TFword in Conversation With SyRan

We had a chat with the British drum & bass duo about their latest release, their album artworks, plans for the future and lots more.

Coming together for their unified love for drum & bass, SyRan are steadily making a statement on their quest as one of the UK’s biggest dance music exports. Formerly known as SynthForce & Ransome, the duo operated as individual producers until their unison in 2019 to form SyRan.

Making their first release on Andy C’s RAM Records in the same year as their inception, SyRan have now become the go-to name for breaks-infused, ‘in your face’ drum & bass. 2022 was another formative year for the duo, which saw them release the heavy artillery style of music they believe in, along with a performance at the iconic super-club Printworks London to celebrate RAM Records’ 30th anniversary.

SyRan have now kickstarted 2023 with some serious amen business on ‘Twister.’ Following the release, we wanted to know more about their duo’s formation, their latest release, plans for the future; and here is what they had to say:

TFword: Hey guys, thanks very much for taking the time to chat with us. How do you look back at 2022?
SyRan: We look back on 2022 with a huge smile on our faces. We started the year with releasing a 2 track single ‘Rip Your Face Off / Beyond the Heavens’ and this was very well received, with lots of support and kind words about the tracks. We enjoyed all the gigs that we played and being involved in the OrchestRAM project was amazing.

TF: Now a smashing release on RAM Records to begin the year. What are your thoughts?
SyRan: We’re really excited to kick off the year with new music and this track we’re super happy with the reaction so far! Andy C had been playing the track heavily in his sets throughout 2022. It’s amazing to see and hear it being dropped. People were asking us if it was one of ours and it was tricky to not give too much away!

TF: For the people who are new to your music, how did the SyRan journey begin?
SyRan: As brothers, we have been writing drum & bass music together since 2013 under solo names and the SyRan journey began when we sent Paradigm over as a demo to RAM back in 2018. They loved it and asked for more tunes, which resulted in the Paradigm EP being our debut release on RAM. We took our solo names, morphed them together to make SyRan and the journey started there.

TF: We are also big fans of your tunes’ artworks. What is the idea behind the spooky album arts?
SyRan: The artwork theming started off as an idea pitched by the artist who does our release covers at the end of 2021. The idea was to have a bright illustrated sleeve, inspired by the track names or storyline, with no text to add coolness and to stand out from the crowd. We loved this idea and now all of our artwork follows this direction.

TF: You were a part of RAM Records’ 30-year anniversary celebration at The Printworks. How would you like to describe the experience?
SyRan: It was a bucket list moment, playing the main stage at Printworks B2B with MEL. It was the first B2B we have done, which resulted in us writing a track together for the set which will be coming out on RAM in the future! We had been before as ravers but experiencing it from the other side was completely different and new. We are sad to hear Printworks will be closing.

TF: Who would you guys regard as your dream B2B?
SyRan: Mob Tactics would be awesome to go B2B with. 4 of us across 4 decks! Raiser and/or Junk Mail for the ultimate high energy vibes. It’d be great to go B2B with MEL again, blending our styles. Calyx & TeeBee would be amazing especially if we ran their 6 deck setup and finally Unknown Error with the caveat of every tune we play having amen breaks in them.

TF: Drum & Bass acts you have always looked up to?
SyRan: Loadstar, Mind Vortex, Camo & Krooked, Culture Shock, Sub Focus, Wilkinson for their insane production standards. They are the artists we always compare our tunes to in terms of mixdowns.

TF: What are SyRan’s plans for 2023?
SyRan: Our plans are to continue writing more music. We have recently finished up some new tunes so we’re looking forward to testing them out at gigs. We’re about to start a brand new radio show over on Data Transmission and finally, we’re looking to get some collaborations done with other artists. Watch this space!

Listen to SyRan’s latest single: