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One of our interns is this really old guy who has lots of ’remember when’ vibes about Crystal Castles & LCD, and when Deep Thrills dropped into his listening pile, well, shit just got weird. We’ll forgive the mess because on his latest single ‘She’s ON!’ it's relatable to start dancing immediately, and as far as hauntologies go, mid to late aughts electo-clash pop ain’t a bad one to sweat to. Curious as ever to this nouveau throwback excellence, we penned a few prompts for our new favorite to ding into, postmodern media theory, are we all acting and of course what the fuck is indie sleaze: 

OnesToWatch: Who is Deep Thrills?  

Deep Thrills: Deep Thrills is my hyperclash alter ego and an outlet for my most unfiltered thoughts.

Ok hard hitting one, what's it like having such great hair? 

With great hair comes great responsibility. 

What is ‘She’s ON!’ all about? 

I wrote the song after a long period of romantic and creative hibernation. For the first time in a long time, I felt alive. It was my way of saying, “hey everyone I’m back and ready to go!” It’s me finding excitement again, but also looking for something deeper. Most of the lyrics were written on the first take stream-of-consciousness, I just kind of let myself go. It felt really great. I have other theories as to the meaning of the song… but I’m excited to hear how other people interpret it. 

What's your studio setup look like?  

It’s really simple, I’ve got a small space with two speakers, a couple mics, and a bunch of guitars… my only real outboard gear is an 1176 compressor and a microphone made out of a telephone that I sometimes use to DJ. I honestly like a little bit of claustrophobia, I don’t like big spaces with too much equipment. That usually distracts me. 

Also, a lot of my music is produced on my laptop on headphones, and I can do that anywhere. Most of the production for “She’s ON!” was done on my porch. I really wanted an electric guitar for the main hook, but didn’t have one, so that main guitar riff is actually a sample. And I ended up liking that better! Everything works out in the end. 

Any collaborators? Who produced the track ? 

I produce and mix the music myself. On the visual side, I’ve been working a lot with Dheera Johnson, she wrote and directed the music video for the song (coming soon). She’s an incredible actor so you’ll see her in the video as well. We wanted a flip-book style music video, so we got a rapid-fire flash camera and took like 30,000 photographs. It’s coming out really great. 

What's the definition of indie sleaze to you? 

It’s funny because, it’s too bad the name is so tacky, it’s a beautiful thing. What’s happening is more than just an electroclash revival - you’ve got hyperpop, house music, punk, and all these other genres mixed in. I started calling my genre hyperclash as a joke, but it does feel like indie-sleaze doesn’t really capture the essence. And everyone’s sick of the social media game, so music is being shared on soundcloud the way mp3’s were shared back in the day. Music tamed out in the mid-2010s, then covid shut everything down, and now everyone wants to feel something again. I almost didn’t release my “Von Dutch” remix because I thought it was too unhinged. But people are ready to be challenged. The messier the better. 

Besides this excellent track what else should we be on the lookout for?

My first EP is coming out this summer. I’ve got more music videos in the works and a bunch of new music. If I hear something cool maybe I’ll do another remix! I’ll also be performing live once the EP is out, and doing some DJ sets. 

What's inspiring you right now outside of music? 

I just completed a two-week method acting course at the Lee Strasberg Institute. That was one of the most inspiring things I’ve ever done. My dad was confused, like, “you want to be an actor?” and I explained that it was for the music. The parallels between acting and music are deep, and of course a huge part of the job is performance. It answered a lot of creative questions for me, in regards to emotion and honesty in performance and art in general. 

I’ve also been reading a bunch of French postmodernism slash media theory… Jean Baudrillard, Guy Debord, Marshall McLuhan… you know, ‘you live in the matrix’ type stuff. 

Best place to enjoy your work at volume? 

On headphones in line at the DMV. 

Musically, who is new but making all the right moves? Who are your current OnesToWatch? 

Gregor McMurray, Shallowhalo, XKYLAR, Callie Reif, Jane Remover, 2hollis.