If Josh Butler had it his way, he would make his grand entrance by throwing a free–yup, free–music and arts festival with all of his favorite DJs and friends. But he had one very small detail to add in there. “For my introduction to your readers,” he clarified, “I would play a 24-hour long set in one of the tents. Hopefully that would give people an idea of what my music is all about.”
That’s how you do it. Baptism by fire. But this time, the fire is burning bright and we are big, big fans of that fire. Because–if given the chance–we’d love for Josh Butler to play for 24 hours straight. Or just serenade us with even one song.
That’s how good he is.
He’s taken over England and several hot spots across the globe. Now, he’s ready to conquer more of the industry, every other club on the planet, and our hearts. Find out more below!
When did you decide that you wanted to pursue music as a career? Was there a defining moment?
I guess it took me a few years after I started producing to even figure out that one can have a career in music. I was really young when I first started playing around with music and recording things to tape etc. I’d say it was only when I went to college where I studied music technology where I learned about the music industry and some of the possible career paths within it.
Your music is edgy while also being ethereal. How would you classify your sound, specifically, and what made you go in this direction with your music?
When I’m making music, I try to lay down something with relevance to how I’m feeling in that moment, or something that’s happened to me during the week. I do sometimes go into the studio without an idea or direction, but those sessions just end up becoming more of a jam and rarely get a finished track. Making music is a form of expression for me and I work most naturally with a reason to create something.
Your newest EP Link had us dancing all night. What inspired it?
I’m glad you’re enjoying it! Well for me Link was about experimenting with a new blend of my musical tastes. The melodies are kind of tense and emotional, which reflect some things that were happening around me at that time. The track also needed to translate well at the club, so the driving rhythms lay down the foundation, and the live percussion add swing to the groove.
‘Need Me’ is a straight up dance floor track. The inspiration came from a VST synthesizer that I programmed a few years ago. It produces the pipe sounding bass lines, which I love! That became the lead bass sound in ‘Need Me’. Then everything else kind of fell into place very naturally.
What is your favorite aspect of the new EP?
Each track is quite different and there is something for any size, venue, or time of the night. When I play a DJ set, I will always tailor the track selection to suit the atmosphere and setting. This EP fits at peak time inside of a club, or at after hours in a dark dingy basement 😉
How do you imagine your fans enjoying the EP? (Reading a book? Drinking a glass of rose? Partying until 6am at a club?)
It’s made with the dance floor in mind, however I want people to enjoy it anyway they prefer!
You’ve toured all over the place. Any specific stories from the road you’d like to share?
Partying with Nichole Moudaber after her DC-10 gig is something I will never forget. She played a killer set at Circo Loco and then we drove back to her villa and danced all day by the pool.
Besides the tour and your new release, do you have anything fun coming up you want us to share?
I’m in the process of launching a new project called ‘Origins’. The first part is going to be a Heroes of House EP on which I collaborated with Kerri Chandler, Marshall Jefferson and Todd Terry. There will be much more to follow 🙂
Link is out now.
