Bit Funk is on the move. His singles â€Off The Ground†and “Destination Sunrise†have 3.6 and 1.2 million plays respectively on Spotify, and he has a lot more in terms of shows and production in store for his fans.
We had the chance to talk with Bit Funk ahead of his upcoming show at U Street Music Hall this coming Friday (September 2). Over the course of the interview, we covered his favorite and least favorite thing about DC, the evolution of his sound, his Mustache Mastering company, and his upcoming releases and shows.
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What is your favorite and least favorite thing about DC having visited here sometimes?
Bit Funk: Ooof … I gotta think about that.
[Pauses]
It’s easy for me to say that my favorite thing about DC is U Street Music Hall (U Hall). It’s the number-one place for the type of music that I do. I’ve been there many times for my own shows and other people’s shows.
Worst thing about DC? That there’s no good pizza — no offense but … your pizza sucks.
[Laughs] Have you been to 2 Amy’s?
Bit Funk: Yeah … it’s acceptable. DC’s main contribution to pizza is that it’s big.
[Laughing] Well that’s only Jumbo Slice.
Bit Funk: Chicago has the deep dish pizza, New York has amazing pizza everywhere and even the cheapest pizza is good. Montreal has dollar slices. DC: it’s big! Jumbo Slice — it’s big, but it’s shitty.
In preparation for this interview, I went through your discography on Spotify in addition to reading interviews you’ve done over the last few years. From your early remixes of Adulture’s “Paper Cat†and Ghosts of Venice’s “Her†to your most recent tracks, “Off The Ground†and “Destination Sunrise,†it seems that you’ve moved from the Indie Dance / Nu Disco sound to a Pop-influenced vibe that has a wider appeal. And it’s apparent that this switch has been a good move for you — â€Off The Ground†and “Destination Sunrise†are your two most popular tracks on Spotify with over 3.6 and 1.2 million plays respectively. What sparked this change in your sound? What release would you pinpoint as the turning point?
Bit Funk: I’m not sure that there was a specific turning point. The releases that you mentioned at the beginning there [remixes of Adulture’s “Paper Cat†and Ghosts of Venice’s “Herâ€] were a number of years ago. For me, it’s been a slow change. Both “Off The Ground†and “Destination Sunrise†were very calculated in terms of their vibe and what I imagined would be their appeal. But I wouldn’t say that I abandoned any specific sound, or trend-chased — I have certain sounds in mind for specific audiences. I don’t think I’ve given up making Indie Dance / Nu Disco — an example of this: I just released a remix for KT Tunstall that came out yesterday on Soundcloud, and it has an Indie Dance / Nu Disco vibe. And at this point, years after Indie Dance / Nu Disco was big, it’s a throwback, but it’s a sound that I still enjoy.
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Tell me about Mustache Mastering and your involvement with that.
Bit Funk: Mustache Mastering is a studio that I basically founded. It’s something that organically came from myself and a bunch of friends who are producers, mostly complaining that we couldn’t find good mastering engineers. So I started mastering songs for some friends of mine. Over the years, that organically grew to what it is now — a company of a bunch of different mixers and engineers. We do mixing, mastering, and other production work for a broad range of clients. Everything from EDM to indie rock bands to folk to hip hop … we’ve done a lot of trap. I like being able to put that hat on when I work on projects for different people, whether I’m working as an engineer or a contributing producer. I try to use my experience to help bring their vision to light.
Do you ghost produce?
Bit Funk: Yes, but we prefer to help people who have ideas and are having trouble bringing them to fruition. In their mind, they may have an idea of how they want it to sound, but they’re having trouble getting it out. So we help make their ideas happen.
What do you have in store for us for your show at U Hall on Friday? And what do you have lined up gig and release-wise for the next few months?
Bit Funk: For U Hall, I’m not really sure. I’ve played U Hall a bunch of times now, and it’s always amazing. I love it. I always have a really great time, and find the crowd to be one of the best you can possibly play for. It’s a crowd that’s invested in what you’re playing. They go with you, they pay attention to what you’re doing. The crowd will build with you and let you build a real DJ set rather than you having to play crowd pleasing tracks that might not be what you want to do or where you want to take things. Sometimes you have to drop energy tracks that may not be what you’re into at the time, but I feel that I don’t have to do that U Hall … I can just see what people are feeling and work with that.
In terms of releases, I’ve got a ton of different stuff coming out. I have a bunch of remixes that are coming out soon. The remix package for “Destination Sunrise†is coming out soon and it includes a club mix that I did. I have another single that is coming out soon also. Unfortunately I can’t give you dates now, but I’ve got a lot that I’m either finishing up or is in the hands of labels already.
In terms of gigs, I go to Denver immediately after U Hall to play a show at Beta on Sunday for this massive all day party with Totally Enormous Extinct Dinosaurs. I’ve had a lot of fun playing day parties in Denver, so I’m looking forward to that a lot. And then right after that, I go to Brandon University in Alberta for their Crash the Courtyard party for the start of school. I have other shows in the works after that.
Thank you for taking the time to talk with me. I look forward to catching you at U Hall on Friday.
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