For more than a decade, Shyam “Snad” Anand has carved out a quietly distinctive voice in deep house and left-field club music. From his formative years on Chicago’s WNUR Streetbeat radio to Berlin’s after-hours dancefloors – and now, unexpectedly, a studio retreat in Texas – his sound has been shaped by movement, community, curiosity, and a deep respect for the craft. His latest release, ‘AM Yard’, marks a significant milestone: his debut on Scissor and Thread, the revered imprint founded by Francis Harris and Anthony Collins, whose work has long served as an inspiration for Anand.
‘AM Yard’ captures a year of experiments that began, somewhat serendipitously, with a Psychedelic Research Lab record found in Dallas and an Instagram reel of John Selway discussing vocoders. It was enough to send Snad spiralling down a rabbit hole with his temperamental Ensoniq DP4, salvaging dreamlike textures from the unit’s hiss and unpredictability. Those experiments, combined with MPC basslines, Eurorack patches and a late-night nod to Chez & Trent’s classic Morning Factory, formed the backbone of AM Yard – a record steeped in the rich lineage of US deep house.
Speaking with Snad is like stepping into the control room of his studio: ideas flow freely, tangents loop back into the narrative, and the technical and emotional are never far apart. He recalls digging through Bay Area crates just weeks before recording his Public Records mix, obsessing over rare D’Angelo cuts, and falling back in love with long-form modular jams.
He talks openly about Berlin – how its ever-rising costs are reshaping the scene, yet how the late-night culture still sustains a rare ecosystem of clubs, artists and friendships. And when the conversation turns to India, he paints a vivid picture of a young, hungry, rapidly evolving underground scene where the missing ingredient, he argues, is simply those magical “wee hours” that define true club culture.
Through it all, Snad maintains a sense of humour and humility, whether reflecting on cracked versions of FL Studio, the joys of binge-watching TV before a studio session, or the chaos of working with a vocoder that “ruined” past masters only to spark his most inspired run of tracks. AM Yard may be his first release on Scissor and Thread, but it feels like a natural fit – a convergence of past influences, present craft and future curiosity.
In this feature, Snad dives deep into the making of the record, the gear and philosophies that shaped it, his roots, his inspirations, and the evolving musical cultures that have defined his journey.
Interview by Tom Durston
"AM Yard is a direct reference to Chicago classic Morning Factory by Chez Damier & Ron Trent. I was up real late working on some floaty pads and had some nice drums but couldn’t really settle on a bass line. I looked out the window and the sun was already shining. I was tapping some pads on my MPC and the bassline ended up being quite reminiscent of Morning Factory."
Hello Shyam, many thanks for recording this mix and for taking the time to speak with us about your new release AM Yard. To start, could you tell us about the mix – how it was recorded, the atmosphere you aimed to create, and a bit about the track selection? Were there any particular highlights or moments that stand out for you?
Hey thanks for having me. The mix was recorded live at my Public Records debut in the Atrium this past January. I played the closing slot and this is my first hour of the set. I knew in my mind I would have a great sound system and a wonderful rotary mixer at my disposal so I really just leaned into a lot of the techy/dubby deep house bits that I had been digging. Just a few weeks prior I had some pretty fruitful digs in San Francisco and found a lot of awesome late 90s early 2000s deep/tech house fare that is mostly what you hear in this mix.
I think the big highlight moment I wanted to build towards was the Miguel Migs ‘Steppin’ Up‘ tune around the hour mark, the bass is just heaving on a system and I had a feeling the vocal would be a hit (and it was). I wasn’t sure what to expect as it was my first time at the club, so the set was rather focused around just enjoying my recent digs and trying to stitch them together in a way that went somewhere.
Congratulations on releasing your debut extended player on Scissor and Thread. How does it feel to join the label’s family – a roster widely respected for its refined and emotive approach to deep house?
It’s really awesome, I first heard about Scissor and Thread around 2013. My friend m50 from WNUR 89.3 Streetbeat in Chicago had just released a record Bourbon Skies on Arma and DJ Sprinkles did one of the remixes on the 12”. Hearing this remix eventually led me to discover You Can Always Leave which was released around the same time.
I think the following year I came to NYC to party for the first time. It was New Years and I heard Frank & Tony at Output in the Panther Room and since then Scissor and Thread has very much been in my orbit. It’s a seminal deep house imprint for me so it’s very much an honour and also a huge milestone to join the fold.
How did your relationship with label boss Francis Harris first begin, and when did the idea of releasing a record on Scissor and Thread start to take shape?
While I’ve known about Francis and his music for a long time, we actually only met earlier this year. Sometime in 2024 I thought to send him along the promo of my Bubblescope EP on Smallville Records. I think I just asked for his e-mail address on Instagram and Francis liked the record and we’ve been in touch since then.
Not long after, I asked if he would be open to demos for Scissor & Thread and I sent a bunch of tunes over including The Pursuit. I had a bunch of deeper material I was attached to but hadn’t really demoed it out up until then and Francis felt like exactly the person who would appreciate it.
He followed up with me in April/May this year asking if I had new stuff and I sent over AM Yard and Anticip8 and within a few weeks the remix was wrapped up as well. So long story short, I guess it all happened within the past year – I’m glad I asked if he would be interested in hearing some demos!
What’s the story behind the title AM Yard? Does the cover artwork directly reference the concept behind the record?
AM Yard is a direct reference to Chicago classic Morning Factory by Chez Damier & Ron Trent. I was up real late working on some floaty pads and had some nice drums but couldn’t really settle on a bass line. I looked out the window and the sun was already shining. I was tapping some pads on my MPC and the bassline ended up being quite reminiscent of Morning Factory.
I was against it at first, but everything else I came up with was just whack. As it was getting late, I sort of just recorded everything as it was and looked up a synonym for factory and there it was AM Yard.
I sent it to Chez that week and he told me to sit on it for at least a month and see if I wanted to add anything else or change it up. A few months later when Francis got in touch and liked it, I listened back to it a few times, tightened up the mixdown and then let it fly.
Regarding the artwork, I’m not exactly sure what Timothy Lyons had in mind but in my mind I think it does a great job of conveying the EP title; It looks like it was shot in the morning and it’s definitely industrial/factory-esque – spot on job.
The press release mentions that the record was produced over the course of a year. Was this entirely made in Berlin, or did you also work on it while travelling or elsewhere?
The record was actually written entirely at my studio in Aubrey, Texas (my parent’s place) but mixed down at Chinichi & Garrett David’s studio in Berlin.
How do you usually approach the creative process – do ideas evolve naturally over time, or do you prefer to work with a clear concept from the outset?
I’m very fluid with my approach when it comes to making tunes. I sort of just turn the machines on every day and see what happens. Some days I may focus on trying to make something in line with a reference track (I’ve tried to make a tune like Mood II Swing’s Borderline Insanity Dub Mix of Crustation – Flame countless times and never come even a little bit close). Other times I sit down and just bask in the sonics I suppose.
More recently, I’ve often sat down with the intention of writing for my live sets so there’s a latent intention to be “functional.” In this case, the pursuit was a continuation of a patch I will discuss in the next few questions – I had stumbled upon a sound and liked it and decided to try something different with it.
AM Yard was me sort of aimlessly revisiting that technique a year later with my proverbial live set hat on and Anticip8 started with me actually trying to get a synth sound similar to the bassline in Iteration X – Liquid Logic. I didn’t succeed, but was very very pleased with the outcome.
You’ve mentioned using the Ensoniq DP4 vocoder to create those dreamy pads and textures that became central to the record’s sound. What drew you to that particular piece of gear, and what is it about its character that keeps you coming back to it?
This story has sort of become a large part of my personality over the past two years, but I think it’s fundamental in understanding my sound as of current and maybe where it’s going. I grew up in Malvern, Pennsylvania roughly 5 minutes away from the Ensoniq headquarters. I didn’t know it at the time, but when I found out much later I thought I just had to buy Ensoniq kit.
I went and got a ESQ-1 first, which I mostly just use for sub bass now. I had wanted a DP/4 for years and during the pandemic I found one for what would now be considered a steal. I honestly didn’t like it very much, it practically ruined the masters on my Loop Dreamzz LP and also Retrospection on the Spandrel001. My DP/4 is just busted and has this awful hum that becomes pretty loud when mastered. All of this to say, I used it here and there, but it took a back seat in the studio.
Back to the record: I was digging at Josey Records in Dallas with my girlfriend and I came across a Psychadelic Research Lab record, which was a John Selway project and the whole car ride home I was basically just bugging out about this John Selway record. I said his name enough times that the Instagram algorithm began to advertise his masterclasses to me the next day.
Whilst scrolling a reel popped up where he briefly explains using vocoders with a harmonically rich signal like pads and drums as a carrier signal to make interesting textures. I immediately caught the gist of it, remembered that daft punk allegedly used the DP/4 vocoder in their early days and fired up the DP and started messing around with the tightly voiced pads and instead of using drums as a carrier, I opted for a chord voice from my modular.
The result was pretty great, and within a day or two of chipping at it I wrote Bubblescope, Lukewarm Lava, a forthcoming tune on the 20 years of Smallville compilation, and finally The Pursuit. It’s extremely finicky and oftentimes the technique yields total crap, but sometimes it can just be magic. Most of these tunes wrote themselves and a lot of those 4 early jams were mostly spent with me just hitting record and geeking out.
I’m not sure if the results would be the same with any other vocoder, I tried with my H3000 vocoder once and was not pleased but I also didn’t invest much time into figuring it out. The DP/4 vocoder is kinda shitty and notoriously confusing and I think that’s part of the charm. Anyway, I am going to order an Ensoniq t-shirt on eBay now.
"I used to not like revisiting jams and adding new material because I thought it would muddy the initial “vibe” I may have had when writing. Now I find that hogwash, if a tune needs something it needs something."
You’ve cited Chez n Trent – Morning Factory as an influence on one of the basslines. What is it about that track – or their sound in general – that resonates with you, and how did you interpret that inspiration in AM Yard?
It’s just an excellent deep house tune, really! I love the pad, the whispering “put your hand in my flame” vocals. The bass is massive. The minute and a half lead up to the first kick drum rules. The hi-hat pattern is busy and feels like it stalls the track while also moving it forward. These two just could not miss in that era, it’s a masterclass in hypnotism!
Regarding how it came out in AM Yard, I used the same notes as their bassline and tapped in a pretty similar pattern. I didn’t play the bass on the keys and instead used my MPC to play it. I also didn’t use this track as a reference per sé, I just sorta smashed in a Morning Factory-esque bassline, tried to find other basslines and then settled for keeping it and just acknowledged that I was biting an all time great tune.
I love your idea of the hardware studio being an evolving “patch,” something you learned from Colin Johnson of Night Sea Journey. Could you expand on that philosophy – how does it shape your workflow and the way you think about making music?
Colin Johnson is definitely an inspiration when it comes to hardware, he said the quiet things out loud for years and every time I lean in and listen to his philosophy or advice it usually does change my perspective in a big way. He’s got a ton of gear as well and often talks about focusing on parts of his setup rather than the working with the whole studio and as we have multiple patch bays, I think the philosophy is quite literal for us.
The DP/4 “patch” is a perfect example of it. I found a sound source in this case it was my JX3P and I used that as the signal to be modulated and then I used my modular as the carrier signal. For the next tune, I patched in my Orbit instead of the 3P. I used my patch bays in half-normal mode most of the time and allowing me to daisy chain the signal down to a bunch of different FX units.
So in general, I spend most of the time getting one sound right, and then at some point I’d leave to travel or need to troubleshoot something and pull out all of the patch cables and start from scratch. I multitrack mostly everything, so that gives me the flexibility to stem out multiple different FX units. I’m not much of a sound designer, but I think having so much flexibility in the studio to record parts of a sound allows me to approach my tunes differently.
I’m working on a remix for a friend Conoley Ospovat and I spent half of the 4 recording sessions just vocoding his already vocoded vocals against some cool pads. The other half was spent running DR-5 drum takes through a space echo. As a result, everything else I’d made around this time sort of uses those same ingredients, largely in a similar way.
I think these patches enforce some sense of limitation on a studio that has grown far too large and unwieldy. I have the flexibility to swap out things I’m not using at the moment, but I still have constraints which allow me to be decisive and remain creative. I also just get bored of the patches and naturally switch things up, it’s a win/win.
I’d love to hear about your early steps into electronic music – what first drew you to the genre? Were there particular artists, records, or labels that inspired you at the beginning?
I listened to a lot of J-pop in high school, particularly this group M-Flo. I didn’t realise it until much later but they were pretty openly ripping off people like Todd Edwards and Armand Van Helden. Around that time I was also playing World of Warcraft and in one of the videos (on Google Video no less), I distinctly remember hearing Kings Of Tomorrow – Finally (Danny Tenaglia Dub) – Finally. I searched high and low for that song and eventually found it.
Unfortunately I didn’t do too much of a deep dive on Danny until much later but the seeds were certainly sown. Around the same time I also stumbled across Deadmau5 and started going to local EDM shows in Philly. After High School, I went to University near Chicago and joined our radio WNUR 89.3 Streetbeat. A lot of fantastic artists have had shows on Streetbeat and WNUR in general and it was a great place to dig much deeper and meet artists like Michael Serafini and m50 who put me on to a ton of great tunes.
When did you first start producing your own music? What did your early setup look like, and what kind of sound were you exploring back then?
I started producing in 2007 or 2008 I think with a cracked version of FL Studio. I was trying (and failing) to make hip-hop beats and then at some point tried to make more progressive house and trance. I honestly didn’t have much real world exposure to the sound so my music knowledge was all based off of things I’d download or come across on blogs and Hype Machine.
Looking back over the years, how has your approach to music-making – and your overall musical vision – evolved?
It’s changed a lot – I used to be completely in the box, now I’m mostly out of the box. In the beginning I’d spend months on one tune and somewhere in the middle I’d spend mostly a day writing and a few hours mixing the tune.
Now I’m back to spending multiple sessions on tunes but also just being more intentional. I might jam and record something, but I don’t necessarily arrange it right away unless I’m feeling extremely compelled. I used to not like revisiting jams and adding new material because I thought it would muddy the initial “vibe” I may have had when writing. Now I find that hogwash, if a tune needs something it needs something lol.
I suppose my relationship to the music I make has just changed. I write a lot for my live set and those tunes don’t really get arranged until much later when I get a chance to see what small things work or don’t work. There’s an element of in-person feedback that happens now which never used to happen (shoutout to everybody who books me).
I think the vision can be dichotomised into these long form journey-like jams (my recent Smallville outings) and sleeker “clubbier” cuts like the Scissor & Thread EP or the recent Spandrel record. This will likely change though as recent conversations with my mastering engineer Mike Grinser has given me some food for thought re: 14 minute long jams.
You’re currently based in Germany. When did you decide to relocate there, and what initially attracted you to Berlin?
I studied in Berlin from 2013-2014 and had a blast. Like many others, I came for the music and community and I certainly got my fill. During that year I must have gone to Chalet 3-5 times a week at my peak. After I finished University, I just had a feeling that I had to get back to Berlin so I moved in 2016.
How do you feel Berlin’s musical landscape is adapting? Are artists being pushed out, or is it more a natural evolution of time, taste, and culture?
I think a big part of what made Berlin so attractive to artists was the cost of living and unfortunately, Berlin does not cost anything remotely close to what it did 10 years ago. In this regard, I think artists are being pushed out for sure.
It’s just extremely difficult to sustain yourself from your art, even more so when you don’t want to compromise on your artistic vision. I think a lot of the creativity you used to see in Berlin was possible because of the cost. That’s not to say creativity doesn’t exist there anymore, I just think it’s a tougher landscape for creatives.
Aside from NYC and London, I can’t think of many other cities with comparably large and expansive music communities though, and that says something. The culture is very much still alive. Even though clubs are much more expensive now, they are still open around the clock and that definitely makes Berlin special. Berlin is still “the place to be” for that reason alone. I’ve met so many of my dearest friends, mentors, inspirations, heroes, etc. on dancefloors there.
"The missing ingredient in my mind are the “wee hours” in the club. They are so essential to a party and so many of my formative clubbing experiences happened as the sun was coming up."
Do you think Berlin still holds the same edge when it comes to the development of electronic music culture?
Not particularly, no. I think the internet is largely responsible for that. YouTube has countless tutorials, there are so many ways to collaborate remotely, there are so many digital platforms to get the word out and share and hone your craft.
Again, that’s not to write off Berlin, it’s just the impact of globalisation on a now not-so-nascent scene. That said, there are few places in the world with so many different venues that are open for so long, and that is essential in the development of the culture. At the end of the day, a lot of electronic music culture comes from the club!
Which artists or record labels are currently exciting or inspiring you?
Richard Akingbehin and his label Kynant is very exciting, the recent Paul St. Hilaire – w/ The Producers was monumental. The Priori feature especially was super tight, I loved the space on that record and the B1 on the forthcoming Spandrel 04 was directly inspired by that tune and Richard’s set at Waking Life. James K at Waking Life was also unreal and her recent album is amazing.
Ron Obvious’ live set is just blistering at the moment, I’m lucky to have caught him twice this year and he just keeps outdoing himself. I got to see Suzybee and Steevio live the same weekend as well and was blown away. Joe Delon’s universe continually exposes me to awesome stuff and seeing him play b2b with Gwenan recently at Dimensions was nothing short of perfect for the hour (sunrise). I saw Dana Kuehr that weekend as well and every set I’ve heard from her has been boundary-pushing in a different way.
Ali Berger, Rhythms of Prescott, Aguila, Maudi, Lis Sarroca, Tony Fairchild, Kiernan Laveaux, Naone, Lucy Cook, Gladstone Deluxe, Thilini, Some Uncertain Sir, Nat Wendell, Paquita Gordon, Kyle Hall, Anderson, Madvilla, Eugene Peloza, Tiago Walter, Tom Gillieron, Theories, Nicolas Duque, ViiV the list is honestly endless!!
I’m perpetually inspired by Kai Alce’s NDATL and the 2020 Black & CoOp West London Broken Beat proponents.
Perhaps the most significant to me however has been revisiting a lot of rarer D’angelo cuts where he had producer credits or instrumentation credits. I have found a lot of joy in that. I’ve also been reading a lot of ?uestlove interviews where he talks about their production mythos during the Voodoo era. Absolutely fascinating stuff, wish I could have been a fly on the wall in the Electric Lady studios in the late 90s and early 2000s.
India’s electronic music scene seems to be growing and diversifying rapidly. We recently turned our attention to Qilla Records and have been really impressed with their output, as well as the continued influence of Magnetic Fields Festival. From your perspective, how do you see India’s electronic music culture evolving, and which homegrown labels or artists would you recommend we check out?
Yeah India is really firmly on the dance music map and I think it’s awesome. It has been for a while now too, but I think underground dance music has really carved out its niche there.
I recently played Film’s party No More Parties in Delhi and was surprised by how many engaged young people came out to party. Everyone was feeling it and the floor was filled from start to finish… all of this at a party with no lineup. I think the biggest thing India would benefit from is honestly a couple proper clubs that are open week in and week out and most importantly, open late.
That sort of existed before the pandemic at The Tao Terraces in Bangalore – there were some decently long sessions there and some really awesome artists came through and rocked the rooftop terrace of that Chinese restaurant on top of a shopping mall (lol). It was just guaranteed to be a great time every single Sunday, the place would be packed by 10PM and it would go as long as the Police would let it.
That said, the missing ingredient in my mind are the “wee hours” in the club. They are so essential to a party and so many of my formative clubbing experiences happened as the sun was coming up. A 24 hour liquor license would really change the game in India.
In terms of people and parties to check out, there are so so many. Chhabb, Bhish and Spacejams have been holding it down in Mumbai for so long. Film, Aaguu, Akshay Mathker, Ravi Rajpal, Rishi Sippy, Alina, Knique, Nik, Pooja B, GST, That 90s Kid, Vridian, Jaydrive, Sandunes, the list just goes on and on. Sorry to anybody I forgot, I was going through flyers lol.
I have to say, your 2022 album Loop Dreamzz on Kilómetro 4.5 really stood out to me – I loved the downtempo, dreamlike atmosphere of that record. How did that album come to light on the Tulum-based record label?
This is a real nardwuar someone did their homework moment. Kind of surprised, Loop Dreamzz is definitely a “deep cut” snad record. I met Moses and Nuno Carneiro when I was playing at Sisyphos in Berlin 8 or 9 years ago and shortly after they asked me to do a remix of El Txef A for their label Materia Exotica.
Afterwards, they brought me to Tulum for a release party at Papaya Playa Project. It was an extremely memorable gig and I’ve basically gone back to play every year since. Shortly after I came home from my second gig there, I wrote the tune Loop Dreamzz. Right before the pandemic I wrote Zzone and then the actual downtempo/ambient cuts I wrote I think it was in August of 2021. They were all basically Eurorack jams from the “patch” at the time.
I sent it to the KM4.5 crew at the time and never really thought much of it and then they told me they wanted to press it and that was that. I’ve definitely been getting back into my downtempo/chillers mode recently and I’m trying to channel that same energy – hopefully some new music in that direction coming soon!
Now that you’re part of Scissor and Thread, can we expect a series of remixes or perhaps a full-length album next?
That’s up to Francis! I’d be glad to continue to contribute to the label.
Finally, outside of music, what else inspires or motivates you? What gets you out of the house and into a different headspace?
A warm cup of chai outside always gets me out of my head. I really like going to tropical places lol. Warm weather in general gets me out of the house. I recently went to Artprize in Grand Rapids and I was taken aback by the level of vulnerability in some of these entries. I guess a new thing that inspires me is art, lol. Counterintuitively, TV motivates me. I like binge watching shows, getting bored and then coming to the studio knowing there’s nothing else to do and nothing to distract me.
‘AM Yard’ is out now via Scissor and Thread. Buy a vinyl copy from Inverted Audio Record Store.
TRACKLIST
1. RedShift – The Surface
2. Dano & Tony – Phazer Dub
3. DJ Adnan & Nathan – Ocean Run
4. ?
5. Natural Rhythm – Autobiographical
6. Community Recordings – Lifted Soul (Organic Soul Dub)
7. ?
8. Kirby – Flow
9. Chris Lyth – 55 West
10. ?
11. ?
12. Swirl Peepz – Muffin Luv
13. ?
14. S.W.A.T. – Get With Dis Groove
15. Miguel Migs – Steppin’ Up (Migs Dubpusher Selecta Mix)
16. Chris Simmonds – Be Real (Re-Flex Mix)
17. Glass House Projectz – Patton Pending
