5,6,7 and...

It’s been 3 days since my last entry. Man, writing about what I learned producers on the Vandetta EP Remixes daily is difficult. Just cos I find myself struggling to make the time. I end up here late at night, sitting in the kitchen with the lights off, my face illuminated by the computer screen, cigarette hanging from my mouth, words floating out my head as smoke wafts into the air. How do people do this daily? Respect.

Track 5: Walls Remix

Produced by Sauce 81 ft. Albino Sound

First time I met Sauce 81 I was watching him do a gig with Syndicate at Kyo. I remember thinking he seemed like such a chill guy and I was blown away with how he put his set together with glistening vocal loops that didn’t feedback over soul funky vibes.

Months later we hung out in Tokyo, when he was working on RBMA. The japanese katsu curry spot near our hotel had closed so we traipsed into the one next door, which wasn’t as good but opened til real late. He was as gentle and hospitable – the first thing I learned from him. Being humble as an artist is a good trait to have.

Fast forward to when he sent me his version of Walls. He totally flipped the script on the track and gave it a Motown soul vibe, completely unexpected and intriguing. We went back and forth on the mix and in the end I learned the second thing from Sauce 81, which is that you need to be able to stand by what you create.

Track 6: Fly Remix

Producer: Jean Reiki

This track is one of the ones on the EP that I keep coming back to time and time again. It speaks to the core of my being in a way that is indescribable. It’s bare yet bassy, alluring and mysterious.

I can’t remember when I first met Jean. It was quite possibly when she was one of the females involved in the FFF Girl DJ Bootcamp along with Pamm Suki, Natalie Pixiedub and Cherry Chan. When I took over Lush, she was already one of the DJs on the roster of 12, and I used to love when it was her turn on the schedule because her trailer would come on with that dope deep dubstep backing in and I would bob my head in the studio.

She’s been involved in a scene for a some time… And I respect that kind of stamina. Can’t be all too easy when lovers of dubstep and reggae belong to a small community here.

It’s important when you’re an artist/musician to have realistic expectations and a clear purpose about why you do what you do. If it’s about fame and glory, that’s probably not going to sustain you. But if you can find that connection to your soul, know what the music means to you, what the people in it mean to you… I think that takes you further.

I appreciate that lesson Jean Reiki - A lesson in patience and tolerance. And as the only female producer on the Vandetta EP Remixes, I’m honoured to have her .

Track 7: Myne Remix

Produced by Beat Ventriloquists

I had a friend of a friend named Charles who spent some time in Singapore for work whenever he needed to touch base with the local arm of a big phone brand. We all met for dinner once and him and I bonded over hip-hop and trip-hop. So when he told me about some buddies in LA who used to be his old housemates who just so happened to be brothers who were DJ/producers, I paied attention. Especially after I heard this track (Insert Goapele remix).

Later when I moved to LA for a minute, I caught them at a bar in West Hollywood. They were spinning some old school 90s jams I used to vibe to and I danced the hell outta that night.

Beat Ventriloquists gave me their first version of Myne probably almost a year ago. When I finally managed to gather enough for a release I remember contacting Gene on Facebook. He told me they wanted to rework it and I totally understood because artists change through time and space. Something I suppose I kind of knew but relearned through them.

I imagine their remix as the soundtrack to flying in space. Ethereal synth lines paired with percussive drums that accelerate just as you’re about to hit hyperdrive, dropping you into a million stars.