One of our favorite Colorado freeform bass producers, illanthropy. is back with an incredible new 4 track EP to bless our earholes this week. While the full stomper of this “Optical Delusion” EP isn’t being released until Friday, we are bringing you a little taste of all the heat that is to come with our premiere today, “Open Your Mouth”. This tune is the heaviest of the 4, bringing insane whompy drops combined with a catchy uptempo beat that you absolutely do not want to miss. We definitely are sure to see this one played out all throughout this year’s festival season! Let’s take a deeper dive into why we are calling “Open Your Mouth” and the rest of this insane EP, a certified bop.

“I think the foundation of this EP is the idea that nothing is ever exactly as it seems. One of my good friends said the words “optical delusion” to me one day and I loved it. Immediately I knew it was what this EP would be called. Everything that happens has so much nuance if we look closely enough. A smile to a passerby on the sidewalk might seem like a small gesture to us, but it could be the spark the other person needed to turn their day around. I believe that every interaction is important, and things become so much more interesting when we look past initial perceptions.”

1. If you could go back in time and start over given what you have learned in your career so far, what changes and approach would you have done differently?

Honestly, I don’t think I’d change anything. I started making music when I was 16, approximately 2008, and I had no idea what I wanted to do or where I was going. I barely knew who I was. The time I’ve spent learning how to do this combined with the time I’ve spent refining myself as an artist, as an entrepreneur, and as a human – this is time I wouldn’t trade for anything. The sleepless nights, the intense and sometimes awkward self realizations, the heartbreak related to self discovery… it’s all so valuable. I feel that I only semi recently discovered who I really was and what I wanted out of… all of this. So, it’s been a slow burn to say the least. These lessons and these hardships are part of my blueprint. I’m trying to create a legacy – I’m trying to deepen my empathic experiences with other people. I want to give my listeners a sense of awe as much as I want to give them a sense of comfort. I just want the world to be a little more interesting and a little more inspiring, so I relish my troughs and anticipate the peaks. All of my time spent has been valuable in one way or another. I wouldn’t change a thing.

2.What has been one of the most memorable career achievements so far as an artist and how did that impact you moving forward?

I think the most memorable moment of my music career was when I was playing video games in my boxers in my living room and one of my friends texted me to say that my favorite artist (at the time) played one of my songs at the “Oregon Eclipse” festival. I think it’s because it was so unexpected and so intense and I had no idea how to handle those feelings at the time – so I just ran circles around my living room and said “this isn’t real this isn’t real this isn’t real” because there was NO way it could be real in my mind. I’m thankful I still get that feeling.

In the ever changing world of electronic music, we frequently see artists exploring new soundscapes out of their typical production style. These new explorations bring out the different emotions and feelings, and this is exactly what artist Kris Cayden has done throughout his new “Dreaming in Color” EP. Though he did not stray too far from the heavy dubstep sound he is known for, this new 10 track release brings in a new, fresh side to his project we haven’t fully experienced up until this point. Our favorite track off of this EP “Before Heaven” exemplifies the perfect mesh of his hard hitting style meshed perfectly with a softer more melodic tone, bringing forth a whole new feel we haven’t heard yet from this artist. This track and the whole EP is a do not miss if you love a combination of both the soft and the heavy. Let’s take a deeper dive into why we are calling “Before Heaven” and the rest of the “Dreaming in Color” EP, a certified bop. 

“The Album Daydream in Color is meant to be a standpoint for me as an artist. We all daydream, you just find your mind wandering off. You can Daydream about anything but you always come back to reality. This is one of my more emotional albums, but I didn’t forget the heavy dubstep. I wrote this over a year ago, it was the lowest point I’ve been at. I hope people enjoy it as much as I enjoyed writing it.”

1. Who/what are the biggest inspirations in the music you create today?

​​Charlie Put/Oliverse would have to be 2 of them, just the way they create is baffling

to me, atleast on the way I write my intros. I know putting those 2 together is weird, but

they are both great writers

2. In a perfect world, where do you see yourselves 2 years from now and why?

The dubstep/bass side of things would have to be Zomboy/Skrillex/Illenium, The evolution

these 3 have been on has been refreshing to me, it’s just the way I’d like to continue writing music

Coming to you live all the way from Madison WI, is none other than bass wizard and producer Star Monster,  bringing us an exclusive 4/20  inspired track. With an absolutely ridiculous combination of heavy hitting bass lines and nasty uptempo wub flow, this tune creates the perfect soundscape to escape reality and celebrate this “holiday” the proper way. This stomper is definitely a do not miss track if you crave those upbeat weird whompy synths that we have come to love from this artist. We know this one is going to be blasting on repeat for the foreseeable future! Let’s take a deeper dive into why we are calling this heater, “High Forever”, a certified bop. 

“What a better way to bring in 420 then dropping my tune high forever. If you listen closely the mage within this tune will guide you to the secret on staying high forever. Take care travel safely Starfleet.”

1. Who/what are the biggest inspirations in the music you create today?

A lot of things outside of music these days, like Studio Ghibli films, Adventure Time, JRR Tolkien, Great Directors like David Lynch, Akira Kurasawa. Great actors in great roles…like Ryan Gosling in Drive, James Dean in Rebel without a cause, Orson Wells in A Touch of Evil, a huge list really. As far as EDM a massive list of people killing it and devoting so much to their craft: Peekaboo, Eprom, GJones, Liquid Stranger, Moody Good, Ganja White Night, Subtronics, normal music lol Bob Dylan, Led Zeppelin , T Rex, Pink Floyd The Beatles, The Kinks …great art inspires me…when all the elements in a piece of work come together and form something outside of even itself…its so special to me…probably the best feeling in the world…there’s something so perfect about it….and it gives a release from the real world which gets overbearing.

2. In a perfect world, where do you see yourselves 2 years from now and why?

In two years I see myself on big stages around the world bringing people on some of the deepest visual and auditory experiences around.

If you have been searching for a pick me up this Tuesday, look no further than today’s premiere “New Kicks” brought to you by DC based producers, Crawdad Sniper and Dhananjaya. Combining a flourishing uptempo soundscape with a bouncy, groovy beat, this track is nothing short of one that will get you up and moving to its catchy rhythm and style. Both of these producers have expertly combined their sound into this jammin tune that is an absolute do not miss. Let’s take a deeper dive into why “New Kicks” is what we like to call, a certified bop. 

Crawdad Sniper:

1.If there was an artist you had the chance to collaborate with, who would it be and why?

For this I think I’d have to say Keota. He has some of the most clean and natural sounding drums in the game and I strive to be able to make my drums sing like his. Building timbre and dynamics into programmed drums in bass music is tough because so much of the flow relies on the steady consistency of the beat. Recently I’ve been trying more to manipulate nuances and imperfections into the hit of my drums, and I definitely took some of that inspiration from Keota’s production.

2. What kind of impact do you wish to have on the scene 1-2 years from now with your project?

I hope to never creatively box myself into the confines of a single genre or style of production and DJing. Additionally, I hope to never set my own expectations as a threshold for quality. As a musical medium, DJing and production in electronic music allows you sooo much creativity when it comes melding together different genres and styles. I wanna be able to flip expectations on their head. If you wanna mix left-field bass and indie-rock, go for it! I believe that there are no bounds for creativity in music. Don’t ever let your comfort zone stifle your creative growth. You won’t know something is new and exciting until you find it.

Dhananjaya:

1. If there was an artist you had the chance to collaborate with, who would it be and why?

Hmm this is a tough one, I feel like there are a lot of artists that inspire me so I don’t think I can narrow it down to one but I would love to work with inspect3r, vide, greazus, Josh Teed, Chmura, knetica, and Fixate to name a few.  I want to give a special mention to the Slug Wife guys Kursa and Seppa because honestly they changed the game.

2. What kind of impact do you wish to have on the scene 1-2 years from now with your project?

I just want to make music for people who want to wiggle freely and to not be bound by genre. I have no intention of reinventing the wheel but I do hope to push people out of their comfort zone a bit. I think at the end of the day I just want to make music that is meaningful to me, and if it’s meaningful to you too than that’s a bonus.