Phuse
Origin: None
“Life without love is no life at all,” Leonardo da Vinci said. Everyone has that one thing that they love passionately that can make life an amazing journey. For me it’s always been music. Creating music has given my life direction, passion and motivation. Music has always made me happy and making music has given me the ability to recreate those feelings at a moment’s notice instead of having to search for them outwardly. Making music has made me a better person: more patient, independent, hard working, motivated, and passionate than ever before. Through sharing my music with others I hope that they too can feel the love that I feel.
Home Town: Moorpark, California
Currently Living: San Diego, California
Origin Of Name: My previous name for producing was Phosphene but I thought it was too long and complicated. I wanted something that was short and had no actual meaning and I wanted to keep the Ph in the beginning. The name Phuse came from those restrictions and really stuck with me. I like the idea of a name that does not mean anything yet because it lets me define it through my actions.
Weapon of Choice: Ableton and good Mexican food (not at the same time though).
Source of Power: Good laughs, good music, good people and good food.
What advice would you offer someone thinking about entering the Discovery Project competition?
There’s so much advice, both good and bad, that’s just recycled so in the interest of saying something different I’ll say: don’t always take advice. Advice is just someone’s opinion and when it comes to music what will make you unique is your own way of thinking. It’s those things that you do that everyone disagrees with at first that will define your style. In time you will naturally find out what works for you and what doesn’t. Give yourself that time. Spend time experimenting, making different styles of music, using different processing methods, listening to different music and being consumed by your own thoughts to figure out what you really want out of your music and who you really are as a musician.
Was there one particular moment in the recording or mixing process for your Discovery Project entry that made you feel like you were creating something pretty damn special?
The song I submitted is ironically a redone version of the song I submitted to the EDC Las Vegas 2013 Discovery Project when I was not chosen. There were a couple of things I loved about the original and others that I hated, so I just redid everything I didn’t like and it turned out great! It felt like I collaborated with a younger version of myself.
What do your parents think of what you are doing?
My mom is super proud of me and I’m super proud of her. She has been the most supportive person, not only in music but in everything I’ve ever pursued. I wouldn’t have been able to accomplish half the things I have without her love and support.
Tell me about your most memorable night out as an artist or as a fan.
I saw Kill Paris at Bassmnt San Diego for my birthday in 2014. He was wearing a tie-dye hoodie and was rocking out on a keytar. Kill Paris was swaggin’ off the charts that night. I got home so inspired and whipped out the craziest riff I’ve ever made. You can hear it on the second track of my EP The Throwbacks. Props to Kill Paris!
How does what you do for a living affect you on a day-today basis?
I work full time at a benefits company where I handle data discrepancies. It’s more boring than it sounds, I promise. It definitely affects me because I’m there eight hours of the day. On the bright side it’s made me really work for everything I’ve gotten and even though I have an incredible support system it’s nice to know that I am where I am because of my own doing. Once I’m released from the shackles of the 40-50 hour work week though the world better watch out!
How, if at all, does listening to music figure into your creative process? What’s the last song you heard that made you drop what you were doing and go into the studio?
It is the most important thing in my creative process. My musical tastes span an enormous range from indie rock to trance to future bass to house. I believe your outputs are a direct product of your inputs. If you’re not listening to interesting music it’s going to be pretty difficult for you to create something interesting. The last two songs I heard that absolutely blew me away were “Invictus” by Phazz and Brasstracks cover of Aaliya’s “Are You That Somebody.”
What’s the most important piece of gear in your studio and why?
A MIDI keyboard. I love recording myself playing live because it makes me feel like I’m making music and not just geeking out on a computer program.
How important is it for you to experiment and take on the risk of failure?
“I have not failed. I’ve just found 10,000 ways that won’t work,” Thomas Edison said. What people call failure is really just learning. You can’t fail if you never give up. You either make something cool or you learn how not to make something cool. Either way you’re one step closer to your goals. Risks are critical in any worthwhile venture.
Do you have a list of people you’d like to collaborate with in the future?
There are so many! I think big picture so in the future I’d love to collaborate with dancers, visual artists, stylists, and other people that think about the world in unique ways. If I could orchestrate the most epic music collab it would feature Will Smith rapping , Earth Wind & Fire singing and Skrillex’s sound design.
If we pressed Shuffle on your iPod while you went to the bathroom, what would you be embarrassed to come back to us listening to?
I run a pretty tight ship but if you stumbled upon songs I produced years ago I would be extremely embarrassed. I only keep them to myself as reminders of how far I’ve come, everything I made circa 2011 is just awful.
What sound or noise do you love?
Things usually sound better after a little, a lot or way too much distortion. That’s a fact.
What should everyone just shut the fuck up about?
Just about everything, actions speak so much louder than words. People need to stop giving advice on things that they know nothing about. People are so quick to tell you how to live your life when they haven’t ever manifested anything they wanted on their own.
What gets you excited when you think about the future of electronic music and club culture?
I think the future of electronic music is so vibrant. I have an incredible hunger for new sounds and music and I feel like I hear something truly original about once a week. Electronic music is so limitless, it’s spreading into every direction faster than ever and different styles of music are starting to merge.
When you look at electronic music and the surrounding culture, what worries you about the future, what do you wish would change or that you could change?
Reading articles where one artist bashes another artist really bums me out. Every type of music has its time and place. I respect artists that put all their energy into their own craft instead of bringing down others.
What do you remember about your first DJ gig?
It was incredible. I got together with some of my friends that were in a rock band called Free BBQ and we threw a party in my college apartment. We cleared out all the furniture and they threw down. It was freakishly hot and after they played I DJed from my kitchen using a M-Audio Oxygen 25-Key MIDI keyboard. A lot of people thought I was playing the piano parts of the songs live, it was gloriously ghetto.
What’s the hardest professional lesson you’ve learned thus far?
I think the hardest lesson I learned is to not compare myself to others. Everyone’s got their own journey and their own way of achieving that. Everyone’s special in their own way and if you’re completely honest with yourself you can express that. No one can be better than you at being you.
Do you have a favorite all-time mixed CD or series?
“Your Wish is Your Command” by Kevin Trudeau. It’s life changing. I learned more from that than I learned anywhere else in my entire life. I highly recommend it.
Have something you’d like to get off your chest that we did ask you about?
Thank you so much Discovery Project and EDC Las Vegas. Playing EDC was an actual dream come true and I still can’t believe it happened. EDC Los Angeles was the first festival I ever went to and now it’s the first festival I ever played. It brought everything full circle for me and I can’t thank you enough.
Winning Mix:
EDC Las Vegas Set:
