Features
Zhu: The mystery man behind some huge crossover hits
We meet in Tokyo for his first ever major interview
He’s eager to talk about the future, though. As we wander, he returns to the subject of Bowie and reiterates the need for music to always be moving forward and trying new things. For him, that means the signature sound of his home town of San Francisco. “I’m into making more psychedelic-ass music that’s combined with electronic,” he says. And he’s definitely not talking about Infected Mushroom-style Goa trance, although he is a fan, calling them ‘dope’. He seemingly wants to take his sound in a whole other direction, describing his upcoming stuff as “dark psychedelic music, more bluesy, something like Pink Floyd and The Doors, that kind of realm.”
That’s a pretty big jump from the deep house of ‘Faded’ and ‘Generationwhy,’ and music fans have a reputation for being fickle when an artist abandons one sound for another (David Bowie and Prince notwithstanding) – but Zhu thinks his fans are up for the challenge... at least most of them are.
“There are people who are music fans and people who are fans of a genre and there are people who are fans of maybe a lifestyle or culture. Those people only go to blah blah blah show because that’s a cool place to be. But those first two groups of people want to be challenged,” he says, so focused on the discussion that he completely ignores the beautiful surroundings as he nears the shrine’s massive arched wooden exit.
If he manages to hold onto his fans as he switches genres then maybe he’s onto something by not relying so much on social media and building a cool ‘scene’. It could be proof that a less-is-more approach to music and publicity is the right way to go for an industry that is almost entirely about flash-in-the-pan stars and passing fads. Building legions of online followers may look good for a press release and get you a big crowd at the occasional festival, but is that really going to sustain you five years later?
The humidity still hasn’t subsided. If anything, it’s got even worse. But Zhu still doesn’t sweat. He doesn’t sweat the heat. He doesn’t sweat the humidity. And he certainly doesn’t seem to sweat the pressure of being one of the biggest new names in dance music today.
Zhu’s ‘Generationwhy’ is out now on Sony/Columbia
