photo courtesy of purplesneakers.com.au
Last Thursday’s pop-up concert series, Pop-Off, by RedEye Presents brought masked musical mastermind Slow Magic to the stage. The progressive electronic music artist is known for his dreamy and celestial sound, his phenomenal, climactic drumming and an unforgettably iconic electroluminescent mask. While Slow Magic prefers to keep his identity under wraps, it’s no secret that this forward-thinking DJ, reminiscent of artists like Odesza, Flume, Giraffage and XXYYXX, is one of the most artful and crafty underground electronic music producers to look out for this year. The Daily Nexus was lucky enough to catch the ever-elusive Colorado-native without his mask on and — after approaching with caution — caught a one-on-one interview with the man with “no name.”
Carissa Quiambao: Are you Slow Magic?
Slow Magic: Yeah!
CQ: Is your name ******?
(Prior to the interview, the Daily Nexus obtained Slow Magic’s real name but cannot disclose it to protect the interviewee’s anonymity.)
SM: No … but don’t tell anyone.
CQ: Aha, okay. How do you like Santa Barbara?
SM: Well I’ve only been here a few hours, but it’s been nice so far.
CQ: Where were you before this?
SM: I was just in Bahidorá, Mexico, where I played on a river bank.
CQ: What?! How was that?
SM: It was beautiful, really beautiful, I loved it. And I’m heading to San Francisco to play at Noise Pop after this.
CQ: Wow, okay. So you just played on a river bank in Mexico and now you’re playing at this small, unique venue in Goleta — the Goodland Hotel. Do you always strive to play shows at venues that are small and intimate?
SM: I kind of just play wherever I can, but this place definitely has an awesome vibe and I’m always happy to play in places that look cool like this. I hear there’s an after party somewhere else, but I think I’m just gonna stick around here since I’m staying at this hotel tonight.
CQ: Good call, this place is indeed awesome. But okay, I have to ask — why the mask? How did you come to start wearing it?
SM: I want my shows to be more about the music and art than about the person playing it. So I had someone custom-make the mask for me. His name is Jonas and he’s super talented.
CQ: Does it ever get difficult to perform with the mask on?
SM: Yeah, it definitely gets warm and stuffy in there. But it’s worth it.
CQ: Agreed! So, who are your musical inspirations?
SM: That’s a tough one! I like a lot of different kinds of music, but I think I’d have to say Sigur Rós is one of my big inspirations, and I really like Kings of Convenience.
CQ: Nice. And your favorite food? Favorite TV show?
SM: I like Japanese food. My favorite TV show right now is … “Parks and Rec” because the show just ended. The last season was awesome.
CQ: Alright, last question — what’s one thing you would like to tell all your fans right now?
SM: I’d like to tell all my fans … I love them! That’s it.
