SEPTEMBER FEATURE: EPTIC
· Artist Features
Eptic exudes creativity – and not just in the studio!
In a field as fueled by passion and creativity as the music industry, you come to expect the unexpected. Sometimes things don’t work out the way you think and sometimes the die is cast just right. With rumors swirling around the acclaimed Belgian artist’s next release, Eptic and Dillon Francis came out swinging with “Let it Go” last month. That right there is a prime example of things falling perfectly into place!
Before he’d even hit his teens, Michaël Bella – or Eptic – had his heart set on becoming an artist. Whether it was stitching together Slipknot-inspired masks or developing bigger ideas for bass-heavy beats, he was always captivated by both visual and auditory art. Today, he is considered one of the most spectacular acts in the world of electronic music. Having already released nine EPs over his prominent eight year tenure as a professional music producer, he has been working his way towards one goal: releasing a full-fledged album. These things take time and, for someone as detail-oriented as Eptic, definitely won’t be easy. That being said, he won’t be in it alone.
We are super pleased to welcome Eptic to the Monstercat family. We’ve been eagerly anticipating Flesh & Blood after his well-received release with Dillon Francis in August. However, like many of you, we had quite a few questions as well! How did he find his way to Monstercat? What’s the story behind Flesh & Blood? What makes this EP different on the music side? These are exciting times for the young icon and, with his latest EP dropping on September 19th, he is getting closer and closer to making that dream album a reality.
We caught up with the bass-boosted Belgian to talk about his 10th EP and so much more! Check it out!
First, let’s throw it back to the beginning!
What was it like growing up in Belgium, which has always had deep musical roots?
There wasn’t really that much to do around there, so I think everything, music-wise, I kind of got from my parents. My mom listened to a lot of metal and rock. That’s kind of what I grew up with. Later on, it wasn’t until I was like 15 that I actually started to get interested in electronic music, because I used to be one of those people that absolutely hated electronic music for the longest time!
How did you convert from hating electronic music to loving it?
When I was 11 or 12, all I listened to was like Metallica and Slipknot and all that kind of stuff. And then one of my friends actually showed me Pendulum, which is kind of in-between straight-up electronic music – but they also had a band, so it was kind of the perfect way for me to transition. And then I got really, really into drum ‘n’ bass for years.
Did being into heavy metal and rock influence your style or the heaviness of your music?
Maybe. I don’t really know, I think it influences all the artwork and stuff more. Because Iron Maiden and stuff used to have really, really sick covers, but, when it comes to music, I don’t really know. It’s something that’s hard to say about yourself. I don’t really listen to rock songs and then be like, ‘oh, I’ve gotta do something like this.’
Is electronic music very popular in Belgium and/or Europe?
Yeah, it’s definitely starting to boom more again. I remember when I was young, for instance, drum ‘n’ bass and dubstep got really, really big. Every single festival – because we have a very heavy festival culture – at one point, I think almost all of them had either a drum ‘n’ bass stage or a dubstep stage. And, over the years, that kind of faded away, and I feel like, right now, what’s really booming is basically techno and hip-hop. At the same time, there’s festivals like Tomorrowland that, you know, it’s only electronic music. We definitely have a good scene.
How old were you when you first became interested in music?
I would definitely say when I was around 10 or 11, I got really, really properly obsessed with Slipknot, and I think that’s what got me into music. Because it was their whole project and it was the way they looked, then like the music was great. But, yeah, I was like at home, remaking all the masks and stuff. Proper, proper fanboy.
Education-wise, did you (or do you) study music in school?
No, I did graphic design and illustration. I didn’t really do anything music-related. I kind of just watched a bunch of YouTube tutorials and kind of learned it by myself. I think that’s the way that most kids do it these days.
You have a noteworthy appreciation for digital art and graphic design. You even repost a lot of fanart on your Twitter! Would you say that your appreciation for that has come from your educational background?
Yeah, definitely. I’ve always been into art and drawing and stuff. I’ve been drawing as long as I can remember, but definitely going to college for a few years and really getting in detail with that kind of stuff… I know how much work it takes to make a lot of these things. There’s a few really crazy 3D artists and people who do motion graphics and stuff as well that have been randomly making stuff for me as fan art. I see it and I’m like fuck, they’ve spent hours or days on this shit. Absolutely crazy. Definitely appreciate it.
How has your fanbase grown over the years?
I’ve never really had a reason to complain. I’ve always had a really nice fanbase. I know a lot of people that, whenever they put out a release, they get so much shit and… the stuff people say! But people overall have always been really, really nice with me. And it’s really cool as well because actually, now on Instagram and stuff, there’s a bunch of people that just follow me for all the art stuff, which, for me, is really cool because I probably like making all the artwork and all the videos just as much as making the music.
The fanbase is really, really great. I don’t really get a lot of lashback when I try something different. I was actually, for that Dillon Francis thing, I was really scared because I’ve never made a moombahton song before. Of course there were a few people that said, like, oh, it’s not really my thing, but I didn’t really have anyone properly hating on it.
Do you feel like you had to make any sacrifices to pursue your career as a professional DJ?
I actually got quite lucky with that, because, when things kind of started to pop off a little bit, ages ago, for the first time, I think I was 20 or something. I just got into college and I was telling my mom “Maybe I shouldn’t go to college and I should just do this music thing,” which was… you know. And, in my parents’ eyes, it was just ludicrous. So I was like, “You know what, I’m going to do this first year of college and see how it goes,” and stuff kind of kept going better and better. And basically every year I was kind of doubting myself, like “Fuck, should I just like quit college and start doing this thing full-time?” I couldn’t make up my mind for so long that, by the time I made up my mind, I just finished college.
I got pretty lucky with that. The only thing I do sacrifice, and it kind of becomes harder with the years, is I’m starting to really miss my family. I’m constantly touring and touring and touring, and I have friends all over the world. So, now it doesn’t really matter where I am, I’m always missing someone. Definitely personal relationships-wise, that’s the only thing that kind of sucks. But, apart from that, I’m having a good ol’ time!
These days, you’re doing a lot of producing and playing a lot of shows!
What are some of your favourite things to do when you’re not touring or producing music?
I’m basically working all the time. I know a couple years ago, when I wasn’t producing music, I loved to work on my artwork outside this project and try all these new things, but I’m kind of always working on music and artwork now so the last thing I want to do in my free time is make more music and artwork.
Basically hanging out with friends or family and just doing stuff. I really like hiking, now, and bouldering – like, inside rock climbing. That kind of stuff. Basically, whenever I do have free time, I just like to do stuff that’s as far away as possible from doing work.
Do you have a daily routine, or is there anything you do everyday that doesn’t change?
I’m super disorganized, man, so not really! I think that’s probably my biggest flaw. I’m not really good with keeping an agenda and writing stuff down. For instance, with the last EP I did for Monstercat, I waited so long to do some stuff that I had a serious time crunch. I ended up going home to Belgium for three weeks, and I stayed up until three in the morning and I woke up at like six, seven in the morning every day for the three weeks straight, just to get everything done. So, yeah! I don’t really have a routine. I wake up and then I see what happens during the day!
Do you have a goal or idea for how many songs you want to release per year?
Not really, I probably should. I always try to do at least, you know, like one EP a year, or one body of work a year. And then just do a bunch of singles and remixes – but it’s so different every year. I think I’ve done an EP every year, but, for instance, like last year and the year before, I just ended up doing a bunch of remixes and one-offs. Stuff like that. So, I’m definitely going to try and get a little more organized this year.
I actually started doing that. I do still just want to do an EP a year or something, because I don’t really want to crank out music just for the sake of it. Because, if I try to overwork myself, the songs just sound like shit. And I make music really slowly as well, so I really, really have to take my time – but I’m definitely going to try and release a little more music this year. Probably going to try and do at least another five or six singles and make a bunch of music with people… but I don’t really set a goal of, like, “Oh, I’m going to make like ten songs this year” because my brain doesn’t really work like that if that makes sense.
You do a lot of remixes as well! How long would it take to produce your own song (like “Power”) versus doing a remix?
Most of the time, the remixes are much easier for me because I only really accept remixes when I have a concrete idea for it. For instance, with the Dillon Francis remix, the way it actually happened was I was already working on a song and I could not get the intro right and it sounded completely off, and Dillon posted that remix on his Soundcloud. And I think literally ten minutes after he posted it, I sent him a message. It was like “Yo, I want to remix this, send me everything” and he was like “Oh, that’s so funny, I was actually going to ask you for this remix” and then I made it in like a couple of days.
Versus whenever I make original tracks – I mean, it depends, but especially “Power” actually took me a few months to make because I made the drop… I don’t know… the idea for the drop I think I almost made over a year ago, but I just could not get the intro right. I think I probably made like ten different intros for it. I just couldn’t come up with any ideas, and then, finally, I came with this. But, sometimes, it can be such a tedious process because it gets really frustrating because of like, oh, the drop’s sick but I can’t come up with anything else, or vice versa.
How long does it typically take you to produce a track from start to finish?
It depends. Sometimes it takes me like a week. Sometimes I can crank out the whole idea or the entire track in a day or three, but then it usually takes me a few days to mix it down. But then, other times, it literally takes me months because I refuse to release anything that I’m not 100 percent happy with. I get really, really anal about stuff and just end up taking months and months and months.
What does your creative process look like?
Again, it kind of depends. What actually happens a lot of times is, I’ll be in the shower for like 45 minutes, just thinking, because, for some reason I always come up with ideas in the shower, like a lot of people. I’ll just have an idea in my head and then I’ll just try and recreate it, which is really nice because if you have something concrete to work towards, it makes the process a lot easier. But then, other times, which is most of the time, I’ll just open up Ableton and kind of think of like “Oh, do I want to make a really heavy song? Do I want to make a melodic song? Is it like a trap song?” And then I’ll just start making random sounds and then, most of the time, you know, I’ll make a melody and, after a few days, something will click. I just sit down and I try to make something. A lot of times it doesn’t work out, and then other times it’s great!
You’re unleashing your 10th EP, Flesh & Blood, this month!
What are your thoughts and expectations about joining Monstercat?
The thing I really like about Monstercat, which I’ve really noticed with these two singles I’ve put out so far, is that you guys just have a crazy fanbase – like something I’ve never really seen before. I’ve got people hitting me up. There’s this one dude on Twitter that made five or six videos of him screaming because I’m releasing on Monstercat. It’s just like “Ah, I’ve been wanting you to release on here for so long” which is to me almost a weird thing because I’m always kind of like ‘you follow an artist for the artist,’ but, at the same time, it’s kind of crazy how much fan love labels get.
It’s definitely next-level. I think Monstercat took down a video because they had the licensing for “Let it Go” with Dillon Francis, and one of the fans took a screenshot and put that on Reddit and they were like Oh my god, I think Eptic and Dillon Francis are doing a thing on Monstercat and it got so many reactions and so many likes and shit. I think that’s what pulled me towards Monstercat, because everyone was telling me like “They have this fanbase and Monstercat has its tentacles in the gaming world” and that’s just an audience I’ve never reached before. It was just time for something different and I’ve been really, really pleasantly surprised with the whole community and everything. So, that’s likely what pulled me towards Monstercat.
Who are some of your favourite Monstercat artists?
I would probably say Grabbitz, just because I think he’s a really, really talented dude and I love his voice. I’ve been meaning to ask him to work on something together and, for some reason, I never do. I definitely need to hit him up. I like Pegboard Nerds as well. There’s a bunch, there’s a bunch of one-off releases as well. I know Kill the Noise did a bunch of stuff for you guys and I absolutely adore him, so those would probably be my top picks. Oh, of course, Habstrakt.
You and Dillon Francis released “Let it Go,” which is your first release on Monstercat. How did that song come about?
It’s kind of funny. A thing artists do a lot is—it’s kind of an empty gesture, at least I think it probably was an empty gesture, but like—you’re having a little talk online and you’re just like “One day, we should work together on something.” But it’s kind of something everyone says [...] and he was like “Yo, we should work on something” and then I got home and I made a little demo. I made a little moombahton demo and I sent it to him a day later or something and I was like “Yo, let’s work on this” and he was like “Oh yeah, that’s really, really sick, we should definitely work on that.” Then nothing really happened for a couple of months.
Then I was in L.A. and I was like, “Hey, let’s work on that song” and, again, nothing really happened. Then, at the end of that week, I just sent him a text. I was like “Yo, I’m coming to your house right now. Send me your address!” and he was like “Uhhh, okay!” It was actually on his 30th birthday as well, so it was like really, really bad timing. We just sat together for I think an hour or two hours and made a huge chunk of the song. Note, I think this was a year ago or two years ago. Anyways, then nothing really happened and I think about a year ago, I was going through all of my old demos and I was like “fuck, this Dillon Francis song is actually pretty sick. We should finish it.” And then I sent it to Dillon again and he was like “Yeah, it’s still good. We should finish it.” Nothing really happened, and then, one day, I just got on Twitter and I was just like “yo, someone bully Dillon into finishing this fucking song because I’m so done with this conversation.” And then a bunch of fans told Dillon to finish the song and then he actually finished the song, and that’s how it came to be… but it was a long, long process.
What was the inspiration behind the concept for your Flesh & Blood EP?
That’s a good question. I think the whole name and everything actually came more from all the artwork and visuals I was making first. I can’t really show ‘em to you, but all the show visuals and stuff I’m making are really gritty. It’s literally like my overlord dude and everything’s inside out and you can see his bones and his insides and flesh and whatever… before the EP, I made a mood board and a bunch of illustrations and stuff. It’s not really so much of a story or a concept, it’s more a mood or a vibe.
I would say flesh and blood is the atmosphere of the EP and the atmosphere of all the visuals and stuff. I don’t really make a story, like I kind of make artwork and names the same way that I make music – like I just sit down and make it. Everything’s really inspired by—and it’s kind of funny because I’ve never really played the game, but I really like all the artwork; it’s really inspired by Dungeons & Dragons—this feeling of impending doom and hell and whatever. I think with this EP I just tried to capture a vibe more, it’s not really a story.
Flesh & Blood will be your 10th EP release! Have you learned anything from your past EPs to help you put this one together or make the process easier?
I mean it definitely helps because of the fact that I’ve done it so many times. It helped me learn my own workflow and all that stuff. I think the thing that helps me is that, with every EP, I try and do something new or push myself in some kind of way. First, I just slapped a bunch of tracks together, called it an EP, made some random artwork for it and that was it. And then I did my Overlord EP, where every track had its own artwork and I did a bunch more different styles. Once I did that EP I felt way more accomplished, just because it was a little more thought out. It had a concept, the tracks were more interesting… it was kind of more of a story. Then I did my Antihuman EP, which I was happy with, but it was just kind of a collection of bangers. There wasn’t that much to it, and I noticed that from the fans’ reaction as well. There were a lot of DJs and stuff playing it out, but people were definitely less excited about it than the Overlord EP.
With [Flesh & Blood], I tried to do a bunch of different stuff. I think “Power” is the only real, real dubstep track in there—which is something I’ve never really done before. It’s a bit of a journey. Just like with every EP [...] I try and do something different, push myself a little bit more. Either it’s the music or the art, always trying to level it up, figuring it out a little bit more, because, eventually, I really want to do an album. But the only problem I have with an album is that a lot of people are doing albums these days, and they’re just kind of… they make like ten songs or something, they slap it together and it’s an “album,” you know? But it’s not really an album. I feel like, if you make an album, you should be able to listen to the whole thing through and it takes you on a journey. It’s not just ten dubstep tracks slapped together. I feel with every EP, I come a little bit closer. I think this one’s a good step, because there’s a bunch of different stuff on there, the artwork’s getting more interesting.
Which song from Flesh & Blood was the most fun for you to make?
They were all a pain in the ass, but “Violence” was definitely the most fun because it’s something I’ve never really done before and I’ve been wanting to do for a while. I enjoyed making that track way more than any other track on the EP because, sometimes, always making dubstep or just like heavy, heavy bass music… I don’t know. Even though I always try to make different stuff, I’ve never really tried anything that’s so much out of the box as “Violence,” so, for me, it was just really, really fun. Like I said, sometimes producing almost becomes like a chore.
It should never be that.
Every time I feel like that, I try to take a little break. But that whole track basically wrote itself. It was actually supposed to be a remix of my old track “Bloodlust” which I made a mid-tempo version of. And then I just made that drop one day, and then I think I wrote the whole intro in like a day, because I had so much fun. I couldn’t stop! But definitely all the other tracks were a pain in the ass, like I think I spent four months on that “Beyond The Stars” song. I changed the intro over and over and over and over again. I’m really happy with it now but… yeah.
For a lot of young audiences, becoming the next Eptic can seem like the dream job. Do you think it’s good to idolize or want to be like a certain artist, or does that detract from individuality?
I don’t really think it’s a bad thing, wanting to be like someone. I definitely have a lot of artists that I really, really look up to and they inspire me a lot. I think, just as long as you do you—I think that’s just the most important part. For instance, I’m just going to give an example. I really, really look up to Zomboy because, whenever he does his live shows, he has so much energy and the way he jumps around on-stage in his insurrection and whatever. I really look up to that, but, for instance, I could never do the same thing because he’s a huge dude with a lot of charisma. I have charisma as well! But it’s just like, you know, I’m 5’9. If I jump around the way he jumps around, it’s not going to have the same effect. You know? I don’t have a heavy voice to say shit on the mic like that. It’s never going to work. But, for instance, I do look at his shows and be like “oh, you know what, maybe I can try this or this or this in my own way,” and I think that’s a good way of looking at it. So I definitely think it’s good to idolize a person or take notes from people that really, really inspire you.
As someone who’s been producing music for almost 8 years now, do you have any tips for aspiring artists?
I think the best thing to try and do, because these days everything is so production-oriented, that everyone goes crazy on like ‘oh, my mix-downs, and this and this and this.’ I think the best tip, it’s going to be corny because everyone says this, but just try and be yourself and, first of all, just try and make a good song. Don’t focus too much on the production, because I noticed with a lot of songs I play in my sets from new guys—a lot of times, the production’s actually kind of shitty, but the idea of the song is so good that it resonates with the crowd and the listeners and whatever. If it comes to actual production, I would just say like learn how to EQ because it’s pretty easy and, if you master it, it just does so much for your songs. Just taking out everything you don’t need.
With Flesh & Blood in the water, get ready to go wild!
Eptic is going all out in his pursuit of his goals as an artist. He’s super creative and fun-loving, but, on the other hand, he’s also one of the most renowned electronic music producers around. Experimenting with new sounds and styles isn’t as easy as one, two, three when progress slows and the pressure ramps up. We see experimentation as a positive and exciting thing that leads to inspiration and creativity, though. With that adventurous spirit on tap, everyone can express themselves fearlessly. We wish Eptic well in his discovery of what it’ll take to craft his ideal album, and can’t wait to see what’s in store next!