The following is an awesome… erm, “guest interview”? Yeah, we’ll go with that. The following is an awesome guest interview by my man Chase Sewell, who got a chance to interview Beats Antique and was kind enough to pass the final result over to Sophistefunk to publish (seriously man, you rock!)

Chase doesn’t have a site yet, but check back for more from him soon, he’s a fantastic writer and I hope to see more interviews from him in the future.

For now, enjoy this awesome first time guest contribution to Sophistefunk and show Beats Antique a little love!

—

Shortly after their performance at CounterPoint Festival outside of Atlanta, I was able to glean some insight into the rhythmic wizardry that is Beats Antique.

Hardly needing any introduction, these folks have been touring heavily and usually play to a packed out audience. Word about their highly unique blend of peregrine world music and dance-infused electronica is being passed around in music circles like some transformational currency.

As others will confirm, the music is almost co-created with their fans; crowds show up to their live performances toting their own energy – infusing the air with anticipation, exuberance, and those antsy, antsy feet.

True to form, the answers given in this interview were fairly playful, preserving their elusive mystique

Being that Beats Antique is an eclectic bricolage of many different styles, how would you describe your influences or precursors?

It’s interesting that the title “world fusion” is sometimes applied, despite the very modern integration with EDM and Ableton controlling.

We like the term “electro-acoustic”.

We feel that our integration of acoustic instruments and modern electronics is what defines our sound.

We have a heavy influence from folk music coming from almost all parts of the globe and we also have a huge EDM influence.

Put those two in a blender and you get a beats antique track! Its easy!

How would you say your music has evolved over the years and what new direction has Contraption Vol. 2 taken the band since the release of Elekatrafone?

Beats Antique: Contraption vol 2 is an answer to our 2009 vol 1 release.

We have felt the need to trace our roots back and respond to ourselves.

Vol 2 follows a similar format to volume 1 with a track with lynx and a brass band remix!

We feel it differs from Elektrafone in that its more acoustic and balanced between our genres.

Can you tell me a little bit about the creative process for you guys?

Which parts are typically written first; how long do you typically spend re-working your songs; does Zoe practice a routine or is there room for improvisation?

We all write.

Zoe has become more involved as a composer over the years.

It’s always refreshing to have her perspective as a dancer and Choreographer!

We have definitely figured out a unique flow and way to work together over the years.

Similarly, how do you decide on a track to remix?

Two favorites of mine are the Filistine – Colony Collapse Remix and the (older, probably lesser known) Michael Jackson – MLK Mashup. So, what is it in a song that reaches out to you?

A remix has a life of its own.

Sometimes it just jumps out at us other times we respond to events.

The MJ/MLK mash up was a response to MJ’s tragic death.

We also like to use remixes as opportunities to work with our vast community of friends/producers that we are part of.

Do you guys find it difficult to make music while on the road? How does it differ from making music at home or in a studio?

Being on the road limits some of the recording process, which forces us to use different sources of sounds.

We’ll use our iPhone apps, iPads and field recorders to create the bed of a track which then we bring back to our studio for full integration…

…we find ourselves having more time on this tour since we have an axing crew that sets up our stage, giving us the freedom to be creative…

Electronic dance events, in many ways, resemble “antique” forms of ecstatic dance: rites of passage, shamanic rituals, and so on.

What Terence McKenna calls the “Archaic Revival” can also be seen, for example, in anything from the tribal fashion styles within modern sub-cultures to the use of entheogens at concerts.

Would you say the exotic rhythms of Beats Antique catalyze some kind of energetic awareness? In this regard, what kinds of feedback have fans given you regarding any spiritual undertones?

Yes, spirits evoke circuit-bending filter sweeps in an animalistic ritual of the fourth kind…

Do you have any predictions on the future trends of EDM? (E.g. what is on the horizon—or is there anything new under the sun?)

I feel the heaviness factor will need to give way to the dynamics of live musical interpretation bringing the revolution of the bass driven bloopy blips to a more organic synapse.

Are there any shows that you’ve performed which stick out as favorites, in terms of crowd response and the whole vibe?

The Fox Oakland was a very special show for us, we had the chance to play in a beautifully renovated theatre in our home town!

Also Red Rocks, Fillmore Denver…this far on this tour, our show in Columbus, Ohio had the most raucous crowd on the tour, and that was, surprisingly the 1st time we had set foot in the exciting city!!

Lastly, while we’re discussing shows, can you tell us a little bit about The Great Convergence concert on December 21 in Giza, Egypt? How’d this idea get started, and what can we expect to go down?

The do lab, who are the promoters of the event, were visited by a large UFO in 2009.

They were instructed to organize an intergalactic celebration for the UFOs return.

We have been invited to perform during this great convergence of interstellar beings and are honored to be a member of the future galactic federation!

—

Thanks for stopping by, be sure to do me one small favor: if you enjoyed this interview and want to see more, share this post! It gives me an idea of what’s good to follow up on. (Thanks again Chase for making this happen)

The post Beats Antique Interview first appeared on Sophistefunk.

Unlike the failed video game console, this Virtual Boy is downright awesome.

As someone who’s posted about them on multiple occasions, you know I’m definitely down with their unique sound.

That’s why it is my pleasure today to give you this great interview with the duo, going over music production, working in a pair, and what it means to pursue a unique sound.

I think you’re going to love it, musician or not, so stop reading the intro and lez do this!

Note: Since they responded as a pair, “H” signifies Henry Allen and “P” is for Preston Walker. Enjoy!

First of all, glad to you guys today, I’m pretty sure my first encounter with your music was from the ‘Drink The Sea Remixes’, and I’ve awaited every release since.

I have to ask, as a duo, how does that effect the creative process? Are segments of music ever worked on individually, or in general, is everything worked on together? How is this process different (good and bad) versus a solo creation?

H: For us all our music is probably 99% created together in the same room.

It just works better for us that way.

Usually one of us sits at the computer while the other noodles on a synth or vocoder or something, and we trade off.

It just makes it much easier so ideas can be flushed out on the spot.

P: I’ve noticed that the dynamic between us in the studio is different than working with other people.

We both love to make music solo, but working on Virtual Boy tracks together is something so uniquely awesome because of that special dynamic.

I’d like to think that you guys have a very defined “sound”, a style of music that let’s me know its you before I even see the artist name.

H: That’s the best an artist can hope for! haha.

I personally can’t tell all the time but that may be because I am taking part in the writing of the music.

I suppose it’s the elements we use everytime like vocoder, guitar, and maybe our orchestral elements.

I’ve talked to artists before about their unique sounds, and some say it’s done very much on purpose, while others say they just go with whatever comes to them.

H: For us it’s definitely natural.

Lately we’ve been pushing ourselves to use more orchestral elements like we did on our Symphony No. None EP.

P: We really try not to think too much about being unique.

Our particular tastes in music leads us to create whatever we put out.

Do you go for a specific “vibe” when creating music, or is the process less thought out and more “come what may”?

H: I think each body of work we begin to write has an overall vibe we want to achieve.

We definitely think it’s very important for an ep or album to sound cohesive, so using the same elements and instruments is important definitely.

P: It’s not so much a “vibe” rather a story.

That central story helps us create a sound palate for the music to live in. Kind of like a setting in a movie.

Additionally, do you think it’s important for artists to pursue a unique style so that they don’t get lost in the sea of other musicians?

H: Yeah definitely.

It’s really important to be fresh and unique these days just because there is sooooo much out there and you have to be very creative to stand out amongst it all.

P: Everyone has a unique taste and they should definitely not be afraid to explore that in their music.

As a non-musician, I’m always interested in the creative process when it comes to making music. What’s an ideal scene look like for you when it’s time to create some new tracks?

H: We like to get away from your typical studio environment.

Like when we wrote Virtual Boy, we went to Corrales, New Mexico and secluded ourselves in an adobe house without internet and tv for a few weeks.

I have a lot of readers who are musicians themselves, any advice you would give them on the industry side of things? (Labels, contracts, sales & marketing, etc.?)

P: Larger labels are becoming more and more obsolete.

The only places worth releasing your material is on a smaller, but established indie labels or by doing it yourself via bandcamp or something like that.

Last but certainly not least, when are you going to make up for what I consider an absolute tragedy: nothing’s dropped on your SoundCloud in 3 months!

H: Haha! well we are working on a new EP that we are shooting to release before this coming fall.

And we are also working on scoring our first film, which will hopefully also be released as a soundtrack.

What are you guys currently working on? What can fans expect in the near (and distant) future?

P: Amping our live set.

We’ve recently cut out computers form our setup and started touring with a bassist full time.

Favored place for people to go to find out more about you?

H:Our Facebook is kept most up to date definitely.

You can also check our website www.wearevirtualboy.com

—

That’s it this time around, thanks again to Virtual Boy for providing some awesome insight and for taking the time to join us here on Sophistefunk.

Remember to show Virtual Boy some love (and get familiar with their music) on SoundCloud, Facebook, and the official website.

Take care.

–Greg

The post Virtual Boy Interview: Better Than the Game Console, They Promise first appeared on Sophistefunk.

Really excited to be doing this interview today, since R/D’s “Bay Crush” EP is releasing today too (available… right now!).

Spoiler alert: I’ve already check it out and it’s amazing, you are doing yourself a disservice if you don’t get it.

Big thanks to R/D for taking the time out to answer a few questions, I’ve been a fan ever since encountering his work on the DownloadToDonate project with The Glitch Mob.

Today I wanted to ask him about having a defining sound and how it effects the progression of an artist, so let’s get in to it!

1.) This may just be me, but I associate R/D with a certain type of “sound”, a style that I see throughout much of your music, even though each track is different.

I bring this up because I want to know what you think about having a unique sound that is a staple of your music. Do you feel that you have one? Do you feel like any of the artists that you enjoy have a distinct sound of their own, something that sets them apart? Is a distinct sound something you actively pursue?

Wow, thanks!

That’s really awesome to hear.

I think originality is a byproduct of any artist that is confident in what they want their art to ‘say’.

With enough practice and passion, everyone has a distinctive quality.

I think it would be pretty exhausting to actively pursue originality, so I just focus on what I want to ‘say’ artistically instead.

I’d be hella stoked if people called it original though!

2.) I brought the last question up to get into this one: do you feel like artists are ever in danger of getting “trapped” by having a unique sound?

Artists and fans sort of have an “unwritten contract” that goes like this: you produce music I like, and I’ll support you with purchases. Do you feel like an artist could ever get stuck in a particular sound in order to please fans in this regard? Do you feel like artists have certain obligations to fans in this matter?

I think anyone who makes their living from creating art owes an equal obligation to their fans as well as themselves.

Inevitably though, every artist will reach a point at which they betray one to satisfy the other.

It’s the nature of selling your creativity.

You have to know when to feed your fans, and when to feed your soul.

3.) I’d also like to talk about balancing creative pursuits and fan expectations. When creating a track, do you ever think about fan reaction during production? Do you feel it’s best that artists just explore wherever their desire takes them, even if it’s something fans might not expect?

For the most part, people who love dance music just want tunes that make them dance.

So, my writing process is halfway decided for me before I even drop the first note.

Every tune I write is geared towards the dancefloor, even the more chill stuff.

So yah, I definitely think about fan reaction.

It’s the number one ingredient!

But, I have this intense desire to inject melody, beauty, funk and groove into my music, which may not always be what dance music crowds want to hear.

I have to balance my own creative desires with those of EDM fans by making super melodic tunes that also bang hard on the dancefloor.

It’s a tricky balance.

Dance music artists have to make the music they feel while giving the fan what they want, and by doing so they’ll eventually make something new that fans aren’t expecting, but hopefully love when they hear it.

4.) Lastly: what should R/D fans look for in the coming months? The Bay Crush release is obviously much awaited, are there any other projects/tours/plots of world domination that we should look out for?

I’ve just finished a remix of Beats Antique I’m super proud of.

It’ll be part of a remix album available for free around Christmas. I’m also working on a remix for an Indie band called Loyal Divide which will land early next year.

I’ve got the Bay Crush remixes in the works with Minnesota, iLL Gates, Sidecar Tommy (of Beats Antique) and more which will drop early next year.

We’re gonna run a remix contest for it as well, so ya’ll producers out there be ready!

I’m super stoked to be playing this year’s Snow Globe festival with Bassnectar, Pretty Lights, The Glitch Mob, Paper Diamond, Dillon Francis, etc.

It’s gonna be NUTS!

And, I haven’t publicly announced this anywhere but I’ve got an indie band project that I’ve been developing with a singer and I’m bursting at the seams to share, but we gotta keep it under wraps for a bit longer.

It’s quite different than my solo stuff, very gorgeous and emotional.

I can’t say much more than that!

I’m most definitely excited about all that above, will be keeping my eyes peeled.

Takeaway: R/D really kept things concise and there’ s a lot of value to get from what he’s said.

My favorite line from his responses:

“I think it would be pretty exhausting to actively pursue originality, so I just focus on what I want to ‘say’ artistically instead.”

I honestly feel like this is dead on accurate on how artists should approach their music.

To be consciously aware of trying to do something different can detract from the organic process of making music.

Think of it like athletics: you drill so that you’re knowledgeable in what you’re doing, but as soon as you start overanalyzing “Am I doing this correctly?”, your performance falls apart.

I think what most artists should be pursuing is getting better in their craft, chasing originality seems to be a fruitless endeavor when what you have to “say” artistically is going to naturally put a personal touch on your sound.

But what the hell do I know, those are just my opinions ;).

Either way, big thanks to R/D for the interview, and I really hope everybody reading enjoyed it (head over to R/D’s website for more music!.

Definitely check out R/D’s website for new releases, and make sure you grab “Bay Crush” today!

If you enjoyed the read, I would most definitely appreciate you showing some love by sharing this post with your friends/followers.

Thanks for reading!

The post R/D Interview: On Unique Sounds & Bay Crushing first appeared on Sophistefunk.

There’s really no reason for me to introduce this amazing interview, but it’s not like I can feature the whole thing on the homepage without a “Read more…” link, because it’s over 2000 words of awesome, so here it goes:

This interview…

Is awesome.

Well shit, that didn’t go so well.

Seriously though, if there is ever a single post on this site I don’t want you to miss, it’s this one.

So don’t miss it.

Note: All links in this post were added by me and not Michal.

What’s going on Michal? Really excited to have the opportunity to talk with you a bit about the industry, I’ve been a big fan for quite a while of both your work and the entire Pretty Lights Music label. People following the blog will know that I touched on the “free music model” in an earlier post where I asked for opinions, but today I’m glad to be able to discuss this with an artist who is out there getting shit done.

1.) So, to start off, how were you influenced into this whole “give my music away for free” idea, was this something that you always intended for a majority of your music or were you influenced by others (possibly Derek)?

Preface: I have been up all night working in my new studio. This may get long winded and off topic reeeeeaaaaal quick… but I mean well.

Derek and I started by giving the album we did together (“Taking Up Your Precious Time“) away for free. At the time that wasn’t something bands did. Bands (including the one we were in at the time, called Listen) pressed albums and hoped that they would sell, having to convince people to spend money on something they may have never heard of.

This was 2006, and I had been downloading most of the music I wanted off of pirating sites like Napster and Limewire for free since 2000… even if I LOVED the artist who’s music I was stealing.

I was a broke musician. And CD’s were extremely easy to scratch, crack, or lose, plus they cost money to press if you were an independent artist. Since Pretty Lights at the time wasn’t our primary touring group, there was no pressure to make money on the music.

All we wanted was for people to hear the music. The idea was simple: put the album up for free. If people don’t like it, all they lose is a little time, and they can delete it from their hard-drive.

If they like it they can share it with their friends without feeling like they’re stealing from an artist they like. It also helped the album grow beyond geographical boundaries, which is near impossible as a traditional independently released album.

This was before Facebook or Twitter (or atleast before they became HUGE social media tools), and you could reverse search people’s musical interests on Myspace.

So I would spend hours each day searching for people who liked DJ Shadow, Bonobo, etc. and sending them a short, unique message touching on their taste in music and letting them know that there’s a free album they might really like.

Some people wrote back thanking us, puzzled at how we tracked them down. Some people thought we were spammers and wrote us nasty responses, so I’d send a polite response showing them I was just trying to give them free music.

Eventually the word spread and we realized that we had built something with incredible potential.

2.) Certainly there can be expected results when releasing one’s music for free. I have to say that it definitely hasn’t impacted the quality of your works, there’s definitely a passion there that isn’t stifled by the fact that you know your music won’t result in direct sales. You also get to avoid the whole “piracy” issue altogether with free albums, and it is very rewarding for fans such as myself.

Overall though, how do you think this free music model has faired for you personally and the members of your label? Do you feel like releasing music for free is something you are forced into due to expectations of fans and music piracy? Do you feel like new artists are obligated to put out free tracks for promotional purposes?

There’s really very little money for artists at my level charging for CD’s of their music, and paying for mp3’s is fine, but if it’s digital, it’s up somewhere for free anyway.

I think the key to selling a physical release lies in pressing something limited, something special. Something similar to how artists sell limited edition prints.

I personally still buy vinyl of albums/artists I follow because they’re often limited pressings and the look/feel of a 12″ sleeve really lets you dive into the artwork.

The ritual of putting on a record and having to flip it tends to make people better listeners, and records have such a full, warm tone that engulfs the listener.

I usually discover an artist by getting their work for free on the internet. If I like the album, I support the artist by buying it on record, buying merchandise, following their online presence, spreading the word about them, and taking people I think would dig the sound to the artist’s shows.

Touching on the rest of the question, I think the ease of putting up free content has opened a floodgate of shitty music.

Anyone can have a ‘label’, anyone can be a ‘producer’… and I’m not bitter in any way or hating on it, but I think what a free album meant when we release our first record was more about trying to share something you’ve crafted over time and didn’t want to charge people for, whereas now I think a lot of kids post music because they want to blow up in a scene that now has virtual ‘how-to’ guides for producing generic versions of existing styles.

I’ve met very talented kids who have a vision and are able to get it to people through the internet.

But I’ve also met kids who ask me how they can become a dubstep producer and how they can make a tracks that sounds like so-and-so, because these kids see producers and DJ’s on stage and want to be that, not because they have this desire to express themselves but because they think it’s glamorous and easy.

They don’t realize the effort that went into it or the hurdles that each of these artists and genres had to leap to become so ubiquitous. And that’s been happening for years; kids have been buying guitars to emulate their favorite musician.

There’s nothing wrong with that, and I think people SHOULD try to express themselves and give it a go. But now that anyone can upload a track, make up a name, and saturate Facebook, it’s harder to weed through the bullshit.

I guess part of the reason I don’t post a bunch of remixes every week or try to over-saturate the internet is because I want people to be excited about my releases, and not feel like, “Oh, I can skip this one, he drops tracks every week.”

That approach works great for other artists, especially those who’s performances are more DJ oriented, but for me, I want to keep the vision that i’ve been following as clear as possible, by playing sets of my own production (or collaborations) and by making my releases reflect what I feel, and not a remix of what the charts are feeling that week.

Again, not hating, just explaining my personal outlook on it all :).

3.) Outside of electronic music, I’m a student of marketing and I happen to particularly love the works of Seth Godin. One thing that he advocates is that technology is pushing us to an age of dominance of the “weird” and away from a “mass market” culture.

In a nutshell, he means that the internet has allowed people to divulge in more specific tastes, and not just the ones that are somewhat “forced” onto them by mainstream channels, such as the music on the radio. Do you feel like this scattering of tastes is beneficial for music in general, and specifically for electronic music?

Yes and no. I think the scattering of tastes has led to really interesting styles and some amazing experimentation.

It’s given everyone a platform, because now someone from a small town, who may have had trouble finding 5 people in their home state that would appreciate their ‘artform’, can get thousands of fans internationally.

On the flip side all these sub genres are getting ridiculous and are dividing an already fragmented audience base in many cases.

But then again, who doesn’t love progressive-indy-electro-post-psy-house-moomba-core-step?

Here’s where I get deep and people are going to assume I’m a glorified smartass: I think as a civilization we have been torn since the dawn of time over different names for the same thing.

Whether it be God, government, sexuality, eating habits, traditions, or music, we find a way to divide ourselves far quicker than we align.

As the world moves faster and faster, and our futures spin out of our grasp, and our planet erodes around us, we seem to find comfort in having enemies to blame, even if they’re imaginary or subconscious.

All these dividing lines, all these statements of ‘individuality,’ all these faux rebellious movements of youthful ignorance and ‘no one can tell me what to do because I’m being myself, just like the Levi’s commercial told me I was’ mentalities just become bullshit that we use to seperate ourselves from the ‘masses’… guess what?

We ARE the masses, and I hope that we can one day be confident enough in our own skin to come together and not be threatened by the idea that other people have the same feelings, fears, and dreams as us.

Everybody farts and has to go poop. Even pretty girls. (my friend Ben taught me that valuable lesson)

4.) Lastly, I have a question from a reader, asked on this topic about you on Reddit: “What is your most favorite and least favorite thing about touring?”

My favorite thing about touring is getting to make strangers happy by sharing a piece of myself with them. Getting to do that for several weeks straight can be both draining and rejuvenating at the same time.

Waking up in different places all the time is amazing… getting to try different food, getting to meet people that make everything that feels fucked up sometimes make sense all of the sudden.

I’ve been fortunate to make great friends all over the country. People that will be in my life even if i wake up tomorrow and everyone thinks my music is garbage.

My least favorite thing is not being able to make music the way I like to. It’s virtually impossible to sample records on the highway. Not having the gear/monitors/space to do things the way I love doing them is probably what’s held up my work flow the most.

I still produce on the road, but it’s having to work around obstacles and having to make compromises. It’s like masturbation vs. really great sex. It gets the job done but you know that there’s a better way ;).

I also miss being able to cook. I LOVE cooking and being pressed for time it’s often a toss up between subway and the dollar menu.

Now time for some well deserved promotion and name dropping: what can we expect from you in the future? Any albums or tracks we should be on the lookout for? What’s the best places for fans to connect with and get updates from you?

You can expect a long awaited 2nd solo album soon, as well as a Half Color album with Paul Basic.

I’m co-headlining a 6 week tour with Gramatik, supported by SuperVision and Paul (select dates) starting in November.

You can check out the dates with links to tix and event pages at www.mmgramatik.com.

I’m really excited to go out on the road as a headliner, being able to bring our own stage and have full lights and a nice, long set.

I’m sure that Paul, SuperVision, Gramatik and I will all be making tracks together on the road.

I’m also working on some tracks with friends like Eliot Lipp, Dominic Lalli, Alex (PAPER DIAMOND), Derek VanScoten, Outlet, Prepschool, Cherub, TwoFresh… I’m really lucky to have a solid set of friends to collaborate and have fun with.

If you want to contact me, follow me on twitter (@michalmenert).

Or go to my website (www.michalmenert.com).

Or find me at a show and talk to me.

Or harass me on Facebook.

Or find out where I live and send me cookies or a nice cake (I don’t like raisins or baked fruit FYI).

Oh, and one more shameless “Im pretty cool” drop: I painted my own album cover. That’s right. I’m artsy.

Lastly, I also want to ask why you don’t have a million followers on Twitter, since you are clearly the funniest electronic producer out there.

I think the primary reason is people can’t spell my fucking name right.

There’s probably a few million people looking for Michael Merneret right now on Twitter.

You should see the collection of misspelled marquise signs I’ve photographed: Michel Minert. Michael Mehnert, Manert, Maynart… the possibilities are virtually endless!

And people ask me if it’s my real name. If i had a stage name it would be Troublemouth Clapperslad, or Pants Vermillion.

But probably neither of those.

Can you tell I’ve been up all night?

BONUS!

How to spell/say my name:

1. Michal (no E, but pronounced the exact same as Michael)
2. Menert (pronounced like the word men, followed by an ert like the -ert in inert)

Welp, that’s all for now (as if that interview wasn’t fucking awesome).

Please note, if you didn’t enjoy that interview, get the fuck off my site, because I no longer want you here ;).

But seriously though, that was an amazing read for me and I can only hope it was for you too.

If you enjoy Menert’s music (and maybe even share some of his perspectives), show homie some love the very free way by supporting him on any social network you use, and sharing his tracks to Limewire… I mean sending them to your friends!

Both myself and Michal would be very appreciative if you could share this post with your friends so that they might get to check out the interview. Thank you very much for reading!

The post Michal Menert Interview: Get Ready To Learn A Lot, Including How To Pronounce “Michal Menert” first appeared on Sophistefunk.

I’ve got a ton of great interviews coming up, and I definitely wanted to start the first one off with a bang.

What better way than with a name that’s been making waves: Big Gigantic.

Below is a full interview with Dom (the producer of Big G) covering topics like why he chose to include the notorious saxophone into his act, how he prefers to produce his music, and where Big G is headed in the future.

Enough of my talking, read the post and show Dom some love with a comment & share!

I’ve been a long time fan of Big Gigantic, and let me just say my quick words of praise: I’m loving the new stuff and I can’t wait for the new album to drop, and I’m grateful to have the opportunity to ask you a few questions on behalf of my readers (almost all of which are also huge fans, pun intended).

1.) A lot of people I talk to about Big Gigantic know the group as “the electronic act with the sax,” and certainly Dom’s saxophone playing has become a big part of the unique sound of Big Gigantic. What was the inspiration for including a sax?

“I started playing the saxophone at a young age and the sax has always been my ‘voice’.

When I started making electronic music it really made sense for me to include the sax because it’s the main instrument that I play.

Fortunately for us, it’s helped separate us from other electronic acts out there.”

Takeaway: A lot of respect here for Dom for following what he knew.

A lot of artists nowadays are interested in making a certain sound, almost always a sound they heard elsewhere, instead of implementing their own personality and style into their music.

For Dom it was no question, he describes his sax as a ‘voice’ of his so it was natural for him to include it into his music.

This gives Dom & Big Gigantic’s sound a vibe that you simply can’t find elsewhere.

So, instead of seeing how you can best mimic another artist making waves on the scene, maybe it’s time to be like Dom and simply embrace what you know best.

2.) What is your ideal setting for making music? Do you ever make music while on the road, and if so, how is that process compared to making music at “home” or not on tour?

“The ideal setting is definitely at home at my studio.

That’s where I can really focus and stay focused for a long time.

It really helps the whole creative process.

I definitely make music while out on the road but I essentially get ideas together and then I get home and work the ideas out in the studio.”

Takeaway: I’m sure a lot of artists who have toured will outright agree with this one.

Biggest point here is that I love how Dom points out that he creates “outlines” of music that he really puts together when he’s in his element at home.

A lot of work is put in on tour, so it shows a great work ethic for an artist to continue to produce even while the tour is commencing.

I like Dom’s emphasis on his preferred place for making music though.

You’re only going to put out your best stuff when you’re in the zone, so if a location is apart of this, or mandatory for you to get into the mindstate to make music, embrace it.

It doesn’t mean you have to stop the ideas that come to you at other times, just that you should make more “complete” efforts when your mind is in the right place.

3.) What can we expect from Big Gigantic in the future? Do you guys have any collaborations with other acts in the works?

“We have a new album coming out in a few months.

We have been touring so much we’ve had to push the release til January of ’12.

We really feel like the new album is really a step up for us in many ways.

Production-wise, it just sounds better, as I’ve been studying hard and learning new techniques to make the actual quality of the tracks better.

This makes the bass hit harder and the highs cleaner.

Songwriting-wise, the new tracks are an evolution of our sound. I’ve been working hard to stay true to what we do while exploring and digging into new styles of electronic music.”

Takeaway: Big Gigantic is doing huge things!

Now that I got that mandatory pun out of the way, I’m definitely excited.

January seems far away but I’ll be glad to start the New Year off with a Big G release.

Glad to see Dom taking his production values seriously, can’t wait to hear the crisp new sound from the new album.

Also glad to see him embracing evolution, no artist wants to get stuck in a rut or in a “cage” by producing the same style over and over, and while I never want to see the sax go away, I’m fully embracing the idea of Big G branching out into new territory.

If that wasn’t enough, there’s also an amazing new video out on Big Gigantic’s YouTube channel for their newly released track “Rise And Shine”, check it out!

Small photo by Mary Rehak

Both me and Dom would majorly appreciate if you shared this post with your friends and followers. Thanks for reading and I hope you enjoyed it!

The post Big Gigantic Interview (It’s Huge!) first appeared on Sophistefunk.