Why ODESZA Still Say They're "Grass Roots"

The Seattle, Washington combo ODESZA — Clayton Knight and Harrison Mills — have consolidated a loyal Australian fanbase over successive tours with their blissed out live electronica. Now they're joining Groovin The Moo 2016, the travelling regional music festival, with some metro sideshows selling out early. And this time ODESZA will be accompanied by a "full-band", confirms Knight, calling from São Paulo in Brazil.

"Me and Harrison have been doing shows for quite a long time now and only recently have we kinda tried to cross over into the more band element. This run here we're gonna do in Australia, we're gonna have a horn section with us and a guitar player and we're playing some live drums as well — some electronic drums. So it's trying to find a fine balance between making it electronic and kinda heavy, but also incorporating this live feel and giving people a little more than just a DJ set. It's always a work in progress, but we're trying to do it. Last time we did it in the US it went really well."

"I do think people are pretty hungry to hear something different. It's beginning to rise — like an indie/electronic crossover."

ODESZA clicked in 2012 — Knight and Mills, who'd both attended Western Washington University, previously active under solo guises. Mills was a hip hop head, while Knight had taken childhood piano lessons. They'd develop a refreshing melotronica — bassy, glitchy, deep, airy, chillwavey and, above all, tuneful. To their astonishment, ODESZA's free download album Summer's Gone was a viral sensation. Emerging as cred remixers, the duo's version of Pretty Lights' Lost And Found was licensed for the 'event' Divergent soundtrack (Kendrick Lamar partnered Tame Impala for Backwards). ODESZA played their first Coachella in 2014. Later that year they unveiled their official debut, In Return, following the single Sun Models (featuring Madelyn Grant), via the Ninja Tune sub-label Counter Records. ODESZA have since launched their own overground concern, Foreign Family Collective.

Together with Slow Magic and Porter Robinson, ODESZA have ushered in an 'intelligent' EDM, embracing musicality over "noise". Crucially, their success has been "grassroots", Knight says. "We've never had a big radio hit or anything like that." However, ODESZA have built a mainstream profile in Oz, where their ascendence coincided with that of the Flume-inspired 'Australian sound' — or what Knight dubs "indietronic". (Incidentally, ODESZA are mates with Flume's Future Classic labelmate Hayden James.)

Nonetheless, at least Stateside, EDM remains huge — hyper-trap dominant. "The US is pretty saturated with a lot of that big room sound," Knight agrees. "I don't think that'll die anytime soon, but I do think people are pretty hungry to hear something different. It's beginning to rise — like an indie/electronic crossover. I think that will become more and more popular as time goes on. I hope we can be a part of that movement and see where it goes, 'cause the formula of the big build to the drop can get old for people. A little change of pace is always good."

Late last year ODESZA presented In Return (Deluxe Edition), encompassing additional instrumentals, live tracks, and the new Light with Little Dragon's Yukimi Nagano — their popiest single. They're currently contemplating their next project. "We're kinda just in the beginning of the writing process. We had a couple of months off here recently after our big, long US tour where we just started getting ideas down and pushing forward with that… I think near the fall we're gonna take off a good chunk of time to put together a new album and hopefully we can do that."

Before their Nagano hook-up, ODESZA had mostly liaised with unknown vocalists. Curiously, Knight is non-committal about using their growing stature — a RAC remix of the cult Say My Name with Zyra received a Grammy nom — to entice other stars into their world. But they're "always open" to collabs. "It gets a little more complicated when you start working with people who have a bit more of a name. We actually really enjoy working with artists who don't have that much clout and are kinda new to the scene or kinda just young in general. They're usually a little more easy to work with, a little more open to more experimentation and trying new things." Meanwhile, ODESZA are plugging It's Only, again featuring Zyra, complete with a remix package (including one from RÜFÜS).

ODESZA continue their independent musical journey. "We've been into kinda Latin-based music and exploring that stuff, 'cause we've been around it — and you get to hear it while you're down here. Actually tonight I think we're gonna try to go out to a samba concert with some friends and check out the local Brazilian scene and see what's up… The Latin flavour has been a big influence on what we've been making recently and messing around with, so we're excited to see what people think."