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Nick Thayer
| "I'm liking pretty much everything Nick Thayer is doing right now," said Kissy Sell Out on the BBC’s Radio 1. It’s always nice to see a local lad on form. “Well, I hope I’m doing well. I’m very flattered to receive the depth of support I’ve received from home and overseas,” he says.
So Thayer’s a Melbourne Musical Messiah. He makes music for the masses and has a band of many. In fact, is band is hard coded and his posse runs deeps: he works with AbletsonLive 5, Roland SH200, Cubase SX3, Fender Strat ’68 and more compressors and equipment than is worth mentioning. “The thing about working with nothing but electronic equipment is that is does exactly what you tell it to do. If it’s not working then it’s something that I’ve probably done.”
His studio ritual consists of one oddity. “I always like to have my shoes off in the studio,” he tells. “I have no idea why. Some people have tried to say it’s Zen or Feng Shui but for me it think it’s just a comfort thing.”
Thayer’s a tired lad, hardly surprising given he’s been hooked to the goggle box watching the world cup. Like most of the global population, he’s perplexed at the horn of choice in South Africa: the vuvuzla. There’ll be no Thayer track featuring the vuvuzela anytime soon.
Nick Thayer’s music and remixes have been lapped up by many, and not just in Australia. His global stature, as a remixer and as an artist in his own right, is on the rise. Thayer’s productions have galvanised interest and support in his work. Sketch Thayer’s musical account from childhood. His primitive years consisted of making weird noises from weird things. “I’ve always been intrigued by music, particularly when I was younger. I started out with classical music and the violin and the piano. With electronic music it’s always been the bleeps and squeaks and the affect they have on people that’s fascinated me,” he says.
His pocket money was spent on guitars and dodgy records. After spending a few years in fledging rock bands, Thayer ended up behind the decks at a mate’s party. “In the morning of the party I borrowed a set of turntables. In the afternoon I figured out how to use them and then played that night. It wasn’t the greatest gig in the world,” he laughs.
Thayer, the DJ, was born. He ditched drums for decks and found himself playing breaks, tweaking sounds and testing audiences with his own creations. Of course the next logical step was to distribute his music to labels, which was just the sage advice he received from fellow producer and friend, Bass Kleph.
So that’s what he did. He sent releases to (label) Breaking Point. Reaction was thanks but no thanks. He received the same message on frequent occasions until he wore them down. Theme One, his debut offering, proved a hit that found its way onto the Ministry’s Breaks 2003 assemblage.
His production exploits were progressing, and so was his DJing. Thayer was assaulting clubs with his musical nous and managed to pick up a few choice gigs, including the old Melbourne Metro alongside The Crystal Method and the Boiler Room at the Big Day Out.
And so his success continued. Around 2005 he joined the team at radio station Triple RRR, where he hosted Beats Electric. Thayer proved that along with the gift of musical aptitude he also had the gift of the gab as, within a few months, he managed to get Plumb DJs, The Prodigy and Arrested Development amongst others onto his show.
It’s been said that there’s no party like a Nick Thayer party. Ask the regulars at disco cavern Revolver, where Thayer has a residency, and you’ll hear a similar tale. “I’m very particular about the records I play. There are two things I look for in a record: a great idea and good production. It could be house music, drum n bass, dubstep or hip hop. A great record is a great record. I used to listen to other DJs drop a record and it sounded great. Yet when I tried it, it didn’t quite work. Over the years I’ve spent a lot of time thinking about what I play and how I play it,” he explains.
Across the ocean it’s a similar tale. DJ Yoda, AC Slater, A Skillz and Black Noise rate a mention as recent collaborators and members of the Thayer fan-club. He’s also released music via Fatboy Slim’s Southern Fried imprint, Sweat It Out and Passenger.
So it’s probably an ideal time for Thayer to release Just Let It Go, his debut album. The album’s been described as the sound of clubbing life with a blend of noise and genre splices. Think hip hop tinged with electronic accuracy. Just Let It Go is Thayer letting loose. The title has meaning. “Just Let It Go is bit of a double metaphor. I had issues with previous record labels, so it’s me saying ‘just let the old music go.’ It’s also a message to clubbers to say ‘let it go’ when on the dance floor,” he reveals.
His confidence is high. Past releases, including Ca$h Money and Mind Control (as heard on the PS2 game Motor Storm) have made Thayer a bankable artist. “To be honest I haven’t really thought about being bankable. There are a lot of people who have invested a lot of time and energy in me no matter what I do.”
So why release an album? And why release it now? “It’s because I’m mad,” he jests. “When I was growing up an artist album was always a standing point or statement. The album’s an opportunity to tell people where I’ve come from musically and the direction I’m heading.”
Thayer’s always been a music moderniser. “I’m intrigued by new sounds and intentionally blur genres. I like dubstep, even though a lot of it is not that great. Some dubstep is amazing, which makes other artists step up and lift their game. The reaction (to the album) has been amazing so far. I had a guy who sent me a message via Facebook. He bought the album on Amazon but couldn’t wait for it to be delivered, so he bought it on iTunes as well. Stuff like that is really humbling.”
The album’s already garnered support from the Crystal Method. According to the Method, the album’s “another collection of forward moving tracks sure to be featured in sets around the globe.”
Thayer’s recent endeavour is said to be slanted firmly at clubbers. He doesn’t deviate. “The focus is to make people dance and jump.”
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