atish is a DJ\/Producer with a super distinct sound and a record label with the quality to match! We spoke to him recently to find out more, DHL and his plans for the rest of 2024…<\/p>\n
Hey atish, how has 2024 started for you?<\/strong><\/p>\n So far 2024 has been wonderful. Per usual, New Year\u2019s Eve and Day are the most hectic times of the year for me, followed by a few weeks off to focus on studio work and family time. I\u2019ve been in a good zone creatively, and grateful to have a few weeks off to focus on creating.<\/p>\n Any New Years resolutions you have started?<\/strong><\/p>\n To be honest, no major resolutions this year. Just trying to balance all the spinning plates in life without losing my mind \ud83d\ude42<\/p>\n About your style\/aims when it comes to DJing – are you someone who likes to get people in a trance, or who likes a sense of fun in their sets, or who likes to shock etc?<\/strong><\/p>\n The question itself touches on my general approach to DJing quite well, but it depends on the venue and context for how much I lean into each aspect. If I\u2019m playing an extended 4hr+ set and I feel that I have a strong relationship of trust with the crowd (either acutely within the night or over the course of years), I\u2019m more eager to get the audience in a hypnotic trance-like state.<\/p>\n If I\u2019m playing a festival like Desert Hearts or Burning Man, I\u2019ll definitely reveal more of the quirky side of my sound (and attire). On that note, I do think in general, dance music is often far too serious. Sometimes if I\u2019m on the dance floor, I\u2019ll look around and wonder if anyone is actually having fun here or just trying to be cool. I\u2019ve never considered myself one of the cool kids, so I\u2019m comfortable letting my inner weirdo out when it feels right.<\/p>\n Regarding shocking a crowd, more narrowly, I enjoy surprising a crowd from time to time. The most exciting art (music or otherwise) usually involves a fair amount of risk. Even if I don\u2019t personally enjoy the outcome of an artist\u2019s risk, I do respect their attempt, and will pay closer attention to what they are doing. In a perfect world, I\u2019m able to nail both: surprise my audience with a musical risk and see it land well on the floor.<\/p>\n And where is your best environment? A small dark club or a huge outdoor festival stage? Late at night for the weirdos or early so you can play slow and eclectic?<\/strong><\/p>\n I actually just played an intimate loft party last weekend, to a crowd of maybe 60 people. These types of gigs are rare these days, so I was reminded how much I love having the crowd so close to my face that I can smell the sweat. I\u2019m extremely sensitive to my environment since my approach to DJing involves continuous reading of the room and adjusting accordingly. When I can follow every dancer\u2019s own personal narrative throughout a night, it\u2019s much easier for me to lock into the perfect vibe that the room needs.<\/p>\n Don\u2019t get me wrong, I do have a place in my heart for playing massive festivals. That\u2019s a special adrenaline rush for sure. But DJing a festival stage is a blunt force approach to the artform: play the big drops and the bangers, because if you don\u2019t, even for just a minute, the crowd will move onto another stage that\u2019s more stimulating. I\u2019ll do this if the situation calls for it, but it\u2019s not as exciting to me artistically.<\/p>\n A DJ could get away with pre-programming a festival set, but there\u2019s no way that would fly in an intimate room. The latter is much harder, and perhaps counterintuitively, playing for a smaller crowd takes more experience to truly get right.<\/p>\n When making music, what are your aims, what sounds are you most found of, what is the aim of your tunes?<\/strong><\/p>\n Earlier in my production career, I used to carry a heavy weight on my shoulders since I felt I didn\u2019t have a signature sound, and I didn\u2019t know how to go about getting there. Over the years, I\u2019ve decided to drop that notion of obsessing over what I\u2019m supposed to sound like or what others will respect.<\/p>\n Now my aim is to just surrender and let \u201cGod\u201d (or whatever you want to call it) decide whatever sounds come through the speakers. Sometimes it ends up being progressive, sometimes minimal, sometimes dubby, even bollywood edits\u2026frankly I don\u2019t care, as long as what I\u2019ve created is something I like and feels authentic to who I am.<\/p>\n With this approach, my sonic signature has revealed itself in ways I hadn\u2019t originally expected and maybe in ways not everyone recognizes. But I\u2019m happy to say that I\u2019m finding much more fulfillment at this point in my creative journey, since I now operate with less fear and more confidence in my creative choices.<\/p>\n Tell us about your Manjumasi label – why start it, what was the motivation?<\/strong><\/p>\n Mark Slee and I started Manjumasi back in 2016, but we have been collaborating on creative projects since high school, roughly 25 years ago! 2015 was the year I had left my corporate tech job to fully dedicate myself to music, so I had a lot of creative energy and interest in trying on some new hats. The idea of starting a label always sounded exciting to me, since I already enjoyed curation so much through DJing in clubs and releasing studio mixes. When Mark sent me his quirky\/awesome Nocturne Belle demo, it wasn\u2019t really clear which label would sign a tune like that. At that moment, it was obvious that we needed to start our own thing.<\/p>\n