Beyond the Bass | Interviews w/ Mat Zo, Skrillex, Boys Noize

Let’s change things up this morning.

We have two very special behind the scenes interviews today with two of the most prolific names in electronic music: Mat Zo & Dog Blood (Skrillex and Boys Noize). All three of these artists rarely sit down behind the camera/mic to give us an inside take on what’s been going down in each of their respective careers.

First up, Mat Zo sat down with the ever-popular Triple J Radio Show out of Australia to talk about the production process of his new album, Damage Control, as well as some tidbits on Mat’s unprecedented rise to fame.

Finally, Skrillex and Boys Noize met up at Red Bull Studios last month for a collaborative session. Luckily for us bass heads out there, the duo allowed a camera team to come in and shoot the highlights – providing us with an inspiring outlook on one of the most influential duos in EDM.

Enjoy.

The Future of Trap: What So Not | Artist Spotlight [Free Download]

It would certainly appear as if signing to OWSLA was in Chris and Harley’s best interest as their past two releases, “Touched” and “Jaguar”, have accumulated nearly one million listens on SoundCloud in less than a month (with countless other views on other various social media platforms, like YouTube). In fact, their most recent release, which dropped today, has already accumulated 150K views as of 3:30 PM CST. The sheer size of these numbers are no coincidence however. This collaborative duo, What So Not, between Harley Streten (the Future Sensation) of Flume and Chris Emerson of Emoh, is a match made in heaven.

The self-proclaimed voice of the A.D.D. generation, What So Not specializes in their own form of futuristic, Afro-beat and trap influenced productions. Their sound is utterly pure, unique and nothing short of progressive. As we have mentioned previously, Trap music needs an artist(s) to breathe fresh air into an increasingly stale genre. The young Australian producer, Harley Streten of Flume, has been redefining electronic music as we know it for the past few years. With the help of Chris Emerson and Skrillex (of OWSLA), this group is the future of American Trap Music.

What So Not was formulated in late twenty eleven with the release of their first EP 7 Dollar Bill. Gaining attention from artists like Boys Noize, the tandem of producers proceeded to continue their take on Hip-Hop/R&B influenced EDM. In 2012, the duos remix to Major Lazer was popularized by some of the biggest names in electronic music including trap-phenoms Flosstradamus, Nero, and Diplo.

But it is specifically these last two jams by What So Not that have really got us all hot and bothered so to speak. The most recent release, “Jaguar” is the future of trap music as we know it. If you disagree, we feel sorry for you. We would just like to let the songs do the talking, however. So, without further ado, here we go.

No Tomorrow Volume 8 Mix | Zomboy

Remaining relatively quiet for the past couple of months in terms of releases, one of our favorite British dub-stepping acts, Zomboy, is back with a new mix brought to you by No Tomorrow Recordings.

Joshua Jenkins aka Zomboy has been reinventing the genre of bass music for the past year or so. Utilizing complex, uptempo rhythms, lyrical reggae influences, and quintessential bass modulation,  Josh’s production method remains relatively unmatched in his realm of EDM. We couldn’t be more excited to hear any forthcoming original tracks or remixes he has to give us, his biggest fans (no, really, we are).

To satiate the cravings of his rabid fan base, Zomboy has given us a 24 minute mini-mix to tide us over until he releases his new EP titled Reanimated, out September 9th of this year. Luckily, twenty odd minutes was all Mr. Jenkins needed to pick our asses up this Thursday afternoon. And be sure to check out Josh’s latest original mix, titled Raptor, which appears as the final track on this set.

Track List:

Zomboy – Vancouver Beatdown
Knife Party – Power Glove
Skrillex – Bug Hunt (Noisia Remix)
Zero Hero – Theme
Astronaut – Apollo (Electro Mix)
Knife Party – LRAD
Martin Garrix – Animals
Carnage Ft. New & Used – Signal
Zomboy – Bad Intensions
Karetus -Rave On!
Schoolboy – Aftershock
Skrillex & The Doors – Breakn’ a Sweat (Zedd Remix)
Knife Party – EDM Death Machine
Dog Blood – Middle Finger
Blake McGrath – Motion Picture (Pegboard Nerds Remix)
Zomboy – Raptor