Mark Zabala - DJ Biography

Mark Zabala plays a wide variety of styles, but he tends towards dirty, driving, techy and psychedelic sounds mixed in with a good dose of percussive, glitched-out funk.

It seems like Mark Zabala was destined to love electronic music.

His earliest musical memories involved listening to his mother's cassette tape of Kraftwerk's album "Computer World." When he wasn't mimicking the robotic voices or the blips and beeps of that album, electronic noises were still working their way into his subconscious as he spent hours in front of the latest videogames or chaotically jamming with his Yamaha keyboard. In 1992,his older cousin introduced him into the fast-paced world of the Rave. He became hopelessly addicted to the hard acid sounds of her mixtapes and the short-lived Los Angeles electronic dance music radio station MARS FM. From there, he started snatching up compilation CDs and electronic dance albums left and right.

Mark acquired turntables in 1999 and his DJ career officially began. He began spinning a very hard form of acid trance, known as Freeform Hardcore, under the alias "Qwiki." His love for the outdoors pushed him to form a new forest and desert party crew known as Phreatic which eventually led to the formation of the underground TRIP crew.

During his time in TRIP, "Qwiki" realized that his energetic, fast-paced music did not mix entirely well with the outdoors, so he began to spin music that excited him in any environment. He dropped his DJ alias and began to spin hard, percussive, funky, techno with elements of psytrance and house thrown in. He still spins Drum n Bass and Freeform Hardcore under then name Qwiki from time to time. TRIP went on to throw many successful events until their final event, Spring IV in 2004

In 2005, Mark Zabala was recruited alongside some of Southern California's leading talent to form the Ninja Skillz crew. Ninja Skillz has risen to the forefront of the Underground Community with successful appearances at major LA nightclubs like Spundae @ Circus, Giant @ Vanguard, four sold out festivals in Mexico, The Hollywood Palladium, and several outdoor events all over the West Coast. It is the firm commitment of the Ninja Skillz Clan to bring together all manner of art, media, and culture to create multi-sensory, transcendent experiences. By combining diverse dancers, visual artists, circus performers, fire dancers, gods, goddesses, muses, and madmen, Ninja Skillz will continue to be a weapon against the mundane.

Musical Influences

Dance Music

Zimbardo, MSTRKRFT, John Dahlback, Bassnectar, Simian Mobile Disco, Surgeon, Autobots, Tiga, Trentemoller, Peaches, Green Velvet, Digitalism, Vitalic, Justice, Alter Ego, Ego Express, Detroit Grand Pubahs, Kissy Sell Out, D. Ramirez, Aquasky, Breakfastaz, Adam Beyer, Benny Benassi, Joel Mull, Concord Dawn, Raiden, Klute, Stakka & Skynet, Sta & Paul B, John B, Lamb, Nobukazu Takemura, Infected Mushroom, Sharkey, Astral Projection, Wizzy Noise, Richie Hawtin, Glenn Wilson, Woody McBride, Mauro Picotto, Deviant Electronics, Koxbox, Alien Project, Spirallianz, Timo Maas, Growling Mad Scientists, Future Prophecy, Lab 4, OD404, Dj Mishka, BK, Underworld, The Crystal Method, Orbital, The Prodigy and way too many more...

Experimental/Chill

Aphex Twin, Squarepusher, Boards of Canada, Plaid, Jega, Aoineko, Diagram of Suburban Chaos, Build, Chiral, Lexaunculpt, Prefuse 73, Nautilis, L'usine ICL, Deru, Mucrof, Cex, Manorexia, Caural, Machine Drum, Hrvatski, Bogdan Raczynski, Venetian Snares, Hellfish, Doormouse, Manorexia, Funkstorung, Autechre, Dntel, Fridge, Portishead, Massive Attack, Hooverphonic, mu-ziq, Alec Empire, Shpongle, Air, Theivery Corporation, Gotan Project, Solvent, Banco De Gaia

Rockish Stuff

Regina Spektor, Soulwax, Wolfmother, Muse, The Killers, The Knife, DFA, Frou Frou, Schneider Tm, Lali Puna, The Notwist, Mum, Sigur Ros, Broadcast, Le Tigre, Yo La Tengo, The Decemberists, Belle and Sebastian, Broken Social Scene, Four Tet, The Album Leaf, Manitoba, Fridge, Godspeed! You Black Emperor, Juana Molina, DNTEL, Postal Service, My Bloody Valentine, Skinny Puppy, A Silver Mt. Zion, Le Tigre, Mindless Self Indulgence, Ministry, The White Stripes, Muse, Jet, Hot Hot Heat, The Mars Volta, Tori Amos, Radiohead, Nirvana, Hole, Pearl Jam, Soundgarden, Smashing Pumpkins, Natalie Merchant, Sarah Maclaclan, VNV Nation, Haujobb, Converter, Wumpscut, Bjork, Nine Inch Nails, Tool

Hip Hop

Prefuse 73, Lady Sovereign, M.I.A., Jahcoozi, Machine Drum, Boombip, Kool Keith, Dr. Octagon, Dr Dooom, Sage Francis, Boom Bip, Doseone, cLOUDDEAD, Them, Anticon (all those guys), Outkast, Dead Prez, Beastie Boys, eDIT, daedelus