Interview with MO7S aka Stephen Manders

MO7S (moh-sevens) is truly a multifaceted career-oriented individual. When he takes his headphones off and lays his tunes to rest at the end of a gig, he sheds his DJ-name and becomes Stephen Manders again. You might not guess in a million years that he had a very crucial role in transitioning the television show “Family Guy” from pencil & paper story-boarding to digital. Stephen has been proficient in different computer applications for many years, which has given his music career and production immense quality and fortitude. As with many DJ’s and musically-inclined artists, inspiration hit him in his early years and he followed those inklings. Along the way Stephen even started his own musical label, Monism Music. He has been gathering thunderous momentum with each gig he plays, songs he releases and artist he collaborates with. And he oscillates between a music and television career, which begs us to ask the question: Which comes first, the Manders or the MO7S?

True Crew has asked MO7S to play a few New England shows, which we are anticipating with bass-heavy hearts. Regardless of the occupational role he’s currently fulfilling, we wanted to get to know New England-born Stephen “MO7Ss” Manders a little better.

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(Kindergarten)

I spent most of my days in Manchester, New Hampshire. I eventually lived in both Boston and Burlington. Each has a special place in my heart, Manchester being where my mother is. I spent my youth highly encouraged in the arts. Went through your typical male puberty and subsequently made it out alive.

My hobbies other than music include but aren’t limited to mountain biking, cooking and definitely what I would like to call, “creative computing.” Design, art and, obviously, music production. And I won’t lie, Skyrim is one hell of a video game.

My personal and professional life are somewhat intertwined. If you don’t love your work, it is hard to love your life, and with my time on this earth it isn’t worth separating the two. I enjoy what I do, all of it!

What drove your migration from New England to California? Is this a permanent homestead or do you have plans to live elsewhere?
Funny enough, I met DJ Simply Jeff at a True Crew party back in 2000. He told me I needed to come out to Cali and check it out. Next thing I knew I was in the studio with him and Uberzone being completely inspired to make music. After the trip, I came home with a game plan – work for Apple and transfer to LA. By 2004, I had that all sorted out, so I moved to SoCal with a bike and a couple hundred dollars. It was a rocky start, but things smoothed out. I wouldn’t say I’m not going to live anywhere else, but like my change from Manchester to Boston, Los Angeles is a great place that caters to creative minds. I firmly believe one must be surrounded by art to create it. Like any city, this place helps that motivation.

Second to that would be Black Rock City, Nevada. Known to most as Burning Man, another place where genre politics certainly does not matter. The open mindedness there really caters towards being experimental, and creating new ideas from old philosophies. I’m a playa junky. Come to Darwin Fish Tank. We can party anywhere!

I hate taxing in planes, early departures, and getting rides from strangers, all of which being common place when en route. But beggars can’t be choosers. As long as I am performing, I am happy.

("Getting my 8-bit swerve on. And my be-dazzled jacket.")

Small venues provide a constantly unique atmosphere. Places like the Phoenix Landing and An Tua Nua have a fond place in my heart. As a DJ you get to play with energy levels, and expand your palette of sounds on a technical level, not just throttle it out and be expected to play the big, high energy tunes. A DJ never stops learning as long as new music is being produced. Playing a peak hour set can be mindless if you are catering to one energy level. Having to impress a crowd from an empty dance floor to a packed one, is a testament to ones skill. Don’t get me wrong, I love playing both, but I think smaller venues are just as challenging and adventerous as the large ones.

Larger venues are obviously fantastic because, the bigger the show, the bigger the production. Subsequently, amazing sound systems with enough booth room for the next dj to setup without bothering you, and vice versa. And of course, theres always hitting a larger audience in one punch. The far reach can be enormously beneficial to future oppurtunities. Burning Man is an amazing place to seek out new music and art from all over the world on a radically different level. Survivalism at its finest. You seek it out, or the playa will find it for you… WakaRusa tends to be on a more commercial end of the spectrum. Mixing more mainstream music into lineups has its advantages. The reach can be phenomenal. My Morning Jacket, Bassnectar & Skrillex? That’s some serious cross-pollination.

But to gain some sort of conclusion from my response, what matters most is that people are dancing and having a good time, no matter where they are. Life is meant to be celebrated. 

What do you look for in potential Monism artists? What kind of sound/experience/skill do they need to have?
The current Monism roster is small and catering to the development of two emerging American artists. Jon Cates from Portland Oregon, and Null Space, originally from Boston, now living in the Silicon Valley. My motto could be called counter intuitive. I’m not promoting a new record every month, in fact, I try to keep it to every quarter. I never challenge the team to do anything outside of the spectrum of their own inspiration. Jon Cates has an amazing musical background and can play virtually any instrument. Sometimes he’s making Breaks, Progressive House or Electro and sometimes he hands me things I can’t classify as a genre. That’s exactly what I love about him.  And he is something I strive to find in every artist.

Null Space is seriously on point. He obsesses over the fidelity to minute degrees. His organization skills when it comes to arrangement make me want to pull what hair I have left, as an appeasement to his wraith. He makes great techno and ambient music, his love for music is as emotional as mine. He wears it on his sleeve. I admire him for it.

As far as potential artists. I am always listening to whats getting set in. I highly encourage the aspiring to not make what everyone else is, but to make what isn’t. The boundaries of dance music should never be defined by whats currently trending. Both Jon and Null Space have experience with both hardware and software production. They both have enriched their sounds by bringing the two together. Plugging things in doesn’t stop at the computer. And I really try and foster that idea and encourage the harmony of analog and digital.

(monismmusic.com)

Where do you see yourself in five years? Where would you like Monism Music to be?
5 years is a long time. Making more music is first. And for Monism, developing the artists catalogue passively is important. It shouldn’t be a chore for the artist, but more like an offering. We have recently licensed a few songs to American Dad, which has sparked new interest into an even larger market. I’m hoping to begin licensing Monism material to other networks in 2012. Streaming, surprisingly enough, is taking off, and I see a lot of the units moving in that direction. I want Monism to be for DJ’s and electronic music fans alike.

Getting blood circulating to my phalanges.

Breathing & believing.

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The Phoenix Landing
512 Massachusetts Avenue
Cambridge, MA
December 25th 10:00pm – 1:00am
19+ and $5

More event info here.

There are big things happening in the Land of True during the New Year festivities next week. Check out this stellar bash and make sure you come out to this one!

The Waterfront
920 Main Street
Holyoke, MA
Starts 12/31 at 6:00pm
Ends 1/2 at 3:00am

Purchase tickets here.

And, if you’re in Providence, RI next week, stop by Lupo’s Heartbreak Hotel and surrender yourself to The White Panda, Timeflies and Yonas.

Lupo’s Heartbreak Hotel
79 Washington Street
Providence, RI
December 28th 8:00pm – 12:30am
All-ages!Get your tickets here.

First six photos of MO7S were taken from his Myspace photo albums.