Meet the Artist: O&P
Today marks the beginning of our ‘Meet the Artists’ series, where we’ll be taking a behind-the-scenes look at all the talented individuals who’ve lent their creative prowess to ‘Disciples of Distortion Volume 2,’ our latest gem within the Stonx Music community. To kick things off, we’re delighted to introduce you to O&P, a dynamic duo making their inaugural appearance on Stonx Music with their track ‘Stay With It.’ So, sit back, relax, and let’s dive into their musical journey.
Where to find O&P
Can you tell us a bit about yourself and how you got started in the world of music production?
We’ve started DJing about 10 years ago with a small controller on the rooftop of our car in our local skatepark. As we got more experienced in mixing tunes, we also got interested in how those tunes are crafted. We started with buying a Maschine Mk3 in 2017 because we thought you need some kind of hardware to produce (which isn’t the case xD) and worked in Maschine 2 DAW. Later we switched over to Logic Pro, and in 2021, we bought Ableton Live, which really boosted our workflow.
Let’s dive right into your contribution to Disciples of Distortion Volume 2. Can you give us some insight into the creative process behind your track?
We wrote the tune in a time where we still really struggled to actually finish tunes and not just stick to a 16 Bar loop and scrap everything because it sounds shit. During that time, we were really lucky that many well-known artists started a Patreon because of Covid, and we were able to take advantage of that. “Stay with it” is one of the first tunes we were kinda proud of and had the feeling that we finally managed to get on the level to play it in our DJ sets.
Sometimes you feel like you’ll never get better, and everything you do sounds bad, but it’s always a big help if you have like-minded people around you who want to achieve the same goal.
O&P
What inspired you while working on this specific piece of music?
It’s already more than a year ago, and I’m not sure what the inspiration was, but Teddy Killerz Patreon in general was a big inspiration to us during that time.
Who are some of your biggest musical influences, and how have they shaped your sound?
Teddy Killerz, Redpill, Notequal, Gydra, Mizo, Black Sun Empire.
Can you share a particularly challenging moment you’ve encountered in your music production journey and how you overcame it?
Sound design. When we started our musical journey, we really struggled with finding the right sounds, so we thought it’s a good idea to spend much time on sound design. In our first 2-3 years, we exclusively spent time designing various sounds in different synthesizers, which sometimes felt like we got stuck on it and weren’t able to finish tunes at all. But right now, I feel like it was really helpful because we’re now able to synthesize the sounds we want, and since songwriting got easier for us, it’s just some kind of freedom to create the sound you have in mind.
The music community is often a source of inspiration and support. How has being a part of the Stonx Music community and collaborating with other artists influenced your work?
The Stonx community really helped us to motivate ourselves to keep producing. Sometimes you feel like you’ll never get better, and everything you do sounds bad, but it’s always a big help if you have like-minded people around you who want to achieve the same goal. I think we wouldn’t be at the point we are in our journey right now without the Stonx Community.
Are there any fellow artists you’d like to give a shoutout to for their contributions or influence on your music?
Teddy Killerz for sure, and lately Notequal, especially Absu from Notequal.
Check out O&P’s Mix for our Stonxcast 1 Year Anniversary Special
Neurofunk is known for its distinctive sound. How do you approach experimenting with and pushing the boundaries of the genre in your music?
I think a fun part in Neurofunk is that you can just play around with sounds and samples, do wild automations, and cut up your bounced materials and come up with stuff that you intentionally wouldn’t have done; it’s just so much fun as soon as you get into that “flow” state.
Are there any other musical genres or styles you’re interested in exploring in the future?
Oliver is playing drums in a punk band, and sometimes we’re also mixing those tunes; otherwise, we’re not really interested in anything else than Drum and Bass.
Looking ahead, what are your goals and aspirations as an artist? Are there any dream collaborations or projects you’re working on?
It happened so much during the last year that I wouldn’t have dreamed of a year ago. We’re currently working on 2 releases on labels that we listened to for years, and we really hope that everything goes as planned.
What advice would you offer to up-and-coming producers who aspire to make their mark in the music industry?
Consistency is key. It’s not about making a banger tune every couple of days but about consistently working on your music, even if you’re not feeling creative. Maybe it’s a good day to just sort your samples or create some sounds without any intention to make a tune out of it.
Are there any production tips or resources you wish you had known about when you were starting out?
Don’t care too much about clipping on your single tracks. Put a limiter on your master and just produce into it. If it sounds too smashed, dial it back a bit, and if it sounds good, it is good, no matter what the numbers tell you.
When you’re not making music, how do you like to spend your free time?
As already mentioned before, Oliver plays in two punk bands as a drummer, and we both like to go skating. Philipp likes to play video games and is cooking passionately.
Can you share a fun or quirky fact about yourself that your fans might not know?
We pretty much know each other since our childhood, and we’re roommates for a couple of years now.
As we wind down this chat with O&P, I just want to say a big thanks to them for taking the time to share their music journey with us. It’s been a real pleasure delving into their creative process and learning about their influences. Now, here’s the scoop – ‘Disciples of Distortion’ is hitting the airwaves on September 22nd, 2023. So, folks, save the date on your calendars, set a reminder on your phone, or tie a string around your finger – whatever works for you!
Thanks again to O&P and keep those ears ready for some distorted magic!
Meet the other Artists
- O&P:
- H_MAN:
- Direct Shift:
- The Fi5th:
- Sindicate:
- Moisinn
- Goosetronics
- Subcat
- Icons
- Deviant Program
- M4
- Skorpion
We are incredibly excited for this release and sincerely hope you’ll join us in supporting our vibrant community. Stonx Music’s Disciples Of Distortion Volume 2 is set to unleash its auditory devotion worldwide on September 22nd, 2023
Pre- Order: https://releases.stonx.co.uk/Disciples-vol2
Words by STONX and Stonx Music Co – Founder Ollie Barron
