DUSA stays curious and open-minded, delivering intricate glitched samples, irregular beats, and unconventional synthesis methods. Read our discussion with the artist below!
Describe your sound in 3 words
Raw, Depth, Discovery
Tell us a few things about Wish You Were Here. What is the main idea behind it?
Building a track around different vocal textures was the main focus. I wanted to group and then resample these vocal textures with synths, basses, and FX. Using these different vocal textures opened up flows I haven’t been able to find prior which is what I was shooting for.
What made you gravitate towards electronika?
This is something that I don’t necessarily pay attention to. Whatever sounds good to my ear is what I roll with. Regardless if it’s an acoustic drum sample or gritty dubstep sound, I always approach each track the same way. Listen to what’s speaking to me and go with it.
How do you balance experimentation and accessibility in your music to engage both dedicated fans and new listeners?
Experimentation is what I believe music is and what it should be at the end of the day. Obviously, you can go overboard with this so I try to keep in mind the rhythms and flows that are normalized in today’s electronic music. Not only with drum patterns like House or Dubstep, but synth rhythms and tonality that complement specific parts of the track.
How do you navigate the fine line between staying true to your artistic vision and adapting to the ever-changing landscape of the music industry?
I think it’s crucial to know who you are and what you like first. Then do what you want. I am also a music lover at my core. I absolutely love seeing all the new stuff artists are doing and how they are executing it. Whether it’s an artist performing at Coachella or one of my friends sending music in our group chat. It’s important for me to understand how people are moving creatively and then making sure I move in a different way. This usually happens without thinking about it because I know who I am and I am different from the person sitting next to me. I believe everyone has something unique to say, it just depends on how much attention you give it.
Artists and people that have influenced you?
There are so many artists that I’ve been exposed to throughout my life that I think influence my music making decisions, consciously & subconsciously. My dad was huge on Van Morrison & Elvis Costello when I was little. Then I was exposed to bands like Goons of Doom, Sum 41, Sublime & Slightly Stoopid. Grew into the hip hop stuff like Notorious B.I.G., Dr. Dre & Jay-Z when I was finally able to have my own MP3 player. Then I was able to attend Skrillex’s Scary Monsters and Live Sprites tour when I was in high school and then got into acts like Mord Fustang, Rusko, and The Glitch Mob. Lately though, I’ve been enjoying Flume, Rufus Du Sol, The Caracal Project & Imanu.
A track with a drop you wish you had composed yourself?
Spring by Flume and Eprom
Can you walk us through your typical day in the studio? How do you maintain creativity and productivity?
My typical day in the studio usually starts pretty early in the day. I’ve noticed it takes me a little bit of time to work into a good flow, so giving myself enough time to work is massive. I like to get a little meditation going beforehand to give myself a good, focused starting point. I’ll start a new idea and spend a few hours on it if I feel like I have a lot of energy, which is usually about 75% of the time. If I’m having somewhat of an off/down day I’ll go through ideas I haven’t finished and add more to those. I usually have a snack and some tea or water hanging around to give my brain something else to semi focus on. My approach is typically to throw everything at the wall and see what sticks that day. Most of the time the track sounds ridiculous but when I catch a flow it’ll just spew out. I’m not a big fan of listening to music in between breaks to get inspiration. I’m very much focused on sample finding and resampling during these studio session’s too. I’m not one who sets those sessions into different time frames which I know a lot of people do. After the session I have a habit of getting the track I’m working on stuck in my head for days at a time, which can be a blessing and a curse.
If the music of DUSA were a film, which film would that be?
Lords of Dogtown. Raw as hell and full bore.
Thank you!
Follow our Spotify Playlist “Waves Eclectic” feat. DUSA
Secret Eclectic 