Interview: Don’t Sleep On NGHTMRE

NGHTMRE’s launch into stardom plays out like a dream. Ever since the young producer’s “Street” single was debuted by Skrillex at Ultra 2015, Tyler Marenyi stole EDM’s spotlight and never looked back. From high-profile remixes and collaborations to critically acclaimed projects like Nuclear Bonds with Slander and more recently his debut NGHTMRE EP,  it’s almost unanimously agreed upon at this point: NGHTMRE is the next multi-genre powerhouse producer in the game. Yet amidst his achievements Tyler remains humble, always focused on the most important thing – the music.

From melodic future bass anthems, bass-rumbling trap bangers and everything in-between NGHTMRE’s diverse catalogue has landed him cosigns from just about every big name artist in the scene: Diplo, Skrillex, Bassnectar, Porter Robinson, RL Grime… this list goes on. Fusing dirty south hip-hop & rock influences with a refined, organic, hard hitting trap and future sound Tyler has, in a short amount of time, helped pioneer modern bass music into what it is today. 

With star-studded collaborations featuring Flux Pavilion, Zeds Dead, LOUDPVCK, Ghastly, Aryay, Carmada and more on the way, NGHTMRE is armed and ready to take his music to new heights in 2016. Last month we had the chance to catch up with the man himself at Buku Project in New Orleans, LA. Step inside the world of NGHTMRE below as we talk the new EP, current state of trap music, touring and more. –Max Chung

Photo by Jason Siegel Photography 

NGHTMRE

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RTT: Congrats on releasing your debut NGHTMRE EP! What was the inspiration behind this project?

NGHTMRE: When I started producing under NGHTMRE I was writing a lot of original music but wasn’t really releasing much of it. I wanted to make sure that when I did put out an EP, it would be a cohesive project that made sense altogether. “Hold Me Close” and “Burn Out” I actually wrote two years ago. The other tracks slowly developed as I started playing shows and touring. They all sounded great, but at the time I knew they weren’t completely finished yet. Finally I ended up narrowing the project down to the six tracks that, I felt, complimented each other the best. I wanted the EP to have a lot of different styles on it but, at the same time wasn’t too out there and detached.

How would you describe the NGHTMRE sound?

I try to keep things super high energy, while still maintaining musical integrity. In other words, if you broke down the song into just piano keys it would still sound good. I grew up playing instruments, so I always try to keep things very musical which is why the future bass side of things is so awesome and exciting to me. Of course I grew up in the south, so there was also a lot of hip hop beats I listened to all the time. That’s how I ended up getting involved in the trap world.

You’re all about pushing boundaries with your music. Where’s the NGHTMRE sound going next?

I don’t exactly know where I’m trying to innovate towards. There are still a lot of depths of the music world to be explored, just keeping that in mind while writing music is important. A lot of the coolest stuff I’ve come up with has been on accident. Most of the time I’ll go in with one idea and come out with something completely different. That’s how I produced “Street” – purely through experimentation. Just by going through samples you can find an infinite amount of inspiration, it’s crazy. 

Can you talk a little more about why sampling is so valuable?

For me, the most important element while writing music is the sound design; having interesting sounds and creating things that people haven’t heard before. That’s why I use a lot of organic sounds because it’s not something you can just generate with a synthesizer. Digitally, you’re restricted a bit which is why sampling is so awesome.

Being at the forefront of the trap scene, how do you feel about the current state of the genre?

New genres that come about are always just combinations of two styles that previously exist. Trap music is rooted in hip-hop – and while rap has obviously changed and developed over the years it doesn’t seem like it’s going anywhere soon. That’s why trap has a little more staying power than a lot of the other genres that have come and gone. So I think the scene is doing super well. I’ve traveled internationally a few times now and people go just as crazy overseas as they do here. 

What would you like to accomplish in 2016?

This year my #1 priority is to really kill it in terms of playing live shows. Right now we have enough music to make it to the end of the year, just with releasing a track every month. I’m obviously still working on production and writing music all the time, but the main focus right now is getting in front of people and really trying to get the name out there.

How was the Australian tour with Flosstradamus and Troyboi?

Australia was the best! That was my second time in the country, I love it down there. All the shows were amazing. Australian crowds are just ridiculous, they go so hard. The Floss guys are legendary, Troyboi was the nicest dude ever, and Benson (another artist on the tour) was the man too. Everyone involved on the tour got along really well, everything went super smoothly.

You’ve got a ton of collaborations lined up. Why is collaboration important to you as an artist?

I like to write a lot of different types of music and collaboration really gives you the opportunity to step away from your comfort zone and do something weird and new. Anytime I collaborate with another producer I always learn something from them. It’s an amazing learning experience. Even if the music doesn’t come out in the end it’s worth it every time.

Who are some artists that you’d love to collaborate with, that you haven’t yet?

Either Skrillex or Diplo would be amazing. I’ve talked to both of them about it but we just haven’t had the chance to do it yet. They’re obviously both incredibly busy so it’s hard. RL Grime is another one, that would be the dopest. On the other side of things I would love to do something more vibe-y with either Griz or Gramatik. I grew up listening to Gramatik’s Street Bangerz so that would be awesome. I’d also love to collab with a good vocalist like Anthony Kiedis from the Red Hot Chili Peppers or someone like that.

You’re in charge of curating your own festival… who are the headliners?

DJ Snake is on there for sure. I love RL Grime too I gotta put him on there.

What’s the quintessential banger right now?

That Yookie edit of Scary Monsters & Nice Sprites goes off every time. Bottle Swervice by HeroBust is hard as fuck. I have an edit of Gangster’s Paradise & Febreze that goes pretty hard too.

How do you want people to view your music?

I want to release music that’s memorable. I want every one of my tracks to be seen as an entire piece of music that people can listen to and understand as a whole.

What’s the best thing about what you do?

I just love making music. It’s my favorite thing to do. Also being able travel is amazing. I’m super grateful to have the opportunity to meet interesting people all the time and share my music with the world.

Any last words for NGHTMRE / RTT Fans?

I love you guys! New music coming soon.

Interview: Don’t Sleep On NGHTMRE