Today’s music comes from New Zealand. DeLaye presents his debut EP “BLANKSPACE .” a purely electronic work where alternative hip hop flavored beats meet granular synth sounds. The five tracks EP needs your attention. Put on your best headphones, close your eyes, imagine it’s 2010 and you are listening to this one on a Wednesday night at Low End Theory.
Ready our interview with the talented producer below!
Describe your sound in three words.
Triplet time, aight. Conceptual, unconventional and explorative.
What comes first in your music? The beat, the melody or..? Tell us a few things about your creative process.
Sometimes, I’ll ponder my experiences and thoughts and build upon the ideas over time, other times I’ll open my DAW and mess around with sounds and rhythms for hours. In terms of what comes first, I’d definitely say being. Music-wise though, wherever the idea forms, really! The subtle sound of wind in trees, the rhythm of cars driving over bumps in the road.. Environments. I’d describe my creative process as a controlled chaos, it’s all about wherever I’m at mentally and emotionally in that moment, and whatever ideas are bouncing around in that space, too.
What is the main idea behind your debut EP “BLANKSPACE .”? And which song of the EP (if any) is your favorite?
It’s a play on ideas of space and the mind as a blank space, which gets populated with ideas and preconceptions of the world through sensory inputs, and the title has a space between the ‘E’ and the ‘.’ to further imply those ideas through use of symbols. That’s a lot of space! In a nutshell, this EP’s an open invitation to take a journey through the mind of DeLaye, to embark on the adventure as yourself exploring the self. A common theme I build my music around is that there’s no set way in which it should be heard or interpreted, no direct explanation, no true sense of stability. Rather, it’s a creation of the mind who listens, with my ideas acting as the framework of a subjective experience. Now, that second question.. I’mma cheat and say the whole EP as one song, start to finish.
Your sound has a very interesting experimental touch. Should music as a form of art always challenge the listener?
Thank you! I personally think yes. Where’s the intrigue, struggle and learning without a challenge, without the aspects that make us human? This is something that I’ve discussed in depth with my dear friend and fellow artist Dallas Harvey, someone whom I highly respect for being unapologetically himself in his art, speaking upon conventionally challenging and often suppressed aspects of life from his own experiences. We often talk about music as a form of communication and connection between people, ideas, and experiences, and how as a medium it can be used to bring awareness to topics that are often ignored in their rawest forms, which can pose a challenge. Music has become a form of escape from the world we live in; and yes, we’re all entitled to our fantasies but is not our life meaningful as is, contrary to what we’ve tricked ourselves into believing? This is the challenge, creating a challenge for a world which wants to eradicate challenges unless it serves some unchallenged purpose. Are we creators or producers? Witnesses or consumers? Beings or doings? Now, there’s a challenge.
If you had to choose one Synthesizer (analog or digital) which one would it be?
FL Studio, stock plugin. Enter: Fruity Granulizer. Bite me.
Tell us your favorite synth riff you wish you had composed yourself.
This one’s been stuck with me since 2014: “Earth & Sky” by Virtual Riot. That opening riff gets me every time!
In which place or state of mind do you imagine people might listen to your music?
Ooh yeah, deep in nature with an altered state of being. Away from the scramblings of the modern world, free to explore the depths of mind or nature. But please, make sure to stay safe and hydrated.
Is there an album that caught your interest recently?
I make a point of listening to a lot of different music whenever I can, but C Y G N’s “Goodbye Planet” has been my latest dig. Perfect for a late night stroll.
Thank you!
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