORA
Give us some history on you as an MC, how long have you been a Drum n' Bass/Jungle MC, how did you get into it, etc?
My journey with music started at a very young age. I had classical music training and piano lessons in my teens, but after turning 18, my music interest shifted towards electronic music, so I became the one and only female MC in the Hungarian Bass scene. It wasn’t just Drum and Bass, back in the days we had monthly Dubstep-bass events with Funktion-One Sound System for example and I performed at countless club nights and festivals. Apart from Hungary and other countries in Europe I have performed at events like Let It Roll where I opened the Main Stage with Simple Souls. I have taken the stage as an MC at the Sun and Bass Festival many times and I already played once in Beijing which was a very cool experience. I love that I get to travel around the globe, it boosts my creativity and keeps me focused all the time. Apart from entertaining the audience as an MC I also work with many well-known Hungarian bands like Belga as a singer-songwriter and I’m working with numerous international DJs and producers on new material all the time. One of my longest partnerships to create music is with Chris.SU, we have made many tracks together and we also worked with Stamina MC on ‘Illusion of Choice’.
Tell us about Fedora and The Worldstylers!
My new band, called Fedora and the Worldstylers, is set to release a new album later this year, featuring World Music, Drum and Bass, DUB, Bass Music, and Downtempo influences. The album has just been finished including 14 fresh tracks, which will be accessible on every music platform in a couple of months, so stay tuned!
Tell us about your interests and career pursuits outside of music.
I’m a yoga teacher and also a psychotherapist and these help me stay balanced in my daily life. It can be a challenge to organise my time between planning and playing gigs, keeping up with studio sessions and my daily job, but this keeps life interesting for me. I regularly organise yoga treatments, sound baths with tibetan instruments, meditation and trauma release sessions as well. All of these activities fill up my days and weeks completely which is essential for me to live a happy and healthy life.
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Incident
Please tell us about the history of Incident, I think there are two of you who make up Incident.
I first met Lóránt around 2004 at a small countryside party in my hometown, Győr. We clicked pretty much instantly, same taste, same passion for music, so it didn’t take long before we were on the same wavelength. That meeting kicked off a long journey that eventually turned into a real friendship. We started working together; back then, Lóránt was way deeper into music production than I was. I had a bunch of different projects going on, played hip-hop DJ sets, collaborated with a lot of Hungarian artists, and traveled all over the country. Thanks to him, we managed to rack up quite a few releases early on, both digitally and on vinyl. Our tracks came out on labels like Fokuz, Celsius, Citrus, Disturbed, and Lucky Devil.
Living outside Budapest made it tough to break into the capital’s nightlife, but we didn’t give up. The big turning point came in 2014: I moved to Budapest, while Lóránt finished his studies in Győr and moved back to Mezőkövesd. We ended up pretty far from each other, our priorities shifted, basically, we grew up. But moving to Budapest opened up the world for me musically. We started getting more and more gigs, which became harder to coordinate because of the distance. We didn’t really make much music together during that time either. I think 2015 was the year we finally went our separate ways, each following our own path.
Budapest was a whole new chapter for me. I found myself in a community I had always wanted to be part of. Thanks to a lot of hard work, Bladerunnaz eventually brought me into the team, and I became a resident DJ at our Friday events. I also became a regular on drum & bass stages at Hungarian festivals. Meanwhile, I kept improving my production skills and switched from early Cubase to Ableton, which really boosted my creativity. After a longer break from releasing music, I came back in 2019 with a fully solo 3‑track EP under the name Incident. Since then, I’ve released tons of solo tracks, collabs, and remixes. Thanks to the Budapest scene and Bladerunnaz, I’ve met amazing producers, made real friendships, and still work with many of them today. Right now, I’ve got several new tracks cooking at the same time.
Tell us about some of the labels that you have released music on.
In the early days, we mostly focused on drum & bass labels under the Dutch Triple Vision distribution. Around 2006, we won a remix competition by Fokuz Recordings, which is how we got in touch with Marco, the head of Triple Vision. He really vibed with our music, so we ended up releasing on several of their labels, Fokuz, Citrus, Celsius, and Disturbed, both on vinyl and digitally.
After Lóránt and I split, I felt like I needed to prove something to myself, to see if I could stand on my own. By 2018, I had finished 8–10 solo tracks and started sending them out to labels. I didn’t have a strict plan, I just sent them to labels whose sound I loved at the time. As I mentioned, my first solo EP came out in 2019 on the UK label Context Audio. After that, the releases kept coming. More and more of my tracks landed on labels like the French Hyperactivity Music, the Irish In:habit, and the Belgian Midas Touch.
My music covers a pretty wide range, I never wanted to stick to just liquid or deep minimal. I follow my own instincts. I make music for myself first, not to chase trends or success. Dance Floor and pop never really attracted me. For me, music is love, with a bit of funk sprinkled in. The artists who inspire me all bring emotion into their music: Break, Zero T, Lenzman, and Spectrasoul, they’ve had the biggest influence on me. I’ve even had the chance to meet some of them in person, which was surreal.
Through collaborations, I got connected with SVB and Skeptic, the heads of Midas Touch. That was a new chapter for me. My friend Ninive released several EPs with them, and some of our collabs ended up on those releases too. Big thanks to Ninive for connecting me with the Midas Touch crew. A few years ago, we invited them to Hungary to play, and that’s when our relationship really deepened. That eventually led to us working together. At the end of 2025, the 5 Years of Midas Touch compilation came out, and I had a solo track on it called “Somebody Like U.” I’m hopeful we’ll keep working together, I’ve got plenty of ideas lined up for the coming years.
As for labels: every producer has their secret dreams, and I’m no different. I’d love to release on some of the labels I admire, Symmetry, The North Quarter, Footnotes, and many more. Those dreams are still ahead of me, but I believe I’ll eventually create the kind of quality music that fits one of those labels.
What are some elements that make the Drum n' Bass/Jungle scene in Hungary special?
This is a pretty complex question. The Hungarian drum & bass scene has a long history. It’s been growing since the mid‑90s and has spread more and more around the world. What makes the Hungarian Drum & Bass / Jungle scene special is a mix of different factors that all reinforce each other. Together, they create a unique vibe, the scene may be small, but it’s surprisingly strong and creative on an international level. Artists like Chris.Su, SKC, Tactile, MNDSCP, and Jade paved the way for all of us.
Local events are the meeting points where old‑school heads and the new generation mix. You can see this in the lineups, DJs from different eras playing side by side. This is something Bladerunnaz also puts a lot of emphasis on.
I feel lucky that I can play whatever I want and whatever I love, I don’t have to compromise or follow trends. Maybe that’s exactly why I can fully express myself. In today’s social‑media‑driven world, emotionally rich, funk‑influenced music reaches young people less and less, even though that’s exactly what made me fall in love with the genre. For me, this whole thing isn’t just about self‑expression, it’s also about passing on the values and taste I’ve built up over the years. Social media narrows young people’s horizons a lot, and many don’t look beyond the Beatport Top 100. That’s why I feel a sense of responsibility when it comes to shaping musical taste.
At the end of the day, the essence of the Hungarian drum & bass scene lies in the music itself, the drums and the bass run through the crowd and the community, no matter the age or background.
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Deep Inc
I understand that you now reside in Germany, but that you used to live in Hungary, can you compare and contrast the Drum n' Bass/Jungle scenes of these two locations?
Yes, I grew up in Germany, but I also lived for a few years in Budapest because I’m half Polish and half Hungarian and have a deep connection to Hungary and to the city. DJ Cadik, my bruda, was the first person I met, and the one I philosophized about electronic music with, that was 35 years ago. MC Zeek is also a good friend of mine; I’ve known him for over 20 years as well. In the 2000s I also met Gabor here in Germany, who runs Bladerunnerz in Hungary. A few years ago he invited me to play at the Friday party at A38, that was cool.
Now, regarding the differences between the two countries: if the party is right, the DJ feels the vibe, and the sound system delivers, then it doesn’t matter where in the world you are, it will go off hard. That’s just how it is. What I mean is: if people have no problem identifying with the music and genuinely want to hear some fresh tunes in the club, then it doesn’t matter whether it’s Germany or Hungary. It becomes something shared, something you experience together and hopefully won’t forget the next day. I’ve experienced this many times in both countries.I really appreciate people like that, they’re the ones holding the DNB flag high, and that makes me incredibly happy. Big ups to all of you!Even in the best families there are always disagreements, and the same applies to the scene, not everything is perfect, and that also needs to be said. What I personally can’t deal with anymore is the way DJs are increasingly treated as nothing more than serviceproviders by promoters. (Definitely not by every promoter, 100% not.)
I lived in Berlin for the last five years, where I also met Izabella aka Ekletk1k, a Hungarian DJ who believes in Music just as deeply as I do, that connects you! Unfortunately in Berlin it has become extremely common to expect DJs to play completely for free. This is also because there are still way too many DJs who, before even being asked if they want to play, already shout: “Of course I’ll play FOR FREE!”Over the years this has led to a situation where respect for artists is barely there anymore, if at all. I rarely buy vinyl these days, but I still buy digital tunes to support the music. I pay monthly for my streaming platform (no, not f*cking Spotify). I know I’m not the only onewho pays for music, but the only people who really thank you for it are the ones on thedance floor and for that, I’m grateful. That’s what I like about the German scene: the party people! And just to be clear again, I know that not 100% of promoters in Berlin think this way. I had close contact with some promoters, and we often found friendly agreements. I also know that organizing a party these days is not easy. Some don’t charge entrance at all. fine, all good. but in my eyes, step by step, something very important gets lost when people stop valuing that making art is a job. It's a job with passion and not something you do without being paid. Or that you’re expected to bring “just 50 euros” with you to play at a party, I sadly heard that in Berlin too. That’s embarrassing and, at the same time, really sad. Back in the day it was normal to stick together. Today you’re just a name on some list with the label: “plays for free.”
The good thing is that I met incredibly good people over there, artists and non-artists alike, and that makes me very happy, that definitely needs to be said too.Sorry, I had to get this off my chest, otherwise I wouldn’t be able to send the interview backand pretend that I think everything is great. I hope it’s different in Hungary.
You have releases on some great labels, Innerground, being one, tell us abouthow this release came together for Marky.
At that time, Deep Inc still consisted of just the two of us: Mike Bass and myself. For the past 10 years, however, I’ve been running Deep Inc completely on my own. Back then wewere constantly working on new tunes, which I would send out to labels and DJs all over the world via AIM.One day, I think shortly after the release on Fabio’s Creative Source, I sent two tunes to Marky late at night. Just a few hours later, I got a reply saying he wanted both tunes for Innerground. The only issue was that in one of the tunes the bass had been mixed too heavily, and he asked us to reduce it.
Of course, we were incredibly happy about that, but there was a problem: the tune, like everything at the time, had been mixed completely in analog on a 16-channel Mackie desk. All the EQ and volume settings were gone because we had already started working on a new tune. So we had no choice but to remix the entire tune from scratch. Anyone who has ever worked with an analog mixing desk knows exactly what I’m talking about.It had to be done. So, in roughly six hours, we completely remixed the track and I mean everything had to be checked again: every EQ setting, every level, absolutely everything. In the end, the tune turned out even better than the original. That experiencepushed our mindset incredibly far, suddenly, everything felt possible. Marky was happy, and the release turned out amazing.
Take us through your process of putting together a track.
These days, the process itself is relatively simple, but the road to get there definitely wasn’t. Still, if you keep going long enough, you eventually understand the whole game. The funny thing is: the more you know, the harder it becomes to finish a tune. That’s true for art in general, whether you paint, write books, or dance, it all follows the same formula.
First, you build a solid foundation to work with. Then you reduce everything to what’s essential. And finally, you find the ending. That last part is the hardest for most people. Many simply don’t know when a tune is finished, and over time it loses its meaning. They start thinking it’s not good enough and end up overworking it until they destroy it completely. I know people who don’t make music anymore because they get lost in the process, constantly starting new projects instead of finishing them. What really helped me was a quote from Jeff Mills that I heard about 25 years ago: if five tracks don’t get boring after five minutes, you’re on the right path to finishing the tune. For at least the last 10 years, I haven’t had a single project on my computer that I didn’t finish. Even if I know after one hour that it’s probably not going anywhere, I still finish the tune, even if it takes me two more days. Because I know that something good will come out of it.
Maybe it’s a new sound, maybe I learn something small, but in the end, the process is always worth it.It doesn’t happen often, but some of my best tunes came from exactly that situation, simply by changing the drums or swapping a few sounds, and suddenly: bam, a completely different tune.
As for my process: about 90% of the time I start with the drums. I completely chop the loop apart, keep only the most important elements, and rewrite them. Sometimes I prepare a MIDI file and load new drums until the groove feels exactly right. Once the drums sit, I send them individually to my Mackie 16–8 bus. I add distortion using the gain until it feels right, mix the drums separately, and then send them back into the computer. Inside the DAW, I EQ each element individually and apply light compression. Then I route the entire drum bus to a new bus for parallel compression. I use this same process with almost all sounds: Mackie for the analog character, then resampling back into the computer. After that, I start adding effects, either with external FX units or internal plugins. I mix the track while I’m producing it, at the same time as I’m arranging it. Everything happens together.
Usually, after two days, I already start a new tune in the evening, on headphones, on the couch or I'm sampling or already looking for new sounds. Most of the time I’m done within three days, and on the fourth day I can already move on to something new with what I have already started.
Then I let the finished track rest for a few days, listen again, and check if everything feels right. I’ll correct small things here and there. My tunes always sound like how I’m feeling at that moment. Some days I have old Dj Hyperactive ́s techno lines (I know guys he's from Chicago) running through my head nonstop. Other days I can’t stop thinking about Source Direct or Photek. I can’t fight it, it’s there, so I let it flow and use that energy andinspiration to make music. You can hear that on my last Deeper EP 1 on Influence Records from late 2025, and also on the new Deeper EP 2, which is coming out this February. Big up at this point: Aaron & Jay.My setup:Ableton on MacRME Fireface UCXExternal guitar pedals (TC Electronic, Line 6 M5)Mackie 16–8 busNovation Bass Station IIE-mu 6000 sampler (recently added, not used much yet, except on earlier releases)Adam Audio T7V monitorsAn acoustically treated studio roomAnd a pair of ears
Thank you All Crews Blog for the interview, and thank you Eklekt1k for the organization.
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GeriQ
Tell us about your live sets.
I started experiencing live act pretty late, about 2019, because that's when I realized I could compose music without a computer. First and foremost, it is about self-expression, experiencing and letting go of my current state of mind. So it could be anything, mostly dub techno, acid techno or something nuskool stuff (on live performances I play them too), but many times I'm experimenting with common or more experimental drum and bass too. There were a few times when I played live at a drum and bass party, matching the DJ's set exactly in terms of bpm, thus complementing and further enhancing it. In the studio I really like one track one session recordings, so if I feel that the actual state is exciting enough, I record a livetrack, a stereo live recording of a performance, which has a classic and dj compatible musical structure.
Besides my wife and I have a formation together which is a really exciting, ambient music, the category is a hybrid sound bath, called Sacral Eklektik. It's a really exciting way to perform, because people are chilling and sleeping to our music while it sounds on huge sound systems (last year about 60, 000 watts was the biggest one). So I really like experiencing and trying new ways.
Besides Drum n' Bass/Jungle, what are some other types of music that you're into?
I'm first of all a vinyl guy. I already had a weekly live show for a while on the famous Jungletrain and I really enjoyed playing crazy vinyls too (like Alpha & Omega) and it made me a little braver on the live events too. I already had experience with other genres. Did you know, you could mix drum and bass on the Alan Parsons Project's I Robot track if you play it a little faster? I already bought a lot of genres on vinyl too: big fan of bigbeat (Propellerheads for example), listening to jazz and nu jazz, trip hop, hip hop. I'm a big fan of nuskool and breaks from the early 2000's, those guys know something real magic. I really like grey area, which is laying on a really exciting border of styles. Since I started to buy synths, I listened to dub techno and became more open to different sub genres of techno too.
Who are some of your musical inspirations?
In Drum and Bass, there is a huge list, but without claiming to be exhaustive: Klute, Marcus Intalex, Omni Trio, Calibre, Electrosoul System, Big Bud, Break, Silent Witness, Optiv, Naibu, Furney, Bukem, Seba, Breakage, SPY, Martsman, Optical, Kemal, State of Mind, Black Sun Empire and of course some Hungarian guys: ICR, Chris.Su, Jade, Anorganik, SKC and the Tactile crew etc.
Outside of DNB, Medesky Martin and Wood, Ennio Morricone, Dan F, Stanton Warriors, Digweed, Mala, Propellerheads, Prodigy, Hybrid, Jojo Mayer, Kruder & Dorfmeister, to name just a few.
If I hear the track 'I feel love' from Donna Summer, which is a Moroder track, I really feel that it's still an awesome tune. So a lot of music could inspire me to analyze and learn or just enjoy the moment.
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