Grandtheft is ready to Quit This City.
As one of Toronto’s most seasoned DJs and producers, the Mad Decent signee is living every bedroom beatmaker’s fantasy, playing massive festivals around the world, and preparing official remixes for the likes of Calvin Harris, Katy Perry, and Rihanna. Without losing sight of his extreme good fortune, Grandtheft has to take time to decompress. The jet-setting, dancefloor-destroying, Internet-immersed lifestyle of a renowned club slayer takes its toll. Sometimes the best way to unplug is to escape, if not literally, perhaps musically. With his new EP, he aims to give listeners the same sonic retreat that keeps him grounded.
For Grandtheft, Quit This City was born out of serving himself for a change. The seven song offering from the Toronto producer and DJ is an attempt at making music he wants to listen to, without catering to the club crowd, or pandering to a big tent festival audience. For being an initially selfish endeavour, the end result is a relatable vacation from the endless pursuit of the digital turn up. From the boisterous title track to the tranquil finale (“Summer In The Winter”), Grandtheft reminds us that there’s harmony in oppositional forces. Not only is it important to unplug from the Internet and reconnect with the people and things who really matter—it’s imperative.
We caught up with Grandtheft before his show at the Hoxton tonight, to talk about Quit This City, the festival circuit, and making music for real life.
“Quit This City” is a beast, and it recently hit #1 on Hype Machine. Congrats! How was it working with Lowell?
Thank you! Lowell is a crazy talent. I came with the basic beat, but we wrote the song and tracked it together in my studio. We had fun doing it! She wrote ideas on the spot, and I got on piano to rework some chords. We wanted to capture a kind of tragic love thing. We managed to get that in the lyrics, and she recorded the song with the right emotion all in one session.
It feels like it could be a crossover song for you. I mean, they’re playing it on rock radio. Was that intentional?
They are starting to play it on all kinds of radio. It got played on the Edge in Toronto the other day but also on the biggest urban station in LA, Power 106, the same day. And a bunch of other mixshows elsewhere. Quit This City and the whole EP is not meant for any one thing. I definitely didn't write these songs overtly for radio or the club either. “QTC” and “Summer In The Winter”' seem like they may work somewhat on radio though. I am so excited that the initial reaction has been so great online.
“Summer In The Winter” has that crossover appeal, too. What can you tell me about that one?
“Summer in the Winter” is a song featuring a kind of secret group called Fantastic Modern. We started that song together long ago, and finished it for my record. No one knows much about them, but they have a crazy EP coming out soon.
When you’re collaborating with a vocalist, what does the process look like? Do you get half way through a track, and realize it’s missing something? Or do you set out to make something for one particular artist?
It's different every time. Some vocalists, I will send an idea or a pretty finished beat to. They send back a vocal, and we go back and forth from there. Others, like Lowell, we went in and did the whole thing in person together. I kind of prefer that. Collaborating IRL is more fun.
Some people who are new to your music might not realize that you’re a skilled turntablist. Does that inform the way you produce?
I have DJ'd for a long-ass time. I guess it helps me know what's going to work in my sets. I know what will love a crowd and what won't. I know what moves different dancefloors, because I have played so many different types of places and different crowds. In making a lot of different kinds of club music, I draw from that experience. On this new EP I tried to transcend that thinking though, and just make music I wanted to listen to outside of the party.
How did the Mad Decent connect come about?
I have known Paul Devro and Diplo for quite a while now. I guess working with the label came after working with Diplo. We first did the “Sweet Nothing” remix for Calvin Harris in summer 2013, and we’ve worked together on a lot of stuff since. Diplo has been really supportive of my music and my career. It's obviously great to have a dude like that in your corner. Beyond being a boss, he's an amazing creator and music head. We always have some kind of song on the go, and it's fun working with him. He's got crazy creative energy that rubs off on everyone around him.
You kept pretty busy on the festival circuit this summer. Now that it’s kind of winding down, I’m curious—what’s a song that goes off in the club, but you would never get away with playing it on a massive outdoor stage?
I think east coast club music like Jersey and Baltimore stuff is like that. Bassy fast stuff that's made for the club floor more than an open air festival. My “Studio” edit is like that. But, I play it at festivals anyway. [laughs]
What does Quit This City mean to you?
There are different lyrical themes to the songs and the song “Quit This City” is a different story. But, as a whole EP, I aimed for the record to transport the listener to a place. It's electronic music, but there are a lot of organic elements and real instruments. There is a humanity in the vibe of it all. If I had to picture the ideal place for the EP to be taken in, I'd say on a rural country drive of some kind. To me, it's a driving record if you listen to all seven songs front to back. That energy is about unplugging from stuff, and being a human being, and reconnecting with yourself and people and things that matter. Away from the city and the Internet. I think a lot about this stuff a lot. With my life having become so crazy traveling to different cities every day and being online so much, I am always trying to find time to myself to unplug.
As a listener, it’s very eclectic—found sound samples, organic instrumentation, glitchy synth leads, varying tempos. What were your biggest touchstones of inspiration during recording?
Like I said, In this record, I was trying to make music I wanted to listen to. Not thinking about shows or clubs or what people expect. I don't think it’s a trendy record, really. But it's inspired by my travels and the people I meet. I’m also inspired by how music can touch me. How a song can connect with someone and mean so much to them or represent a moment in time to someone. A lot of music coming out in the electronic/dance world is hype, but strikes no emotion in me. This time, I hoped to make music that makes someone feel something real.
There definitely seems to be a globally recognized Canadian presence in electronic music, specifically in Toronto, with Keys N Krates, Thugli, Zeds Dead, and Hemmy. But do you think there’s a Canadian sound?
These guys are my friends in Toronto. We all vibe. There are so many dope electronic artists from Montreal, Vancouver and other cities too that I see representing all over the world. With Keys N Krates, we send each other ideas a lot to bounce stuff around and get feedback. I’m not sure about a sound...I think something we have in common as Canadian electronic artists is that we are somehow kind of aliens in the game. Everyone has made their own lane, and the sound and hasn't fallen into an easy category or scene of people doing the same thing. It's kind of out of necessity that we find our own path because Canada is not traditionally always where people look for a scene with one single sound. Zeds Dead is an amazing example of making their own lane, making music they feel, and not doing anything by the book. I love that. I even think Drake is a great example of this. He did it so differently. He broke all the rules of what a rapper was supposed to be, or where a rapper is supposed to be from. And he rose to the top in America with his own people, and in a really unique way.
What can we expect at the Hoxton on Friday? Any surprises you want to tip us off to?
No tips! Just expect a really good-ass time. I’m going to debut some of this new music from the EP, and some other new stuff I'm working on. Vibes will be thick. See you there!
You can catch Grandtheft at the ‘Quit This City’ EP release tonight in Toronto at the Hoxton, alongside Damn Kids and HRMXNY. ‘Quit This City’ drops October 30th on Mad Decent/Pirate's Blend.
