TRULZ & ROBIN 

There is a particular kind of honesty in early rave culture — the sort that does not survive contact with nostalgia unless carefully preserved in sound. For Trulz & Robin, the Oslo-born duo whose work threads through Scandinavian techno history, that preservation is not archival sentiment but ongoing practice.

Meeting between record store aisles and the early circuitry of DJ culture, their trajectory was less career plan than gradual absorption. Music, as they describe it, “just happened” — not as aspiration, but as environment. From those formative years came a sensibility shaped by vinyl, repetition, and the communal logic of the dancefloor.

Their memories of the 1990s Scandinavian rave wave — moving between Oslo, Gothenburg, and Copenhagen — are less framed as myth than as lived infrastructure. Raves were not simply events, they suggest, but temporary systems of belonging: unstable, intense, briefly coherent.

“Unity,” they reflect, is not an abstract idea in this context. It is physical proximity, shared tempo, and the dissolution of individual narrative into collective rhythm. The music, similarly, was never about emotional declaration in the conventional sense. Techno, for them, operated elsewhere — “a tribal, immersive journey” built on reduction rather than excess.

This philosophy remains central to their current output under the Cymasonic label, where collaboration is treated less as industry method and more as necessity. Working with artists such as Camilla Luna and Brokkoli, their approach resists genre containment, instead assembling what they describe as a “mosaic” of influences — tribal rhythm, machine logic, and the residue of rave memory.

Their most recent work, Kaosmatic, continues this trajectory: structured instability, designed not to resolve but to circulate.

What emerges across their practice is not reinvention, but continuity — a refusal to separate origin from present tense. In their world, techno is not a style. It is a condition.

DT 500 ZINE: – What Were the Key Influences That Shaped Your Musical Journey?

TRULS & ROBIN: – We tried to learn some instruments before entering Techno. Listening to the sounds used in Techno was all about figuring out how to do that?! It was way before you could download a sample pack in any style. You must have a Tb-303 to make acid, or if you choose to have a proper house piano, you must buy a Korg M1. It was much more expensive, and you had to learn the trade.

” Techno was the music from the Future, and we connected directly with it probably because it was not about one song telling you all the bullshit feelings. Techno was a tribal vibe that got you in another state of mind, and it was supposed to be mixed by a DJ as a tool to work for the crowd.”

DT 500 ZINE: – Techno vs classical music? 

TRULS & ROBIN: – The repetitive element that lets your brain stop for a second. This was in many other styles before Techno arrived. It is all rooted in Africa: Fela Kuti, Mulatu Astatke, James Brown, and much more.

” It was the combination of Tribal music and Technology that gave birth to Techno. This spoke to us! I think that we all, deep inside, need this repetitive beat as natural as our ♥ beat!”

DT 500 ZINE: – What Cutting-Edge Techno Concepts and Innovations Inspire Your Current Creative Journey?

TRULS&ROBIN: – So many can’t say one… The KSMISK and SYNC are what we are burning for right now. Truly & Robin is moving in a more” Space Acid” direction, and ROBOMATIC is pushing the Electro.

DT 500 ZINE: – We’re Eager to Learn More About the CYMOSONIC Project—Could You Share Further Insights?

TRULS&ROBIN: – CYMASONIC is a platform on which we release a lot of music. It’s the brainchild of ARILD LOPEZ, our longtime friend and amazing DJ! He has us and CAMILLA LUNA on board so we can stand more robust as a team.

“It’s super good to work with friends to release records.”

DT 500 ZINE: – What Drives Your Mission and Vision?

DT 500 ZINE: – Can You Introduce Us to the Talented Individuals You’re Collaborating With?

TRULS &ROBIN:  CAMILLA LUNA has been our best friend for years on many projects. We also work with BROKKOLI, who sings on the latest ACID release on CYMAWAX. Maria Barefoot is a DJ/Producer with whom we are working right now, and we plan and top singer. We have worked to work with more musicians in 2016 now that we have a good recording room in our studio.

DT 500 ZINE: – Who Is Your Listener, and What Can They Expect to Experience from Your Artistic Journey?

TRULS & ROBIN: – everyone! Anything!

“We started releasing under different aliases in 2015 to make navigating easier for the listener.”

DT 500 ZINE: – What was the driving force behind your engine’s motion?

TRULS & ROBIN: –

“When we produce in the studio, we start with a clean sheet and not pay too much attention to what’s happening outside.” O much attention often, we improvise and let the unspoken musical communication lead the way.”

DT 500 ZINE: – What are your favorite tracks from up-and-coming artists, specifically referring to your own creations?

TRULS&ROBIN: –

1#Uma – Cymawax (soon to be released)

2# Goodbye, my love – Fullpupp (soon to be released)

3#Pust – De Fantastiske (Trulz & Robin remix)

DT 500 ZINE: – How did you approach the process of selecting and assembling the elements for your sound composition? The diversity in your work is quite noticeable.

TRULS &ROBIN:  It just happened. We are very different people with a lot of music inside, and we can never just choose one style. It never felt natural, so we ended up with this chaos of different genres of music. We even called our second Album, Kaosmatic, a double CD release.

DT 500 ZINE: – Who is your co-writer?

TRULS & ROBIN: Well, we don’t think much about titles. Often, a song is called a number or a handy name referring to a synth or bpm of a track, and then when we release it, we end up with these weird names that make no sense.

DT 500 ZINE: -“Dance Music Therapy LP” represents a significant departure from your previous work. Could you elaborate on the creative inspiration and conceptual background that shaped this distinctive project?

TRULS & ROBIN: – We wanted to make an album you could listen to on the sofa and in a bar. The inspiration comes from within, and we let the music speak for itself.

 

DT 500 MAG:-How do Trulz & Robin perceive the evolution and contrasts between Oslo during the 1990s and the city as it stands today?

TRULS&ROBIN: – Underground for the outcasts that were looking for like-minded. VS is Established, commercial and thriving for everyone.

DT 500 ZINE: – What are your thoughts on the current state of the creative scene in Oslo? Do you find yourself satisfied with the overall pulse and vibrancy of creativity in the city these days?

TRULS &ROBIN: – Very much so!

” I feel we are on the turning point of a scene that has been pushed to the edge of commercialism, and we are seeing more and more artists choosing the alternate route, which is basically back to what Techno once was without all the nonsense. We see more collaborations between contemporary music and great Techno. I feel it’s’ time Techno is recognised as art among other classical music.”

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DT 500 ZINE: – As you travel extensively across the country, what differences have you noticed in the audiences you encounter?

TRULS & ROBIN:  Oslo is unique because it is small and capitalist. It’s getting to be more and more like any other big city in Europe, but not so many years ago, you had to play a very varied style as a DJ compared to a DJ in Berlin, who could play full-on Techno from the first record of the night. This results in a lot of skilled DJs. Then you have the ridiculous closing hours that give people a 1 to 2-hour party experience that can be strange for the audience and the performer. But when everything works, and you have a good night in Oslo, it beats a lot of other cities we played in.

DT 500 ZINE: – When facing a loss of inspiration, what strategies or methods do you employ to regain your creative drive?

TRULS & ROBIN: – Wait for it to come back. You can force it, but then you risk losing even more, and it takes longer to get it back.

DT 500 ZINE:  – What events are on your calendar? Where can we find you performing or showcasing your work?

TRULS&ROBIN: –

4 Mars Trulz & Robin Live @ Dattera Til Hagen

11 Mars SYNC Impro jam Session @ Mir

DT 500 ZINE: – Thanx, and see ya guys!

Photography by Andreas Rød

Interview by Arthur Sopin

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