A Chat With Deebs

Photo by Marlane M

Hailing from Toronto, Canada, Deebs has been doing big things since being introduced to the electronic dance music scene. Heavily supported by our good friends over at Pelican Fly, he has been able to turn bodies left, right, and center with fresh and innovative bootlegs, remixes and original work. He’s stamped his flavorful productions for forward thinking labels such as Discobelle and Get Flavor Records. With a lot of goods in store for us, such as a brand new release for Pelican Fly coming in the near future, you should most certainly keep a very close eye on the blooming talent before he blows up even more. Very recently I had the opportunity to connect with Deebs and get his perspective on a bunch of things. Read the whole outfit down below!

Thank you for taking time to sit and chat with us. I’m very curious to know how you came to produce/DJ? What was life before turning to music? Please tell us about yourself.
Life before turning to music was pretty confusing.  I was still trying to learn english, girls were scary and getting around on my own wasn’t so easy.  I was probably 2 or 3.  Ever since then music has been a large part of my life.  My mother is a very musical lady so from a young age I was immersed in a musical environment.  I started taking violin lessons when I was like 5.  Although I’m thankful for those years and have a great appreciation for classical music today, I eventually decided that the violin was too dorky.  I figured learning the guitar would be a cooler way to express myself once I reached high school.  I had a lot of fun playing in a couple bands but eventually it was too difficult to maintain anything serious.  I ended up getting a synth and learned to use Ableton.  I really enjoyed making music on my own, having total control of the sound was really satisfying for me.  I guess DJing was naturally the next step from there although I definitely consider myself a producer before anything else.

Can you tell me how you came to connect with our good friends over at Pelican Fly? Will we be seeing any future work with them?
My manager Ed hooked me up with DJ Slow from Pelican Fly.  I was so stoked to be introduced to those guys because I was a big fan of their music ever since I heard the first Richelle EP.  I’m almost done my first EP for them so y’all can expect to hear it some time this summer.

What do you listen to in your spare time?
I’ve been listening to a lot of bass music this last year whether it be influenced by hip hop, UKF,  RnB or even juke/footwork type shit.  At the same time, more recently I’ve been trying to reach outside my bubble for new stuff to listen to.  I’ve been relaxing to Grimes and Beach House most recently.  I’ve also become quite a fan of the Top Dawg Ent. guys.

Has the industry changed the way you live? Do you stay up later?
I always stay up late.

How often are you in the studio? And on the topics of studios, what are you using?
I’m usually working on stuff on a daily basis.  I haven’t been employed since the beginning of this year so I’ve been trying to make the most of this time.  My studio, if you wanna call it that, is basically just my laptop.  Very portable.

Are you a genre man? Or does all the specifics not really phase you?
Genres can be really helpful for describing a sound to someone but it’s getting harder and harder to be specific.  It’s not something I really worry about when it comes to my own music.

Who is your biggest iconic influence?
It’s hard to say.  Probably Beck, he’s so rad in so many ways.

Describe your sound in three words?
Deep, melodic, emotional.

Now for Top 3′s… Tunes at the moment?

Mess Kid – Bottom of the Sea
Chad Valley – Shell Suite (Cashmere Cat Remix)
Trap Arnold – MoreLoko

Top 3 producers at the moment?

Sinjin Hawke, Meati, and Zodiac are all making inspiring stuff to me right now, among many others.

Top 3 Cuisine dishes?
Sushi, Arizona Iced Tea, Wunderbar

Thank you for great responses! We’ll be sure to keep our eyes peeled for you in the near future! Best of luck in the coming months, any final messages to our readers?
Thanks so much.  If you’ve read this far, I love you.