Vancouver electronic musician Marc-E recently released his latest immersive, psychedelic downtempo single, “Before the Thought,” which delivers a surreal listening experience.
Marc-E explains, “I wanted to create something with a much heavier sub-bass than my last few releases. Something that is sure to shake the subs. I believe I was successful. My music has always been a blend between psychedelia and spirituality. This track leans more to the psychedelic side.”
His previous releases include two long players, Sub Ek, and Catharsis, along with singles such as “Nataraja (Lord of the Dance Mix),” “Seeds of Faith,” and “Brahman.”
CelebMix spoke with Marc-E to discover more about his upcoming concept album, the evolution of his sound, and his creative process.
First, a simple yet revealing question: why do you make music?
It’s a little like breathing for me, I don’t know If I’m able to live without it. A little cliché sounding, but it’s true. I honestly don’t know life without music. I started creating music at a young age, and always dreamed of a career in music as an adult. Releasing and performing the music I have created is one of my life’s biggest joys. I love it when people take time to really listen and experience the music.
What inspired your latest single, “Before the Thought?”
Nothing specifically to be honest. I’m always playing with different instruments, and coming up with new ideas. This one started out when I was experimenting with a new synthesizer, playing around with deep sub-bass. I built the track around the bass. The tempo was taken from the loop I had going of that descending bass sound.
You have a new album releasing in 2024. What can you share about the album?
Yes, unconfirmed dates, I am hoping for spring 2024. There may be a single release before that time. We will see how the rest of this year plays out for me. Currently, it is still in production. All I should say about it at this point is I am working on a concept album. I won’t say the concept just yet. But you can expect it to be quite psychedelic (that may be obvious).
How did you get started in music?
Probably the same as most people, music lessons very long ago originally. I think I started singing lessons around age 3 or 4. Then, over the years, lots of self-teaching and a little bit of lessons and school.
What’s the music scene in Vancouver like?
I really can’t speak much to the Vancouver music scene. It doesn’t seem good or bad. But I think I’m too far removed from the bar and club scene to really know. I see a lot of small festivals popping up around BC, and the larger festivals like Shambhala seem to be thriving! That is really good to see.
Did your sound evolve naturally, or did you deliberately push it in a certain direction?
It evolved quite naturally and organically from my perspective. It’s all based on where I’m at in life mentally, spiritually, and physically. As the world shifts and changes around me, so does my music. It’s like a snapshot in time to when the music was created.
I call your sound ‘dreamlike psychedelia.’ Others call it Psybient, or Psychill. How do you describe it to someone who has never heard your music?
Genres have always been confusing for me. My favorite artists have always been the ones that don’t seem to fit into a genre. It’s usually the fans that come up with the genre or sub-genre names. I really like ‘dreamlike psychedelia,’ thank you for that. But, ya, Psybient is close, Psychill might be a bit closer. I really don’t enclose myself in one specific genre though. I often describe it as down-to-mid-tempo, psychedelic, electronic music.
When writing a song, what’s the creative process like? Are you a conduit and music simply pours forth, or do you follow a template of some kind, or what?
There’s no real process, or it changes a lot. I get a lot of chord and melody ideas from playing guitar. Other times I’ll just plug in a synth and play around until I hear something. I get a lot of rhythm ideas from playing djembe. Inspiration can come from anywhere and strike at any time. It’s best to just allow myself to be consumed in the music, and let it flow out of me however or wherever it may.
How do you define success?
Simple answer here, it’s completion. Once the project (whatever it is) is done, you are successful.
Will Marc-E be touring in the near future?
Hoping to get on a few summer festivals for 2024. Currently, I am focused in the studio, so nothing is planned for the near future just yet.