Pirapus can see the 'F U T U R E' of drum & bass

The increasing fertility of different electronic music scenes the world over isn’t a context that generally lends itself to the prevalence of tropes, and yet they endure. Many cities, countries and even regions of the world are often generalised for having a prevailing music taste, whether it’s Dutch hard tech, America’s love of EDM, or Aotearoa/New Zealand’s penchant for drum & bass.

One of the furthest journeys one could take away from the birthplace of the genre, Aotearoa’s population have a long and sordid love affair with the genre, in a way that has even broken through to the more ‘general’ kind of listening population.

Pirapus, one of Aotearoa’s premier modern drum & bass acts, is a duo that has seen huge success from that very climate, not only at home but overseas too.

The pair, made up of George Murray & Ben Hollamby, have in the last few years worked with a who’s who of global labels, including Monstercat, NIGHTMODE and STNS, as well as featuring their tracks ’Ultrasound (feat. Arcando)’ and ‘GO BACK (We Can’t)’ on Beatport’s coveted number one slot.

This NYE, Pirapus are set to debut a brand new live project, entitled ‘F U T U R E’, at this year’s Rhythm & Vines festival. With such a career already to their name, we caught up with them both to understand what the future truly holds.

G: F U T U R E is our full AV (audio-visual) show where we take you into the world of Pirapus. It’s forward-thinking DnB, lasers, fire, smoke - it’s a show, not a set. It’s our aesthetic, and we’re playing a whole lot of new music. We’re premiering F U T U R E exclusively at Rhythm & Vines on 29th December, and words can’t describe how excited we are for this. Shout out to Reuben (@reubenblends) and Mike (@coldstart.studio) for bringing this idea of ours to life.

T: It’s a showcase of all the new material that we’ve put together after our first world tour earlier this year. We were exposed to so much new music and culture on the road that helped us refine the F U T U R E D&B sound for the big stage.

G: This will be our fourth time playing the festival, so it really has a special place in our hearts. R&V is always getting bigger and better, and so we thought it was the perfect place to take our show up a notch and premiere F U T U R E there.

T: R&V is a very special festival - the location, Gisborne, is stunning and the vibes from all the attendees are positively electric every year. From the start of the Pirapus project, R&V has been a massive influence on our “big stage” sound.

T: Our music is heavily influenced by lots of global electronic music genres like Bigroom, Trap, Dubstep, and Hard Techno. I think the combo of all those flavours in a high-octane D&B format has appeal for all EDM lovers.

T: It’s very rewarding to see the tracks doing so well, as we try our hardest to pull elements from all corners of EDM. D&B is such a versatile genre of bass music, and we’re very proud our take on it has found its way into so many DJs’ sets.

G: DnB always has a rebellious spirit - it’s about pushing the sound and culture forward, and having a bloody good time doing it. Good DnB, whether it’s dancefloor or jump up, keeps the people moving and doesn’t wait for trends or fake agendas - that’s what I think keeps the genre unified across its different iterations.

T: It’s definitely just a gut feeling - we hear something, we like it, or we don’t, and then we pick it apart and think about how it can be used in a D&B format.

G: Yeah 100%, it’s played 24/7 on the radio, and you’d be hard pressed to find a party that isn’t playing at least one DnB song. Especially once you get to uni, it’s the first party music you hear. Whether it’s a flat in Dunedin, or a festival in Auckland, DnB in New Zealand is as strong as ever.

T: I think NZ is so beautiful that it brings massive open-air festivals to another echelon, and in my opinion, D&B is simply the best genre for rocking these kinds of stages.

T: I would love to see the club scene get even stronger. We have many festivals recognised globally, it would be sick to see some more clubs gain legendary status. That and crazier rave outfits would be very heartwarming!

G: The NZ artists that are taking their sound overseas. Artists like 33Below, Montell2099, Rova & Elipsa are all seeing major international success, and it’s also sick to see our mates like Suune and Sless kill it. They’ve all got a fresh sound and are pushing NZ electronic music forward - and we’re very proud to be a part of that.

T: It definitely adds some magic. Everyone, including us, is reflecting on the year with their friends, family, and thousands of other lovely human beings in one special place. It makes all the emotional moments of a set hit way harder.

T: Bigger, better, more!

G: World domination by Drum & Bass.