MagiTek has been a musical project for almost seven years now. How do you think the music has evolved and changed in that period of time, and where do you see the music moving next?

Quartz Relic: There's a lot I could say. You opened this box! At first, we made music mostly for ourselves, incorporating inspirations and influences, but with very limited knowledge or actual education in performing and composing music. Incredibly lame raps, as well as attempts at cut/pasted/warped electronica were the beginning. A couple years later we finished another "album" with far more effort and originality behind the music. It was basically an evolution of the old but our quality was very, very lacking. Still, that era did concretely seed our fusion of dance and hip hop with video game sounds (whether we sampled or were inspired by them). We also realized we wanted more rock sounding elements, which you could say has made us a little "industrial-like".

The third release was slowly developed when we had time over the next few years(04-06), piece-by-piece with a few new tools and plenty of ideas. We also got a couple close friends more involved and contributing (Shamus and Mathaeis). That album, Distorting Reality For
Better Perception felt like enough of an accomplishment that it was actually the first thing we really wanted to put out there for anyone to hear. I'd say it’s the culmination of what MagiTek originally was. Inherently crude, geeky, and maybe not super sweet on the ears, but hopefully interesting and amusing.

Your website gives us an alternate history of the creation of the band, but is there a simpler, less crazy time line you can share with us about how the group got started?

Thugmasta J: Well, all of us have been friends since middle school. We were the geeks sitting at the uncool table making Final Fantasy jokes. Our friendships carried into high school and that's when we started experimenting in music. I mean everybody is in a band at one point when you're in high school, right? Quartz and I started a project called Lunatic Pandora with our friend Jason. We were all playing instruments badly and making up the words as we went along. We were also fighting more than making music so that ended after a few months. Then Quartz got ahold of some music making software and he and I started MagiTek. We had our first "release" in April of 2000. It was a bunch of goofy techno songs dubbed onto cassette tapes. From there we just kept experimenting and improving until we got where we are today.

While primarily Quartz Relic and Thugmasta J, the group has also included other band members. What do each of you do, and what sort of contributions do your guests bring to the table?

Shamus: Well I try to bring as much as I can to the table in the form of concept or an occasional idea. Sometimes it doesn't get shot down and it becomes something cool. Other then that I am the all around hype man for the group at shows, and also have some lyrics I spit for the group on a few of the songs. My overall contribution is growing, on the new album I'm on like...5 of the 9 songs. Hopefully as the group advances and grows I will pop up more and more.

Mathaeis: I was always a supporter of MagiTek, though not directly involved until the third album, with "Zombie Stomp." Even then my participation was limited due to me being in Orlando away from my friends, but now that everyone is here, things have changed. With the opportunity to play more live shows my involvement has grown, as coming up for only one song was not as strong a reason to get out to a show as opposed to being on almost every track - which is the case with the upcoming EP. Although at the moment I am primarily 'another lyricist,' I'm hoping to diversify that in the future, as well as expand my own personal projects which Quartz has helped me develop slightly in the past.

Tell us about Orlando. Is it just the breeding ground for metal we all hear about, or have you found the music scene to be more diverse than that?

Thugmasta J: Yeah, now that you mention it, there are a lot of metal bands. Although, Orlando also has a cool nerd music thing going on too. We got Emergency Pizza Party and Marc with a C regularly rocking shows in Orlando. Plus, Rocket Propelled Geeks, Krondor Krew, and funky49 are all within two hours of Orlando so it's not unusual to see them here. Orlando is at the center of what is probably the largest nerd music scene in the country.

Quartz Relic: There's most everything you can imagine here, far as I've seen. Needs less screamo whatever and more chiptunes or videogame rockers.

MagiTek’s music is what many a music writer might describe as “nerdcore.” Do you think you guys fit into this genre?

Quartz Relic: We fit in and out of it, meaning I think we overlap. The topic of what exactly constitutes the term often comes into discussion (or debate), but then again that's usually with "nerdcore hip hop". We've been very geeky, nerdy or dorky and rapping about it. We've also made some music that's just kinda out there. I don't think any of us mind that description; it's just not all we are or want to be. We are very thankful for it existing, though. The genre/label/community has been an awesome way to discover some great music and friends, and in turn help others find us.

What do the guys in MagiTek do when they aren’t recording or performing? Are KFC sandwiches a big part of what goes down?

Thugmasta J: Hahaha! KFC sandwiches are too small and expensive. I could write a book about fast food. As for what we do, we all work full time jobs. We're not at the stage where music can pay the bills yet. When we're not doing that, we watch movies, play video games, and read.

Quartz Relic: Most of my free time (when not doing music) is reading, playing the vidya, debating over stupid things with Shamus, and bouncing between studying psychology and philosophy when I can. Personally I will go out and party or club it a little here and there, but just like the rest of Mtek, I'm often pretty chill. I wish Marvel vs. Capcom 3 existed because that would be our ideal answer.

Visit MagiTek on MadeLoud and at their website.