Words by Keane Fletcher

North Queensland-based producer ODESITY (real name Hayden Clelland) has one mission only: to make his listeners feel. Having made a name for himself in the local scene by playing Groovin The Moo and receiving airplay on triple j unearthed, ODESITY is launching into the back half of 2020 in style, with his latest electro-bop ‘Loveless’.

Staying true to his ethos of favouring storytelling over typical banger-based aesthetics, ‘Loveless’ is a fine entry into the canon of boundary pushing, emotive electronica. Taking inspiration from artists like Flume and Porter Robinson, ‘Loveless’ sweeps you up in its richly detailed textures and lush atmospherics, evoking feelings of late summer nights, long distance phone calls, and mornings spent nursing the sweet melancholy of a gin-soaked hangover. 

We recently caught up with ODESITY to talk all things music and inspo, check it out below.

1- Where in the world are you based?

Townsville, North Queensland, Australia

2- How would you describe your sound?

I would describe my sound as lush electronica, blending both real world and synthetic textures and atmospheres.

3- How do you find your inspiration? Are you more likely to sit down to write with an idea already formed or does inspiration take you by surprise?

I’m constantly inspired by music I’m listening to in the car, however when it comes to writing a lot of my ideas are formed unintentionally. Surprisingly, I don’t actually play any instruments, my song writing method is structured around the rules of music theory rather than emotion. The use of creative sampling is where I breathe life into my tracks. With effects, warping, splicing and pitching I can create something unique. For example, the phrase “You love the thrill of it, thrill of it” at the 3:00 mark in ‘Loveless’ was sampled, reversed and edited to become the lead melody on the drops.

4- Your latest single ‘Loveless’ is a super textured, atmospheric track about lost love. Is there a particular moment in your life that inspired this song?

The track was an idea I had played around with 2 years ago, it stayed a pretty basic instrumental and almost stayed as a back end demo until I sent it to a vocalist friend of mine. I was blown away by the first listen of the vocals over the instrumental, the energy of the track came to life with these catchy vocals. Since then I was able to revisit the instrumental with my new production techniques and a flashy new vocal to finish ‘Loveless’.

5- How much influence do your vocalists have on a track? At what stage of the process do you start collaborating with them?

My writing process is more rigid than fluid, sometimes during the initial stages of collaboration it can be challenging, I often prefer to collaborate with vocalists towards the end of the song writing (once I have an instrumental foundation). This allows the vocalists to create a narrative of the song that inspires them.

6- Which artist would be your dream collaboration?

Either Flume or Porter Robinson, although I'd be intimidated to even meet them because their music has shaped me as a person and an artist so much. I can’t imagine the pressure to pull my weight in a writing session with either one of them.

Thanks for stopping by Hipland!