Dam Mantle launches debut EP

Dam Mantle is the alter-ego of musician and artist Tom Marshallsay, who releases debut EP, Grey, on new Glasgow label Halleluwah Hits this month. A kaleidoscopic mix of melodic samples, jittery beats and post-dubstep bass mutations, Dam Mantle’s tunes sound equally good in a club or a rock venue. ‘I’m more than happy to play to a club or play next to a noise band,’ explains Marshallsay, ‘I hope that music works like that and it can be seen in different contexts.’

Dam Mantle evolved out of Marshallsay’s previous project Animals & War. ‘It was more folk influenced but I tried to reflect electronic music organically. And then I came to this point. It probably comes down to having access to software and collecting enough synthesisers and drum machines to make the music I do now.’

For live shows Marshallsay is joined by Calum Cunneen. ‘I go to see electronic artists and they’re just standing there twiddling a knob and this huge sound comes out; that’s really disconcerting to me. We try to keep it as live as possible. They’re not really rigid, so we pretty much just jam the tracks out with the samples that were used in the originals.’

Future plans include a UK tour with the hotly-tipped Essex electronic artist, Gold Panda, remixes for Warp’s latest signing Gonjasufi, and the soundtrack to a video. ‘I’m trying to incorporate other media, making visual work and combining it with my audio work. I’m constantly working on new stuff. We’ll see what shape things take.’

Glasgow Social Centre, Glasgow, Fri 2 Apr; Stereo, Glasgow, Wed 14 Apr (with Gold Panda)

More: Music, Previews (Music), Electronic (Music), Animals and War, Calum Cunneen, Dam Mantle, Gold Panda, Halleluwah Hits, Tom Marshallsay

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