Mo Vibez and THREE DOG collaborated on ‘Bells’ for issue six. Check out below for a link to the track and an interview with THREE DOG . If you are looking for an interview with Mo Vibez , we’ve interviewed him twice, so go ahead and take a look at this here when you get done reading the interview below..
________________________________________________________________________phuture: How’s it going Threedog? Why don’t you introduce yourself for those in our audience who aren’t familiar? (Where you from and anything you feel describes you)Threedog: Hey everyone! I am a musician and beat maker from Boston. Some things about me: I am a pretty solid chess player, I like to golf, I am currently a junior in college, and I really enjoy a nice cup of tea.________________________________________________________________________phuture: How do you guys feel about Bells? obviously this bangs, but now that it’s out for the world to consume, what are your thoughts on your collaborative effort and how it’ll be received?Threedog: Honestly one of the stranger collaborations I have been a part of. I was drinking with my buddies and woke up the next morning to find that I had posted this random shitty trap loop to Soundcloud. It literally consisted of just bells (hence the title) and a lot of layered drums. I realized that Mo commented on it like “yo this is dope,” so we talked and he ended up finishing the track. I think what he did to the second drop is really special. The way my drunken drums mesh with his atmospheric synths is just unreal to me. He honestly turned a random sloppy idea into a thing of beauty. I hope that people who listen recognize that!________________________________________________________________________phuture: Can you describe the process on creating something like this? Every producer approaches things differently, and we’re curious to know what your method to the madness is.Threedog: I honestly try to approach every song as differently as I can. Usually I just mess around until something grabs my ear. This could be a cool synth patch, vocal chop, or some layered drums and percussion. Another thing I like to do is playing in sounds to give the song a more natural offbeat feel.________________________________________________________________________phuture: While we’re figuratively in your studio, what’s your ritual in order to get in your headspace and focus on music? I.e. some people need a full pack of smokes and a beer on hand while some people need to have a disco ball going while they work. things of that nature.Threedog: No ritual per se, but I feel I definitely have to be in the right mindset to make something meaningful. Usually I like to have an idea already about a certain bpm or emotion I want to go with for a song. My biggest “ritual” is getting as much done as possible in one sitting. I’ve made ideas that I’ve absolutely loved and never worked on them again due to not having time to finish in one day. It’s something to do with the fact that there’s no way that I have the same thoughts/feelings day to day, so I really need to just crank music out.________________________________________________________________________phuture: What’s the strangest experience you’ve ever had involving music?Threedog: I honestly have no idea how to answer this! Maybe seeing Flying Lotus in concert. I know it’s a lame answer but his live set is like nothing I have ever experienced before.________________________________________________________________________phuture: Can you tell us about the moment you said, “holy shit, I NEED to make music,”?Threedog: I started playing guitar at a very young age so I’ve technically been writing music for almost my whole life. However, I always felt frustrated when I would write a riff and hear all these instruments in my head with no idea how to make them happen. The first time I made music digitally was actually in this music composition class I took in high school. We had to make songs using this really basic composition software and show them to the class. When we all presented them, my song and this other kid’s song were noticeably bizarre and different. We started talking and he explained to me that he had been producing music for a couple years. He gave me some software, taught me how to use it, and the rest is history. I immediately fell in love with producing and the limitless options it provides.________________________________________________________________________phuture: Name some artists you feel aren’t getting the love they deserve.Threedog: MO VIBEZ OF COURSE. He’s such a talented and friendly dude with an unbelievably unique sound. There are so many talented people out there who are trying to be heard in a super saturated market, so it’s hard to choose. To name a few though, I released with MORE//NIGHT on the ZenSupremacy “Friends Tape” and think he is just awesome, same goes for the funkadelic vibes of The Kount. Just scroll through who I follow on Soundcloud and I’m sure you will find some cool artists. Some of my friends back home who produce got some great stuff going on as well and I’m going to repost them a lot in the future. Have to shout out my best bud Radionaut. It’s his birthday today and he makes soulful Dilla inspired hop hop. Check out his song High Hopes and you will easily see the potential that I see in him.________________________________________________________________________phuture: What are you listening to right now?Threedog: Skin by Flume, SAVE YOURSELF by SBTRKT, and Motifs II by 20syl. My favorite song right now is “Forgetting and Learning Again” by Lapalux. Just such a different and beautiful tune.________________________________________________________________________phuture: What do you feel needs to be addressed and/or changed in the music industry, like right now?Threedog: Within this beats scene, I think there needs to be a new sound soon. I find myself appreciating the production techniques behind a lot of Soundcloud beats rather than the music itself. Too many artist are clearly trying to achieve a certain sound and are just making a second rate version of what someone else is already doing much better. I think a lot of people (including myself) have to go back to the drawing board and just rethink everything. That is what I am attempting to do right now. It’s really difficult and I’m struggling immensely with it but then again, nobody said that this shit was supposed to be easy.________________________________________________________________________phuture: Weirdest source material for a sample you’ve ever used?Threedog: So many weird samples haha. I love using household sounds to create weird textures but one of the strangest was the first beat I ever made. I pitched down Curtis Mayfield saying “Running Wild” and slapped a ping pong delay on the vocals. The result was this weird hypnotic screwy loop that bounced all over the stereo image.________________________________________________________________________phuture: What’s one city you have to play before you die?Threedog: I’ve only played parties so far, so I have to say Boston on hand while some people need to have a disco ball going while they work. things of that nature.________________________________________________________________________
Interview conducted by Erik N/Bandapears, who you can check out here
Check out Threedog here: