For someone whose music often gets people dancing, it's ironic that What So Not is more fascinated by the hidden choreography of our daily lives.
That's the inspiration behind her new EP, Motionswhich he says is his attempt to breathe audible life into the feelings, textures and other sensible phenomena that dictate our shared reality. As you listen, you can feel the weight of a stranger’s gaze or the electric charge of an unspoken connection.
For What So Not, whose real name is Chris Emerson, the EP is essentially a dive into the quantum soup of existence, where he creates sonic blueprints from the raw data of reality. It reminds us that we are all transmitters in this vast cosmic web we call life.
“The ideology behind this entire EP is the movements that are happening around us all the time,” says Emerson. EDM.com“The album cover shows the artist crashing into the water and watching the ripple effect his wings create as they spread across the pond. It represents how much is at play that we can't see unless it enters another medium that we don't even realize is impacting us. We don't even realize how we radiate to others, and it's really a sonic exploration of those ideas, of the impacts we have and receive at every moment of our existence.”
By producing electronic music from the perspective that we constantly radiate, Emerson invites us into a world where every action and thought ripples outward and has its own degree of impact. Motions It is the fascinating soundtrack of this silent ballet.
“I think this is all just an evolution of my understanding of life, of where I am with myself and where I am with my craft. I almost feel like this is 2.0,” he reflects. “This is everything I’ve understood from earlier times and I think it’s almost getting back to that essence of creating without judgment, creating what’s really authentic and then just letting it be.”
“In our careers as producers, a lot of times we start to overwork things, we judge them too much and we don't let them be what they want to be,” Emerson continues. “And I think these are records at their finest. I'm like, 'What does this song want to be? What is it trying to get out of me?' Let's just let it be and let it be.”
Look no further than “Tower In The Woods,” a stunning track where What So Not’s languid production intertwines with MNDR’s haunting vocals that seep into your bones like winter frost. With heavy kick drums crunching through the mix like boots on virgin snow, the duo plumb the depths of isolation and paint a portrait of loneliness so vivid you can almost see your breath suspended in the frigid air.
Another highlight is “Realise,” a collaboration with French electronic music virtuoso Habstrakt. Its frenetic drum & bass beat provides an austere backdrop for black pop singer Maiah Manser, whose elegant vocals evoke a sense of intimacy and vastness. “I can see the sun right in your eyes / Glitter like a million fireflies” is a striking visual, beautifully contrasting warmth and distance.
According to Emerson, that contrast is intentional, and his goal was to produce rhythms that hit hard, but also were in a more emotional and dynamic place. It's a work that demands attention, not as a passive listener, but as an active participant.
“I'm trying to find that sweet spot where my music has that impact and that power, but also that beautiful, lush foundation underneath,” he explains. “Maybe it's just very strong, springy transients hitting all the drums, but then they nestle into this beautiful, characterful world.”
Emerson's next move will be a rare performance on August 22 at Gamescom in Cologne, the world's largest gaming convention, where he will DJ at a “secret dungeon party” alongside his favorite game, Devil.
He will then head to Australia to perform at the viral Bunnings Warehouse Party, which was born out of a social media campaign calling for a DIY party after legions of music producers created hilarious remixes of the home and gardening company’s song. The event will take place on Saturday 31 August in the car park of Bunnings Warehouse Preston.
With the aim of providing support in the midst of the Live music crisis in AustraliaAll proceeds from ticket sales for the Bunnings Warehouse party and community sausage barbecue will benefit Support Act, a charity providing support and mental health services to people in the music industry. Passes They are now available
You can find What So Not Motions EP on streaming platforms here.
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