Locally Grown: MartyParty
One half of low-slung electronic duo PANTyRAID, prolific Brooklyn producer MartyParty’s hunger for bass has led him to create a string of huge-sounding EPs and albums, blending hip hop, bassline, crunk, electronica, trill and various other influences. He has appeared as a headliner on the Monsters of Bass tour alongside FreQ Nasty, and has spent 2012 playing further shows to heaving clubs and crowds, as well as putting the finishing touches to his upcoming album.
We caught up with MartyParty, a.k.a. Martin Folb, to chat about ‘purple opera,’ Brooklyn music venues and Halloween.
Your musical output is extremely varied. How would you describe your production style(s) and your musical ethos?
Why, thanks! I make all kinds of music and never paint my music into genres. I have a constant battle with picking genres for my music, it’s a real problem. The best way to describe my music is MartyParty music – that is, each song should be an adventure or voyage through the emotion and intention of the main theme. I am experimental by nature and try to invent new musical styles whenever possible, sometimes within the same song. Given this, I’d say it goes back to my early inspiration before I was producing music. I always wanted to try and make timeless, exciting and constantly progressive music. I’m obsessed with melody and harmony and try to introduce as much of these into my music as possible, as melody is what makes us remember music and take us back to the place where we first heard the song.
How does the MartyParty sound differ from PANTyRAID?
Not much – they are cut from the same stone. MartyParty songs tend to be more experimental and can often drift into the ‘harder’ or ‘nastier’ sound designs. But overall, MartyParty and PANTyRAiD are the same thing. Ooah’s voice is very similar to my own, and we have very similar tastes, ranging from very pretty, soft music to hard and clubby music. As I mentioned before, MartyParty tends to be more experimental and has a very youthful attitude.
You’ve described your live show as ‘purple opera.’ Tell us the idea behind that.
I have a unique performance style and technical setup which allows me to play up to four channels of content simultaneously. This means I can constantly and spontaneously add dramatic or textural material at any point, crafting a seamless adventure through my songs. Always unplanned and always with a lot of high and low moments, much like the drama of opera. To me, each set is a theatrical voyage through my material, and should evoke maximum emotion through music, layering and timing.
Has Brooklyn, or NYC as a whole, influenced your music in any way?
I’d say yes, there is a large urban/hip-hop community here, which is my love, so it has steered me back to my roots in hip-hop and the sounds of R&B.
What are your favorite clubs or venues to catch music in Brooklyn?
Williamsburg Music Hall is cool and the Brooklyn Bowl is one of a kind (great food too!).
Tell us about your upcoming album.
MVP will be released on my own label, MartyPartyMusic, and is my fourth studio concept album. In this episode I have written 15 songs which explore the musical influences I am feeling right now, and the production technique and toolset I am currently using. I wanted to make a driving album, that is music to drive to, both epic landscape driving and roadtripping, and out on the town urban racing music. But overall the vibe is feeling good and living life freely and with a youthful attitude. Which is all very much MartyParty in general. I love listening to MVP from start to finish, which was the intention! It’s bass music at its best, going through all apparent genres in one motion with common feeling and sound, but vastly different arrangements and musical pattern.
What have been your highlights of 2012 so far?
Gosh, I've played some epic sets on insane stages to thousands of fans that knew who I was and what to expect. It has taken me five years to educate a fanbase into what MartyParty offers and why it is unique, and this year I really started to feel like that fanbase had expanded into the bigger crowds and events, which makes for very moving sets and fan interactions. I also got to play with some of my idols and inspirations, which is a huge bonus to this job and always tickles my fancy. Overall, 2012 was the year I felt like I had created something special out there and really started to identify the success of my movement.
How will you be spending Halloween this year?
Wow! First I play with Rusko and Z-Trip in Chicago, then headline The Fox in Boulder CO with huge production, and then off to Atlanta at the Opera and at Spaank in Gainsville FLA. Overall, an incredible weekend of incredible fanbases. I cannot wait. Equally amazing is that I have literally 20 new songs to play for the first time, which is always awesome as I get as excited as the fans, and I have that first-time feeling when I hear them on the big sound systems!
MVP is released on November 13 on MartyPartyMusic. The next PANTyRAiD album is scheduled for release in early 2013.
