LA native and fast-rising music producer ETC! ETC! reps hard for his city. So it’s a good time to revisit his searing LA-themed track, “Trompa,” just in time for MLS Summer Beat and this Saturday's Cali Clasico in San Jose, between the Earthquakes and the Galaxy (10 pm ET, Univision and Facebook in US, MLS LIVE in Canada).
We’re not just forcing the soccer connection here, either. ETC! ETC! -- born Jose Guerrero -- grew up eating and breathing the beautiful game, and the Galaxy in particular, from the team’s inception. In fact, he may be one of the world’s only people so far who have rocked massive dance music festivals like TomorrowWorld and EDC Las Vegas -- and have also made it through at least one round of the team’s open tryouts.
The only thing getting in the way of his season ticket-holding these days? Oh, just a record deal with Dim Mak, the imprint helmed by superstar Steve Aoki, which he’s supporting with a busy touring schedule around the country.
We caught up with ETC! ETC! to chat about that ever-present overlap between music culture and the global game, his track, and the essential next sounds he’s loving from the underground.
Crank up “Trompa” below while you read to get hyped for the game on Saturday -- click here to listen to it on Soundcloud. Our recommendation: This is a heart-thumping slab of peak-hour future bass, so make sure your speakers can handle some serious low end, okay? And find out more about ETC! ETC! on his web site, Twitter, and Facebook.
Photo courtesy of ETC! ETC!
MLSsoccer.com: You grew up watching both the Mexican and US national teams. As a Mexican-American, which national team do you support?
ETC! ETC!: I grew up in the US, so that’s my team. I’ll show up to watch a game with my family with a USMNT jersey because I’m that guy. I have to support the boys.
We're looking towards the rivalry match-up this weekend between the Quakes and the Galaxy. But back in LA, as a Galaxy fan, how do you think the arrival of LAFC is going to change things in the city?
It’s kind of how Chivas and LA Galaxy were — it’s gonna be divided. Chivas USA seemed like more Mexican fans, I would say. It just depends on who’s on the team, really. That might make the difference of who wants to jump on that wagon. I’m Galaxy for life, though.
How strong do you think the rivalry is with the San Jose Earthquakes?
It’s pretty wild. When I had season tickets, every time we would play San Jose it would get rowdy up in the stadium. My brother-in-law and I would just start yelling and booing at the dudes when they’d come in. It’s like the LA Dodgers vs. San Francisco Giants kind of rivalry. It’s something between LA and the Bay, where it’s just in the air and we don’t like each other.
There are so many music people involved in the soccer world. Why do you think that is?
Music has so much of the same energy. It just brings out another side of you that makes you wanna go crazy. Also, going to hear different types of music is like going to different soccer games—different vibes, different scenes. It’s just about culture, I think.
Music-wise, you got your start with making moombahton tracks. What appealed to you about that genre when it was really big?
The thing with moombahton is that it brings out nostalgia for me. It reminds me of the type of [Latin] music my mom would listen to at home, with shakers and an off-beat drum, the stuff that I grew up with—like, my mom yelling at me with that type of music playing in the background. So I felt comfortable with it, like I could nail a tune and make it sound how I wanted it to sound. It just feels good.
Moombahton had a year where it was really the coolest thing at SXSW and industry events and festivals, and then it faded from the mainstream a bit. What do you think happened there?
The original producers are still there. It just maybe didn’t peak because it didn’t get as much recognition as it should have, but other stuff came up and took over, like trap, and a new sound like jungle terror. There are moments in different scenes where other music comes up and just gets over-hyped.
Moombahton still exists, but people don’t know that it is Moombahton. Skrillex did that tune with Justin Bieber, “Sorry,” and that’s a moombahton song. Major Lazer's and DJ Snake's song, “Lean On” is a moombahton song. So those tunes exist.
What made you want to switch things up yourself?
I was always making electro and house-tech tunes before I was making moombahton. I’ve always made a little bit of everything, so I started dabbling in traps and other things, but I always go back and still have a little bit of my moombahton roots in everything. I still try to keep it alive.
What new sounds or styles are exciting to you right now?
Well, a lot of people are making moombahton again. Some friends are bringing it back and making it different. I’m also getting into the more hybrid trap, where it’s like dubstep sounds in trap and making it exciting again, because trap was getting bland for a minute. I’m playing a lot of that in my sets. There’s also a lot of stuff, like jungle terror—it’s like moombahton, but at 128 bpm which is very sped up.
Let’s talk “Trompa.” What about the track makes you most proud?
I was trying to make an LA anthem, something to open with my sets with that would express being from LA. There’s a vocal in it about being from the city. It’s a very hype tune, and I did it with my homie Alex, who goes by Tighttraxx.
We were in the studio and we were like, “let’s make a crazy tune that’ll just go off, with random, crazy noises.” We got going and it worked, so it’s just a very hype tune that gets a crowd rowdy.
What’s next for you after this track?
I have more tracks coming out. I’m always working on songs in the studio when I’m at home. If I’m home and I’m not working, I feel lazy.
If I wasn’t in music, I’d be playing soccer in a park right now.
What’s the story behind your tryout for the LA Galaxy?
The Galaxy had tryouts out here, so I went and tried out and I made it to the second round and got cut. It was hectic, man! It was all running drills. I thought I was in my prime, but I guess not! I used to play midfield, but maybe I should have tried defense where they wouldn’t have me moving quite as much!
I love the Galaxy, I wish I had made the team — but I think I’m doing okay over here.
