2011 has been another strong year for Astrix - Avi Shmailov - with live performances of his euphoric, pounding psy-trance sets having been the producer's main focus. This included a mammoth global tour to support his 2010 album 'Red Means Distortion', which yielded Astrix's 2011 highlights, including playing the tenth anniversary of Brazil's Tribe festival and a show at Privilege Ibiza. Shmailov also branched out into newer areas in 2011, planning an outlet for alternative musical output and embracing new visual media to keep the creative juices flowing: “I started editing my own HD videos and pictures, and it really feels like a new channel for my creative nature,” he says. “Also, I am planning to open a side project for other directions of electronic music in order not to confuse the hard psy-core fans.” But fear not, aforementioned fans, as Shmailov's other future plans, “working on my fourth album and making a new track with my buddies, Infected Mushroom”, look set to include a healthy dose of the full-on psy sounds that have earned him a place in the Top 100 yet again. TRISTAN PARKER
