As Moonrise Festival in Baltimore, MD was nearing its end, Ooah, Edit, and Boreta of The Glitch Mob were all set to close out the Lunar stage. But not before we got a chance to chat with them about the festival itself, working with up-and-comer, Mark Johns, on their track "Better Hide, Better Run," and how their inspiration can be described by Amanda Palmers "Blender" Analogy.
DB: So, some really cool stuff going on out there today.
Ooah: Yeah, it’s a really good vibe out there.
DB: Really good vibe. Everyone is super chill
Ooah: It’s cool. It doesn’t feel pretentious.
We’ve heard that from a lot of people as well.
Ooah: And it doesn’t feel like people are too fucked up; sometimes you can feel everyone is super drunk or high.
Did you know it’s an all-age festival?
Ooah: Oh really? It’s only because we are in Baltimore.
Have you guys been here before?
Ooah: Once before.
Edit: Yeah, we’ve played in Baltimore before.
Boreta: A long time ago; I think it was 2010. I don’t remember what it was for but it was in downtown Baltimore. We’ve played 930 club and Silver Springs, were our Maryland shows.
But never Moonrise?
Boreta: First Moonrise, yeah.
Ooah: What was it before?
It was called Starscape before. And the first year that it was supposed to be moonrise, in 2013, it got cancelled. So technically, last year was the first year.
So you wanna talk about your new EP, Piece of the Indestructible, a little bit?
Boreta: Yeah, it came out a couple of months ago and we took some time over the winter to experiment with some new stuff. The music came really naturally. We have this cadence of 10 and 3 and 10 and 3; we had a 10-song album then a 3-song EP, then a 10-song album, and a 3-sing EP. So it was kind of a continuation of what we were doing with the last album. We just wanted the same sounds and sonic techniques. It explored some new territory but with a similar palette. We didnt’ reboot the whole thing. We have a tendency to saying, “Okay were going to start over and try something new.” This wasn’t that. it was almost like a sequel to the remix record.
Yeah, we could tell there were some of the same elements in this EP, just more progressed.
Boreta: Definitely.
And in terms of glitch hop, you guys are the only ones really keeping it alive. You’re really driving the movement. There are a couple Soundcloud guys who are carrying it but other than that, you guys are the only ones out there pushing it to the general public.
Boreta: Thank you. Well when we make music in the studio we focus on a emotion or a feeling or a story, and sometimes it comes out and it could be glitch hop or some people want to call it dubstep or whatever. For us it all really comes back to the core element of the song, which is the feeling of it. Like, when we go to Europe, it’s totally different. It’s funny because people hear it and categorize it in different ways.
Well with a name like The Glitch Mob, you don’t think that restricts you to that genre?
Boreta: No, not at all. Actually when we picked the genre name it…
Ooah: It wasn’t a thing.
Boreta: It wasn’t a genre.
It still really isn’t; It’s not really out there. It is to people who listen to electronic music but people who don’t have no idea. They don’t get that there are no rules to glitch hop. It’s totally experimental and how you’re feeling.
Boreta: Absolutely.
But you guys portray it in such a, not a big room way, but you’re able to convey it to large audiences, like closing out this festival tonight. You’re the minority, if you will. But then you’re not.
Boreta: We kind of just do our own thing. At the end of the day it’s about the feeling and the connection of the music. When we chose our name… we started the project, and it happened accidentally; we had to choose a name. We got booked for a show and our friends were like, “Hey, you have to pick a name.” And our music had that sound, but at the time, glitch hop wasn’t a thing anyone said. The “glitch” term was there we just said it.
Ooah: Almost like a technique… it was a technique and working in audio.
Boreta: It wasn’t a joke it was more of like this thing.. you know when something hits you? It wasn’t calculated. We never intended to be the torchbearers for any genre or anything.
Did you guys like working with Mark Johns on “Better Run, Better Hide” ?
Ooah: Oh yeah.
She’s really cool. Has a really unique voice.
Ooah: She’s cool, she’s got a really good vibe.
Shes got a really deep and dark voice as compared to some of the other vocalists that you hear now.
Ooah: Yeah, and that’s why I liked her. It was very opposite of EDM vocals. It was very deep and sultry, and kind of raspy in a fun and sassy kind of way. When she came to the studio we were just like (snaps fingers), “Hey, let’s get this down.”
It was so cool to see you guys collaborate with her. lt was so out of left field but it sounds so awesome. It made sense.
Boreta: A lot of the best collaborations, at least for us, happen very organically. A friend of ours had said to Josh, “Hey there is this singer in town, you should meet her.” So she came over and we got along right away. There was another song on the EP that didn’t make it that we thought we wanted her to sing on so we played it for her and she was like, “Oh, this is cool.” So we played her another one.
Ooah: Well, originally we didn’t even intend to have her sing on the EP. She just came over because we were like, “Let’s make a song together.” Like, start from scratch. We threw together all these random sketches that we had, and just some ideas. Then, she got there and we just played her the EP for fun. We hadn’t played it for anyone yet. So, when she heard that song she was like …I could tell she was already singing shit in her head.
Boreta: And she had her laptop with like 20 google chrome tabs open (laughs). Like thesaurus, rap genius, and all this shit and she’s like, “I got it. I got it, hold on.”
Ooah: She took a beer and a cigarette and went outside and she’s like, “I’ll be back in 20 minutes.”
That’s so awesome. That’s raw and natural talent right there.
Ooah: So she came back in and she’s like, “Alright, let’s go.” And we recorded her.
It’s an awesome song.
Ooah: It was fun. She had written it all except for the last line and we couldnt figure it out so between me, justin and her manager, Brett… Brett was the one who was like, “Better hide, better run?” We’re like, “Yes! That’s it!” He was just the guy in the corners like…
Like eating his pizza in his pizza onesie.
Ooah: It was just a fun and fluid thing that happened very naturally in a short amount of time. She came over, we hung out, we had a beer and within 2 hours, we had it recorded.
Boreta: She’s an incredible artists. And that’s another thing, when we’re hanging with her, she did 4 or 5 different styles and she can do so many different things. And she’s so young; we’re big fans.
Yeah, you got her while she’s young; she’s only going to blow up from here.
Where do you guys see yourself going now that the EP is finished?
Edit: We’re just going to keep making music; that’s what next year is all about. Spend a lot of time working on a new record.
Where do you find your inspiration to keep moving forward and onto new things?
Ooah: Everywhere. I mean, it could come from the fans themselves, life, experiences, relationships that we’ve been in, the brotherhood that we’ve shared with each other. So much.
Boreta: It’s a really hard question to answer because no one really knows. And the best way Ive heard it explained, there is a book by an artist named Amanda Palmer. She explains it in terms of the blender analogy: Everything that happens in life whether it’s our friendship or a breakup or a death or what you’re listening to or what you’re watching on TV it’s different stuff for different people and as an artist, everything that you experience, you put it into a blender and at the ends of the day you’re just sitting in front of a computer, or an instrument. You don’t calculate it; it’s the creative blender that all these life experiences go into and there is not one thing that you can say is X, Y or Z. You definitely do take a heavy amount of inspirations from our connections with our fans. We have a super close connection with people and I think because we spend so much time, we have a group that’s called “The Mob” who are the hardcore fans that come out to shows and we hang out with them and hear their stories. I think that keeps us very plugged into the fact that music is something that is bigger than all of us, really. And it’s the same thing for us, ya know, if I’m having a bad day there are albums that I listen to that will help me. We’re grateful to be in that position for other people.
Are there any “Mob” member who follow your shows?
Boreta: Yeah, it definitely happens. We’re no Phish or anything. There is actually one girl who came out to Red Rocks and then flew the next morning to see us play in LA, at HARD. So we’re grateful.
Ooah: The show up, they definitely show up.
Wait, can we talk about that show for a second? That was fun. We weren’t there but that line up was really sick. How was HARD Rocks for you guys?
Ooah: When they asked us to play that, we were like, “Really? This is so cool.” It was a really good moment, full moon…
I mean, you guys are totally the type of artists to play there. People who play at Red Rocks have a connection with their fans and audiences. Ya, know you’re feeling that natural connection.
Boreta: HARD was a festival but it didn’t feel like a festival. You can just see everyone, right there. It’s so special.
Did you know it’s a national landmark now? As of the other day; it’s a big deal now.
Ooah: It’s a special place. It was an honor to get to play there with Skrillex and Porter and all those guys.
It must have been a really special show for you guys. Any other shoes you’re looking forward to this year?
Boreta: Every single one.
Ooah: We kind of look forward to every show.
Are you on tour or just doing shows here and there?
Boreta: We’re doing festival shows, so we’re ending that.
So come to New York?
Boreta: We’ll be at Ezoo.
Oh yeah. Are you guys excited for EZoo transformed?
Edit: Oh yeah. We’re stoked on all the shows we get to play.
And so much goes into every one of your shows. It’s not like you’re just stepping up there you come up and there is a whole set up and a back story. You’re not just playing to the crowd vibe.
Ooah: There was a point in time where we were more of DJ’s but then we transformed it into this designed theme that we wanted to be able to tell our story. So, we know how it is; we know what it’s like to wing it all the way up to planning things to the T.
How are you guys to tell the Moonrise story?
Boreta: It all kind of happens in the moment.
Ooah: It is quite an in-the-moment-experience.
You COULD play a heavy set, just sayin’.
Ooah: We will release the guns, for sure.
And playing right where Lorin played last night.
Ooah: He's one of our best buds and long-time friends.
Boreta: He's our Herbal Essences buddy.
I want to braid his hair so bad.
Boreta: So do I.
Well It was great talking with you guys. We can't wait to see what's in store for this set!
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