Pleasure to be here! Thanks for having us. 2021 has been an interesting year, constant stop starts within the industry, personally for the both of us as individuals it has probably been the most challenging year of our lives. Outside of music we have both moved house, entered full time work and it has taken time to adjust to all the changes. Music wise, no gigs has given us ample time to learn production, make new friends within the industry and put some dedicated time towards building our music.
What was life in the pandemic like in Aus? Did you manage to keep making music?
The pandemic is probably why we were so determined to make music. It was our main source of enjoyment, getting us through each day. Music made us miss being out and about, we missed seeing our friends and enjoying the vibes whilst being amongst other people; we really missed sharing these sorts of moments and making memories. Lockdown was really what made us more inspired to make music of our own.
How have you found the return to clubbing / partying?
We are currently experiencing the calm before the storm. We have been booked for some pretty amazing gigs every single weekend of December and are just waiting for the games to begin. The EP campaign kicks off with a sunset stage on the top of Mt Buller where we originally performed our livestream last year. Heading into some more club gigs around Melbourne, and capping off with a bush doof over New Years.
It is going to be intense, and probably exhausting, but that’s what the past 2 years have been preparing us for, right? In all seriousness though we are so excited to be back playing shows, and we are even more over the moon to be playing our own music for the first time to live audiences!
How did you first meet and what started you making music together?
We met at Uni, during a tournament called Uni Games up in the Gold Coast, we were both keen basketballers at the time and we were paired together for the week. Everytime we had the bluetooth speaker privileges, we would both try to play the same music; back and forth we would put on similar tracks which was how it became known that we shared a similar taste.
Fast forward a few months we would practice after hours in some venues, who kindly let us use the decks for free, until we finally played our first gig: MAMI was born. We have been best friends ever since, constantly challenging each other with new music.
We both have different skills, Adam is more organised and business orientated, whereas Will has a strong creative side. On our first track we were lucky enough to work with Remo (Rem Siman), who was willing to teach us as we went through the process. Very rarely did anyone miss a session, over lockdown it became what we all looked forward to. In person when we could, over zoom when we couldn’t leave our homes. Over one and a half years and piece by piece, we built the song ‘Lost in Sound’. Seasons happened a lot faster, we had the help of another good friend Luke (Luke Alessi), and before you knew it, we had an EP on our hands.
How do you work, do you have an idea in your head you work towards or do you just experiment and jam and see what happens?
Inspiration can come from many different places; it could come from being out at a club watching one of our favourite artists play, or it could be just listening to your daily mix on Spotify. Normally, we will find reference songs that we really enjoy as a duo and we will take different elements from that and make it into our own unique sound. However,by saying this – sometimes it is good just to open up Ableton and see what happens.
Why link with Rem Siman for the new one on Ugenius music?
Will actually knew Rem before we started music. It was all about a basketball friendship whilst he had already been DJing in the background. We thought it would be a great opportunity to link up as we really enjoyed the sound and thought it would really add to the atmosphere of the tracks. It’s been an absolute pleasure working with him and his talent in not just producing but also entertaining a live crowd is incredible.
What was the aim and vibe of the tune?
Lost in sound is all about how a song makes you feel whilst listening to it. We want this track to be able to transport you into your happy and safe place where you feel like you can genuinely enjoy the sound. With the vocal of Nasia throughout the record, it adds an emotional element which aims to dive deeper into your feelings when listening to the track.
This track was made throughout a grueling lockdown with the aim to take you away from your day to day life and bring you back to the passion you have for music and that feeling you get when surrounded by people, shoulder to shoulder on the dance floor.
How did you link with the featured vocalist and what made them the right one?
We went through an extensive process sourcing a vocalist for Lost in Sound. We trialed multiple vocalists and it wasn’t until we heard Nasia’s take that we knew we had the right one. We felt strongly that she would be perfect for the track, to give it what it needed in order to transform it into such an emotional journey.
The recording process was such an interesting and incredible experience to go through. Especially seeing Nasia own the stage and showcase her incredible voice in the recording booth. It really solidified our decision for a vocalist. Huge shout out to Backlot Studios for nailing the takes and helping us make the track what it is today.
Currently, we are looking at showcasing the EP to a live audience for the very first time since the release. In terms of production, we are looking at potential remixes for friends coming up and of course, working on our next release of music. However, for now we want to enjoy the Lost in Sound EP being finally available for everyone to listen and enjoy!
