Guest Mix + Interview – Losco

Losco are SoundCloud kings. The Belgium-based group was a driving force in the electronic trap and beats scenes golden era with tracks regularly racking up hundreds of thousands of plays and releases on Soulection. Their adventurous and diverse approach helped to lay the foundation for so many artists that followed. While they have remained elusive over the past few years, it’s with great excitement that we can say they’re officially back! They kicked off 2022 with a massive collab alongside ONHELL on Lucid Monday’s LM026 and they recently announced “A New Beginning” for the project. With our hype sensors on full alert it’s only right that we connect with Losco for a Guest Mix + Interview.

The mix is a hard-hitting journey that flexes their diverse tastes. It effortlessly moves between genres and vibes while keeping the pedal to the metal. It’s 30 minutes of absolute flames. As for the interview, we discuss their time off, plans for the future, how they work together, recent investments, web3 and much more. Dive into both below.

How’s life been treating you? How are things in Belgium?

Andy: Life is good at the moment with clubs opening again in Belgium we feel like a bright future is ahead of us so we can go back to what we enjoy the most and play shows and see the world again long as COVID allows it.

Massimo: Life is going well, apart from the fact that we have barely gotten rid of the Coronavirus and there’s already some turbulence in eastern Europe, 2022 is already well on its way 👍🏼. Other than that, things are looking great in Belgium. The clubs just opened up after a long ass time and the festival season is almost here. Good times ahead!

Tom: As fast and bright as a windshield cleaning the bugs on a car window; as in keep on moving forward with a bright and positive view on life even if shit hits the fan

We’ve been through a lot together these last 12 years, have remained friends, and music is the glue. I think that’s our biggest asset.

You’ve been on a bit of hiatus up until recently. What prompted the break and what inspired the return?

Andy: Our sudden break throughout the years had to do with a lot of internal struggles where we couldn’t deal with at the time, a lot of pressure, and not being on the same page, but we always felt what we had was something special. We’ve been through a lot together these last 12 years, have remained friends, and music is the glue. I think that’s our biggest asset.

Massimo: That’s right, we had some issues in the past. But we always felt that what we had was something special. We’ve all known each other for more than 12 years, and yes, we’ve been through A LOT. I hope there will be a lot more to come.

Tom: I’d say there was a period where each individual member was not as musically engaged as they should have been, while others were trying to push and squeeze all the remaining juice out of the lemon. Apart from that, we missed good management and control. Also the fact that everyone was starting to walk their own paths of life (moving out parents’ house etc.) probably contributed.

I hope fans are ready, because this time, we are here to STAY. Get ready for some good old hard-hitting Losco bangers and other genres we did not release yet with Losco.

At the end of last year, you posted joining Lucid Monday management as, “A New Beginning.” What should fans expect from this new chapter?

Andy: Much love to our Lucid Monday family, when Julius reached out to us to be on the management roster and part of the team, it made more than sense to join up with them. Music & vision-wise we align and gave us a much-needed spark to have a team behind us to help spread the sound of Losco. Fans can expect a lot of new music coming from our way with a ton of friends.

Massimo: YES, BIG S/O to LUCID MONDAY for believing in Losco and going on this trip with us through our next chapter in our music career. I hope fans are ready, because this time, we are here to STAY. Get ready for some good old hard-hitting Losco bangers and other genres we did not release yet with Losco.

Tom: A message of reassurance where we want to show we still got the sauce and treat our fans with something to be excited for as they have waited such a long time already. More collabs, some classic Losco, but also showing versatility by not restricting ourselves to one genre only: bend and blend.

What’s your workflow look like when creating tracks? Do you work together in person or is it done remotely?

Andy: We have several approaches when it comes to making music. Usually, we start a track individually then share it internally and send over the project files/stems to each other and when we feel like it’s something we can drop, we get together and finish it up. Other than that, we come together several days a week and jam out in the studio

Massimo: Both. But it depends on the situation. We try to go to our studio as much as we can, but with my schedule at work that’s a bit tricky for us all to be there at the same time. But we always send projects to each other to work on music.

Tom: We try to get into the studio together as much as we can, but even within our own group we send over project files to each other to work on remotely.

Getting some hardware into the studio also allowed us to connect several instruments at once and stimulates collaboration since one can vibe along and explore sounds while the other one is programming drums for example. Creativity flows faster and energy gets shared.

You recently made some investments in new equipment. Has it changed your production process and creative output in any way?

Andy: The synths are definitely a little extra when jamming, other than that we remain mostly inside the DAW.

Massimo: Yea sure, it’s always nice to have some new equipment you can fxck with. This just improves our creative output.

Tom: Recording your own sounds is more unique than having to reside to sample packs everyone can get their hands on. Getting some hardware into the studio also allowed us to connect several instruments at once and stimulates collaboration since one can vibe along and explore sounds while the other one is programming drums for example. Creativity flows faster and energy gets shared.

How else have you been investing in yourselves?

Andy: We are currently in a phase of getting new laptops because our current ones to work with are outdated and we definitely need to keep up with modern day standards to keep the workflow rolling/smooth. Other than that, we are definitely looking to get more synths, upgrading our current studio acoustic wise, etc.

Tom: Should hit the gym actually but still got too much self-love over which allows me to postpone that. Apart from physical health; staying organized and true to the goals I set (e.g. fixed studio moments to let my creative energy flow). Apart from that exploring new places, food, and experiences; spending time outside or things as simple as listening to my inner voice to speak up/disagree when I feel I have to.

NFTS and web3 have become hot topics in the music industry. What impact do you think they’ll have on the music industry in the future?

Andy: I feel like a new world has opened. With the launch of web3, people can do so much more and mix audio together with visual and make a decent profit from a sale rather than relying on streaming platforms like Spotify that don’t pay the artist enough and makes the idea of living off your craft so far.

Massimo: I actually have no idea how TF the NFTS WORK BRUH. web3 🤷🏼‍♂️. I do know we need to jump on that ASAP. This gonna be the next big thing for the music industry.

Tom: Not much of a speculator but projects like hedsdao.io for example have shown it’s full of opportunities and worth investing in. It will only continue to grow as it’s being used as a financial instrument that allows digital content creators to bend ownership and engage differently with the community supporting them. The music is also getting valuated in a different and more honest way with respect for the artists behind it; so I think it really has the potential to disrupt the dark side of the music industry and aim the spotlights to the ones who actually deserve it.

Can you tell us about hedsDAO and your involvement?

Heds is a decentralized audio-visual community based on the Ethereum networks, created by artists, for artists who want to experiment with the new technology web3 provides. In the release process, Heds curates one artist per month to provide a sample, then the community flips it into one long mixtape that is minted as a video NFT. This is an attempt to realize a brighter future for digital artists and collectors alike.

Upon their launch, Heds reached out to Andy (EXPLORE) to be part of the ‘founders’ and is one of the initial contributors to the Heds community. Other Soundcloud legends in the space include Dabow, Deffie, Oshi, Dot, Harris Cole, Player Dave & more, with Losco as a group just being supportive of the whole movement and the people behind the project, following up on their developments and if interesting opportunities arise.

What should fans expect from the mix? What was your goal when putting it together?

The people tuning in can expect a variety of hard-hitting bangers mixed in with club heaters that are on our radar at the moment. We wanted to make sure it hits hard and the tracks follow up well on each other well. Our main goal while making the mix was showing our flexibility and our range of music taste, focus on upcoming artists, and trying to be as versatile as possible with regards to genre selection. It’s only a 30min mix so difficult to achieve all those goals, but we hope the listeners will enjoy and stay tuned for the next mix.

Any final words for your fans?

Andy: Only thing we can share at the moment is that we have a lot in store for the coming months with releases & more!

Massimo: Thanks for sticking so long with us even though we haven’t been releasing music forever. You guys are what keeps us going! LFG ❤️

Tom: Kudos to everyone around the globe for their continued support; glad to be back and cannot wait to release the stuff we have been working on.

Tracklist

Saint miller – Bruk up
Asau – outta my fucking mind
UUNION – ID
Scullion – No games
Asau – Blips
Kensaye – Gazole
Isomov – HOPiNG MECHANiSMS
Soundboy Cookie – C A N T B E B O U G H T
OldBoy – Got yo $
Head Space – f ck the beat up
Player dave – ID
Ego Death – Sound Clash
UUNION – ID
Losco ft Onhell – Carnal
Timbaland x Lil Wayne x Fat Joe – Somebody Make It Rain (NAKEN DRILL)
Camoufly – Space gaucho
Mr. Carmack – 2013
Church x Raftyr – Work
Ujuu, Wiley, Wreckno – Chief’n
Mr. Carmack – Misha is Fucking Pissed
Mr. Carmack – Wagyu beef
Chief Kaya – Wake up
Hamdi – Shanka
Eptic – Hold me back (Trampa remix)
Rejack – Circle back