LUPO.THEBOY on “Perfect Plate”, “Nobody Will Love You” and more new music
Producing music on trains. Having lead vocals on a song for the first time. Being signed to Sweat It Out. Working on an official remix for Pat Lok. Cherry Mezcal Margaritas. Performing at Big Sound and West Best Bloc Fest, and more.
Fuzzer: Thanks for taking the time to answer some of our questions! First of all, how did you get started in production and making your own music?
LUPO.THEBOY: Thanks for having me. I appreciate the opportunity! I've always had music around me. Growing up, my dad was a musician and it's something we bonded over quite heavily. But similarly to probably so many producers, I got a cracked version of FL studio when I was in high school and started making terrible terrible dance tracks with friends and then it just kept going from there.
Fuzzer: Haha amazing! Who were your main musical and creative influences growing up?
LUPO.THEBOY: I didn't have a lot of exposure to dance or electronic music growing up. Dad was a jazz musician, and I was a drummer listening to lots of heavier angry music. My first real taste of dance music was when an uncle gifted me a Ministry of Sound 2005 annual CD. I fell in love with Eric Prydz, Armand Van Helden and that real sample heavy uplifting house music. I don't know what it was, but I was hooked instantly. From there I continued to explore that scene and was really inspired by Daft Punk and Burial.
Fuzzer: Awesome! And congrats on your latest single "Perfect Plate"! What was the journey like creating this track?
LUPO.THEBOY: Thank you! That was a fun one. Fun and new actually. It started off with just a piano line I recorded one day. I was on my way to Sydney on the train (shoutout cityrail) and pulled up the piano recording I'd done and by the time I'd gotten to Sydney I'd written the track. It just all came out. A couple of bits were finessed in the studio later on but yeah, it was a train job. The vocals were probably the most interesting part. The sample I'd originally submitted to the label didn't clear. And I found out 24 hours before the track was due, so my partner convinced me to sing on it. So it's the first track of mine with me on lead vocals. I'm not a singer, so it was a learning curve. And I may of freaked out a little. But it was worth it, and I'm stoked I listened to the advice.
Fuzzer: Can you walk us through your usual creative process when starting a new track? How do you develop your ideas from concept to finished product?
LUPO.THEBOY: I am a big fan of ambient music. And so most of my tracks start from drones or pads that I make. Then I'll sit at my piano, or my sample pad, press record and jam over the top. That could be recording piano, synths or a chopped up vocal. Then I'll go back, listen and see if there are any diamonds amongst the rough. From there I keep building with basslines, drums and the rest. I'm a huge fan of collaborating too, so I usually send tracks around to mates for a few weeks getting advice and suggestions. I'm not precious about that stuff and enjoy the feeling of having a "village" help create together.
Fuzzer: We absolutely love the song "Nobody Will Love You"! What was your main highlight or core memory working on this track?
LUPO.THEBOY: I'd just gotten back from almost a year travelling. It was a weird time, I'd come back to Australia and gone on tour a few days after getting back, then I was crashing at a friends place in their spare room and didn't really have a base. I'd sold 99% of my belongings before I left and so I'd gone from having this incredible experience travelling around back to reality and building life back up. For me, saying things out loud help me realise how ridiculous some of my thoughts can be. And that song was just an expression of one of those ridiculous thoughts ... it made a cool song though.
Fuzzer: Your remixes of RAAVE TAPES' "k hi" and Pat Lok's "Love FM'" are incredible! How did these collaborations come about?
LUPO.THEBOY: Oh thank you! They're a bit different from each other but I had a lot of fun making them. Pat Lok is an incredible producer and DJ who I've admired for years. I'm signed to Sweat It Out, a label he has released a bunch of tracks on and they were nice enough to reach out and let me know he wanted me to remix one of his tracks! So that's what ended up happening there. It was a huge honour! As for RAAVE TAPES. Well Lindsay is actually my partner, so there's an element of keeping it in the family there haha. They actually showed me the demos a while before their album came out and I loved that track and I think I told them that I shotty'd doing the remix if they ever decided to do one.
Fuzzer: One thing we’re doing with each of our interviews is customising a cocktail recipe in relation to music we're talking about. So if the one of your singles was a cocktail, which would have the best cocktail name and what type of cocktail would it be? What flavours do you think it would have?
LUPO.THEBOY: Oooo I like this. OKAY. So I'm taking a different approach. I associate all my tracks with colours. And “Echo”, for me, is a pinkish reddish colour. Similar to a Cherry. I also love mezcal, so I think I'll do a Cherry Mezcal Margarita. Yum.
Fuzzer: Sounds delicious! And what music are you listening to at the moment and are there any new artists/songs you would recommend?
LUPO.THEBOY: Jorgen - “On My Mind”, Barry Can't Swim - “Sonder”, 2XM - “Lost Grove”, Stolen Velour - “Jasper”, Harry Hayes - “I love you”, Famous Friend - “Tanlines” and Way Lie - “Airbrush”.
Fuzzer: That’s a great list! And you're going to be performing at Big Sound in September - what are you looking forward to most about your performance/s and who are you most excited to see live?
LUPO.THEBOY: I'm so excited for Big Sound. It's hard to pick just one act, the lineup is stellar this year. I've really been frothing the Bel Air Lip Bombs stuff lately. It's worlds away from what I make and the scene I'm in but something about their music just hits me. From the dance world, I'd say Hellcat Speedracer.
Fuzzer: What's next for you in 2024?
LUPO.THEBOY: Wrapping up the year strong with Big Sound and West Best Bloc Fest, which is a great annual festival in Newcastle. They curate a lineup of over 100 local bands and spread them across a block of venues in Newcastle CBD. It's something I look forward too every year and I'm actually curating a stage this year. So I'm real excited for that. Then there are some tracks coming out towards the end of the year I'm very keen for you all to hear. Thanks so much for having me team <3
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