Back by popular demand is Dancing Astronaut’s Artists to Watch Advent Calendar. Each day, we’ll uncover one sweet selection, highlighting next year’s class of up-and-coming talents and burgeoning stars one-by-one. Starting December 1, we’re counting up 25 of electronic music’s most enticing future achievers, sweetening the holiday season with a well-rounded crop of radar-worthy producers to keep an eye on next year. Check this space for daily updates throughout the month. From unique underground wavemakers to soon-to-be festival big shots, spanning bass music to techno with so much in between, we’re proud to continue Dancing Astronaut’s Artist to Watch Advent Calendar for a second consecutive year—enjoy.

Amidy

Words by Rachel Narozniak

There is the traditional dance music producer and then, there is Amidy.

“I know it’s not usual for a producer to also be a singer-songwriter. It can be confusing, especially in the dance music realm, because most of the time when you see someone credited as an artist versus a feature on a track, you expect them to be just the producer of the song. But for me, I am usually producing the track, writing it, and singing on it,” he said three months prior in an interview that prefaced his feature as Dancing Astronaut‘s September Supernova.

In 2021, the California-based creative, who is equal parts producer and singer-songwriter, increasingly challenged the expectations customary of a producer in the electronic industry. Though producers are typically associated with mixing, sound design, and mastering, Amidy continuously blurred the stock-image conceptualizations of the dance music producer and the featured singer-songwriter by adeptly assuming the responsibilities of both types of collaborators, penning his own narratives and giving voice to them himself.

That Amidy could singlehandedly account for all of these components wasn’t immediately clear to all listeners in his audience prior to this year, making 2021 a pivotal point for Amidy’s public perception as a developed artist with a wide range of creative capacities. The Icon Collective graduate’s collaboration with Seven Lions and Wooli, “Shadows,” released in late April, can be underscored as a moment critical to Amidy’s recognition as such, with many listeners acknowledging online that they’d not known Amidy to be a singer-songwriter prior to this production.

Amidy expanded his vocal presence well beyond “Shadows” in 2021, applying his pipes not only to the joint project but also to “Satellite,” for instance. With plans to “sing on pretty much every track” he works on moving forward, he rightfully earns a place on our record of Artists to Watch in 2022 on account of the multifaceted growth that can be expected of him in the following year. And, considering that “there is only one track out of the very many that [Amidy has] in the works that does not have [him] singing on it,” 2022 is poised to be an even more impactful year than 2021 for Amidy’s maturity as a full-fledged creative in the dance space.

The Sanctuary EP maker will stride into 2022 with several feathers already in his cap, having executed his first festival performances and first headlining show of his career this year. As 2021 prepares to give way to a new calendar year, it’s certain that, unlike the title of one of his most prominent productions this year, 2022 will be marked by many bright moments for Amidy, and not by “Shadows.”

Fred again..

Words by Sami Weisband

Fred Gibson, the man behind Fred again.., has quickly become a dance music sensation, his music sweeping across the United Kingdom and snowballing into an international phenomenon. A protégé of Brian Eno, who can take credit for convincing Gibson to focus on producing music as a solo artist, Fred has rightfully positioned himself under a glaringly bright spotlight. After producing tracks alongside Ed Sheeran, FKA twigs, Stormzy, and more in 2020, Gibson became the youngest producer ever to win the BRIT Award for Producer of the Year.

Although his work speaks for itself time and time again, the industry saw a new side of Fred in 2021 thanks to the advent of his debut solo LP, Actual Life, and the world just can’t turn away. During the past four years, Gibson sharpened his skills as a solo artist and eventually began using live recordings, including samples from friends, stage hands, poets, and independent artists on Instagram, many of which found their way into Gibson’s two LPs under the Fred again.. project, Actual Life (April 14 – December 17 2020) and Actual Life 2 (February 2 – October 15 2021). Both LPs follow succinct storylines that allow listeners to fall deeply into the world that Fred creates through the lens of his actual life.

Garnering more than 4 million monthly listeners on Spotify since 2019, Fred again.. has brought depth and togetherness to a year of dumbfounding dissonance, unwittingly creating the soundtrack to one of the most unprecedented times in human history.

To be clear, Fred Gibson the man has seen much success, having honed his talents since his early teens. Fred again.. the solo artist, however, has only just gotten started. It’s evident that whatever symphony he formulates next will be nothing short of astounding, and Dancing Astronaut is primed to watch him ascend again..and again..and again..

Far Out

Words by Ross Goldenberg

Statistically, 2021 wasn’t Far Out’s most active year to date, but there’s so much more than what meets the eye behind his entry into our 2022 class of Artists to Watch. The intergalactic Canadian producer deservedly took most of 2021 to himself after yielding Beyond The Horizon—an expansive EP released via Ophelia Records—just as 2020 came to a close. That wasn’t where his story originated, though. Far Out first came forward in the fall of 2017 with Contact, a freshman admission via Lowly Palace that would introduce planet Earth to his outer space-meets-melodic-dance bond—the ultimate fit for Dancing Astronaut—and build to both an EDC Las Vegas debut the following spring and opening slot on ILLENIUM’s Awake tour. And after Ophelia welcomed him in with open arms near the end of 2020, the notion that Far Out’s expedition was only just starting became increasingly apparent.

The timing of Far Out’s Artist to Watch induction couldn’t be more opportune. After returning to social media this past October to tease new music and subsequently orbiting back into the release ring with his take on “Returning To You,” Far Out disclosed that he was just scratching the musical surface ahead of Somewhere In Between, his Ophelia Records sequel EP, due December 10. From the follow-up label release’s initial pair of singles alone, it’s evident that Far Out has already taken his production scope through the genre cosmos and back, spanning otherworldly melodic-dubstep and bone-crushing dubstep on “Waterfall” to rapturous trance on “Ultraviolet.” By building on what he did during his first extended Ophelia outing last November, Far Out’s signaled that everyone should anticipate even more stylistic adventuring on the EP’s latter side. With a return to the decks now also back on Far Out’s docket—which included his first appearance in Los Angeles with the help of Seven Lions’ label—it feels as if the groundwork for a breakout campaign in 2022 is already being set into motion.

RemK

Words by Zach Salafia

Trap is very much alive and well and High Tide,” “Lowrider” with Boombox Cartel’s MONTA label, and most recently, “Breakwater” with Jadu Dala—as well as on a high-octane remix of The Neighbourhood’s “Sweater Weather,” released via SoundCloud. The Long Beach native has gained support over the years from the likes of DJ Diesel, QUIX, Nitti Gritti, 4B, Boombox Cartel, and Ekali, the latter of whom has taken RemK across the country with him on tour. RemK is also a member of the San Diego Waterboys, which includes ISOxo, Knock2, FrostTop, and Aleko. Be on the lookout for another banner year in 2022 for this ascending star.

Mize

Words by Ariel King

Mize has been bubbling in the underground bass scene since he first began uploading his original mixes and free downloads to SoundCloud several years ago. Fans would suggest his songs to Zeds Dead’s weekly Deadbeats Radio show, which helped Mize to garner early support from Deadbeats and Wakaan.

Over the past year, he’s begun making his way around the festival circuit and was even slated to perform at Bonarroo’s 2021 installment before the festival was cancelled. However, that didn’t manage to slow Mize down. This year saw him release his Balancing Act EP on Liquid Stranger’s Wakaan imprint, SSKWAN. With a growing fan base that continuously clamors for his unique sound, Mize quite effortlessly cements himself as an up-and-coming Artist to Watch for in 2022.

Surf Mesa

Words by Farrell Sweeney

Powell Aguirre is the next generation in dance music, a case study for what is possible when someone grows up with access to production software and equipment from a young age. The son of a professional saxophonist, the now 21-year-old got a copy of FL Studio in third grade and taught himself how to produce music after watching YouTube tutorials. In high school, he launched his artist project Surf Mesa and began to release music.

In 2019, he put out the song that would change the trajectory of his career, his second all-time release, “ily (i love you baby)” featuring Emilee. TikTok content creators loved the song, prompting it to spread like wildfire, and the rest was history. 

“ily (i love you baby)” has amassed more than 2 billion streams and has been featured in 4-billion-plus TikTok videos. Some may view the rest of their career as an uphill battle after starting off on such a high, but Aguirre has embraced this momentum and capitalized ever since. The DJ/producer signed with Astralwerks, who reissued the 2019 version of the song, thus causing it to land on TikTok.

Although 2020 was the year that Aguirre’s Surf Mesa project exploded onto the scene, 2021 has been the year in which Aguirre proved the project one worth remembering and one that is here to stay, locking in collaborations with Madison Beer and Bipolar Sunshine, among others.

Given COVID-19-related shutdowns, this past year was Aguirre’s first real opportunity to bolster his early momentum by beginning to build his brand as a touring act. He opened for The Chainsmokers over Halloween weekend and performed at his first EDC Las Vegas earlier this fall. Aguirre is poised to build both his artist project and tour presence next year to emerge as a major player in the electronic dance music world from 2022 and beyond.

LP Giobbi

Words by Sami Weisband

Between Grateful Dead tees, a wardrobe chock full of tie-dye, and a grin so influential that those who witness it can’t help but beam a smile of equal proportions, LP Giobbi brings something more than just raw talent to the decks. Three years after her first official release hit major streaming services in 2018, Giobbi can be found not only touring internationally, but also working as W Hotels’ North American Music Coordinator, co-founding her Animal Talk label alongside Sofi Tukker, and establishing FEMME HOUSE, a musical collective that champions equity in the dance industry.

More than half of LP Giobbi’s catalog was released this year alone, a time during which she also hit a handful of the biggest events and festivals and even placed Femme House Radio on Sirius XM’s Diplo’s Revolution. Although her entrepreneurial spirit and classical-meets-electronic brilliance—Giobbi is classically trained as a jazz pianist and uses live instrumentation at each of her shows—causes her to stand out, it’s ultimately her palpable positive energy and ability to connect with her listeners that skyrockets Giobbi among the stars.

Cloonee

Words by Cameron DeFaria

Sheffield-bred producer Dave Bissett, known professionally as Cloonee, played a pivotal role in tech-house’s mainstream invasion over the last few years. After making his career debut on Elrow Records with Estes EP in 2017, Bissett effectively accessed the undying support of UK house veteran Chris Lake. In 2020, Cloonee cemented his first release on Lake’s signature imprint, Black Book Records, dispatching “What Ya Want” just weeks before COVID-19’s global eradication of in-person performances.

Involuntarily sidelined by the pandemic, Cloonee sought shelter in the studio where he spent months assembling an arsenal of tech-house anthems. In 2021 alone, Cloonee played sold-out shows alongside his illustrious mentor at Petco Park, The Brooklyn Mirage, and The Shrine in Los Angeles. Also in the last year, the emerging DJ carried out a solo headlining tour run, played esteemed festivals like CRSSD’s DAY.MVS and Outside Lands in San Francisco, and garnered north of 40 million streams from listeners in more than 170 countries. These accolades considered, we’d be remiss to not include Cloonee as one of Dancing Astronaut’s Artists To Watch in 2022.

STAR SEED

Words by Zach Salafia

Few artists have burst onto the scene in 2021 like Cincinnati-based duo STAR SEED. The group was formed in 2020 by creative minds Drew Marcum and Noah Koroman, who also operate independently under the aliases Drewerybear and 2SCOOPS. But don’t confuse STAR SEED as a side project. All it takes is one song to understand that this project is special.

We first took note in late-2020 when STAR SEED debuted on Ophelia Records with the lead single from the label’s Advent Volume 2 compilation. That single, “Heaven” with Meggie York, was the first sign of what was to come in a banner 2021 for the duo. Their debut EP, Innerspace, was released via Ophelia Records in June and featured the lead single “Ultraviolet” with Tsu Nami, along with seven other dazzling tracks that showed off their production chops. They then paired their impressive debut EP with a spot on Ophelia’s Odyssey mix series. 

In total, STAR SEED have released 22 originals in 2021, including standouts like “Chasing Stars,” “Voice From The Sky,” “Rain,” “Reason,” and of course, the aforementioned eight-track Innerspace EP. Their red-hot release run was accompanied by performances in support of Yultron at Insomniac’s Park ‘N Rave show in March, a slot at Lost In Dreams’ inaugural installment in Las Vegas, and several shows in support of Virtual Riot on his ongoing Simulation tour. This begs the question, “what hasn’t this release run been accompanied by?” and the answer is simple: any signs of STAR SEED slowing down. They’ve already announced that they have finished their sophomore EP which, depending on the release date, will ensure a proper close to an already incredible 2021 or a proper start to what is sure to be an even bigger 2022.

Dylan Matthew

Words by Rachel Narozniak

If Dancing Astronaut‘s declaration of Dylan Matthew as our first Artist to Watch (ATW) in 2022 made you do a double take, then we succeeded in our intention to make you think about Matthew’s multifaceted identity as an artist. In recent years, Matthew has lent his singing/songwriting talents to a series of high-profile dance/electronic collaborations such as “Love Is Gone” with SLANDER, which presently sits at 1.1 billion-plus streams. That his presence in the dance/electronic industry has been nothing short of prolific would normally go without saying, but in the context of this argument for his status as an ATW in 2022, it matters quite a bit.

Put simply, in this genre, Dylan Matthew is not an artist to watch⁠—he’s an artist whom just about everybody has been watching. And that’s precisely why Dancing Astronaut‘s classification of our inaugural Supernova as an ATW in 2022 has nothing to do with his collaborative work in the dance/electronic space and everything to do with his development as a solo act in and across genres like electro-pop in the coming year.

2021 saw sides of Matthew’s solo artistry through “One Sided Love” and “Summer 16,” both of which premiered on Dancing Astronaut. Much like his 2020 EP Kalopsia, the two singles offered his dance/electronic listeners a well-tuned look at his creative capacities outside of this genre, underscoring him as an artist with dimension, and importantly, an artist with talents that extend far beyond the parameters of modern dance music.

2022 is poised to be a sort of sonic metamorphosis for Matthew, who will spread his wings as a solo artist to an unprecedented degree in the current context of his career:

“I had said that 2021 would be a huge year for my solo releases, but unfortunately it didn’t turn out that way. Between trying to pick the right songs and find the right fit with a label and many other life things, I only got to put out two originals this year. On a positive note though, I have multiple songs lined up for early 2022 that are some of my absolute favorites, and I can only imagine how many more I’ll get to put out next year. I’ve gotten a lot of the songs sitting in my arsenal finished and ready to be released, and I couldn’t be more excited. I’ll also be playing a lot more shows next year and bringing my ‘Dylan Matthew’ live project to light, which I’m absolutely thrilled to show the world.”

To date, Matthew’s solo work has stood within a largely pop- and electro-pop-leaning framework, but his penchant for “acoustic-style ballads [and] R&B music” can be expected to add diversity to his individual catalog in 2022, a year in which streamers will hear a different side of the Dylan Matthew whom the dance music industry has so ardently embraced.

The post Dancing Astronaut’s Artists to Watch in 2022: Amidy appeared first on Dancing Astronaut.

Link to the source article – https://dancingastronaut.com/2021/12/dancing-astronauts-artists-to-watch-in-2022-amidy/

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