M4SONIC isn't just a fleeting YouTube sensation.
The Adelaide DJ may have had a quick ride to success off the coattails of a viral YouTube video, but his fresh take on contemporary electronic dance music might be just what the industry needs. A classically trained pianist, he doesn't just push a few buttons and call it a day. Instead, he puts together complex tracks and plays them live on a Novation Launchpad; a labour-intensive approach that made the perfectionist's breakthrough clip, 'Weapon', a phenomenon.
“When (producers) make a track they send it to labels or they send it to all their friends on Facebook. I would hold off on doing that,” he explains. “If the content is good enough, people will find you. I think it's more about staying true to the music you want to make and putting in a ridiculous amount of hours.
“You can't underestimate just how important perfecting what you're doing in your sound is, and not copying other artists. You've got to be prepared to take risks, make mistakes and get a following of the right people because essentially that's what's going to take you through to that next level of getting the record labels interested. It's not just about throwing it out there so anyone can see it.”
Ironically, “throwing it out there so anyone can see it” is exactly what the 21-year-old DJ did, and he hasn't fared too badly, racking up over 21,000,000 views on YouTube. “The internet has definitely helped me get a fan base. I think it's essential that you have these resources and I'm super grateful for the fact that I had YouTube to get me where I'm at. My intentions were to show the world what I could do but I never expected it to get so much attention. Music was always my hobby but I was more into production, as opposed to what I do live now. It was always the dream to one day be on a stage but I never thought it would be a reality.”
M4SONIC, already named as an ambassador by headphone manufacturer SOL REPUBLIC, will soon be living out a dream that is surely on the bucket list for any serious DJ — playing Australia's Stereosonic festival with his impressive set-up. “It's a pretty unique set-up. We've got all my equipment on show. I've got a high definition camera above me with a bird's eye view angle; it's going to be filming everything I do live and putting it up on the super screen, so the whole time there will be interaction with the crowd. Everyone's gonna know what I'm doing and they're gonna be able to see all the mistakes that I make as well. It's just bringing that live element to it. It's gonna be a tonne of fun.”
Currently in the midst of his first national tour, M4SONIC also plans to compose enough original tracks for an EP. “While we're on the road I'd like to showcase some of my original stuff and have an EP released in the next three to six months. My music is high energy, sort of like hard electro. It's hard because the beats per minute that I'm producing is a little quicker than most dance music. So it's still electronic dance music but it's just got that harder sound to it.”
While M4SONIC produces his music a little differently to most current DJs, his musical influences are reminiscent of some big names. “My idol is Deadmau5. Not only is he a great musician, but technically he's incredible. I actually make dubstep, so all that Skrillex type stuff has definitely inspired me. That's what got me into it. But I'm trying to have that hard, nice, party electro sound; that's the direction I'm going in.”
An obvious similarity between Deadmau5 and M4SONIC is the use of a number in the artist's name. As it turns out, the naming of M4SONIC was quite inspired. “An M4 is a weapon, it's an arterial weapon. It's not that I condone military or wars and stuff like that. It's that I'm a weapon of sound, which is why that Launchpad video is called 'Weapon'.
“Essentially I wanted to make a difference so I used different equipment. I just wanted to make a statement for the new generation of producers that are coming into this industry, that are taking risks and making tracks using different equipment. What I do in the studio is exactly what I do on stage. I am the sound of a weapon.”
M4SONIC Tour Dates:
Thu Oct 03 — Metro City (Perth)
Sat Oct 12 — Pacha (Sydney)
Sat Oct 19 — Family (Brisbane)
Fri Nov 01 — Academy (Canberra)
Sat Nov 02 — King Street Hotel (Newcastle)
Sat Dec 01 — Stereosonic (Sydney)
Sat Dec 07 — Stereosonic (Adelaide)
Sun Dec 08 — Stereosonic (Melbourne)
