Interview: Canadian Electronic Producer Mediator Discusses His Debut EP "Mediator"
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“...ultimately this EP became something akin to a final school project, where you took all the things you had learned during the year and applied it. ”
Congratulations on the completion and release of your debut EP "Mediator"; as its producer, how would you describe the development of the EP's 7 songs?
I would describe it as a funnel of trial and error. At its earliest period, back in 2017-2018, I was just testing the waters as a producer. I had no direction, no concrete goal, and barely any experience in writing electronic music.
As the years went on, and I continued to experiment, that experience and knowledge became greater and it started to aim towards the goal of releasing an EP. My plan was to produce a tune I really liked, post it casually on Soundcloud, and then when I had enough songs I would take them all down, re-mix them, and compile them into a cohesive album, which is--for the most part--what I ended up doing.
Were there songs that you recorded for the EP that did not make the final tracklist? If so, why did you decide not to include them?
For the most part, the songs that landed a spot on the EP were songs that were destined to stay. Three or four tracks were long-standing songs from months, even years before, and I was really attached to them.
The only song I pulled was the original opening track, called Nebula, which was the very first electronic song I was proud of. When it came down to the re-mixing process, it was giving me many, many issues, and I couldn't figure out how to fix them at the time, so I set it aside.
That led to the writing of “Penumbra”, which took elements of the final track, “Umbra”, and tied the opening and closing of the EP together.
Do you have any music videos in the pipeline for the EP's songs? If so, which one(s)?
I have a music video in the works for the song “Galileo”, which is going to dig hard into the Lo-Fi vibe of the song while also hitting the whole 'home made' theme that this EP is really a result of. Damesy, who features on the track, is helping me produce it all, too.
Would you say that there's an overall theme or concept that you had in mind while creating the "Mediator" EP?
Initially, there wasn't any theme other than "What can I achieve with what I know and how can I improve on it?" So, ultimately this EP became something akin to a final school project, where you took all the things you had learned during the year and applied it.
I had much experience in composition, but none in producing, engineering, and working with other artists. There isn't really any underlying theme, but sonically, I think the atmospheric and rhythmic veins in each song tie it all together in a sound I think suits me as a producer, which is why the EP is self-titled. So the theme is Mediator.
With the EP now released, what are some of your goals musically for the remainder of 2021?
I have some ambitious projects on the drawing board, but those are still very early in development. I plan on releasing another 2021 EP with more of a cohesive theme and structure, so I'm currently working with some artists to achieve a fresh sound while also still being very much a Mediator production.