dysphonix

Dan left St. Petersburg, Russia at just two years old, and his family settled in St. Louis, where he found the music that would shape his life. His first loves were the raw sounds of the industrial movement — Front 242, Nitzer Ebb, KMFDM — and from 1989 to 1993 he wrote music and played keyboards in industrial and electronic bands. He attended Full Sail University in Florida to sharpen his production craft, returned to the St. Louis area, and formed the duo Trip Sequence with fellow electronic music enthusiast Matt Brendle. In 1994 he invented the Dysphonix moniker, and in 1995 the late, iconic St. Louis DJ Jajo gave him his first opportunity to perform live techno at the legendary club Fallout — launching years of live performances through the rave era, as artists like Aphex Twin, Autechre and Boards of Canada reshaped his sound.

In mid-1995 he joined forces with DJ Phoenix as Collective Consciousness; by that December the duo had pressed their first record, the breakbeat 12″ “Nexus/Mirage,” on clear vinyl for Silver Seven Records. In 2001 their Collective Consciousness Remix appeared on the very first Nepol Records release, Bio Genesis’ “Thoughts of the Future.” From 2003 onward he widened his lens — producing electronic music alongside video and sound for film as a multimedia designer, always defying genre across drum & bass, breakcore, synthpop and techno.

Beyond the music, Dan was a photographer — a passion inherited from his dad — a genius at everything he did, and a comedian whose jokes weren’t done until the laughing turned to tears. He is survived by his parents, his life partner Kristie, and their dog Toshi.