Australia has a WHOLE lot of love for Basenji since his recent arrival on the scene, notably due to his swathe of electronic bubble-gum releases and boyish charm that translates organically from any stage he’s given.

In the lead up to 5 Seed’s FREE party next Tuesday at Oxford Art Factory with stranger things tweaker Luke Million and Just A Gent (RSVP here) we went one-on-one to find out what’s really going on up there!

SR: It’s been a big few years for you. You’ve done a lot of travelling as well as releasing your ‘Trackpad’ EP. Did you ever expect things would get this big when you started making music?

B: It’s been a lot of fun! I feel very lucky to now be working overseas. This is not something I ever expected at all, so it has been a really nice surprise! For the foreseeable future I would love to keep travelling and to keep making more music.

SR: It’s no secret you’re good friends with Wave Racer and the Cosmos Midnight guys, and by coming up at around the same time you guys really coined a style of electronic music. That same production style has become quite popular, and there are so may producers following you down that musical path. Do you notice this? How do you feel about it?

B: I always consider the work produced by Cosmo’s Midnight, Wave Racer and myself as something completely different. However, I realise from the outside it all kind of fits together and maybe looks like different versions of the same thing. We are inspired by similar music and art so it’s not surprising that there are certain consistencies across all of our work. I have noticed some people do try and emulate certain sounds or styles that are attributed to our circle, but this has never really bothered me. I am often flattered if people make music that sounds like my music and I think it’s good because it motivates me to move forwards and find something exciting and new.

SR: Your 2015 EP ‘Trackpad’ was chock-full of eclectic production. There was a wide range of soundscapes in that project that definitely kept us all on our toes. Do you actively try and change things up with hat you make or does it happen unintentionally?

B: I am currently investing a lot of energy into future-proofing my upcoming music. I want my next release(s) to be a surprise to people. I am not interested in doing what people expect of me and I am certainly not interested in making the same song twice. I want each track to be both challenging to myself and the audience. Some tracks are experiments, so I am not sure if they will all be successful, but that is a risk I am happy to take.

SR: You’ve been touring like crazy the past year. How do you find time to work on music when your schedule is so rammed?

B: I find travelling can be incredibly inspiring, it really changes the way I understand music and changes my approach to writing music. It can be upsetting when I have no time to write anything new, but I often find that after a break I come back one hundred times more motivated to write. I am really lucky to work with a laptop, because I can take my music anywhere with me!

SR: After travelling around the globe, how do you think Aussie crowds weigh up against the rest? Is it still true we go the hardest?

B: I always love touring Australia. I guess after living here my whole life I feel a strong connection to scene. It’s great returning to cities and seeing what has changed or what is new. It’s great seeing familiar faces and it’s great trying out new music to an Australian audience. I am always grateful for the support of Australian audiences, I would love in the future to bring my music to more regional areas of the country that I haven’t yet travelled to!

SR: On that topic, is there anything in the works at the moment? Another EP or perhaps album on the way?

B: I am working on LOTS of new music. Right now it’s a bit hard to say exactly what I will do with all of it, but there should be some really big releases over the next 12 months 🙂

SR: Where do you find most on the inspiration for your music comes from? What do you look towards for inspiration? (visual artists, musicians, anything)

B: I am constantly trying to approach music in a more abstract fashion. Thinking about the anatomy of certain sounds or the cultural significance of particular musical styles or techniques. I am trying to write music that pulls nostalgic on strings but also that presents its self in a new, exciting format. For inspiration I look everywhere! Music, cinema, nature, conversation and experience are all things I draw on when I write. I finding only looking for inspiration in music limits creativity. Music is in everything, so why not look everywhere?

SR: Are there any up-and-coming artists/ collectives/ labels you think we should all keep an eye on? Australian or international.

B: I am listening to the Body Promise compilation ‘Harmony From A Dominant Hue’ right now. It’s hard to explain exactly what it is, but it is a release loaded with lots of exciting artists from Australia and around the world. It is an interesting slice of music from the internet’s digital underground.

SR: Some people may not know, but yourself and Wave Racer used to DJ the Sydney club circuit under the Pablo J guise. That was well before the lockout laws came into play. As both a punter and performer, how has the landscape of Sydney’s nightlife changed in your eyes?

B: It’s sad. All I ever think is that younger people joining the scene now will not have the same opportunities I did. This upsets me.

SR: Do you have a secret alias for when you just want tot go out and DJ for fun? If not, what would your low-key DJ name be and why?

B: Some times I play a few tracks for fun at parties, but I feel like if I gave it a name it would be too serious and it would take the fun out of it. Maybe one day I will think of a cute name and go with it!

SR: Finally, what has been your favourite album or EP release in 2016 thus far and what was it about the project/artist that hit the spot for you?

B: You can’t make me pick just one!!!!!!!!!! I’ll give u three releases I have in loop at the moment:

Tinashe – Nightride
Lorenzo Senni – Persona
Bonzai – Lunacy

You can catch Basenji next Tuesday at 5 Seed’s FREE House Party at Oxford Art Factory alongside Luke Million and Just A Gent.

Be sure to RSVP now to secure a guestlist spot.