Remo / The Softeaters, The Supply Team
Added on February 10th, 2005 (7577 views)
www.c64.com?type=3&id=164



Tell us something about yourself.
Sven Appel, 33, born in Neumuenster (where I still live) on 5th of April 1971. Today I'm a manager of system administration in an advertising agency. My favourite interests are Warhammer Fantasy Battle, PS2, DVD/cinema and everything that's funny.

What handle(s) did you use and how did you come up with it/them?
My handle was Remo and I got it from the 80's B-movie.

What group(s) were you in?
The Softeaters, The Supply Team (never quit) and Hurricane on the Amiga.

What roles have you fulfilled?
Coder, swapper, musician and some times an artist.

How long were you active for?
1986 to 1995.

Tell us about those years and how you got into the scene in the first place.
It was a great time! I got my C64 in 1985 and I just played games on it. After a while, I saw a lot of demos and I learned to code my own ones. I wrote a letter to TSN of The Supply Team in 1986 because I wanted to swap with him. At this time I was a poor lamer but TSN liked my personal letters. He sent me some hot stuff, my swap activities got very good and fast after that and I got contacts from all over the world. One summer me and the guys from The Softeaters visited the guys in TST and we started a really cool friendship. We stayed in Denmark for about five weeks! To be able to join TST, we had to make a demo so they could see if we were worthy to be a part of this cool team. We were, and so we joined TST.

Describe a typical day for you in front of the computer.
Moonlight, chips, cola and beer, a C64, a TV and an assembler. Some guys are sitting in one room. One or two are coding, and the rest are watching and talking all night long, giving some new ideas of how to build up new routines or effects. Today it's all about playing first person shooters. How boring.

Did you personally invent any special techniques or tools to make things easier for you?
Hmmm... It's really hard to remember, but I did some. I made an editor for recording sprite movements.

When you look at what you did back then, what are you most proud of?
That I was a member of The Supply Team and that I got tons of letters from all over the world. Every day I went from school to the post office and fetched up to 20 letters every day. It was great to have contacts in so many countries.

Who were your heroes on the scene and why?
Wizz and Kaze, better known as Wize, were and still are one of the best coders in the scene. They always had new ideas. I can also remember some demos from Ash & Dave. They rocked too!

What, for you, was the coolest thing ever invented on the C64?
A sideborder scroll was a great thing in the 80's. How to do it perfectly? Watch No Limits and New Limits from TST. :-)

Did you go to any copy-parties, meetings or tradeshows?
Yes, I guess I went to four or five parties. They were all different and all of them had their own charm.

In your opinion, what was the scene all about?
It was a lot of fun, a lot of cool guys, nice demo competitions, and a spirit that is hard to describe to someone that never was apart of it.

What were the particular highlights for you?
Ash & Dave's demos and all the demos from TST, but there's many demos and groups I can't remember. Man, I'm 33 years old! How am I supposed to remember? Ohhh… The music from Maniacs of Noise/Jeroen Tel, of course.

Any cool stories to share with us?
Hmmm... I remember a copy party where I asked TSN: "How do you do? Har du slugt en flue?" which means: "How do you do? Did you swallow a fly?" In the same moment I did just that! We still remember that day and we still laugh about it.

Are you still in contact with any old C64 people today?
I'm in contact with my old friends in Denmark, but not as much as we should. I hope that will change in the future.

When did you get your C64 and do you still have it lying around somewhere?
In 1985 and I don't have it still. I would like to have it back though because I made my own Speed-DOS PROM with a Remo start screen. Does anyone have my machine??? If yes, I'll buy it. ;-)

Was the C64 really as special as we like to think it was?
Yes! I've never had as fun as we had, and it was special because of the letters we wrote. Things were more personal than it is now.

When can we expect to see some new C64 output from you? :)
I guess never because I can't remember shit! LDA #$00, STA $D020, RTS.

Do you have a message for your old contacts and/or anyone reading this?
Hey guys, if you read this and remember me, just contact me! info@whfb.de.

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