After cementing themselves with a flurry of bold and inventive offerings these last few years, Brooklyn-based outfit Gold Casio have now returned to unveil their stunning debut album 'Disco Hits Radio (Or, The Ecstasy of Ego Death)'.
Bringing back more of that fresh and adventurous funk-filled aesthetic they have built for themselves, 'Disco Hits Radio (Or, The Ecstasy of Ego Death)' makes for a brilliantly innovative listen. With its rich and technicolour direction, soaring atmosphere, and inviting hooks throughout, they are establishing themselves as one of the more distinctive names on the rise right now.
So with the new album available to stream now, we sat down with them to find out more about their background and influences over the years.
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What was the first instrument you fell in love with?
There’s a Casio PT-82 synth from the ‘80s that we picked up from a second-hand store and spray painted gold many years ago. It looked really cool and sounded even better, hence the name of the band.
What kind of music did you love when you were younger?
We would often find things through random radio stations and television programming. There was a hometown radio station that would play Pure Moods late at night in the ‘90s. A little later Adult Swim had a show called Midnight Run Special Edition, which featured artists like Daft Punk and Gorillaz. Besides that, lots of Motown records and the Cars Greatest Hits.
What was the first album you remember owning?
Destiny’s Child – The Writing’s on the Wall
N’Sync – N’Sync
Backstreet Boys – Millennium
Daft Punk – Discovery
What is the one song you wished you could have written yourself?
Anything off of Purple Rain.
Do you have any habits or rituals you go through when trying to write new music?
It’s been best to find a zen kind of flow state to channel that feeling that set off the songwriting in the first place. Whatever can be done to get out of the analytical brain, to drop down into the heart, so that inspiration can flourish and take shape organically.
Who are your favourite artists you have found yourself listening to at the moment?
Nation of Language from Brooklyn, NY,
CLUBZ from Monterry, Mexico,
Biig Piig, from West London
The album B.E.D by Baxter Dury, Étienne de Crécy, and Delilah Holliday.
If you could open a show for anyone in the world, who would it be?
Still living? It would have to be Lady Gaga.
What do you find is the most rewarding part about being a musician?
Collaborating with others. We love producing and remixing and playing shows with so many talented people from all over. It is mind-blowing how much music can truly bring people together and how it gifts us with such unimaginably wonderful experiences.
And what is the most frustrating part?
In some ways it can be the best part, but we do everything ourselves – from the music, mixing and production, to the booking and promotion, the visual assets, directing and editing, photoshoots, graphic design, etc. We even design and press our own merch, and building this golden glam world together while also growing as artists is quite the balancing act. It can be a lot of business to juggle, but it is a labour of love and an incredibly rewarding aspect of what we do.
And what is the best piece of advice you have received as a musician?
“Play the synth like a tiny baby robot dancing on the moon” – Dave Trumfio.
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Gold Casio's debut album 'Disco Hits Radio (Or, The Ecstasy of Ego Death)' is available to stream now. Check it out in the player below.