LAMP Weekly Mix #123 feat. Dan Jedynak

LAMP Weekly Mix #123 feat. Dan Jedynak

We were first introduced to Dan Jedynak last year through a mutual friend. He sent us some tracks and we were immediately enamored with his sound, style and quality of the work. What excited us even more was that Dan's skill set was so raw and although he clearly had an incredible ear and musical mind his exploration into electronic production was relatively new. It gives us great pleasure today to introduce you our newest member of the LAMP family with his debut mix. It's stacked full of tech, tribal and bass vibes that weave a clever narrative that paints a dynamic auditory landscape.MR PUZL: Welcome to the LAMP mix series! We're excited to have you join us and look forward to a fun filled few weeks of music with you. Tell us a little bit about this mix you put together and what kind of vibe you were going for.Dan Jedynak: Hey Alex! Thanks for inviting me as a guest on LAMP and into the Puzl Records family, I'm stoked for the releases these next two weeks!My aim for this mix was to start with a modest groove and then slowly move to that jungly, bass-driven house that I have grown to love so much. It's like tribal Africa meets techno lords from Tressor. I focused on keeping a cohesive story going throughout the hour with patient transitions and gradual changes in genre.MP: You've been DJ'ing for a few years now but this is appears to be your first official mix. What motivated you to push this project forward and share your work publicly?DJ: One step closer towards being the President. But for real, i'm just really motivated to do cool things, or at least things that I think are cool. The only thing that would slow me down is a third season of Rick & Morty. But then it would be back to doing cool things. Also, I'll be sharing 6 new tracks with everyone over the next 2 months.MP: In our conversation this past weekend you touched on the fact you've spun more than house in the past. What other styles influence you and how do you feel that permeates into your productions and performances?DJ: I absolutely love funk music, and am truly inspired by artists such as Griz, Gramatik, and Big Gigantic. They really know how to keep the energy going and put the soul into electronic music. I used to DJ bass music (funk, glitch, trap) and still do from time to time. I use that experience to influence my track choice when DJing house music, I want to play tracks that are certified bangerz. Not actually Dillon Francis Bangerz. But tracks that I truly believe are good.MP: Growing up around music, specifically your father being a drummer, must have been and amazing learning experience. What instruments do you play and what would you say is your favorite?DJ: Yeah my dad was definitely major inspiration. My parents pushed me to play piano at a young age and I continued to pick up other instruments throughout the years. I play piano, saxophone, drums, and guitar/bass. Jazz is a huge part of my life and I was lucky to have my dad show me the Jazz legends of the past and present. I've always been inspired by complex music that I don't understand, so I dig in as deep as I can to discover how it works.When I decided to learn drums in high school, I never thought 'I want to be a drummer because it's cool', I wanted to learn how drummers can even play with insane bands such as Dream Theater, and The Mars Volta. I practiced until I could do exactly that. Oh and also to learn Smells like Teen Spirit. Gotta learn Smells like Teen Spirit!I can't pick a favorite instrument, no way! Piano is the most versatile, Saxophone has the most expression, Drums make people dance and rock out.MP: It's clear in your work and in the tech house style of track selections from this mix that you have a knack for understanding rhythm. You mentioned incorporating more saxophone in your future productions. What other elements and styles are you striving to incorporate?DJ: I want to make drums that pop and basses that move! House music is about all of the subtleties, so i've been studying tracks by my favorite artists to figure how they tick.I definitely will be adding saxophone. I will be recording short riffs and whole tones, then resample it as another sound that is used in my tracks. I don't want saxophone to be the main focus, but instead it will be another texture as I continue to develop my own unique sound.MP: You're self taught when it comes to Ableton. How has that learning process been and what methods did you employ to get the most out of the software early on?DJ: Learning Ableton is no easy task. What you put into it is what you get out of it. And it all depends how deeply you want to dive. I learned a lot from watching the Point Blank videos where artists such as Claude and Shadow Child dissect their tracks and show you how they made them. Besides that it takes time, research, and experimentation.To the people out there that feel like they are almost there but don't know what is missing, nothing will help more than dissecting your favorite tracks. When I was at this point, I would map out, or essentially transcribe tracks, just to learn how they are arranged. I didn't make each individual sound or sample, but I drew in midi clips that represented each sound, and placed them in time to match the track I was studying. When you are done, you'll have 40-60 Ableton tracks just of midi clips. But hey look at you, you just wrote out a track from your favorite artist. Now do it again, and add your own samples and sound. The first draft arrangement for a track I've been working on, Motor, came from me transcribing a Kyle Watson track.MP: Tim Green is a big influence for you and one of your "producer heroes". Are there any other artists and labels that your draw inspiration from?DJ: I'm really into labels like Gruuv and Exploited. Some of my current favorite producers are Tim Green, Wade, Hugo, also Jon Hopkins and Nicolas Jaar.MP: Currently your reside in SF) and have been there for a few years now but you're roots are in Los Angeles. How do you feel the scenes compare and contrast between those cities?DJ: SF's music scene is very burner influenced which is the main reason our parties are so awesome. The SF music vibe comes from a group of people that want to try new things and throw weird parties. I've been to a lot of weird parties.MP: Tell us a bit about Lowered Expectations, I've heard it's sort of a renegade BBQ party. Have you guys ever got shut down before? Are there plans to move this to a more official format?DJ: Never been shut down! Lowered Expectations is a DJ crew that throws renegade style BBQs in Oakland. It started as just us, a sound system, generator, and a BBQ. We have grown since last summer. We now have a residency at WISH Lounge in SF and will be playing at the Big Surreal in June (a festival hosted in Big Sur). We had our season opener LowX BBQ a couple weeks ago and it was a huge success. All of the Shenanigans.

Tracklist

Dachshund - ImpactNimenialtu (jamahr Remix) - Eleven & RadumLauren Lane - Diary of a MadwomenHugo - KickinamophoneKreature & Rudosa - Just Say ItDJ Le Roi - I Get Deep (Emanuel Satie Rework)Hugo - Joint is JumpingTim Green - HalftoneCitizen, Ejeca, Mountainking - VacateDan Jedynak- ???Rampue - Leporidae (Mario Aureo Remix)