Drifting through Psyberspace with Psyberpixie

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Tracy Block 7 When you see Marina Rao enter a room, there's something radiant about her, even if you can't quite put your finger on it. Perhaps its her alter ego, VJ Psyberpixie, that does most of the head-turning. During the day, the petite artist burns incense in her downtown Miami penthouse, which doubles as the Psyberlab. Distant meows from a recently adopted kitten drift downward from the high ceiling. Doing all of her remixing with a view of the Biscayne Bay and no day-to-day distractions, there's a peace about Psyberpixie and a passion to match. She has been in the electronic music scene for 15 years, and as trends change, she'll continue to hypnotize with artistic visions straight out of Psyberworld after the sun goes down. When were you first interested in the the electro culture? I grew up in Miami around freestyle hip-hop before I gravitated toward the underground. In 1995, I discovered breakbeats, which emerged out of the mid '90s. And then I fell into WMC [Winter Music Conference], where there was a big explosion of electronic music. Was there a specific event that influenced your decision to become part of the scene? In 1995, I got involved in Zenfest (which Ultra Music Fest spun off of), and met Jason Donovan, who created the dance culture in Florida. I wanted to learn more and become part of the production process. At that time, I was interested in promoting spiritual awareness to the rave culture. What perked your interest in becoming a VJ? Take us through your creative process. I attended the Art Institute of Fort Lauderdale, where I majored in TV and video production. I loved editing and remixing from the beginning. I'd check out cameras after-hours and shoot behind-the-scenes footage of raves, and I started collecting footage without audio. And then the V4, the standard mixer for all VJs, came out. My creative process starts when I book a show. When you get a show, you study the artist and their music. You do a lot of research and you start creating and building off the music. There are so many different elements involved for me as a VJ, like 3D graphics, computer animation, editing and remixing. There are images, video, film – some you shoot – you tap into your own visual Wikipedia. Then, you cook, chop, mix and remix until the day of the show. How did you fall into working with Perry Farrell and Jane's Addiction? I was recommended by another VJ who hopped on the Bassnectar tour. It happened overnight. Jane's Addiction was in West Palm Beach and asked me to go over to the Ritz-Carlton where they were staying. They wanted visuals and the show was three days away. They liked me and my presentation so much, I ran back to Miami, got my equipment and stayed with them at the hotel and had my very first show with them last summer. Perry was very descriptive of what he wanted – visuals of pigs, waves, sexy images. There was a lot of back-and-forth, but the more time you spend with the band, the better it is. I ended up touring with them on the bus, leading into their headliner at Lollapalooza 2009. This was my first time working in the alt/rock scene and the fans were  just so appreciative; whistling and screaming as projectors came down, there was so much excitement and embrace. How does your visual art enhance a musical performance? It helps interpret the music. If a song is about love and rainbows, projecting images up onto a screen is the symbolism the audience can associate with. Text and phrases communicate certain messages to the audience. Other times, we can be the background, but collectively, we are part of the symphony. We all work together to make visuals and lights a part of the music experience. Having a good mixing position is important to the artist, that's where I help take visual performance to another level. I have to communicate with the audience, that what I'm doing is in real time and is not just a DVD popped in spitting images. It's another connection. How has VJing evolved and what is your next step? A lot of bands are adopting VJs, including mainstream artists like the Beastie Boys, Justin Timberlake and Gwen Stefani. We used to be called video tech nerds. We were pushed off to the side or set up under the stage. Now, we have tons of gear. Visuals are our gear, and gear is our instruments. I'm now working on my own audio-visual sets. This is the next progression. Working with a Pioneer DJM 400, I'll dip into tech-house/minimal/electro breakbeats. The visuals will always be hard-hitting; minimal will be the lowest tempo to match with a hard visual impact. What has been your favorite project thus far? Lollapalooza with Jane's Addiction and Acapulco Music Fest with Moby. These were times when I felt a part of the stage. The first time it felt like a collective something. I'd love to work with the Beastie Boys, Moby, Adam Freeland, Hybrid and MSTRKRFT. Where's the most exotic place you've traveled? Jakarta, Indonesia. DJ Naro, one of the biggest DJs over there, contacted me online to do an MTV credit card launch gig. It's an interesting world over there. People driving motorcycles, wearing masks because of pollution. But at night, they party hard like it's the mid-'90s still. It's all lit up and full of busy crowds. Any upcoming gigs you're excited about? I'm working alongside WMC on several visual events for their 25th anniversary, one of them being the 2nd VJ Challenge Competition.  I'm also excited to do my first White Party in November. I'll be doing the after party at Fame (the old Park West) in downtown Miami. I'll be working Halloween, with details to come. I'm also hosting DJ Warz with Felix Sama at Best Buy Aventura October 15th, so come out and support local DJs!   2009-10-12T11:12:10-07:00

2009-10-15T01:03:23-07:00

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Psyberpixie at work.

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2009-10-15T01:03:23-07:00

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Interview Drifting through Psyberspace with Psyberpixie

2010-02-08T09:20:00-08:00