Following a steady barrage of recent releases on Monstercat, which includes his moodier offerings, “Yesterday” and “Out of the Dark,” No Mana has decided to serve up a lethal dose of nostalgia as we prepare to enter 2023 with “Space” featuring ill-esha.
Considered quite the production prodigy, the newest addition to his discography was inspired by one of his favorite songs growing up, Donna Lewis’ “I Love You Always Forever” engineering a high-octane tune fueled vintage-analogue synths backed by his signature 8-bit beats while radiating a ‘90s aura throughout thanks to ill-esha’s pop-driven melody.
Fresh off the release of his groovy new single, “Space,” we took the time to catch up with No Mana!
DJ Life Mag: How would you say your sound has evolved since first popping onto the scene in 2014?
No Mana: I like to keep a strict formula when making music as No Mana. When I started I was a big fan of the idea of making a career of only music in 128 BPM and 4/4 time. Even though I’ve been doing essentially the same thing for 8 years, I haven’t really had the desire to change the sound but to just refine it and make it sound cleaner from a technical standpoint. My goal has always been to stick with my electro house and trance roots (and occasionally some techno and experimental tracks just for fun). At the same time, I’ve been drawing inspiration from what I’m currently listening to, so my box of unreleased music has been sounding like a mash of electro house and 00’s dance classics with some house music.
DJ Life Mag: When it comes to the electronic dance music scene as a whole, what are some changes you’ve noticed over the years?
No Mana: On a larger-scale timeline, I feel like it’s common knowledge that raving has changed, and by “changed” I don’t know whether to say that it has evolved or deteriorated. In my opinion, the culture used to feel more like a far away, fantasy world and I think it being underground was partly the reason; but over time it became more like just another publicly accepted social activity which has its pros and cons. I assume my point of view is a little skewed because my perspective on the matter changed a lot just from becoming an artist from being an attendee.
DJ Life Mag: What words of wisdom do you have for up-and-coming producers looking to make their presence felt but feel overwhelmed having to juggle all these platforms?
No Mana: Exposure is something that comes passively, it wasn’t really something that I put first on my list. Focus on the music first and develop your own circle of friends and colleagues that can give you feedback on your music. Make your art accessible: make sure you provide ample information on your art and where to enjoy it (i.e. SoundCloud, Spotify, website links). I see a lot of profiles out there that don’t provide a clear connection from their social media to their music, which is detrimental. Also, don’t worry about posting every day or making TikToks – some of my favorite successful artists don’t even touch on social media. Overall, what I’ve learned is that there’s no right way of handling any platform as long as people have a way of accessing your art.
DJ Life Mag: What gear and programs are you using these days when it comes to production?
No Mana: I’m pretty minimal about the tools I use to make music. In the box, my main synths are Serum and Operator (I’m Ableton based), and have leaned more towards sampling and resampling lately. I’ll rarely record 1 hour sessions with my eurorack (which has about 9 basic modules) and resample that into my music. Everything else is all plugins native to Ableton.
DJ Life Mag: When you have a rough week or hit a wall creatively, how do you get back on track?
No Mana: This year I’ve hit a music-life balance to the point where I never feel like I’m sitting in front of a DAW and not putting something down. On a normal day, I’ll spend 2-5 hours on music and spend the rest of the day doing other tasks such as e-mails, graphic art, photo/video editing, exercising, cooking, or being with family and/or friends. On busy weeks (especially when I’m touring) sometimes it’s 2-4 hours every 1-2 weeks, sometimes a month. I actually have not felt like I hit a wall in a long time and find myself wishing I had more time to make music, but luckily I churn them out pretty quickly when I do so I don’t have too much of a problem trying to output music frequently.
DJ Life Mag: What’s your creative process in the studio?
No Mana: I have a pretty non-systematic way of starting up a track. The first sound that goes on the DAW depends on what I’m inspired by at the moment and usually ends up being the main sound. My drums are all loaded in samplers so I can layer them easily. Sometimes I start a track with a sample to kickstart the creative process, whether it’s a loop from splice or an a capella, writing additional melodies over that. I mix while I produce and I also give it another mix once it comes close to deliver the song for an official release. Oh, and caffeine is a must.
DJ Life Mag: Who are some of your favorite DJ / producers at the moment?
No Mana: At this very moment? Darude, Alice Deejay, ATB, ‘cause you know… nostalgia.
DJ Life Mag: Tell us a little about your new single “Space” featuring ill-esha and how it came together.
No Mana: When I was 5 or 6-years-old, I would think of any music that had a synth in it as “space music.” I’ve also been listening to a lot of house and trance lately, so I wanted to incorporate that into “Space” with drums and melodic instruments. I wanted to make something like “I Love You Always Forever” by Donna Lewis, except bringing in just a bit of old 2000’s dance hit influences because that’s what I’ve been listening to. The way ill-esha carried her voice felt well-fitted for what I was going for.
DJ Life Mag: Monstercat has become a staple within the world of electronic music and gaming; how does it feel to continue to have releases on the powerhouse imprint?
No Mana: Electronic music and gaming, could I ask for more? Feels great; I’ve been a fan of the label for too long.
DJ Life Mag: With 2022 about to come to a close, what does No Mana have in store for 2023?
No Mana: More music, obviously. I also moved studios with my merch guy so hopefully merch as well, finally?
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