The Soundmen's Beats Will Move Your Body
Meet Scott Durday and Justin Jamison, a couple of friends hailing from the Pacific Northwest. The talented twosome broke onto the music scene after moving to Manhattan several years ago, penetrating the peripherals of hip-hop, offering slick remixes, and perfecting their production prowess. They’re called The Soundmen and, though Jamison has since returned to Seattle, the bi-coastal team remains intact, at the top of their game in fact.
The guys maintain day jobs but hustle after hours to make music that they love. They’ve expanded their genre range and remixed the likes of Local Natives, Adele, and The Killers, to name a few. And now these self-taught whiz kids are about to release their first solo project, in conjunction with Brooklyn-based label Dither Down. Initially, the pair was content to remix label-mates such as Saadi and 33Hz, but, come March, The Soundmen will welcome an original. The track features Plant Music founder Dom Keegan, also of The Glass, and is called “Funny Feeling.” Having heard the single myself, I can attest to its cabeza bobbing dopeness. But you’ll have to give it a listen, let your own ears decide.
In addition to gearing up for this identity defining moment, Durday occupies his spare time deejaying various venues around New York City. From private events to mainstage slots, he’s a veteran when it comes to delivering a discerning but danceable playlist that longtime fans and newcomers alike can get down to.
How much tweaking goes into a track before it’s considered finished? How do you know when something’s done?
It’s weird. You just know. Our first inclination is, ‘Does it make your head nod? [Is] it even better than it was before, and catchier?’ And that’s pretty much it. We’ll listen to our records over and over again. Whether on the train, through headphones, or in the car. Listening to it in a car is essential. Across the nation, everyone’s listening to music in cars. Once you have a consistent feel across multiple mediums, that’s when you know it’s right.
How would you define The Soundmen aesthetic?
We’re not trying to kid ourselves and say we’re making far out art rock; we like to make catchy, pop records that appeal to a wide range and are not hard to digest. They may have complex production methods, but the product is something that makes you happy. We’re happy guys; we like our music to give other people the same feeling we get when we hear it. We also take artistic integrity extremely seriously; we’re not out there whoring our production to anyone who asks. We curate the artists we work with.
In addition to producing remixes and original material, you also deejay. Tell me more about this.
We’ve actually started deejaying a ton. Anticipation and excitement [surrounding what’s] out there for free draws an audience to see us deejay. We’re doing live mashups, really eclectic, inventive sets. An artist we work with, P.SO, who’s the unofficial live member of The Soundmen, performs with us. It becomes a fully involved performance.
The Skrillex debate: love or hate?
I love the way he gets crowds excited and what his music does for people. I am not a fan of dubstep. What it’s turned into. That’s the main thing. Those synthesizers have become so worn out; they’re the new Auto-Tune. Everyone and their mom’s doing it. He’s a very talented producer and can probably do awesome stuff outside of dubstep.
With whom would you most wish to work?
I’ve said this in so many interviews, because it’s so true. Hands down, our favorite band is Friendly Fires. Can’t get enough. We would love to work with them. They’re just an amazing band. Everything about them. The production. Paul Epworth? It doesn’t get any better. Ed Macfarlane is our favorite vocalist in music today.
Any advice?
Keep on working. Be creative. Don’t let trends in the industry determine what your sound is gonna be. We found success by defining our sound. Listeners know what they’re going to get when they see The Soundmen name. If you chase trends, you’ll always be one step behind.
Catch Scott Durday (AKA MC Scott D) performing live in NYC at Irving Plaza on February 18th
