This year was your second year playing SWAGFEST, what was it like opening the fest this year? How do you think you’ve improved/changed since last year?
I had a great time opening swagfest this year! It made me very happy to see that DM pop up asking me to come back and make another set. I think I definitely get progressively better and more comfortable with things like transitions, song selection, fun mashups and allowing myself to be a little silly with those recorded skits I like doing. I've also made it a point to somehow incorporate songs that span across all the different genres I like to listen to. I think it brings a cool variety to my sets.
You make a point to have all PMC songs be creative commons, and you make downloads available for a lot of the comps, why do that? Why is sharing music freely important to you?
Well for one I strongly believe that there is an audience for (nearly) every type of track that PMC puts out. Even for some songs I don't like all that much lmao. That being said I really do wish to see as many of my friends and people from PMC go as far as they can. Every time we host an event, I try to make it a point to let all participants know that the songs they created for said event are not bound by any sort of rule or contract and that they're free to send their songs wherever they want. I've seen a handful of people that have taken part in our events get on labels and get their releases seen by cool names and it's a really really awesome thing to see. Also, I feel like being able to share music freely is sort of how it should be. Of course I don't mean illegally ripping songs or things of that nature but, being able to create something and getting it out to as many people as possible is one of the main things I hope for PMC. Not so people can see how silly we are but because I want people to discover something new or someone that has some crazy style you've never heard before. I think PMC has a lot of potential and you never know who could randomly stumble across your song.
Why should everyone reading join the PMC Discord + community?
Because we're freaking dope and swagged out bro!!!! I LOVE seeing all the different types of content that gets created in our community. Probably the number one thing I've tried to make Penis Music Collective about is freedom and being able to make whatever the hell you want with no judgement. I say it all the time whenever we do our events but as long as SoundCloud's autodetect doesn't take it down, we'll take it. We don't care about genre and, as far as I'm concerned, copyright doesn't exist. PMC wouldn't be what it is without the godlike trap or dubstep track placed directly next to the worst stroke-inducing shitpost you've ever heard. We try to have a lot of fun and we make good memories along the way so cum join the discord homie! :) Also the listening parties are a lot of fun too.
The type of music you make under your Ilysian moniker is quite different than the music of our mutuals and the music of the scenes that I know you through. What draws you to the scenes you’re a part of? Do you ever feel like an outlier, if so is it in a positive or negative way?
I think a majority of it definitely stems from me wanting to support and be around my friends I've made. Being able to join a bunch of new communities is a giant plus in general too as it helps with more people getting to know who I am. I also really like joining challenge event servers like Snare Society or blisscord as they often host music events that are similar to what we do over at PMC (admittedly I've only taken part in a single Snare Society event and I have yet to participate in a blisscord one but I'll get on that lmao). I do feel like an outlier a good amount of the time but I've hardly ever felt a negative reaction from that. If anything I hope I can bring something a little bit different to the table as the main style I love and am hugely inspired by is that 2015-2017 SoundCloud Future Bass and it's something I don't hear that much of anymore.
You collaborate with a lot of different people, has your love of collaborating led you to fonduing things like FJM and PMC?
100%. Communities like the ones made in PMC and FJM all stem from some aspect of collaboration. Even if it's not as direct as making a new song with someone, the act of people contributing to something like a big compilation of music that gets uploaded to SoundCloud is a widespread collaboration that keeps things like Penis Music Collective, SnareSociety and FORM afloat. There would be no community if it was only one person going by a bunch of names and trying to grind out as many songs as possible. Also, in a way, just building friendships (that can lead to ideas like PMC being born) are a form of collaboration. You share ideas and experiences that you're able to bounce off of each other that can help change your viewpoints or outlooks on things. Collaborating is definitely a key part of things like PMC for sure.
Congrats on your recent track Wauw dropping on Night Owl Collective, what was that like for you? What label/collective would be the dream to have a release under?
Yo thank you so much! That release definitely means a whole lot to me and I was really surprised with how fast it happened. I'd just recently got in touch with Jonny Hash, the owner of the label, and one night when we were out driving I played the song for him and he really liked it. I've been a MASSIVE fan of Night Owl Collective since about 2018 and in terms of quality I think they're definitely the best out there. Getting a release on NOC was really cool for me knowing that I'm good enough to be on a label with so many artists look up to and pull inspiration from with people like JTTR, JKuch, Complexive and so many others. My absolute dream label is 100%, hands down Monstercat. They're the reason I started music back in 2013 and I'd go as far as to say they've definitely shaped who I am as a person. If I were to get a release with them idk man haha I'd be the happiest person on earth.
For those who don’t know, what is Penis Music Collective (PMC)? How did it come about, did FJM walk so PMC could run?
Oh boy haha Penis Music Collective now that is quite a story. There's a lot to tell there so I'll try to keep it somewhat reasonable, but I’m making no promises lol. It started during FORM's All Nighter Vol. 4 that took place in February of 2020. Right after the acceptance and rejection emails got sent out to those who participated, Chris Medina (aka crrease), a decently sized name in our community at the time I'd say, said in a general chat in the FORM discord something along the lines of "hey guys whoever got denied lets all make a big collab song". It became a really cool, partly meme banger I contributed to that involved a good number of big names in our space like Bendel and Circuit Hour and a bunch of people that, unknown to me at the time, would become my really good friends and mods of the OG PMC discord server like elaborate, stardreams and Makina. Due to that collab it got suggested that someone should make a collective for "penis music" as that was a big meme at the time. Chris Medina would go on to create and own Penis Music Collective, I believe, right before All Nighter Vol. 4 released, and within just a few days after it dropped PMC held it's own all nighter styled event and the first compilation "PENIS MUSIC COLLECTIVE COMPILATION VOL. 1" was created with songs from the likes of me, Alti, Chalbert, Stardreams and Chris. Unfortunately, PMC's initial reign only lasted just about a year as Chris fell under some controversy, and since his name and the collective were tied very closely together, we disbanded. Thankfully though, during the the time PMC was running, a really good community was forming and a good chunk of us were becoming really good friends. Prior to any knowledge of potential closure of the label, my friends StormKloud, Virtual Safari, Soddy, Makina and I were toying with and starting to bring to life the idea of creating and running our own real collective that was more organized and had a certain light hearted and colorful aesthetic. Right as PMC disbanded we created Fruit Juice Music which, unintentionally, sort of ended up being a fallout server/label for those looking for a place to continue making friends and music in. FJM lasted roughly 7 months and we were able to release a good amount of quality tracks in that timeframe, but during that time activity in the server and the amount of submissions we would get started to dwindle. It was around then that I started to get a feeling that people wanted the freedom and energy that PMC had to return to our community, so after FJM had it's last release in early December of 2021 I went around asking people what they thought about a comeback for Penis Music Collective and was met with an overwhelming amount of positive reactions. I revived the collective on January 1st, 2022 and we've been going super strong ever since with a new music compilation at least every other month. So, ALL THAT TO SAY LOL! I don't necessarily think Fruit Juice Music was THE main factor for getting PMC to where it is today, but I definitely think it was an important part in letting people, like me, realize what we have as a community is special and that even though the concept of Penis Music Collective was born out of one big joke, we're still able to make something pretty damn cool out of it.
Your more recent music is sprinkled with a lot of fun texture, are there any weird sounds/samples you’re pulling from?
I like to have a lot of fun when it comes to the types of textures I like using in my songs and how I use them. Typically I'll come up with some basic kick and snare pattern then I'll start throwing the most random percussion and/or foley sounds I have into the mix. I'll try to fill up as many spaces as possible and move things around to hear every possible groove or rhythm that lines up with what I'm feeling. My favorite types of sounds I'd say are the really short but odd ones. Either a really short "dink" or some weird gurgly thing haha. I remember scrolling through instagram one day and I got a sponsored ad in my feed for a sample pack called "WAV" by a sample curator company called "Samplified". The demo they made for the pack was so damn good I bought it almost immediately along with nearly the rest of their entire sample pack stock. Pretty much all of their packs have a huge folder full of really neat and intricate percussion and foley samples and ever since I discovered them their sounds have been a major component in my music making process. Wish they would come back with some new stuff though :(
What was the most unexpected collab you’ve had so far? Who’s the dream collaborator?
Oh man definitely getting in contact with the owner of Night Owl Collective for sure. We haven't made any music together (yet), but it's been such a trip being able to meet up with him and shoot ideas back and forth about the future of NOC and different ideas for compilations and things like that. It was quite literally out of the blue as well. Me and a bunch of other fans were working on our fan made tribute album for the label (which just came out this thanksgiving btw!) and suddenly I get a message on discord from Jonny. In terms of dream collabs at the moment though I've got to say DROELOE is at the top of my list. With the release of his recent album "The Art Of Change" it reignited my love for his music and made me realize that I've been listening to DROELOE since the release of "zZz" so he's meant a lot to me over the years. The other dream collabs on my list though would definitely be people like Grant, Haywyre and pre-fishmonger era underscores. Grant was my introduction to Future Bass when he went by Grant Bowtie, I believe Haywyre had one of my first Monstercat songs I ever heard with "Synergy" or "Back and Forth", and the style underscores used to have with that insane jazz infused Future Bass was one of the most unique and inspiring things I've ever heard.
Who is the dream SWAGFEST 2024 artist?
The DREAM Swagfest 2024 artist?? Mf uhhh every single PMC artist ever. Nah as a real answer probably any Monstercat artist that regularly released with the label around the 2013-2018 era (objective golden era). It'd be cool to see someone that big acknowledge or support the homies like us.
What kind of music would Vagina Music Collective make?
The most garbage, low tier, low effort, no soul, no original idea, non Skrillex inspired "music" you'd ever hear. Complete polar opposite of what Penis Music Collective is about.