The genre-bending artist hailing from the Netherlands, Zep brings together the liberating feeling you experience at a hard techno club, headbanging until dawn, with out-of-the-box visuals that grab your focus even when you want to look away —needles pierce his skin, sewing his face together on Don’t Break. His stellar sound quality meets a creative flow that births the unthinkable. His latest album, No Enemies, is the artist’s latest ammunition of intoxicating weirdness that indulges our most peculiar auditory and visual desires.
Dressed in all white and holding a white flag against a cement industrial background, the cover art already signifies a surrender to the eccentric. Each song builds on the previous, constructing a narrative that embraces the weird kid label and spins it into a signifier for coolness. The sound is grungy, like something you would hear in a basement rave, that reverberates in your ear, rattles your skull. Using found objects like a tube, sewing machine, or even dirt on the floor, Zep harnesses the unconventional.
Once confined to a small town in the Netherlands, Zep always imagined beyond boundaries, looking toward the bigger picture. After working his way through and around the creative scene of the Netherlands, his music and aesthetic grew internationally, bringing him to the US where he felt he could expand his experimental sound to another level. We spoke with Zep about what his latest release helped him uncover, his musical lineage and touch points, and the importance of the live show.
You studied at the Conservatory in Amsterdam; what is the value in a formal education in combination with your more experimental education?
I was always about learning the rules in order to break them — that’s a saying that I really love. Just being around so many opinions, not just your teachers, but your classmates and friends, that’s what helps shape you. But yes, that’s where I studied drums.
You experiment with quite a few different instruments. How has this helped you find your sound?
The freedom to hop on different instruments, especially if I don’t really know what I'm doing, always leads to something original.
What has been your favourite non-instrument to work with that you’ve used in your music?
The most beautiful instrument I ever used was the tube. It gave this sort of texture and sound that I kept using in a lot of my songs. I think wind is such an underrated sound.
The Dutch alternative music scene is constantly breaking barriers and unleashing creativity. How does that cultural lineage influence your music? How is the American production style different?
What I love about the Netherlands is that it’s such a small country, and there is such a big community. You can actually make a sound, push a sound, tour with it, collaborate, and there will always be a place for you to perform. It’s been such a genre-pushing place because you have to find a way to do it on your own and put your music out there to get to a certain point. You have to grind so hard to get out of that little country. I think it’s just the drive and opportunities that bring you there. The cool thing about the US is that once you have a song, the infrastructure of the industry lets you tour around much easier and explore. Each state has its own culture so it’s exciting to look forward to that.
“I was always about learning the rules in order to break them.”
On a personal level, you also have a musical lineage through your father. How much did his style of music inspire you?
It’s funny, I was always trying to get away from his style, and get into jazz and other types of music. And now that I’m listening to my project and then his, we’re just so much alike. I think that’s just the nature of how I grew up in this hard rock-gritty sound. So much of what I do is inspired by him, and I’m so thankful for that. It’s the best sound in the world.
As we speak, you’re about to release No Enemies. How do you usually cope with the nerve-wracking feeling of putting a project out for the world to experience?
I always say this – finishing the project is the least important, but starting the project is the most important part of your process. That’s where you put together your notes, decide the tempo, the sound, the sonic world. Us artists are always overlooking after we did the process, all the little decisions, but the creation where you aren’t thinking and just having fun is actually what will dictate how your project should sound. I told myself; after this project, I’m focusing only on big choices, and don’t overthink. I’m not nervous for the project, but for everything that comes with it – we’re going to travel a lot, touring. I hope everyone is safe getting to the shows, surviving the mosh pits. I just hope everyone has an amazing time. That’s what I live for; to give people this amazing project and have a cool ass time.
The title hints that you’re at peace with yourself, am I right? Is it because you’ve made peace with your enemies or because you just don’t pay attention to them anymore?
Right now, I am, because of this project. Now that I made this project, I feel so much better. The project is about choosing yourself without making too many enemies and this project helped me lay that down, think about it, and stand behind my choices in life. So right now, it feels like a closed chapter, and we can just have fun after this. We don’t have any enemies.
There’s a song called Figure It Out. What has this record helped you understand (about yourself, or the world, or the industry, or something else)?
I made this song when I was stuck in the smallest village in the Netherlands and I was trying to figure everything out. All this personal shit was happening and I needed to make it out of there. What we’re figuring out altogether is we’re all dealing with our shit, we’re dealing with depression, all this stupid shit is going on in the world. What are you doing yourself to make this shit happen? You can hate and say so many things about the world, and about people, but what are you doing about it? To help the world, change your life, change someone else’s, to be the fucking change?
Some titles such as Figure It Out, Tryna Do, or Don’t Break suggest that you’re sending positive messages to yourself, or perhaps your listeners, to grow, to improve, to hold up. I’m not sure whether they’re orders or mantras. Could you tell us more about that?
It’s definitely a message. This is the starter pack to go through some shit and make it out. The light at the end of the tunnel.
In Nobody, you seem to be embracing your weirdness. Were you always someone who accepted and showed off that weirdness?
At first, I was embarrassed about myself. I’m so tall, I’m bald. For example, shaving my head and being comfortable in my skin is the biggest win I ever had, and I want people to feel that in some way. This is me, and I’m fuckin’ with it.
“Being comfortable in my skin is the biggest win I ever had, and I want people to feel that in some way. This is me, and I’m fuckin’ with it.”
The music videos for each track from your new album are equally trippy; a combination of body horror, DIY-style cinematography, and a constant flow of high energy. How do you decide on visuals? What are your inspirations for them?
I always think about my visuals as I’m making the songs, and they always align with the meaning of the song but in a non-direct avant-garde kind of way. There’s always energy as I’m making it which makes its way in my videos. They are always inspired by what I’m watching, what I’m listening to, what I think looks cool, and what I think the world really needs. I just go with that.
You’re about to embark on a tour through Europe and the US. As someone who has organised raves and is very passionate about live performances, what do you try to bring out in each show?
I bring out the energy, the best-sounding show possible, my live arrangements make this a new experience from the project arrangements. I want people to feel special at my shows. This is the only thing we have left in this digital fucking AI world. This is the moment where we’re not on our phones, enjoying the energy, going crazy, and enjoying the sound and whole project.
You’ll also be returning to your native Netherlands for a show at Skatecafe, known for its alternative techno scene. How much does the venue figure into the energy you exchange with the crowd?
It’s just the place where I grew up going out and meeting all my friends. Everyone is always trying to throw a show there and fill the room, but it can be tough. It’s really special to me that I get to sell out this show in my home country.
How do you ground yourself amongst so much energy, evolution, and change?
I call with my dad, tell him what happened, then it’s out of my system.
