SCHUZ
Q: Hi Spencer, what made you start producing music under the name of Schuz?
My last name is Schumacher. I started under the moniker Shoemacs and rebranded to Schuz because its a play on my last name and when you think of shoes you think of dancing which is the energy I like to bring to my tracks and live performances.
Q: If you don’t mind, please tell us a bit about your background and how you got into music.
This should be included in the initial info that I provided in this campaign for “Chirp”
Q: How did the idea for “Chirp” come about, and how was that creative process?
This creative process really stemmed from trial and error experimenting with different sounds. Keep the bass line simple was the goal so that I could build other elements around the main sound.
Q: You mentioned you used field recordings of the crickets. How did that inspire the sound and structure of the track?
I used field recordings of my friend who can make cricket voices from his mouth. The cricket sounds were more of a backdrop and I used different bass sounds to start this track as a loop until I really found the direction of the track.
Q: How does nature and outdoor sound feature in your music?
I would say this is a key part of my music whether its audible or not these textural and organic elements seem to be present in a lot of my music.
Q: Describe what you hope listeners may feel, or be thinking, when they hear “Chirp”.
My hope would be that the listener feels like they entering the woods at night with the sounds of crickets that are lurking in the background giving more of an intense “whats going to happen next” affect.
Q: What was it like performing at the Oasis Festival? Do you have any memorable experiences from those shows?
I played here in 2022 and 2023 and it was a really cool experience spinning out my own music in front of a crowd of new people I’ve never met and friends. Memorable experiences definitely were the theme camps where people set up their own homebase..
Q: How do you prepare for a live performance, and what can audiences expect from your shows?
Preparing for a live performance is the art of “Crate Collecting” and digging for new music. Whether its from Beatport, Bandcamp, SoundCloud or other sources of music. Going the labels of artists you like and finding similar artists that may not have as much exposure.
Q: Are there any specific artists or genres that inspire your work?
For my Schuz project a lot of drum-n-bass, deep dark 140 dub, trap and some other types of bass music
Q: What do you think sets your music apart from other electronic artists in the scene?
This is a subjective question as each producer has their own method of getting to the same end result. I think this goes back to getting feedback and sharing your music with others. Outside of that, I will reference other peoples music to understand structure and music composition to gain new ideas for my tracks.
Q: Being a producer, what’s next for you in the future years?
For me, remaining happy as a producer and being consistent releasing music. I’ve found that this has helped me continune releasing tunes more often and allowing creativity to flow when it needs to. I have a goal to have my catalog music get picked up on Netflix before I die and will keep driving towards that goal outside of the EDM industry
Q: How do you go about merging organic and electronic sounds together in your music?
It really depends on how the track idea starts, but usually I treat organic sounds as layers of an idea I want to use in a specific section. I producer out of Live (Ableton) leveraging different VSTs to make MIDI ideas and drum samples along with organic sounds to create a cohesive sound.
Q: If you had one key advice for aspiring electronic music producers, what would it be?
I feel like everyone says this, but don’t compare yourself to others. Don’t think your music sucks, don’t be afraid to get feedback, don’t be afraid to learn something new everyday. The list goes on but continual education and feedback has helped me excel as a producer.
Q: Any plans for future releases or projects beyond “Chirp”?
I plan to release one more track this year which will put me at 8 total releases for 2024. This is a big accomplishment for me and I plan on continuning being consistent as a producer with monthly releases.
Q: How do you manage to keep motivated and inspired throughout a creative process?
I think people eb and flow with their own creative blocks and breakthroughs. For me, I have a routine of my day job, working out, being physically active, and when I have free time throughout the days spend time chunking away at a project, mixing an old project, or starting something new. A lot of quality can lead to quality and being consistent is the receipe there.
Q: How does your experience performing in different clubs shape your approach to producing?
I like to use clubs or other venues to play out my unreleased music to see what tweaks I need to make in the mix from a producer standpoint or if someone likes a song I may think of releasing I will prioritize releasing that one since others vibe with the tune.
Q: Do you have any exciting collaborations coming up?
I don’t have any collaborations coming up as of yet, but I had one earlier this year with Luke Rain called “Hear Me Callin” and did a remix of Kodus 2029 track.
Q: What’s your prediction on what the electronic music landscape will look like a few years from now?
I think with AI influence a lot of art and music there will be a shift of how music and other art is made. I don’t think it will be a full replacement, but more of a tool that people can use as a jumping off point to generate ideas.
