From herDiary of A Secret Hospo Worker, Amber Denny loves a good laugh, a good time and a good drink (or seven).
The all too familiar names of Mashd N Kutcher are standing out – for all the right reasons. As live DJ-producers from Brisbane, Matt and Adam spent many years studying classical music before coming together and making their break into the electronic dance music scene. Having a classically-trained background with the understanding of principles in music theory has shaped their approach to DJing, forming the fundamental difference that makes Mashd N Kutcher really shine.
The boys have been an absolute hit on YouTube with their mashup videos, most notably their clips of collaborations with random members of the public, such as ‘When U Collab with the Pizza Guy’. One minute they’re collecting a pizza, next minute there’s a keyboard and microphone making an appearance with the pizza guy contributing tunes and vocals. This random style is one of the many signatures of the Brisbane duo.
They are constantly evolving their sound and their approach to music, always fuelled by a sense of humour and high energy fun. This sense of fun and party translates into their music career: keeping people entertained is essential, when they clearly love sharing their productions and skills. Following a recent tour in the States, a national tour with Stereosonic with their ‘My Sunshine’ Live Show tour currently going strong along the east coast of Australia, we sit down with the dynamic duo and chat how their sound is always developing, how they’re just goofy guys from Brisbane and what they consider to be their job done.
What comes across in your tracks and and videos is your sense of humour. Is this something that is iconic to Mashd N Kutcher?
I think since day one we’ve just been goofy guys from Brisbane who don’t take themselves too seriously – if that can be portrayed in all our content it’s a bonus.
Where did your inspiration come from for your Mash Up videos with random members of the public – such as ‘When U Collab with the Pizza Guy’ and ‘When U Collab with Subway’?
Once we got the original ideas out with the coffee machine and a toothbrush, it was just a natural progression to make them bigger and better. We love the idea of taking something natural and making it unnatural or use it in an unexpected way – that’s as fun for us to do as it is for you to watch it.
What would you say is the Mashd N Kutcher signature sound?
I think our sound is always developing – the new single is a different vibe to our remixes and vice versa. Overall we just try to create a fun, energetic vibe with everything we do.
What do you try to achieve with every set and with each track?
We try to make sure that everyone has a great time. The best time we have is the 60-90 minutes we spend on a stage every night, so if people walk away with the same feeling we do after each set that’s our job done.
Do you think your classical training has really assisted you with your career in electronica? How does this make you stand out from everyone else?
100%. It helps with production, it helps with performance, it evens helps with something as simple as song selection. It definitely helped having an understanding of the basic principles of music and how it’s created. It creates a bridge to dance music and production. I think being able to use our instruments live sets us apart from others, but these days there’s so many amazing producers who use their classical or music theory backgrounds to their advantage just as much as we do. We’ve just been fortunate enough to have it work for us.
What plans do you have in store for Mashd N Kutcher for 2016?
We’re hoping to make it over to Europe. 2016 is looking like it’s going to be full of touring with a few releases, so we can expect to be moving around a fair bit. It’s all super exciting for us – we’re just stoked to be travelling and playing tunes.
