Navigating your way to the top isn’t easy. However, some people make the path seem like a cakewalk, and the New Jersey producer Gazzo is one of those individuals. This dance music machine has been belting out hit after hit, with many top quality remixes that have gripped the ears of people all over the world. So much so that the major label Casablanca/Republic had to jump on this talent.
Recently, the producer’s been hard at work gearing up for Summer like any good producer should be doing. Before we get to Summer, we must first get to his official remix of Ellie Goulding that is being premiered right here for you. Mike took on her track “Love Me Like You Do,” and his remix was chosen to be on the Fifty Shades of Grey Remixed album. He takes an indie dance route with this song, resulting in something a little different from his usual, but just as enticing. Gazzo undoubtedly knocked it out of the stadium.
With this premiere comes an interview with the producer we had to get more in depth on what brought Gazzo to this point today, and just how he got connected up for an official remix for the superstar Ellie. With so many big things on the way, you’ll want to get familiar with the one and only Gazzo.
How did you get into music originally? Do you play any instruments?
So I grew up all around music. My dad is what’s known as a “stereophile” and somewhat of a music collector. Thousands of Vinyl’s and CD’s of an array of genre’s made me super interested in almost every type of music early on. From an early age I had always wanted to play bass guitar too. I played in the orchestra (upright bass) and knew that playing the guitar version would be dope. I even went to crazy lengths of tuning a guitar of mine down and pretending it was a bass! From there I got my first bass guitar, started playing drums, keyboards and singing a bit. Played in like 8+ different bands over the course of middle school through college as well. Producing became a thing when I was around 15 and I haven’t stopped making music since!
What artists did you listen to growing up?
Literally everything… Blink 182, Nirvana, Gov’t Mule, Senses Fail, a little Tiesto, Benny Bennassi, From First To Last and many many more.
What moment do you think had the biggest impact on your career?
Definitely signing with Casablanca/Republic Records!
What shows are you most looking forward to, and which have been some of your favorites you have played?
I think one of my favorites was Dayglow (now Life in Color) in Baltimore about 4-5 years ago. It was when my manager, Rob Calabrese, and I used to DJ together and we had the 11pm slot right when the paint shot out the cannons. Was unreal! 2000 or so people. The most recent favorite was definitely Beach Glow in Wildwood with over 7000 fans screaming my name. I’m actually looking forward to all of my upcoming shows – you can see all of them on my Bandsintown or my fan page.
How did you get set up for an official remix for Ellie Goulding?
So I got the opportunity thorough my label, Casablanca/Republic Records. They told me that this particular track was another track that was on the 50 Shades of Grey soundtrack and could land on a remix pack if it was all cleared. Huge opportunity and I’m super blessed they picked my version.
Do you like producing remixes or originals more?
I honestly love doing both. Originals are definitely more challenging and open-mind thinking because your basically making something from scratch as opposed to working with vocals or chord progressions of an original piece of music.
What are some of your favorite plug-ins?
Waves: CLA-2A, CLA-3A, API Compressors,
All of Ozone 6
Valhalla Reverbs
Voxengo Sound Delay
A.O.M. Invisible Limiter
SAT-Transient Shaper
Who’s music have you been digging a lot lately?
Amtrac, Flume, Tchami, Vanic, Foster The People, Galantis, Gorgon City and so many more.
Can you give aspiring producers out there one production tip, and one tip of any kind?
Always layer your sounds smart. What I mean is, when your listening to a synth line or a progressive house synth bus, make sure each of your sounds have a purpose in filling a portion of the frequency spectrum. You can use a spectral analyzer or even a linear EQ with an analyzer feature to see where the synth hits. Then use your ears to layer each sound keeping in mind phasing and clipping. Layering is everything!
Keep grinding no matter how high you climb or how fast you climb. You can never stop learning! Produce every moment you can, even when you might not want to. I’ve made some of the best music hungover on a plane.