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Ethan Mark, welcome to VENTS! Can you tell us about your latest single, The Concept of You?
It’s great to be speaking with you guys!
“The Concept of You” is one of the first tracks I made for the new album. And it really made clear the sonic and thematic focus of the entire project.
It’s a big jump, to go from making dance music that’s so focused on groove and sequenced sounds, to suddenly building tracks around my own vocals and lyrics in a different genre. I knew that’s where I wanted my sound to go for this album, but I was certainly intimidated by that shift. There’s nothing more humbling than hearing back your own dry vocal takes. But finishing this song was a signal of: Okay, I can do this. I can make a soul album. And I can make a soul album that’s not quite like anything people have heard.
The track itself is a double entendre, referring both to loved ones you build your roots with, and home itself – in this case Toronto, Canada, where the whole album was recorded in lockdown conditions all from my apartment. It features strutting flamenco nylon guitars, accented by swelling strings, shuffling flamenco rhythms, walls of vocal harmonies, and the soft sounds of a muted piano.
As the title single, what role does it play on your forthcoming album?
It was important to me to have the title track be the first taste of the new album. The very first sound on the track is me taking this huge breath, before a cascade of vocal harmonies glides in. It’s an announcement of this new sound, an announcement that listeners can’t expect the same thing twice.
And it’s an announcement of the sonic journey the rest of the album takes. Beautiful acoustic chords. Swelling vocal harmonies. Easy, warm grooves. I think it really sets the tone for this new era of music from me.
What do you want listeners to take away from the single?
I want listeners to be excited for what’s to come! While I’d say it’s definitely a soul album, I mean that as an umbrella term. Soul music stretches its roots into so many other adjacent genres and influences. From the grooves of D’Angelo and Dilla, to the songwriting of artists like Frank Ocean or Olivia Rodrigo, even to composers like Ennio Morricone.
I hope listeners hear that wide palette of influences and styles in the new single, and it gets them excited for all the directions the album goes.
What did your partner think of the album after challenging you to make something more pared-back and soulful?
Well after hearing “version 5, final FINAL mix (for real this time)” of just about every track on the album, she somehow still loves the songs. I would consider that a huge victory.
I think she’d tell you this is a collection of the most beautiful songs I’ve ever made.
Will it be a sound that you carry into your other forthcoming releases?
Some elements of the new sound will definitely carry into new releases. I learned a ton about vocal production and processing, songwriting, and even just live recording for this record. I intend to take all those lessons with me into new directions and genres.
Did your incredibly distinct production style happen intentionally or organically?
I certainly didn’t set out with the specific goal of making music that was off-kilter and so focused on blending genres. I think it came from a place of boredom and restlessness with a lot of popular music.
There are literally infinite ways and tools to make sounds these days. We’re in the most accessible age ever for sound design. You can make chords out of anything. There are “granular synths” for example that take fractions of a sample and bounce it around in your headphones to make brand new sounds. There’s software that can re-pitch and re-harmonize whatever you feed into it. You can stretch samples like putty into something alien. But still, I would often hear the same drums, the same bass, the same textures, the same songs.
The last thing I want is for my music to be the same. I want it to be fresh, new, and exciting every time you press play. And there are so many musical sounds and styles out there, some of which are so adjacent to each other. Why not take the best parts and collage them into something new?
Where did you pick up your love of World music?
I don’t know exactly when, but at one point I became obsessed with rhythm and texture in the music I was listening to. It probably came from that same restlessness I just described. I got bored of rhythms that came in exactly when I expected them to.
A lot of non-western music is so rich with defying those musical expectations. The rhythms often come between the beat, making these pockets that are intricate, dizzying, and loose. It just feels so human. The same goes for the textures. You often hear the human touch on all of the unique percussion. You hear the mistakes. And you hear the people – dancing, chanting, grooving. Having fun. It’s infectious, and it’s invigorating. It’s really bled into the music I make and strive to make.
What else can we expect from Ethan Mark in 2022?
The new album is rolling out with some remixes, produced by myself, that add a ton of bounce and new colours to the original tracks- including a remix of the title track that’s coming out on April 2. And there are a few more singles coming before the album drops in early June!
Beyond that, I’m working on a collaborative album with Slowe, an incredible neo-soul singer and producer from Bristol. There’s a ton of gospel and hip-hop/neo-soul influences, and the music is stunning. We’re planning to do a full physical, vinyl release of it later this year, and I can’t wait for everyone to hear!
Listen to ‘The Concept of You’ on Spotify
Follow Ethan Mark on Instagram
