Metronome #082: Golf Clap

Insomniac’s Metronome series features mixes from some of today’s fastest-rising electronic stars, as well as championed legends. It takes listeners deep across a wide range of genres, movements, cultures, producers, artists and sounds that make up the diverse world of electronic music.

Noise might not be the first thing to come to mind when you hear the name “Golf Clap,” but it’s exactly what Hugh and Bryan have been making nonstop, without fail. Based out of Detroit, the duo have done their part in upholding the Motor City’s legacy of being a hotbed for underground artists who harness the wherewithal to reach a supreme level of smooth operating, both in the studio and in the booth. And they’ve got enough to go around.

The renown they’ve reaped thus far is from more than simply sporting a singular sound, which they do, but also having one of the strongest brands in the game. The guys have owned the shit out of the golf angle, wittingly naming their imprint Country Club Disco, where they have given out memberships to a grip of artists on the rise. Even at their hosted parties, their clique of clappers come dressed head-to-toe in the most outrageous PGA attire money can buy. These are all signs pointing to a duo that has a firm grasp on the music and market equally.

Teeing off with a whopping little number and not letting up once until it’s over, they charge the course with grooves that’ll prove why so many heads turn to putty in their hands. Please hold your applause until you make it all the way through the entire mix, though, because every second is going to count when Golf Clap are doing their thing.

Your branding is definitely second to none, with much of it having to do with Hugh’s background in marketing. How have you personally seen the emphasis on marketing over music change since you guys first started out?
Hugh: My experience is mostly from doing shows over the years. One of the main things I’ve seen change is the massive amount of information available nowadays. Before, it was a challenge to reach people, because there was no internet and very little radio exposure. Now, the challenge is standing out, which poses a big issue for most music producers who are, by nature, introverts. At the very least, the amount of time and dedication it takes to make great music takes you away from society and social media, so it creates a gap. To be effective today in the music business means being able to create in the studio, but also spend enough time online to stay current. In reality, marketing has always played a pivotal role in music; we just see it more with pop music and rap. With dance music growing at the rate it is, smaller indie labels and the like have to adopt more of the strategies utilized by the major labels to stay afloat.

Are there any other skills or lessons you’ve learned from your past that have played into your success?
Hugh: Learn from your mistakes. My father told me that any lesson you don’t learn will present itself over and over again until you do. Another thing is to control your emotions and stay calm. There are a lot of big personalities in the music business, and everyone is someone and important, and all that. But you’ll make it further by being real and upfront with everyone you meet. I guess the other major thing I’ve learned is knowing the right time and place to approach people about business. There is definitely a time to talk shop: It’s M–F, 9–5 (in reality, M–W, 1–4).

Bryan: I’ve been putting out records since 2002 under my own name, Bryan Jones, as well as an old group I was in, called High Caliber. I used to run Control Recordings for a few years, as well, and released vinyl and digital releases. Before that, I played drums for eight years—been very involved with music my whole life, and never really considered doing anything else for a living.

Being from Detroit lends itself to some major bragging rights. Do you feel it is easier or harder to rise up in city with so much respect in the underground?
Bryan: I think it’s going to be a lot easier to grow musically in a city with a good music scene. In bigger cities, it may be harder to get the good local gigs, but you’re surrounded by way more inspiration and resources. You need to be surrounded by people doing bigger things than you, so there’s room to grow. You’re going to rise to the level of your competition, so surrounding yourself with other talented, driven people in the industry is very important. There are so many more people to learn from, and so many people from all over the world coming into town constantly in bigger cities.

List some of your favorite locals-only spots in or around your hometown.
We book a lot of our favorite locals for our Country Club Disco nights that are typically at Grasshopper Underground. We bring in out-of-town headliners often, but have locals open and do locals nights, as well. Other than that, I’d say TV Lounge and the Works are the two places you’re most likely to catch great local talent regularly.

What’s your favorite sound or noise?
Hugh: Ambient, jazz, and a lot of our peers’ mixes. I pretty much only get time to keep up with house music, though, lately.

Bryan: Mellow, vibey deep house. Keeps me relaxed during the day.

Who are your personal heroes, and why?
Bryan: Two that come to mind are FKJ & DJ EZ. FKJ is just the most talented musician I can think of right now. Watch his Red Bull and Eton Messy live things on YouTube; they are incredible. I must have watched them 100 times each.

Then, DJ EZ is my favorite DJ to watch. He’s given me so many ideas watching his sets online. Plus, he recently did a 24-hour DJ mix on video to raise money for cancer, and he was also the nicest guy ever when we brought him out for a show.

You’ve got some dope Golf Clap & Friends shows in the works, with special wristbands made for the events. Who are some of the artists you enjoy working with most, and why?
We are throwing a few parties coming up in Detroit with Skream, Huxley, and Hannah Wants at various venues. Also, throwing a day party with Demarkus Lewis and another Country Club Disco show in Ann Arbor. People really seem to like it when we make the wristbands, so we figured we’d do it for this run of parties in the next two months.

A short list of some people we really love working with would be Low Steppa, Huxley, Moon Boots, Doorly, Billy Kenny, MIJA, Todd Edwards, and a lot of the Dirtybird guys. It’s really hard to make a list without leaving out a bunch of people, but these are some of the ones who have really helped us a lot recently and have been great friends.

Country Club Disco has been getting behind a few of the freshest names out there. What do you look for when rummaging through demos for your label?
Always looking for new talent that is getting overlooked. There are so many people making good music out there, and most of them will never get the attention they deserve. We like to work with people that we can keep working with, and help them build their name and branding. Also, we’re always going to want to put more of our time and effort to build someone we really like personally and want to see succeed.

Your biography portrays you as always the last men standing at every party. What’s the secret behind your long game?
We were throwing lots of events in Detroit; then, after a while, we’d throw the after-party, too, and drive straight from one to the other. In Chicago, we often play the after-party, and there are more people than the party we were booked for. Then they ask us to play a third or fourth one after that, sometimes. We’ve been playing them a little less lately, actually, but if somebody sets up a proper one with all the equipment and people, we’ll be there. We’ll always at least consider it.

Attach a song you think belongs in the category of claps below:

Slow Clap:

Latmun “Def”

Played this for months straight, and probably heard more DJs play this than any other song all year. Everything he makes has been killer lately.

Round of applause:

Low Steppa “The Redoom”

Used to play the original, years ago. This one is great, and it’s a free download.

Standing Ovation:

Set Mo ft. ALPHAMAMA “Chasing Forever” (Jafunk Remix)

Have listened to this so many times—such good vibes on this one.

Please share a few words on the mix you’ve created for us.
This is definitely a more peak-time mix for us and features a lot of unreleased music. This is more the kind of stuff we play at bigger shows, as opposed to some of the deeper house mixes we often put out. The songs by Dave Fogg & the Bumpy Fool and the Cleary remix of “Morpei” are upcoming songs on our Country Club Disco label. We’ve provided the full track list, as well.

What are the biggest things on your radar for the rest of the year?
We plan on touring heavily in the US for most of the year and hopefully will get back over to Europe before the year ends. Lots of Country Club Disco releases coming out and a few Golf Clap tunes, as well. Some upcoming shows we are excited about: Dirtybird BBQ, North Coast Festival, MIJA’s FK a Genre Tour (playing two dates), Cloak & Dagger Festival, and right after New Year’s, we will be playing Holy Ship. We just signed with Madison House in North America and Colluded Talent in Europe in the last few weeks, so the traveling should be picking up even more.

Track List:: Kry Wolf “Flashlight”
Dave Fogg & the Bumpy Fool “Drop That”
Ryan Padley “Time to Go Deep” (Middath Remix)
Eyes Everywhere “Yoshi”
Josh Brown “Systematic”
Kill Frenzy “Silo”
DJ S.K.T. “Livewire”
Martin Ikin “RAGE”
Dave Fogg & the Bumpy Fool “Give Yourself”
Luca Secco & Craftkind “Phone Call”
Drop 2 Jump “When the Truth Can’t Go”
Ghostea x Quincinerate “Stuart’s Acid” (Grensta Remix)
Josh Brown “Frequencies”
GAWP “Vanilla Gorilla”
Alaia & Gallo “Pushin From the Walls”
Skapes “Likes”
Jojo Angel & Matteo Rosolare “1967”
Mhod “Say Good”
Morpei “Got Me” (Cleary Remix)