Deep Play

“And when he came to the place where the wild things are they roared their terrible roars and gnashed their terrible teeth and rolled their terrible eyes and showed their terrible claws….”

“Till max said BE STILL and tamed them with the magic trick of staring into all their yellow eyes without blinking once and they were frightened and called him the most wild thing of all and made him king of all wild things”

Is this weekend really just about raging? If not, what other meaning could our attendance at shows have? Taken at surface value, it would be easy to accept that dance music culture exists as a diversion of frivolous fun. Many have made this argument in dance music literature. Yet, social scientists are very skeptical of anyone who says that any act which requires such a heavy investment of time, money, and energy is inconsequential to the larger ways they live their lives or make communities.

True to this point, Clifford Gertz coined the concept deep play to make sense of such events and actions that may seem to be unimportant at first glance, but in fact are essential to people and communities sense of identity and connectedness. One look to the religious devotion of fans associated with OSU athletics offers a perfect alternative case to see how this works in other places. I argue that when we go to shows together it is true that we are all there to have fun, but there is something much deeper at stake in our play. Discussing the deeper significance of Sendak’s “Where the Wild things Are” offers a way to understand what happens on these magical nights When we all come together.

Reading the above passage from Sendak’s famous Illustrated story, “Where the Wild Things Are” it is evident that lead character Max is confronted with terrifying demons on his journey (Interview). How often in our lives are we brow beaten by larger forces, people, or ideas that act as demons continually haunting our every step. Wild eyed and hungry, these demons push and prod us to stay in the box of what is socially acceptable.  They ROAR, terrorize, and trample on our dreams and hopes and tell us to be reasonable, responsible, and above all normal. Never receding into the distance, we carry these demons with us at all times.

You are probably asking yourself: what demons? Well, just think for a moment how difficult it is to take the less beaten path with your career, lifestyle, eating habits, fashion, who you love, etc etc.  For most of you, I do not need to explain much farther, because those very demons are the ones telling you to stay in line and not to deviate. They could be people. They could be institutions. They could be you.

How difficult it must have been for Max to stare those Demons in the eye without blinking and tell them they had no place in his life.  Are we able to stare at these demons in the face and become master of them? Maybe not alone, but when we get together for these shows we are able to look all those demons squarely in the eye without hesitation. For a few short hours, we have the courage as a community to do and be better than we ever knew was possible. This is the deeper significance I see in our shows. Sure, we say its about scene building and reppin’ our city. No doubt, its about artistic expression of all sorts as well. Underlying it all, these shows are a sign that we are still living and breathing human beings and we want to feel something. Its a shining beacon relying a simple message over and over to the rest of society: We refuse to be calmer, happier, more efficient, productive, and to settle for the cage of mediocrity. It is at this point that, like Max, we feel like the kings and queens of the world.  There is no doubt that others look on at us as Kings and Queens as they are envious of our ability to soak the true marrow out of life through our dancing, playing, and living free from the confines of the norm.

“Twenty years from now you will be more disappointed by the things that you didn’t do than by the ones you did do. So throw off the bowlines. Sail away from the safe harbor. Catch the trade winds in your sails. Explore. Dream. Discover.” — Mark Twain (via Ed Luna)

Luckily, you have three amazing opportunities to explore, dream, and discover with everyone else in your community. No doubt, it is vital to go to Where the Wild Things Rage at the Bluestone on Friday Night for three stages of all local talent, but also make sure to check out DOAP tomorrow night at Rumba Cafe to revel in all the glories the dark night can bring. Then end your weekend by checking out Juicy: Time to Get ill at Circus where scene mainstays Kevy Kev and Kingpin will curate a night of their favorites in dance music. Event Details for each show are available by clicking the link on the show name.

Searching Through the Darkness at the Newport this Friday

Dusk is starting to set in and high street is bustling as people move about Columbus’ main thoroughfare. The optimism and hope of the daytime is cast in shadow, and the creatures, thoughts, and sounds of the night begin to emerge from their hiding.  Streetlights and the marquee at the Newport Music Hall are the only discernible lights lending any illumination to the encroaching darkness. The marquee broadcasts the evenings dance music event: Kingpin, Dunjinz, Wazabi, Fat and Ugly, and roeVy: ONE NIGHT ONLY. This gentle electric glow offers those passing by a brief reprieve from the overwhelming darkness that surrounds them. The barely discernible humming from these fluorescent lights offers an omen, a promise of what is to come in the depths of the night just beyond those two weathered doors..

Inside the Newport, there is little noise and the house lights are set low. A stark juxtaposition to the active streetscape located just beyond the doors. Its truly the calm before the storm. That moment when an erie silence permeates the entirety of the venue. This will all change in a very short time once the sound system gets cranked up and the nights activities begin. There really is no telling what will become of the event goers when they come into this world. It truly is a separate universe crafted with a whole different set of values, imagery, sounds, and beliefs.

The nights host, two demons clad in all black, have a twisted consciousness and only wish to lay bare the roots of your reality through a careful curation of images and sounds taken from the depths of the inferno they call home. Are you prepared to confront these demons? Are you prepared to enter their world? Are you prepared to consider the game-like nature of your reality and see the endless cycles you caught up in?

Their truly is no resistance once you step through those doors. The searing red eyes stand poised to hypnotize you into compliance and take you down their rabbit hole. The mystery that surrounds such a confrontation is surely a worthy endeavor to emabark upon in Columbus on a Friday night. A glimpse into that universe is offered on roeVy’s Demons EP:

I entered their world earlier this week attempting to learn more of their agenda for the evening and how their efforts to bring their message to people around the country had been going. I brought an offering and they obliged me with an interview:

LA: This show comes on the heels of you all playing an increasing number of shows outside of Columbus. How has it been for you to begin to expand outside of Columbus?

R: The energy in the other cities we’ve played has been incredible and positive, it’s always great to get a sense of how our image translates to those who have only seen our promo videos. people have been going so hard and it is really great to see! Also, our setup has a lot of items to carry on the road which we thought would be problematic but all the out of town venues we’ve played at so far have been greatly helpful and accommodating to our needs.

LA: This will be your second headlining show at the Newport in as many months. What is it about the Newport, as a venue, that you really love? Is there something about that space that appeals to you?

R: The Newport is an amazing place to play with an incredible and talented staff. The size and depth of the stage allows for us to completely curate the look and we have not even peaked the potential of what can be done with the space there. We plan on consistently making the act more interactive and insane to look at while people are dancing.

LA: Obviously, your music endears you to an international audience of fans and musicians working within the confines of what is vaguely classified as Techno, House, and Electro. What were your thoughts behind bringing in artists from Germany like Wazabi & Fat & Ugly who were working on the same musical endeavors as you all?

R: Both Wazabi and Fat & Ugly are amazing producers and getting bigger and better every day. We’d played their stuff out long before we met them and they are now good friends of ours and amazing people. The more acts we can get on stage with us that wouldn’t normally be coming through the midwest the better. We are honored to play this show and have to hand it to Dunjinz, being the initial contact for hooking up with them.

LA: Do you have any goals for what your event will acheieve for our local dance music community?

R: It’s time to go hard with some dark banging techno.

LA: Do you have any surprises in store for us on the 30th?

R: You can count on tons of new material by us.

Yet, roeVy will not be alone this Friday. They have enlisted the assistance of their local and international allies Kingpin, Dunjinz, Wazabi, and Fat and Ugly. All waving the banger of aggressive confrontation to the mundanity of the established patterns of life, these artists wish to further roeVy’s agenda of challenging your conceptions of normal in their own unique ways. They have signed the official oaths of allegiance to these demons and will be coming at you with the full force of their artistic power.

Kingpin will begin the evening with his enticing and alluring sound that synthesizes sound from the entire spectrum of the musical universe to propel your feet into movement. I need to do little in the way of introducing this local musical force. He has proven himself time and time again to throw down amazing works of art every time he steps up to the decks. It is a true treat that we get to see him in his most exploratory in the opening spot. Some of my favorite sets I have seen him spin have been in these slots. Check out his Dance Bromance Mix from his disco house side project with Sybling Q called Disco Disco:

Dunjinz too really needs no introduction to local audiences. This guy is fresh off a classification smashing set at LeBoom 2.4 where he quickly taught everyone in the crowd not to try and pigeon hole him to one sound. I was left goose-bumped and wrecked from the diversity of sounds he explored. This performance friday proves to be no different, as he has the green light to go in ANY direction that he wants. What also makes this performance increasingly interesting is the first track called “Tuner” from his Silverwave Label has just been released and it is a wonderful artistic effort:

And thats not all,  German based artists Wazabi and Fat and Ugly that will grace the Newport stage for the first time and bring their distinctive blend of menacing music to the dance floor for all of you to enjoy. This is doubtless a special aspect of the show, as some of our scenes artists are forging connections all over the world and beginning to bring those artists here for us to see.

One listen to Wazabi’s tracks Shogun or Ripper and it is quite obvious that these guys are in a long running artistic conversation with the likes of roeVy and Dunjinz:

Shogun:

Ripper:

Fat & Ugly is no different. This guy creates and reworks tracks and sifts them through his artistic imagination to create hard, threatening tracks that stand pressed to compel you into movement. Take his track Elephant Attack for instance:

Luckily, I was able to catch up with him to ask him a few questions about his work and the show on friday:

LA: How did you get into dance music? Was there a track or show that started it all for you?
F&U: I always been a big hip hop fan, but the first time I heard tracks from artists like Justice, Alter Ego, Boys Noize or MSTRKRFT, I was really fascinated from all the energy that was going on in their tracks. If I had to choose one track that made me decide to produce electronic dance music I might choose Alter Ego – Rocker, but there are so many tracks I could mention.

LA: When did you start producing? What drove you to start creating your own sounds?
F&U: I bought a program called Music Maker for my Playstation One in 1997. It was a really shitty program but from that moment on I spended every free minute in making music. I started to buy more and more professional gear and tried to improve my sound. I think I mainly started producing music because I was bored of 90% of the music that I heard on the radio.

LA: What is you artistic approach to creating a new track or a remix?
F&U: I mostly make sounds when I’m in the studio, I just love to tweak the knobs and see what happens. When I finally made the sounds I like I usually finish a track within a couple of days.

LA: How would you describe your sound to those who have yet to hear your excellent Elephant Attack EP?
F&U: Thank you! I always try to give my tracks some extra madness while keeping them danceable at the same time. But it’s not easy to describe your own music in words.

LA:What do you have in store for us for your show at the Newport?
F&U: I got a lot of tracks coming up and I will play some of them for the first time during my tour in the US. So I’m very excited! First of all there are the new tracks from my upcoming EP, a collaboration track with TAI which is going to be released on Dim Mak Records and my new remixes for Acid Jack or Gosteffects. I’m really looking forward to the show in Newport. It’s going to be blast!

Gosteffects — Slave to Sweat (Fat and Ugly Remix)

Acid Jacks — The Sword (Fat and Ugly Remix)

No matter what brings you to the show Friday, we all will be searching for something in the darkness of the newport. Whether its a new idea, a new friend, or just a fun time, we will all be looking for an experience that will change our lives. This line up and these demons are the perfect guides through the world we know. Don’t fight their sounds or imagery. Embrace it and see where the rabbit hole ends.

Get there early to get immersed in the entire curated experience. Event Details Here

My Best Friends Party Presents LeBoom 2.3: Exploring the Nu School of Techno

Section 1.1: Exploring the Nu-School of Techno

Life is very cyclical. Events, like music scenes, seem to ebb and flow through periods of intense popularity and participation and periods of abeyance (A state of suspension; a holding pattern) with devoted, loyal underground following. As you all can tell from my recent discussions, our Columbus dance music scene is coming out of a period of abeyance and ampin’ up to a period of widescale participation and growth. Such an outward focus and movement to grow the scene has not been seen since the 90s in Columbus. We definitely have something percolating, but there are still strong links to the past.

The funny thing is I don’t even know if these links were explicit or intentional. For instance, I see a strong link between the strength of the techno movement in Columbus historically with the cats of ele_mental and the pushing of nu-techno today. Yet, were our contemporary guys listening to Titonton Duvante, FBK, Plural, Todd Sines,  or Archtyp? I just don’t know whether there was this explicit connection or not between the past and today. Regardless, the people of the past paved the way for the exploration of menacing, dark creative currents in Columbus dance floors. This Saturday we are carrying on that tradition when My Best Friends Party curates a fine selection of DJs to help us explore this nu-techno terrain at LeBoom 2.3 at Skully’s. Most notably, this promotion outfit has called on the talents of Italian heavyweights Blatta and Inesha to highlight the strengths of this newer approach to techno music.

Yet, it is not as if we are not familiar with the sounds of this new school of techno. Our scene is deeply interested in the developments and creation of this music. Dunjinz, roeVy, FUNERALS, Dirty Current, and countless others are all pushing the boundaries of what you can do with techno and other electronic music. Whether we are interested explicitly in the merging of electro and techno (as the nu-techno movement is), is not that primary matter. The integral fact to take away from this is that we too are pushing the boundaries of these sounds along with the interational heavyweights and people are starting to see that. When we all converge on Skully’s this weekend it will not be just to see a world renowned act like Blatta & Inesha. This is certainly one of the benefits of the show. Yet, no doubt it will also be possible to see our artists enter into a 5-6 hour musical conversation with one another and one of the leaders in the production and spinning of this musical genre. This is why I get so excited for this show, because I know artistically that it is something special. I know that it will also be a crazy party as well, but the art. Seriously, the musical exploration that will happen will be as artistic as any event you have seen.

Section 1.2: The Run Down

For those of you not familiar with the Blatta & Inesha or the other local cats on the bill, I got your run down right here.  All the Interview and streaming audio you need to wrap your head around this show and get you amp’d to throw down. I start with Blatta & Inesha who were kind enough to sit down and answer a few questions for me.

I. Blatta & Inesha

LA: How did each of you get into dance music when you were both working with different genres of music in the 90s?

B & I: I guess it was just the natural evolution of the music we were playing and making in the 90’s…we both have a strong funk background which in a way brought us to listen and produce new school breaks in early 2000, but also we already had Kraftwerk, Chemical Brothers and Prodigy in our music background, not to mention the early 90’s italian dance music…producers like Digital Boy and that early 90’s rave sound have always been a huge influence for us…
Even if i started as a hip hop dj and Blatta played in many different bands (from experimental jazz to noise rock) i like to think that it’s all part of one big picture…at the end of the day it has been and it’s still today all about the groove and the bass.

LA: How did you decide to collaborate together? Was it love at first sight? What was the story?

B & I: It was pretty random, when i bought my first sampler i was looking for some musicians to make some weird music with, which in my mind was a combination of all the genres i mentioned before and Dario and I immediately had a great musical feeling in the studio and we kept going…

LA: What were the elements of the techno and electro sound that inspired you to try and synthesize the two genres?

B & I: I think the idea is to bring a new drive and groove into the techno sound almost as it was in its early days before the minimal techno wave a few years back. Also when minimal techno came out we kinda liked elements of that sound or at least we were looking at it as an intelligent inspiration but it didn’t have enough “balls” to fit into our sets…so basically what we are trying to do today is to combine that awesome old school techno feeling, intelligent swing elements of minimal, “balls” of electro with B&I bassline and articulate beats.

LA: What do you hope to achieve by pushing the Techno Nouveau sound in your mix and production work?

B & I: Make ladies sweat and becoming billionaires! LOL

LA: What do you have in store for us at LeBoom 2.3? What can we expect from your set?

B & I: We are actually working on our album right now, so the next American tour will be a good testing field for our new tracks…For now in general we love to play our unreleased tunes and unknown joints from other producers in our set, we like to surprise the crowd and see the reaction to something that they might not know…i can’t stand when djs play 2 hours of hits, it’s pointless and anyone can do it, it’s a challenge to keep people dancing to your own creative productions and the story you are telling…it’s taking a risk instead of playing the “go to” standard hits that everyone has heard a million times.

This nu-techno sound is exemplified in their The Sound of Techno Nouveau Mix Tape:

Yet, there originals are so on point too. Take their preview of their track “Anatomy”:

Or their work on the Track “Senegal”:

No doubt, these titans of techno will rock the party.

II.The Locals

a. roeVy

I scarcely need to introduce these guys to my readers. Dark, exploratory music that will grip you from the first drop. Just listen to their Demons EP. It speaks for itself.

Demons EP

b. Dunjinz

Glitchy, innovative approach to what can broadly be conceived as techno. Guy Is poppin’ off with remix and original releases. Check these Tracks for an introduction:

First, his works in progress, which really highlight where his sound is going:

Now, his tracks Anowara and Albion just for a little taste of what he has released in the past:

He is even starting a record label called Silver Wave, so go like his facebook page for this new project for all the up-to-date details.

c. Attak & Carma

The lead men behind My Best Friends Party would leave their event with something missing if they did not lay down their catastrophic skills on the LeBoom 2.3 crowd. No doubt, they have been leave Columbus dance floors in sweat and shambles for some time now. Saturday will be no different.

Check this mix work out if you don’t believe me:

Attak’s mix with his Project Dub Terrorists-Future Mayhem

Carma’s “Down For Whatever Mix”

d. NetworkEDM

Now, these guys are gonna come at you with some tech house. This is a set not to be missed. For real, when these two lay down a tech house set you best be there to here it. This DJ duo has definitely been on the rise for some time and stands pressed to lay down something special for us saturday.

Don’t believe me? Check out this exclusive mixtape these Push Productions crew members made for me:

Section 1.3 Event Details

If this didn’t get you excited for the event then nothing short of a video from Mike Harmon Ent. from the 1 year anniversary show of LeBoom! may be able to induce excitement.

Now you are definitely coming. I know you are. I can see you texting, tweeting, tumblr, facebooking your friends now. Well, I am glad I could help you make your decisions. Here are the vitals:

Where: Skully’s (Short North, CBUS)
When: 9pm-2am

Click here for more details or to RSVP on Facebook 

Do you like what I am doing? Do you want to collaborate or talk about Columbus Dance Music? Let me know by going over to my Local Autonomy Facebook Page and letting me know or Like my page. You could also follow me on Twitter.

A Special Wednesday Night Thump With Marty Party

Thump has gradually become one of the best weeklies in town by bringing out the dance music elite for Wednesday night throw downs. Usually an all local affair, Thump has provided a showcase of the finest dance music DJs this town has to offer and facilitates the continual evolution of our city’s scene by offering a venue to experiment and play with the hottest tracks. This Wednesday we open up our doors to NYC DJ Marty Party to bring his unique blend of Purple Music right to our front door (Event Details HERE). You may say: What is this Purple Music? Well, just imagine blending the frantic nature of bass music both past and present with smooth, melodic progressive build ups of R & B and hip-hop and you have a scintillating combination that is sure to set the night off right.  Just check out a few of the tracks from his recently released Six Shots of Jameson Album:

“We Don’t Give A Damn”

“Lookin’ For Trouble”

“We Can Work It Out”

After listening to these three tracks from the Six Shots of Jameson Album, new meaning is given to this quote Marty Party used to describe his tracks: “My mission is to change the way people think about electronic music and to bring the art of musical composition back into popular music.” No doubt, the elements of composition he brings to these tracks are bound to set the Circus show off just right for ya’ll.

If That wasn’t enough, check out this short, exclusive interview Marty Party did with yours truly so that everyone at Circus can understand what Marty Party is bringing Wednesday.

LA: How did you get into dance music and get involved with production/DJ’in? Was their a track or show where it all click for you and you knew you had to pursue music?

MP: I left the corporate world and went surfing in Costa Rica for 2 years in 2005 – I needed something intellectual to learn on the side and I took Ableton Live down with me. Once I learned the tool and the art of audio synthesis I became obsessed with the origins of the sounds and beat syncopations I had heard my whole life – I just got deeper and deeper into the game from that day on. Once I reached this level of understanding I decided to make my own sound and continue to work on sounding totally unique, by avoiding the sounds and timings that are so recycled in popular music. The result was a sort of pattern or algorithm for creating what I call “purple” music. Once I had a batch of songs I had to play them for people so I learned how to DJ so I could play my music. I started DJing my own music in 2006 and the rest is history as they say. I guess it clicked in 2005 when I felt the emotion of creating your own song, with like a story, has a introduction, tension, release, and conclusion, and can be played on repeat without getting old. Timeless electronic music is my goal.

LA: You speak of letting your bass lines/ drops speak for you. What types of stories or messages are you trying to rely with your tracks?

MP: I don’t have a singing voice at all so I can’t sing for sh&*&(^. So I have to use another “voice” to express the lead melody. Bass synthesis exploded in recent years and coming out of dubstep and D&B we have learned to modulate and synthesize very organic mid-basses. These can sit in the traditional “vocal” freq band or cross all freq’s to express melodies in ways never possible before. That is what I do – I sing with bass. The tones and timbres of the basses are critical to the intention of the song. It all starts with an intention – what kind of story are you telling? – I tend to tell positive stories with uplifting intention. I stay away from dark stories – but that doesn’t mean I’m not loud 🙂

LA: Do you have reoccurring themes that seem to emerge across your songs? What are they?

MP: My musical grounding is in hip hop – just from being a fan for life – so I tend to seek hip hop feel in my themes, I guess that’s really R&B, Blues and minor chords. But overall I have no consistent theme – it always goes somewhere fresh.

LA: I love the synthesis of styles in your Purple sound. When did you find the natural connections between dubstep, hip hop, and progressive dance music? Was there an Ah ha moment?

MP: Thanks! Yes you can see I love synthesis – and blending soundscapes like paint on a canvas – I took the singing bass tones from dubstep – the drum sounds and chord progressions of hip hop and R&B and made a new progressive music I call Purple. There were several aha moments back in the beginning and I still use the good old formula – if I jump around the studio – its a winner.

LA: Columbus is definitely ready for you. We got a thriving underground that was callin’ out your name specifically to come and play. What should we expect from your set? You got any surprises in store for us?

MP: My live sets are just as unique as my production – I don’t follow any traditional DJ paths – my Ableton set structure is very unique in that it is one evolving set since day 1. I don’t pre-prepare any sequence of songs, but rather pick and choose on the fly, layering in acapellas and sound effects through a 4 channel setup I control with the TriggerFinger. I also use filters to mix, not channel faders or gains, this gives my transitions that flawless and controlled sound and lets me mix 4 signals at once without overpowering any one freq. Its like cooking. I have all the ingredients, spices and tools right there on my laptop and just pick one and run from there. Every set is totally unique.
I’ll be obviously playing a lot of my latest release material – Six Shots Of Jameson – my new LP I wrote last year came out January 30th and Ill play tunes from that release, my new remixes, old and new Sub On tunes, new PANTyRAiD material and some special DJ only whips I have in my back pocket. All mixed together with crazy sound effects and crunky vocal hooks. Its just one nonstop party.

If that doesn’t get you hyped then lets take a look at who else is playing. Attak & Carma, Magua, Rocketnerd, & Egotronic all on the sam stage before Marty Party even starts. Comon, this is insane. Its really not fair. There is gonna be some beautiful mixture of styles. Let’s do a little run down to see what our Local cats are gonna be throwing at you.

Attak & Carma

The consummate professionals at the decks, Attak & Carma have been one of the key cornerstones in our scenes resurgence with their next level promotion crew My Best Friends Party. They are always pushing the envelope and bringing in acts that continue to up the profile of our scene and the diversity of our musical inspiration. One look to their recent project to merge electronic and jamband music in one artist curation is a testament to their forward thinking ethos.

“Im Down For Whatever”

Magua
This man needs little introduction. He is everywhere; An omnipresent bass and synth force from a another based galaxy sent here to rock parties and push Columbus to the next level. One look to his extensive catalogue of mixes and production work shows the grizzled determination Magua has to set this shit off right. Just take a listen to some of this recent work:

“Wiz Khalifa & TC – Gangbang x Where’s My Money (Magua Mashup)”

“Winter Babymaking Jamz”

Rocketnerd
Rocketnerd is the sage force bringing you the best in fidget and every genre he can weave into his elaborate soundscapes. Playing North, South, East, and West, this man’s sets resound with technical skill as the four winds carry word of his expertise to all corners of the city. Do you really Doubt THE ROCKETNERD? HOW DARE YOU! Listen to his battlemix. DO you dare Battle him? Surely, you will be destroyed.

“Battlemix II”

“Burner”

“Late”

Egotronic
This masked man comes with many suprises. Wednesday will be no different. Eschewing his love for the genre of Trash for one night, Egotronic goes back to his roots to explore the capabilities of electro. You wonder what you can expect? Well, I have been assured by Egotronic himself that his set is gonna bring emphatic energy that will shake circus to the core. He plans to play tracks along this vein:

“Spencer & Hill – Say What (Revolvr Remix)”

“Tommy Trash – Sex, Drugs, Rock n Roll”

If this doesn’t get you ready for the Thump on Wednesday I really don’t know what will. I best see you out there supporting our local people as well as Marty Party. This is surely going to be a night to remember! EVENT DETAILS HERE!!

Pull Artist Showcase: Nameless & Gl!tch

You curious about how Push Productions is gonna represent the Drum and Bass, Drumstep, and Dubstep at their showcase next tuesday at Woodlands Tavern. Not to worry, the crew rolls deep with the bass. Nameless and Gl!tch are sure hold up their end of the bargain when it comes to bass, but they also got sKewn and Hawstyle to hold down the genre too. You know Nameless and Gl!tch are bound to rinse Woodlands Tavern clean with their bass experimentation next tuesday at PULL. If you don’t believe me check this mix Nameless put out a couple months ago called “Roughstep”:

Now if that doesn’t get you hyped then how about we change it up with this dubstep mix from Gl!tch. You can expect nothing but the best in past, present, and future bass music from Gl!tch and this mix attests to that.

Ok, now lets get to the interview material to give you a deeper appreciation for these artists views. Nameless is up first:

LA: What does it mean to you to be part of Push Productions?

Name: I dont think to much on being part on a production label. Push is like a family. I dont know every one on the Push crew but the ones I do are close to me. Peers that I can bounce things off of or just have a good laugh. People I enjoy seeing every week. To me that is more important. To me that is what make bring part of this so great.

LA: Why do you think its important to get your whole crew together for a show?
Name: Important? No. Necessary? Yes!!! Hell yes!!! There has got to be more then 80 to 100 years of experience there. Not doing this would be like telling a firecracker not to pop. There are some heavy hitters in this squad. The experience alone is enough reason to make this important. Also a great chance to have all individual fans come together and meet. To me that is the most important thing. Making it a Push Productions crowd instead of a Nameless crowd or a Hawstyle crowd. Putting them all together. Brooding our fan base. Expanding beyond individual Dj’s and Genres.

LA: What do you think this show means for the Columbus dance music scene?
Name: Columbus’s dance scene is growing bigger and bigger every year. I ve been in the EDM scene for 10+ and seeing the way Columbus has expanded is amazing to me. There is more and more room for all artist and production companies to come forth and have there time to make a statement. This is ours. Another chance to make a make and showcase the talent of Push Productions.

LA: What can we expect from your set? What are you gonna bring at us?
Name: I plan on doing what I always do. Make a full blown energetic masterpiece of Dubstep, Drumstep and DNB!!!!! Get some!!!

Now lets get to Gl!tch:

LA: What does it mean to you to be part of Push Productions?

Gl!tch: Being a part of Push Productions provides an opportunity to collaborate creatively with a talented and well established group of columbus dj’s. We are all EDM enthusiasts but each of us has a unique style. We can feed off of eachother’s energy.

LA: Why do you think its important to get your whole crew together for a show?

Gl!tch: Its important for the crew to get together and do a show because over the past year or so we have all been pushing our sounds in many different directions. I’m excited for all of us to pull it back together and play under one roof and show EDM fans what we are all about.

LA: What do you think this show means for the Columbus dance music scene?

Gl!tch: This show is one for the real fans in Columbus. People who appreciate the full spectrum of electronic music.

LA: What can we expect from your set? What are you gonna bring at us?

Gl!tch: I can’t spoil the surprise….thats another way of saying I don’t know. Ill wait and try to read the crowd. If people are gettin down to a particular sound I usually try to make a smooth transition before I move into the tracks that I am itching to play. That being said I’ve been feelin Rido tracks a lot lately, and I’ll try to fit in a few tunes from my friends who are churning out quality tracks.

You Ready? You better me. Now I know I am trying to lock you down early, but this is what we gotta do in this day and age. Head on over to the Facebook Event Page HERE and RSVP now. See you in a week.

Pull Artist Showcase: Rocketnerd

You know I love to give you in-depth coverage for shows that are a little bit different than our normal weeklies or monthlies. This is not to say such shows aren’t important. Quite the contrary, a quick look to the success of monthlies and weeklies put on by MBFP, Push, Ohio Stand Up, Run 614, Quality, Sweatin’, Winter Sun, Fresh Beet, and numerous other crews shows how important these recurrent shows are for scene building.  But when a special show is thrown down, a little bit more attention to its aims and the artists behind it is warranted. Giving this nuanced coverage Is just something I enjoy, because I don’t like to leave things at surface level. I like to give you the dish on what the artists think about the show and how it is a special contribution to our community. Each show highlights something special, as all the people involved in our community are not content to just rehash the past. Its just too bad I couldn’t do this for all our shows we put on in town. Its certainly something I would enjoy to do a lot.

For the next week, I will be providing you with interviews, exclusive mixes, and my continuing historical project to give you an in-depth look at some of the members of the Push Productions crew. I do this because they have their first all push showcase called PULL on Tuesday, 2/21 at 9:00pm at Woodlands Tavern In Grandview. My hope is that you understand Push in a richer fashion and realize the natural connections this crew has with all the other crews in town in their common goal to get to the next level as a music scene. I also hope my contribution to the show will get you excited to explore new artists, new venues, and new areas of the city and what that has to offer us as a scene.

Today, I highlight the work of Rocketnerd aka Arthur Brehm. He is a guy who really needs little introduction, because he plays shows all over town and is the president of Ohio State’s Electronic Music Club. I hold a lot of respect for Arthur not just because of his willingness to help guide a new generation of music produces and DJs through the tumultuous first periods of artistic discovery, but also because his mix and original work is on point. Just take a listen to this new track called “Burner” he just up’d on soundcloud:

This track is just one example of how he plays with the melding of different genres to see what he comes out with.  If there is one thing for sure with Rocketnerd its that he is going to go outside the confines of the classification systems you have erected in your ear lobes. Take this drum and bass track called “Late” he created within the last month:

This is not your typical sounding drum and bass track. It deviates in key ways giving it a much more melodic feel, but that frenetic bass is still just setting the agenda the whole way through the track. Want to know what he sounds like in the mix? Are you sure you are ready? Well, here is a recording from the October 8th, 2011 Juicy show to sink your teeth into until the tuesday after next:

Ok, if that music didn’t get you amp’d take a look at this short interview I did with Arthur to get at some insight into what he is thinking about the show and what it means to him to be part of the Push Crew:

LA: What does it mean to you to be part of Push Productions?
RN: To be on Push is a huge honor for me. When Toby snapped me up I was kind of struggling to find a place in the greater scheme of the music scene in Columbus, and I was just settling into my sound. I’d played a few bigger shows like Juicy and I was on the bill with DJ Benzi with My Best Friend’s Party in September 2010, but I felt like I wasn’t getting much back from performing. When Toby contacted me, it was recognition. It meant a lot for me as a performer, especially someone who’s kind of new-school and digital to be recognized and appreciated as an artist by someone who’d been doing it for forever, and has such name recognition. Being on Push has given me a lot of opportunities to meet people and get my name out there. Getting a chance to shake DJ Godfather’s at our SCENE show was really awesome.

LA: Why do you think its important to get your whole crew together for a show?
RN: Getting the whole crew together for one big show is something we’ve wanted to do for a while. We had basically everyone out for SCENE, but there were problems with the venue and a bunch of us didn’t get to play, and that was shitty. It’s really important that we get a chance to share everything that we have to offer as a crew, since we all have people that we bring out that the other crew guys don’t. This way, my pull helps Ginsu’s pull, and NetworkEDM’s and everyone else’s, and their draw helps mine. It’ll also be awesome to party with the whole crew! Some of these guys I don’t see so often. I think we’re all going to get a whole lot of exposure.

LA: What do you think this show means for the Columbus dance music scene?
RN: This is a golden opportunity for the club kids to come out and see what we can do. The Push brand carries a crazy amount of variety. There really is something here for everyone. The foundation of our crew and our mission is house, of course, but we love it all, and you can really see that in the acts that we represent. You’re going to hear Electro, Tech, Fidget, Deep and Jackin’ House, Drum & Bass, Dubstep, Techno, Hip-Hop, Breaks, Jungle and basically everything else you could think of. Everybody is going to love something and probably learn a lot from this show. You couldn’t ask for a better bunch of people to bring you something new.

LA: What can we expect from your set? What are you gonna bring at us?
RN: Like Ororo says, I’m gonna “keep it funky.” Fidget House is my bread and butter, and it’s really hyped up, fun, bouncy music that’s great for getting people off the wall. I’ve also been experimenting with Moombahton and other genres around 110 beats per minute, so you can expect to hear some of that, especially my originals. I also like to end on a track that matches the genre of whoever’s playing after me, so depending on the lineup, you might hear some Drum & Bass or Dubstep or whatever else. Gonna be real fun, gonna be real funky!

Now I know I am trying to lock you down early, but this is what we gotta do in this day and age. Head on over to the Facebook Event Page HERE and RSVP now. You best believe I am gonna be their at 8:57pm on tuesday february 21st at Woodlands Tavern stretching out and getting ready for all the mayhem.

What Are You Doing Tonight? MBFP Valentines Pajama Party? That’s What I Thought.

For real, If you are not in the building for this show then I really just don’t know what to say to you. There is gonna be some serious bass experimentation going on as Burgle, Heady Ruxpin, Nameless, Magua, Carma & Attak are all gonna  switch up sets the whole night. Not sure what this means? Well let me help you out.. it means utter bass chaos. It means a fractured, ever-changing sonic landscape where these bass heads will change up tempo, rhythm, and intensity faster than you can ever percieve the changes. Its all going down at the home base at Circus tonight at 9pm and runs till 2:30. Event Details HERE.

You curious what directions musically things may go? Well, expect massive deviations throughout the wide gamut of drum and bass, dubstep, juke, footwork, and maybe even some jungle as all the DJs present are well versed and wanting to change up the tenor and tempo of their track selections throughout the night. You may get one of magua’s syrupy hip-hop/dubstep mash ups, or one of Burgle’s trademark Juke throw downs. Expect the best selections in hard hitting dubstep from Heady Ruxpin, Carma, & Attak and continual bass change ups from Nameless. All in all, this event will radically reshape your idea of where bass music can go and show you the typical fun that can be had at a My Best Friends Party Show.

Need More Convincing? Listen to these tracks/mixes that highlight each artists sound to get you stoked for tonight

Magua:

“Winter Babymaking Jamz” — Magua

Wiz Khalifa & TC – Gangbang x Where’s My Money (Magua Mashup)

Burgle:

Eprom–Twerkul8 (Burgle Rework)

“Drug Dealin'” — Burgle (original)

Carma & Attak:

“Down For Whatever Mix” — Carma

“Future Mayhem” — Attak w/ the Dub Terrorists

Leboom 2.1: No External Validation Required

The more I learn about Columbus dance music history the more I learn that it is the people devoted to the music and building the community that actually get things done. When we needed to build a scene again in the early 2000’s who did it? Individuals and groups of people left their underground house parties and took to some clubs. It wasn’t that they sought the legitimacy of the clubs as some statement for the viability of the music. Quite differently, it was just a move that had to be done at the time to keep the parties going. The lesson I cull from this integral moment in Columbus dance music history is that we don’t need any external validation. We don’t need big clubs or big press. We just need each other, some speakers, and a room. Our scene was built on crafting innovative events that coupled the best in local talent with some of the best acts from around the world. It was built on creating our own media apparatus with radio, blogs, and press. It was built on not giving a fuck what the rest of town or the world thought and holding down our city.

With this second year of LeBoom, we are pushing the boundaries and looking to continue our rise to the top of the dance music world. This show curated by My Best Friends Party is a testament to our collective attitude and our desire to continue to take that next step, and the line up shows that with the best in local and international talent on one stage. My only hope is that we aren’t just happy to be on stage with autoerotique, but that we try to show our neighbors from Up North what we are all about. Let me give you some highlights with what you are bought to witness, because its gonna pop off tonight with some dubstep, moombah, & new school techno. My hope is that you show up early and fill that dancefloor for all the artists at work. Its the ultimate sign of scene commitment and respect. Here’s the run down to preview tonight:

Kingpin

He’s gonna give you his same genre defying set that sets the dancefloor on fire. Word on the street is that he is really gonna focus on Moombah and dubstep to give you the perfect start to your evening and get you warmed up just right. His Moombah/dub styles are on full display in this mix he just created within the last month. Check it:
“Return of the Stache Jackson”

And You know there is a strong possibility he is going to play his Moombahtechno edit of Gesaffelstein’s “OPR”

ATTAK & CARMA

If Kingpin doesn’t draw you in early then these two scene heavyweights are bound to get you to Skully’s right when the doors open. The sets they have been throwing down of late individually and collectively have been absolutely bonkers. I can’t even tell you the insanity that happens when these to dub aficionados get at the helm. If you don’t believe me then listen to this mix from Thump this past week when Carma Shook Circus to its core foundation. You add a little bit of that ATTAK into the mix and it makes for explosive combination. TNT doesn’t even come close to this duo.

“Down For Whatever”

Dunjinz

You curious what happens when a guy has been DOING WORK and blowing up production-wise and then is unleashed on a crowd for the first time in over two months? UHH, I am. If you have been asleep or away for a minute then you haven’t seen Dunjinz blowing up over the past couple months. Dude’s production game is AIR TIGHT and now he gets a chance to play all these choice tracks he has been creating in his beat laboratory. With support from almost the entirety of the new school of techno in europe, this guy has knocked out track after track after track. Here’s just a few he has laid down in the last few months:

Roby Howler & Teenage Mutants feat. Sunko – Qerto Lonty (Dunjinz Remix)

roeVy — “Raum” (Dunjinz remix)

Volta – Keyboard 47 (Dunjinz Remix)

You curious about how he sounds in the mix, well you’re in luck. The guy comes correct on his exclusive mix for Local Autonomy:

Our Scene | Our City | Our Sound Mix

roeVy

Do I really need to introduce these titans of Columbus dark, driving techno/ electro house sound? If you don’t know them yet, then you should check out this video of what happens when they play live done by one of our favorite videographers Mike Harmon:

Bedlam, chaos, & mayhem are the only results to a roeVy set in skully’s. If that video doesn’t convince you check out their  “Demons EP”, which features four heart stopping originals:

Like Dunjinz, roeVy have been supported widely all over the globe and have helped put our scenes creativity and strength on display for the entire world to see. EVERY show they play proves this point over and over again. Tonight will be no different.

Autoerotique

Though I am pretty high on our local scene, these two toronto based DJs certainly have my respect. Coming off their seminal EPs “The Gladiator” & “The Freak” these DJ duo has not slowed down. They have only picked up the speed and intensity of their tracks and work ethic. This has made them one of the hottest and most sought after DJ acts in the world. They are sure to set Skully’s on fire after 1 am. Check these classic autoerotique tracks to get a taste for what they will play tonight:

Turn Up The Volume

Gladiator (Excuse the video, Some Clowns don’t get Youtube)

If this run down didn’t get you pumped I don’t know what will. At this moment, I am fist pumping and moshing around by myself in a coffee shop somewhere in Columbus. People are staring, but I really don’t care because I got the beats flowing into my headphones. You best be doing the same tonight. You need more details? I got you. Just click on the event poster above! Remember get their early and support all the artists.

What Next Ohio Music Showcase Tonight: FUNERALS

ITS TIME!!! Tonight is the show! Get hyped. I know I am. Need details? head over to the event page HERE to see the set times, line up, and admission details.

I end this special week of coverage with one of the darlings of the highly respected and innovative Tundra Dubs label out of California, FUNERALS are an act that need little introduction to many people throughout our city. In case, you don’t know these two musical juggernauts let me get you caught up. Funerals have been destroying everything in sight with every new release that comes out. Wielding the powers of a dark, driving sound that gives innovative new directions to the genre-blasting of the Witch House and various other dance music genre, Funerals characteristic sound is captured in their seminal release Marae. Luckily, we not only have the streaming audio, but a video to go with it.

FUNERALS – MARAE from FUNERALS FUNERALS on Vimeo.

Equal parts mysterious and disorienting, this video like the FUNERALS sound is meant to be evocative of the experience one gets as they enter the unknown locales of dark places all over the world. Beyond this, what I love about FUNERALS is their versatility. They are not bound to any one idea of what their sound is. This will become readily evident when you read the interview below, but there is always a different tenor to every release or mix they produce. Case in point take these two different mixes created within the last month.

Exhibit 1: FUNERALS Wander Drift Mix made for Vice Italy

Exhibit 2: FUNERALS This Blinding Place Mix for Textbeak
http://official.fm/tracks/335003?size=standard

What do you notice in these two mixes? For one, each mix displays FUNERALS uncanny ability to hold a steady rhythm through out a set. Yet, more importantly it shows FUNERALS infectious music curiosity. They are never the same duo in any release. They are always evolving and transforming their sound in new directions. This is one of the big reasons why I love this group so much is that they always fall down in a different place on the continuum between their two sonic identities. Equal parts experimental and Rhythm centric, FUNERALS will always please you if you take the time to soak in their sound. Now if you are at all curious what has been coming out of their studio of late, check out this most recent remix of Lemme Ashton’s track “GETDOWNORDIE”.

If this track is an indication of the amazing work that will be revealed at the Newport then you would be a fool to miss FUNERALS Set. With more on their dual musical identity, the changes in their sound, and what they have in store for us read this incredibly illuminating interview below with Mollie & Casey:

LA: If someone who has never heard you spin, how would you describe your sound?

CASEY: Our DJ sets are a pretty solid amalgam of/war between our individual tastes in electronic music. Mollie brings a lot of faster, more sinister, tribal influenced stuff. Lots of Night Slugs type sounds, and a lot of fairly dramatic shifts and jumps. I bring in a lot more elongated minimal techno with longer builds. More Kompakt and B-Pitch Control type tracks. I think together in DJ sets that results in a pretty nice mix where the energy of sets goes between frenetic moments and deeper plateaus of rhythm and atmospherics. The two set each other up nicely. With our own productions and live sets, our tastes obviously are a lot more fused and the tracks contain a lot of elements of both sides of that equation. We’ve somewhat tongue in cheek taken to the term “midnight techno” (obviously a bit of a misnomer anyway since midnight is insanely early by techno standards, but people seem to naturally take it really to mean “6am afterparty techno”), but it does get something across. Our interest I think is in sounds that evoke the end of a long night where you’re completely immersed in a totally separate environment. We never want our music to sound like a completely definable place. We like the idea that you could be in Berlin or Kolkata or Columbus or Beruit and have the sounds fit in but seem outside of the place at the same time. We’re really inspired by travel and geography, and there’s a lot of room to mine that outside of the awkward Goa Trance and Putumayo fusion shit that it can often be.

MOLLIE: Yeah, talking about world music gets tricky, ‘cause it takes you automatically to this new-agey, NPR Echoes place, but I think we consider ourselves world-influenced in the sense that we gravitate toward sounds that feel inspired by place rather than person or thing. You know what I mean? With both DJ sets/mixes and our own productions, we’ve always been more concerned about creating an environment than, like, an event. I mean, sure, we like to bring a crowd to the brink, build and drop and compel people to dance, but ultimately we’ve always wanted the audience to come away from our stuff feeling like they’ve been somewhere else for awhile, dance event or no. 

We did this mix for Vice Italy not long ago, and a really bad Google translation of the write-up said something about AFTERPARTY ABSOLUTE LORDS. We’ve taken to using that, kinda jokingly along with midnight techno, because we almost inadvertently create the stuff you hear when you’ve already been dancing all night, you’re sort of fucked up and sweaty and really prone to being swept up in some exotic environment that lives totally inside your head. I don’t know, or maybe that’s just what happens to me.

LA: What does being a part of the Ohio Electronic Music scene mean to you?

CASEY: Ohio has a long history in terms of Electronic Dance Music. Back in the 90s it was a pretty major regional center, especially with rave culture. And a lot of folks in Columbus, from Todd Sines to Ed Luna and the ele_mental crew did an amazing job of really not just making Ohio stand on equal footing with other places, but making it a really vital part of the overall scene. At some point, it felt like a lot of that dried up, and in the past few years (despite there definitely having been people doing great stuff and trying to keep things alive) it seemed like it was tough to get past the Trance/Big Room or Tech House stuff that catered heavily to crowds of frat kids. The past few years, through pretty intense efforts by a lot of DJs, producers, promoters, and fans, we’ve started to see things really get back to the point where Ohio has a real voice again. Just a few years ago I couldn’t imagine a context where I could spin Pantha Du Prince or Fairmont without completely clearing a dance floor. But now it seems like people are more interested in a wider range of dance music, even where tastes don’t necessarily overlap, and there’s a level of support that really makes things exciting. It’s easy to get cynical and complacent when you feel like you’re playing entirely to yourself, but when other people are doing amazing things, and going out of their way to encourage each other, it not only pushes you to do better and better things, but it also just makes everything a hell of a lot more fun.

LA: What do you think about the What Next Ohio Music Showcase?

MOLLIE: It’s amazing and totally necessary. Like Casey said, Columbus has always had this strong tie to electronic music of all sorts. Whether we choose to acknowledge it, or even notice it, it’s a deep cultural root of the city. I mean, culture as a whole always circles back to dance music as an escape, but it’s an especially prominent swing in Columbus, you just watch it happen over and over again. So to finally have an event that showcases what we are, who we have, how these disparate genres are overlapping into a state-wide identity…it’s just really fucking exciting. Like, I could argue that we don’t have much in common with Cassius Slay in terms of sound, or Shin Tower Music for that matter, but we feel connected to them in a really tangible way. It’s just Ohio blood. We all protect, respect, promote and adore our own, and I think it’ll always be that way by virtue of where we’ve come from. And it’s awesome that we all get to stand on a stage together and show this shit off. 

Plus, any excuse to do something else with Scotty Niemet, you know? He’s such a force in Columbus and has been for so many years, be it hardcore or dance or whatever, and I feel like to some degree he’s the glue that holds a lot of us together. Casey and I both come from the hardcore scene to some degree, him more than me, but Scotty was at the fore of stuff that both of our old bands were doing. We had More Than Music. Now we have this. We just love him too much. 

LA: What kinda set are you gonna play? Do you have any surprises in store for the crowd?

MOLLIE: Well, I think the very fact that we’re playing is sort of a surprise, ha! We haven’t been doing live events recently; we’re like the hermit Columbus duo who pops out of hiding every six months. So this set is sort of a new day for us. We’re doing mostly new material, modified live, stuff that’s almost 100% unheard and won’t be released for another several months. No one’s really heard a chunk of our original stuff since the MARAE release in April and we’ve really expanded since then, just dove into this new creative identity almost, so this is a major preview of what’s to come. It’s also our chance to test some things out, see how the ideas play. And we might throw some of our favorite tracks by other artists in there too…god knows I can’t get away from my beloved Night Slugs and Fade to Mind, so it almost wouldn’t be me if I didn’t sneak that in there somewhere. But no promises, Casey might cut me off at the pass. Like he said earlier, it’s totally the amalgam of/war between our personal affinities, so you can almost hear us metaphorically bitch-slapping each other when it comes to influences. That’s what makes it fun!

Want more FUNERALS, well you have a cornicopia of options. You can check out their Website, their FACEBOOK, or their SOUNDCLOUD for updates on everything FUNERALS!

One Day Until What Next Ohio: Hot Mess

“Welcome to the Resistance”

Remember this Hot Mess mix? I sure do. It defines my entry into the Columbus electronic music scene, and is emblematic of the rise of a whole new generation of fans quickly learning different variants of Columbus dance music through parties at Fort Rapids and all over the city. One year later and we sit one day away from the first annual Ohio music showcase.This is a perfect time for me to wax poetic and start thinking about what tomorrow means. This is more than just another show, as I have said before. This is our next step. What are we going to do in the next year or five years that will be remembered when we are long gone. This means we need to continue to push the envelope with our music, events, & coverage so that the rest of the country knows how we do. We all believe in our scene and our capacity to make Columbus great, its time for us to let everyone else know it. This event is a testament to these ideas and goals, as the interwebs are alive with Buckeye envy as one person called it. That is right people are jealous they don’t get to be in our scene.

While this event is pushing the envelope, Hot Mess is boldly taking the next step in their career. They have a new ep coming out on Heavy Artillery Records on January 31st. Coming correct with a an  preview for all of us, Hot Mess’s No Requests EP displays the maturation of these artists unique contribution to the genre of dubstep. An artistic achievement of this type is the product of many hours in the studio and in careful listening to the sounds around them. I hear many of the common influences those led by bass driven sounds often cite, but Hot Mess offers a new synthesis of the dub sound that is sure to set the dance floors of the Newport on fire. I for one am definitely going to pick up their ep the minute it comes out.

No Requests EP Sampler

I would also be a complete fool if I didn’t also give you the chance to hear their remix of Childish Gambino’s “You See Me”. This track is huge, and is available for free download on their soundcloud, or right below on my stream I offer for you.

“You See Me” (Hot Mess Remix)

Check these stats: Over 10,000 streams and 1400 downloads on this track on their soundcloud alone. Thats not even counting the 100 times I have played this track since they released it. Now thats impressive. If all this information didn’t get you hyped for their set, then how about some exclusive interview responses from Corey & Keith?

LA: If someone who has never heard you spin, how would you describe your sound?
Keith: A party, everyone’s invited!
Corey: The guilty pleasure of music…

LA: What does being apart of the Ohio Electronic Music scene mean to you?
Corey: It means a lot. I have been apart of this for longer than I’d like to admit, haha… To still be apart of it, throughout the evolution, is truly an honor.
Keith: It means Im from Ohio and I love making edm, always nice to see the scene become more and more receptive.

LA: What do you think about the What Next Ohio Music Showcase?
Keith: It’s gonna be a great night, good exposure for a lot of great Columbus artists at a great venue.
Corey: I think it’s going to be a proper showcase of what this city, and state, have to offer. In my opinion, there is no better place to hold this event than at the staple music venue of Columbus, Ohio… The Newport.

LA: What kinda set are you gonna play? Do you have any surprises in store for the crowd?
Corey: A beautiful, massacre of music. Every set is a surprise, even to us.
Keith: With the name Hot Mess, I always intend to lead by example, expect nothing less. And of course, we’re always full of surprises.

You liken yourself a hot mess or just need more affinity to these two CBUS Bassheads like them on FACEBOOK and Follow them on SOUNDCLOUD for all their new tracks and updates.