“Slow Magic is the sound made by an unknown imaginary friend,” reads the mysterious producer’s sparse, yet incredibly fitting, Twitter bio. While the masked Downtown Records-signee has remained anonymous since first surfacing in 2011, his sound is unmistakable—an ethereal mix of distorted vocals, swirling synths, and light jazz. This week, he’ll release his second project under the Slow Magic moniker, titled How To Run Away, before setting out on tour with a number of familiar faces. We caught up with him amongst the pre-release madness in an attempt to learn more about the man behind the fox. Check it out below.
What inspires your aesthetic? Is the mask a way of separating yourself from your music?
The reason that I wear a mask is the simple reason that I want people to just look at the music and nothing else. I guess from there it evolved and changed and also stayed the same. It’s something to look at on stage and I just want the focus to be the music and the art instead of me or my face.
Disconnecting seems to be a theme, as you’ve titled your sophomore effort “How To Run Away” and often refer to yourself as “your imaginary best friend.” Do you feel that your music, or electronic music in general, encourages escapism?
I definitely do. I think all the music that I really am drawn to definitely can inspire either feeling like you’re somewhere else or longing to be kind of in a different place or state or something like that.
Tell us more about the new full-length.
It’s been a lot of work and time and it’s finally coming out so I’m really excited. It’s ten songs and they’re all about running away or getting away from whatever it is—good or bad—to try something crazy or to chase a dream. I just got back from a tour about a week ago and next week I’m starting another. I’m just kind of filling in the gap with preparation for the next tour and the album release. I’m a little bit nervous but it’s really exciting to finally release it.
You’re touring Europe in November with Odesza, Craft Spells, and Blue Hawaii, among others. Have you ever played with any of those guys before?
I’ve played maybe two shows with Odesza and one show with Craft Spells. The Set It Off tour in Europe coming up is a really cool lineup and I’m really excited to be a part of it and play with the other people I’ve never played with before. It’s going to be really cool.
Do you feel the electronic music community is a tight-knit community?
I definitely think there’s a strong community. Being on the Internet when I started, there were a lot of people that I would talk to. I think the first was Giraffage and we’ve become really close friends through just music and the Internet and then getting a tour together. There’s this cool community that’s just people making music and enjoying each other’s music. The Internet can bring people from different states or countries together and then next thing you know you end up spending a month on tour with them.
What sets a Slow Magic performance apart from the rest of the electronic world?
I wanted to make a different experience than what some people might expect from an electronic show. I’ve got live drums and I just have a lot of energy and get the crowd involved a lot by either going out into the crowd or bringing the crowd on stage.
There’s definitely a tribal aspect to your live sets.
Yeah, definitely. I’ll bring the drum out into the crowd and there’s this really cool energy that is kind of primitive and tribal. It’s cool.
Interview by Shea Garner. Follow him on Twitter @sheaDUCK
