He is producing music like crazy and nowadays you can find him on stage at events like Karnival Outdoor Festival and Shokk Presents Dimensions. Yesterday he released ‘Bass Sound’, another banger on Scantraxx Prospexx. But who really is Druid, how does he produce and what does a day in his life look like? Find out more about the habits and thoughts of the talented DJ from Australia now!
Howard, better known as Druid, is producing his own underground hardstyle sound all from Australia. The DJ starts his process of producing with thinking of concepts or ideas of a track before he sits down to write. “When I have an idea or concept in mind I like to start by writing the melody or chords, and finding vocals that match the vibe”. He says. “If nothing is really working with the chords or melody, I like to play with sound designing arpeggiators. This helps me to easily get down the feeling of a song and gives me a good base to get the creative juices flowing!”
His favorite aspect of the music production process is definitely writing melodies, the Australian DJ says. “I’m not ‘classically trained’ as they say, but I know enough to be able to experiment and bend the rules to suit me. I love writing harmonies for my melodies. These layers add so much depth and character to a song and it’s always fulfilling when it resolves just how I imagine it when conceptualizing a song.”
Of course we are curious about how producing his newest track was. Druid explains he had the hook line idea for ‘Bass Sound’ for a couple years now. “After getting a new microphone I decided to record myself ‘Mcing’ the lyrics. I was pretty surprised with the tone and timbre of the recordings, so I stuck with it. From there I instantly had an idea for a melody based on the rhythm of the vocal, and the rest fell into place quickly after!”
“Before I start writing, I always like to clear my desk”
Furthermore Druid has some habits during producing music, “before I start writing, I always like to clear my desk and I try to tidy up around my home as much as possible. Most of the time it’s usually just empty coffee mugs, or a cheeky Zooper Dooper from the night before. Doing this makes me feel a bit more clear and I find it’s easier to slip into the ‘flow’ when my space is less cluttered.”
“Besides making music I’m studying full time”
Druid isn’t only busy with producing music, he is also studying full time. “Which is great because although the workload is intensive, it gives me much more time in the studio.” He says. Recently he is back at university and studying a Masters of IT at the Queensland University of Technology. “I think living in Australia, I have such an incredible opportunity to study and become more educated. And IT is a field in which its principles are universal so I’d have a great opportunity to work abroad. My future plans are to finish this degree and keep working at developing myself as a musician. And capitalizing the opportunities that come my way.”
“A typical day usually starts with a bucket load of coffee”
We are wondering… What does a typical day in Druid’s life look like? “A typical day usually starts with a bucket load of coffee and checking my emails and calendar for what I have on.” He says. “From there I usually start knocking out my tasks. And if I’ve scheduled it, I’ll hit the studio and either get down new concepts, finish off tracks or create new kicks and synths.”
Druid describes his life as pretty amazing at the moment. He is starting to see his hard work paying off with more gigs around Australia and musically he has a clear direction. “I wouldn’t say that there’s any one thing I enjoy the most out of my days (besides coffee), but any opportunity I have to write melodies or develop my concepts are definitely the best days!”
“My good friend Geonovis told me I’m the most laid back guy he knows”
Now we know more about Druid’s days, we couldn’t resist asking how his friends would describe him. “Well, I hope they’d say I’m a top bloke! I think if you asked them they would all give you dumb answeres, that’s just the way we are as mates. It's weird to think about seriously, maybe they might say that I’m laid back, like a good laugh, cold beer and always there to help.” Druid says. Furthermore his good friend Geonovis told him he’s the most laid back guy he knows.
“I managed to get into the club just before security started checking ID”
When we ask Druid if there is any story that the public should definitely know about, he starts talking about how he started DJing. “My first ever gig, not too many people know about this, but I was underage!” The DJ says. “Back then and especially today, Australian laws are very strict on age restrictions for venues, but I managed to get into the club just before security started checking ID and played the opening set. Even though the club was empty besides the lightning guy firing the Co2 cannon on the barren dance floor, it was a cool story to tell my friends at school the next week!”