[AS PUBLISHED IN MALAY MAIL]

KEEPING THE MELBOURNE SOUND ALIVE

TO the uninitiated, the Melbourne sound is nothing more than a slight alternative to your usual electronic music fare.

But that’s not good enough for one of its pioneers Will Sparks, who is still touring the homegrown music around the world.

“I’m glad I’m different to the EDM sound,” said the 24-year-old Australian.

“People disagree with that, but the Melbourne sound is a different box of frogs.”

Sparks said he’s going harder than ever, championing the Melbourne sound, bent on filthy beats and minimalist techniques.

At Ultra Singapore last month, he was day two’s opening on the main stage — “always pretty daunting”.

But for Sparks, hundreds rolled in early to catch the pulsating action.

“I did my thing and went as hard as I could,” he toldMalay Mail.

“Ultra Singapore’s an amazing place, dude. I’ve been coming to the region since the start of my career. Asia is very passionate about electronic music and there are so many cultures.

“The fans are diehards and dress up in costumes and want to gift you things. It’s crazy.”

Diehards strike a chord.

Most telling about Sparks early set is the dedication of his following.

The crowd is fully tuned in with the Victorian’s direction that has trailed a blaze at festivals across the world.

When he hypes — “Singapore, if you don’t know what the bounce is, this is it!” — the camp descends into euphorics.

“I still see myself as an underground DJ still but my songs are very festival-y and upbeat,” Sparks said backstage.

“The inspiration is hard to say because most of it comes from my head. There is pressure to keep the sound afloat and the music fresh, keep moulding.

“The music is named after my city and you have to update it for the crowd because you can’t play the same thing every night.”

Thankfully, he hasn’t lost his creative spark just yet. Sparks is taking the Melbourne sound back to its roots with more trance influence on his latest tracks.

“The sound is getting quicker. Things are getting more versatile and I’m mixing more genres.

“There’s no limit to music and emotion, man. I’m just inventing new patterns. The Melbourne sound will always be the same structure.”

How does he set himself apart from the rest?

He said the magic is in the melody.

“The patterns are quirky and my sets get quite dark, minimal. The drops are offbeat.”

It has been five years since Sparks broke onto the scene and didn’t achieve a major hit until Bring It Back in 2013.

He said he has a backlog of original tracks to release gradually this year, including original tunes and more collaborations.

A Ben Nicky remix of Acid Rain has just dropped on Spotify and there are plans to work with vocalist, Luciana again, with whom he shared a successful single Sick Like That in 2015.

“The career is still flowing. I do think to myself every day, ‘when will it stop?’, ‘where’s the next step?’

“But for now, I’m riding the wave as long as I can.”

Ride on!