CS EXCLUSIVE | Dart Party
It's taken a very short time for Queens–based Dart Party to capture our attention. First catching our ear through an amazing remix of Moon Over Japan from fellow NYC residents Ghost Beach, he hasn't faltered since, delivering another ace rework this time of Step Rockets' Kisser, plus a stellar debut original with Going My Way. His sound finds a perfect balance between our favorite styles making it's appeal irresistible — mixing a bit of Nu-Disco, House, and Indie Electro flavors — and trust us, you'll feel the same way too. We're just going to venture to say we'll be hearing his name a lot in the new year.
Today we're bringing you a brand new feature with the up–and–coming producer, complete with an exclusive mix sure to have all your party jam needs for the month covered, plus a quick Q&A to give you a little background on what Dart Party is all about. Catch it all below and enjoy!
[soundcloud url="https://api.soundcloud.com/tracks/180714816?secret_token=s-4fA2P" params="auto_play=false&hide_related=false&show_comments=true&show_user=true&show_reposts=false&visual=true" width="100%" height="166" iframe="true" /]
Track List:
1 • Leave | Fickle Friends — Weakness For You (Dart Party Edit) 2 • Deep Lark — Like It More and More (Sebastian Weikum Pres. the Vehicle Remix) 3 • Greco — Free (Prince Club Remix) 4 • Secondcity — I Wanna Feel (Souljackerz Mix) 5 • Arches — There's a Place (Russ Chimes Remix) 6 • Dusky — Yoohoo (Original Mix) 7 • Nvdes — Feel The Pressure 8 • Lucas and Steve — Craving (Original Mix) 9 • Dart Party — Going My Way 10 • Storm Queen — Look Right Through (MK Dub III) 11 • Grum — Straight To Your Heart (Original Mix) 12 • Gorgon City — Go All Night feat. Jennifer Hudson 13 • Duke Dumont — Need U (100%%) [feat. A*m*e] [Artful Bootleg Mix] (Original Mix) 14 • Ghost Beach — Moon Over Japan (Dart Party Remix)
Q&A:
Caveman Sound: What's this mix you've put together all about?
Dart Party: It’s a great mix for a night drive up the PCH. It’s a black leather jacket type of vibe.
I started it out with a little edit/mash up between the new Fickle Friends single “For You” and Berlin producer Leave’s “Weakness Of the Body”. I think the Fickle Friends vocal is incredible and I had to do something with it. In all of my mixes I try to layer things in a unique way so I hope that comes through as you listen.
CS: Dart Party is a fairly new project, how did things get started?
DP: I grew up as a musician but had never capitalized on it professionally. Too many years went by where I thought “this is my passion, why am I not doing this?” I finally decided to dive in.
The first song I produced was the Lemonade Bootleg. I put it out there and ended up with some great remix opportunities for Ghost Beach and Step Rockets. Now I’m trying to focus on my original catalog and keep things moving.
CS: Speaking of your original, Going My Way was released on Ghost Beach’s ‘Crazy Heart Records’, how did you guys get connected?
DP: Josh Ocean and I have been friends since about 2007 and he has been a mentor of mine with the Dart Party project. It’s funny, we actually met at Warped Tour. He was promoting a former band and I was moshing with 15 year olds to New Found Glory songs. We shared a cab back to the city and have been great friends ever since.
Ghost Beach had been releasing songs under Crazy Heart for years but recently decided to take it to another level and bring on some more artists. As my brand was growing, Josh asked me to do a single with them and it was a no brainer. Those guys are family to me so I think it’s safe to assume that we will be doing more work together in the future.
[soundcloud url="https://api.soundcloud.com/tracks/175154976" params="auto_play=false&hide_related=false&show_comments=true&show_user=true&show_reposts=false&visual=true" width="100%" height="166" iframe="true" /]
CS: You’ve already got a very distinct, polished sound — what influences it?
DP: I’m a total music junkie so I think that there are a ton of different genres that subtly make their way into my music. I’m loving the deep house stuff that’s made a heavy come back recently but I also listen to a lot of trance and pop stuff. I’m naturally drawing a lot of influence from the deep vibe in the bass lines but I love to pepper in some super clean trancy synths to keep things crisp on the mid/high end. I like that contrast. “Going My Way” was a little out of that box, I suppose. A lot of people put a disco label on that one but I hear more of an R&B/Hip Hop vibe. Slow it down to 100BPM and light some candles.
CS: Your music is the soundtrack to what city?
DP: New York. I absolutely love the energy and character of this city. I hope it comes through in my music.
CS: Lastly, any plans for 2015 that you can dish out?
DP: My focus right now is primarily in the studio. I have more originals in the works that I’m super stoked on. Expect more “Going My Way” vibes in early 2015.
Shout out to Dart Party for the mix and chat. Get connected with him via the links below!