Q&A: M4CHA

This week, we caught up with the lads from M4CHA. We dive into how their long-standing friendship and shared love for 90s house music shaped their sound, their seamless transition from bandmates to producers, and the creative process that fuels their tracks. They also share insights into the city's influence on their music and how they keep their sound fresh and inspired.

You’ve known each other since your school days and have played in various bands together. How has that long friendship and musical history shaped your dynamic as a DJ/producer duo today?

I think from playing in bands together we already had a chemistry there and knew what our styles were when it came to onstage performances. It was an easy switch to DJing as we took a lot of confidence from having many gigs under our belt from our previous work. At rehearsals during the band days, over time it came clear we both shared the love for house music and wanted to pursue it sooner rather than later.

Your friendship goes back years. How does that affect the way you collaborate in the studio? Do you have a particular workflow or set roles when creating new music?

Having a solid friendship really helps with the looseness of making songs. We don't go into the producing stage with set roles or any pressure on each other to make things suddenly work. Most of our ideas comes from listening to old samples then one of us getting inspiration from it. Overtime it quickly becomes a collaboration as we both understand what we want our tracks to sound like.

Your sound is heavily inspired by 90’s house but with a modern twist. What is it about that era of house music that resonates with you, and how do you bring a fresh flavor to it?

I think the 90s house scene was so special as it was a huge part of the UK culture at the time. Looking back at old videos from the 90s rave, you can't help but be inspired and want to create something similar in a modern way. In terms of bringing a fresh flavour to this style, I'd say with the technology at our fingertips today, it's fairly easy to combine fresher sounds whilst keeping the heart of the track 90s, which for us stems from the Korg M1 instrument.

When you’re crafting a new track, do you imagine it playing in specific settings, like a festival stage or an intimate club? How does the intended atmosphere influence your production process?

Yes, this is always a big part of our productions. If you listen to our tracks I think you could almost guess the setting we had in mind from track to track. Sometimes its as simple as a lyric, which then the music can be moulded to emphasise those words. Our best example of that is probably "Waiting for The Sunshine" which we wrote during winter around the idea of people struggling to get through the cold and miserable weather and looking forward to summer again. We picture playing this as our closing track as the sunsets on a hot summer night at a festival.

The Glasgow music scene is known for its diversity and vibrancy. How has the city influenced your sound, and are there any local artists or venues that have been especially supportive of your journey?

We aim to get involved in as much as we can around Glasgow. We both love the music production process and we believe attending gigs and various open decks gives us an opportunity to see how crowds react to a wide array of music styles. We draw a lot of inspiration from this and incorporate elements into our own music. We have also found open decks to be a great way to network with other local artists, get feedback on unreleased music and also gives us an opportunity to hone our abilities as DJ's.

You’ve gone from playing in bands to diving deep into electronic music production. What was that transition like, and what drew you to the world of house and electronic music?

This was always something that we both had an interest in so it never really felt like a massive transition for us. There has been a lot to learn since we started out but we both have a passion for creating this type of music and it always feels amazing discovering new ways to add really interesting elements to our tracks. We feel that our music really benefits from this passion, encouraging us to find creative ways to achieve the sound we want.

You recently had one of your tracks played at Celtic Park. How did that come about, and what was it like hearing your music echo through such an iconic stadium?

This actually all started through a friend, Kaliaaer, who made gloves for Joe Hart, Celtics keeper at the time. After releasing our first track he had got in touch with some really positive feedback and ended up passing on the tune to him. Joe Hart loved the music and ended up using it on a couple of his instagram stories before matches. We reached out to Celtic directly after this with the track and before we knew it the tune was getting blasted to 60,000 fans at half time. We were lucky enough to be along at the game when it was played and the feeling was surreal, we are both lifelong Celtic fans and could never have dreamt of hearing our music getting blasted out across the stadium.

Looking ahead, what can we expect from M4CHA? Any upcoming releases or exciting gigs you can share with us?

We have loads planned this year, so lots for people to look forward to. We have just released a new track, "YOU", to SoundCloud which has been receiving some amazing feedback and have plenty more tracks in the pipeline that we are buzzing to share with everyone. We also have a smaller, intimate gig planned in Glasgow and regularly play various open deck nights.

Q&A: The Kaves

This week we caught up with Glasgow band The Kaves. We cover the band's formation, their experiences in the Glasgow music scene, and the creative process behind their debut EP Peace Love Mayhem. They also discuss upcoming shows, recognition from Radio X's John Kennedy, and how they strive to create authentic, evolving music that stands out against the crowd.

1. Every band has a story of how they came together. Can you share how The Kaves formed and what brought you all together?

Liam: It was myself (Liam) and Dave that started the band back at the end of 2019 before the world came to a halt. Then I asked my brother Sean to come play bass, even though he’d never played bass before but was an awesome guitarist. It was just the three of us for about a year, writing between Dave's house and the studio. Evan joined in 2021, and we quickly gelled together, releasing our first single a few months after.

2. Was there a defining moment when you realised you had something special as a group?

Liam: Between some amazing gigs, writing songs we truly love, and random amazing rehearsal nights, there have been many moments that made us realise we have something really good. Most recently, writing the EP together and producing songs like The Last Glass, which sounds like nothing we’d ever done before. Our show at SWG3 Poetry Club back in June was a nice moment in that packed, sweaty room.

3. Glasgow has such a rich musical history. How has being part of the Glasgow music scene influenced your sound and the way you approach your craft as a band?

Sean: There are hundreds of amazing bands that were born in Glasgow’s streets. With the current Glasgow music scene being as dense as it is, we try to make a style of music that is authentic and stands out from the rest of the noise. The four of us all have different music tastes, which shine through in our songs. One of the main ingredients in our songwriting is how we blend these influences together and make a tune that doesn’t fall by the wayside of being another generic indie anthem.

4. Do you find it challenging to stand out in a city known for producing great bands?

Sean: It’s an enjoyable challenge. It is very easy to fall into the trap of sounding like every other band out there, but we want to push ourselves creatively and make interesting music. Our songs are constantly evolving, and even when we play live, the songs are played a little differently from the record, which keeps them feeling fresh.

5. You’ve got some exciting shows coming up in Manchester and London. What are you looking forward to most about playing these cities, and how do those crowds compare to Glasgow?

Evan: Looking forward to the energy and atmosphere of the crowds in both cities. They both have great live music scenes, so experiencing that will be fun. How they compare to Glasgow crowds remains to be seen for us, but they’ve got a lot to live up to!

6. What has it been like gaining recognition from names like John Kennedy on Radio X, who shouted out your tour on his show?

Evan: It’s great to receive any recognition for our music, especially from someone like John Kennedy, who’s helped so many artists get a leg up by giving them exposure. Hopefully, some London and Manchester listeners heard the show and decide to head along to our gigs down there.

7. You’ve already released Complacency and Unknown Number, which show two different sides of your sound. How do the new tracks on your forthcoming EP Peace Love Mayhem build on or contrast with those earlier releases?

Dave: I think that’s the beauty of the EP. All songs have something different while maintaining our own sound. We never want to be stuck in one lane. There’s a real cinematic element to The Last Glass. Fading to the Back of the Room was an older song we had, listened to again, and felt the emotion it carries meant it had to be brought back, polished, and recorded. All EP tracks have different styles and feelings, which I think is important in music.

8. When it came to writing and creating the EP, do you work as a collective, or do individual members take the lead on different aspects?

Dave: All ideas are welcome; there are no rules for us. Sometimes I’ll have an idea of a melody or subject, start a demo, and send it in. Others have started from a riff from Liam. The Last Glass, for example, starts off with a piano line Sean had, which was a completely new direction. Sometimes the song writes itself, like Unknown Number, which was written and recorded within 2 or 3 weeks. Others require more time. I think as long as you’re writing with authenticity, things tend to work better. Not every idea you have will be better than what you’ve written before. Understanding that is important. Patience is something I’ve learned is key in songwriting. You’ve just got to keep at it until one sticks.

9. With Peace Love Mayhem being your debut EP, what’s next for The Kaves?
Dave: We’re excited to play our debut shows down south and, of course, looking forward to our big show at Slay in Glasgow on the 22nd of November. We can’t wait to get the EP out. We’ve had these tunes for a while, and they all have their own meaning to us, but it’s always nice to see other people attach their own meaning to them. It would be great to add more live dates sometime next year. We’ve had a few requests, and we’re already writing more music. We also need to find a van that will make it to London without breaking down!