I really need to repost this interview to my new website. Name “Mayhem” has two really different meanings; some might confuse this with Norwegian black metal band but no, this is way more better. We are talking about one of the best producers in the world right now. Mayhem is Atlanta based producer who handle different genres like Drum & Bass, Dubstep, Trap and Rap. This particular interview is one of the best interviews what i have done in my four year journey.

Hi, Anthony! How was the year 2013?
2013 was an amazing year for me. Easily the best one yet! From touring with Butch Clancy and Getter to joining the Firepower Records squad on the Most Wanted Tour, I got my share and then some of amazing crowds in beautiful cities. I was also very honored to be invited to Russia to play my 1st gigs there in Rostov on Don and Moscow as well as play again for Hangover in Tokyo, which has become my favorite city in the world. The response to the music Antiserum and I have been creating was absolutely amazing, as well as the Drum & Bass records Logam and I dropped. Very excited for 2014!

You have over 15 years of experience as a producer and DJ. How did your career start?
My career started out playing guitar in a garage band with my neighbor. After a couple of years pursuing guitar, another neighbor introduced me to Industrial Techno that he made on his computer. I became immersed in electronic music and began DJing a few years later. I played my 1st show at 17 years old in Atlanta, GA and everything snowballed from there. Labels were becoming interested in signing my music and promoters across the world wanted to have me play their shows.

You’re known as a dubstep artist. Where do you get your inspiration to dubstep from?
Initially I was making Jungle and Drum & Bass, defining my sound in those genres. In 2005 I began to find Electro House and the formative Dubstep sound very interesting. Branching out my production stylistically reinforced my love for fusing two sounds together as Drum & Bass often did. I wanted to push a Southern brand of Dubstep that incorporated a lot of 808’s and southern vocals. I shied away from making things that were Drum & Bass oriented as I had been doing distorted sounds for so long. A lot of my initial productions were much more techno oriented, getting the attention of Subway Records and Hotflush Recordings. Eventually I moved on to try some heavier Dubstep and the result was my First Blood EP on SubHuman featuring Logam, TL, Mark Instinct, and Bare. Right after that, Antiserum and I dropped our BayTL / So High single on Smog Records which highlighted a more “Purple” style.

You’ve dcollaborated with Noisia and KRS-one. How did you get into this collaboration?
Around 2002, I found Noisia’s music on the internet and we quickly became close friends, producing a lot of music together. I had began to make some Hiphop connections in Atlanta and, through Ricky Raw, linked up with KRS-One. I always loved the “Digital” record he had done with Goldie and thought it would be amazing to get him on something from Noisia and myself. Previously, we had sat in the studio and articulated a visual vision for the record that would later be really rounded out by KRS-One’s vocals. It was an absolute honor and surprise to get the call from Ricky, saying KRS was ready to record right then and there. I dropped everything I was doing and went straight to Evol Intent’s studio so that Gigantor could record it for us! Noisia worked very hard with Alexander Lehmann to manifest our vision.

Recently you’ve combined trap and dubstep. What got you interested in this?
Lately I’ve been making things that are very Hiphop oriented, however this isn’t a new trend for me. From the early days of DJing Drum & Bass, I was throwing Southern Hiphop records on top, as a lot of them were around 87bpm and it worked well with the double time 174bpm. As I mentioned earlier, a lot of my initial Dubstep releases also featured a heavy spotlight on the Roland 808 Drums. My 1st release 10ton is filled with hi hats and snare rolls on top of a big distorted 808 sub bass. I went on to remix 10 Toes Down by MJG, 8 Ball and Lil Boosie, which showed there was a heavy demand for a sound that fused the two. My Project Pat + OJ The Juiceman “Keep It Hood” remix did quite well on my SoundCloud as well, so I kept pursuing a fusion of the two sounds. Whether it be Techno, Purple, Electro, or D&B inspired I wanted to see how I could make the two play together.

Atlanta native Whisperlink and I dropped “Trap Or Die” on Subway Records in 2010, not knowing that 2 years later and entire culture would form around the same idea. Heroes x Villains were friends of mine since the early D&B days and had been working at Grand Hustle with T.I. They did a record for Atlanta rapper / producers FKi and linked me up with them. The result was a mixtape curated by HxV, FKi, the mighty Diplo and myself. FKi and myself went on to make a ton of collaborations, including placements for Tyga, Honey Cocaine, Trouble, Gucci Mane, and Verse Simmons. My remix of Boomman “We Up In Here” got a ton of great feedback and support from DJ Green Lantern, who honored me immensely by playing it on Atlanta radio.

I don’t consider what I make to be “Trap”, rather some fusion of Electro, Hiphop, and Dubstep.

I had already been working on Dubstep with Antiserum and, while finishing up “So High” for Smog, we made “Brick Squad Anthem”. The record had a huge impact and resonated harder with the internet than anything I had ever touched before. We got surprised with a video of Skrillex dropping it and the crowd going apeshit. That’s when I was really confident that my dreams of fusing Rap and Electronic Music could be more of a vision than a daydream. I don’t consider what I make to be “Trap”, rather some fusion of Electro, Hiphop, and Dubstep. Trap music is T.I., Waka, Gucci, Future, Juicy J, etc. A sound born in the south that’s had it’s name repurposed, unfortunately.

You remixed Rich Homie Quan’s Type Of Way. What inspired you?
I loved Rich Homie Quan’s record “Type Of Way” so much, I thought to make a DJ edit that would fit in my sets a little better than the original. The engineering on Hiphop and Electronic Music is quite different and I wanted the record to fit in the mix. I didn’t want to remix it by pulling all the original elements out, and not having an acapella didn’t help either. So, I embellished what was there already, trying to keep the record true to form, and adding small “drop” sections towards the end. The response was amazing and is, to date, the most played record on my SoundCloud! I’ve tried to use any remix or edit as a springboard towards showcasing what I can do with Rap records and potential collaborations for the future. Hopefully one day you’ll see a RHQ record produced by me!

What’s your most memorable gig?
It would be a giant disservice to all the amazing gigs, I have been so fortunate to play, to nail one down as most memorable. In the past year, I’ve had the pleasure of touring with a lot of amazing artists and DJ’s. More so than I ever have before! I just feel genuinely grateful for the opportunities I’ve had. Being able to travel around the world to Japan, New Zealand, Australia, France, Switzerland, the motherland of Italy, Russia, Puerto Rico, Canada, and back home in the states is an opportunity I wish everyone can be afforded. It really blows my mind to think something that started in the basement of my parents house when I was 11 has became what it is.

What’s next?
Next up I’ve got a remix of Destroid “Bounce” that Antiserum and I have done for their remix album. Last I heard it was dropping in May. We’ve got some new original material that’s getting a great response. Not sure where or when those will drop. I’ve produced a record for Waka Flocka with Collipark called Bust that’s gonna be coming out very soon as a single for Waka. A ton of Drum & Bass records are gonna keep filtering out with my homie Logam! I’ve done records for Trinidad James as well as Young Thug which are on the way, a heavy collab with Ajapai is in the works, some new music with FKi and I’m always busy in the studio doing mix downs and mastering for Heroes x Villains, Diplo, Flosstradamus and a whole lot more!

Would you like to share something with the followers of Let the Bass Get You?
If you enjoy the deeper styles, definitely check out my Edgwoode project. We’re working on our debut album now, though I have been dropping singles here and there over the past two years. The project has changed a bit recently to be more band oriented, with an amazing vocalist, Abra, and drummer, McBeezy, added into the mix. We’ve got some super soulful future R&B vibes going and I’m excited to move into a different arena in live performance.

MAYHEM:
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soundcloud.com/mayhemfacebook.com/mayhemslr

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