Scarlett O’Malley talks about navigating life as a producer and her latest release on Kerri Chandler’s Kaoz Theory.
Club Cowgirl Scarlett O’Malley rides into the new year with a 4-track EP on Kerri Chandler’s Kaoz Theory.
Inspired by her love for “dirty, groovy house music”, the West London native shows us what she’s all about in The House Joints. Still new in the world of record production – Scarlett released her first record Scorpio Season, through her imprint Club Cowgirl earlier this year – she has nevertheless started with a good impression with her track Say Yes To The Groove being named ‘Dancefloor Moment’ of the week by Radio 1’s Jaguar.
A keen student of the game, Scarlett has covered topics around music and youth culture throughout her career as a journalist. From her radio show turned record label Club Cowgirl, to her 8-episode podcast series with the Museum of Youth Culture, and her list of writings on publications such as Mixmag, NME, Fred Perry’s Quarterly and The Ealing Times (to name a few), there aren’t many DJs around these days that possess such a pure passion for music culture in the way Scarlett does.
Despite this however, its Scarlett’s love of music that reigns supreme. Her obsession with discovering and sharing music has led to a DJ portfolio that is becoming just as extensive as her one in journalism. Despite initially struggling through the difficult landscape of radio – a topic that she discusses in more detail in her Club Cowgirl Chats series – Scarlett has hosted shows on prominent stations such as Rinse, NTS, Soho Radio, Foundation FM, and Totally Wired.
In her interview with //SNCMAG, Scarlett talks about her transition into a producer and its effects on how she thinks about music, her creative process, dream collaborations and more.
What inspired you to make ‘The House Joints’?
I love dirty, groovy house music and wanted to make a 4 track EP that showed the variety of what I would want to hear in someone’s peak time club set. ‘Say Yes To The Groove’ is a classic slick soulful-esque groover that shows a lot of the inspiration I’ve taken from 90s house bangers.
‘Calling Fool’s Gold’ for me is a sassy, filthy house banger! I have a lot of love for this tune as the original arrangement was completely different. One day I just decided to throw it all up in the air and recreate it, and now I think it’s one of the tunes I am most proud of making. It represents best maybe who I am in the rave.
Scorpio Swinger is a breakbeat dream that I love to incorporate in sets because a lot of the samples used are derived from funk breaks which is kind of where my roots are at. Eyes Wide, the last tune on the EP was one of the first I’ve ever made and was/has always been one of the favourites. It has a proper choppy London feel with a solid soul edge, so maybe that one conveys my identity best!
How did the project end up releasing on Kaoz Theory?
I self-released my first EP ‘Scorpio Rodeo’ on my own label ‘Club Cowgirl’ which I am so glad I did. I’m very much a ‘do it yourself’ kind of person and people were really receptive to it all, and it got some decent club and radio play. From that, one of the A&Rs at Kaoz reached out to me asking for demos. At the time, I was fully in flow and had quite a few demos on the go that I had sent to various other labels, but when Kaoz say they want the EP, you give the EP to Kaoz haha! I was very very very excited, still am tbh.
Producing your own records is still a relatively new thing for you compared to your more extensive DJ history. As an avid record collector, have you learned anything new about music since you started making your own?
Yeah, I definitely listen to songs in a slightly different way, I suppose. If I’m just strolling around listening to a playlist and there’s an element in a tune that I love, I will literally write it down in my notes on my phone and try to remember what I liked about it, and how I could bend that into one of my own tunes. I also think I listen way more in depth to tunes knowing all the tiny little elements people add in.
Can you tell us a little bit about your creative process? What’s the plan when you start a track?
It’s a LOT of trial and error for me. I used to lay down the drums first as growing up I was a drummer. Growing up being at gigs every week and surrounded by music, I always found that I was enamoured by the drummers, so having a good percussive beat comes first and foremost. Having said that, I also am a SUCKER for a bassline, so depending on the vibe I’m going for, I feel like drums and bassline go hand in hand and either one can come first. I also have an idea of a vibe of going for. Do I want a more minimal edge, a more soulful edge, a big club facing banger?
From there I try to get something down from that. I am also a big vocals girl which I find will always come towards the end of making a track. But what I will say is that I find making music very cathartic, and I love that I’ve dived into the producer pool properly this year.
What are some things that you have struggled with when it comes to producing, and how have you overcome them?
I had a mental block for aaaggesss. Someone once said to me that no one likes learning a new skill because at the beginning. It’s super tiring and monotonous, especially when you can’t just be good at something straight away. I used to fall victim to giving up if I wasn’t great at something on like the first day of doing it. But, as I have learnt this year, perseverance is key and not everything has to be perfect. Not every song you start is always going to get finished, and everything doesn’t always have to be perfect.
I feel like this is my general mantra for my life. I’m trying to relinquish a little bit of my perfectionist, control freak nature and go with the flow. But in all honesty it has really helped with the creative process. I’ve also stopped smoking weed recently, which has really helped with procrastination. Ironically, it’s what the EP is titled after lol.
Your love for soul music is no secret. Do you see yourself producing more classic soul/Motown sounding stuff in the future?
Hmmm, I dunno. Because I do hold deep and rare soul music very, very close to my heart, it’s something I don’t feel should be tampered with. I doubt you’ll ever hear me use a truly rare soul record as a sample in my tunes and you certainly won’t find me making any edits as I believe in the sanctity of the time and era of music, where songs were being made for feels and feels alone. Unless I thought I could add to the legacy which so many great, new people are doing at the moment like Jalen N’Gonda, Thee Sacred Souls, Aaron Frazer etc. I wouldn’t want to ruin a good thing. Also, I don’t have the vocals to carry off an Aretha level tune, so why bother?
What would be a dream collaboration for you?
I would LOVE to get in the studio with Kerri Chandler one day, of course! I also love, love, love Byron The Aquarius as a producer. Other producers I am hoping to work with would be LADYMONIX, Demi Riquisimo, Sally C, L.P Rhythm and Gaskin, Jelsen and Paige Tomlinson. A solid array of house music aficionados.
What’s next for Scarlett O’Malley?
So, obviously The House Joints EP is what I will be talking exclusively about for the foreseeable future! I am hosting an EP launch party at The Social on the 24th of November upstairs at the venue! Then on the 16th of December, I am at the Ministry of Sound with a Club Cowgirl takeover of the 103 with LADYMONIX and Serenda, and NYE, I am at Phonox with Moxie, which I am gassed for! 2024 better come in strong and heavy because I am ready.