Since closing the X&G chapter, Utah producer Gaszia has carved out a lane where UK soundsystem pressure collides with the raw punch of American bass. His sets and edits move freely through global club culture, bending genres into new shapes while keeping subweight at the core.

Off the dancefloor, Gaszia channels his Bandcamp Edits into grassroots causes, treats collaboration as a slow-burn craft, and resists the scene’s demand for constant output.

With a mixtape on the horizon and long-shelved collabs ready to surface, he’s stepping into a chapter built on curiosity, connection, and the art of playing the long game.

Hey Gaszia, how are you doing?

I’m good, thank you! Enjoying the sun while I can.

It’s been three years since the end of your X&G project with Kollaba. How does it feel to fully embrace your solo identity now, and in what ways has your artistry evolved since then? Do you feel freer now as a solo artist post-X&G, or is there something you miss from your collaborative phase?

The X&G project was a pivotal chapter for me in so many ways. I do miss it sometimes, but I think it ran the course it was meant to. My music has sometimes reflected the soundscape and ideas that were explored with the X&G project, but I’m also excited about exploring so much new territory as a solo artist that I never really got to explore. It’s definitely been freeing, but I will always appreciate what we did together. I do miss the collaborative aspect, but I’ve found collaborations through a new dynamic now. Bouncing ideas off someone is great, but bouncing ideas off all sorts of minds leads to such a broader range of ideas.

Your sound often blends UK soundsystem influences with your Utah roots. How have these local and international influences shaped your unique style and creative outlook? What would you say Utah’s underground brings to global experimental bass?

I’ve been inspired by music outside of America for as long as I can remember. Growing up in a pretty small town with no music scene at all, I found myself chronically online exploring music through outlets like Myspace, YouTube, Purevolume (real heads know), and more. Since playing shows and performing nationally and internationally, I also think that has greatly affected how I approach music. More recently, I’ve been trying to tap back into how I approached music before performing, keeping the dancefloor in mind, but also considering an at-home listening experience.

As far as Utah, I haven’t attended as many shows recently (mainly because I work late weekends right now), but when I do, there’s a new hunger from the younger generation for genres and the cultures that come with them that don’t really have representation. For example, getting exposed to the jumpstyle/hard dance scene via ETA45 has been so cool. They’ve expanded so much further than that now, showcasing techno, latincore, baile funk, ghettotech, gqom, experimental, jersey club, jumpstyle, etc. They’re always finding new talent to showcase, either via their label or by finding local DJs/neighboring state DJs to put on. It’s very community-focused. You can never go wrong with an ETA event.

Fervor, a queer focused event, is also another incredible community. I’ve always said Utah is about 10 years behind, but both Fervor and ETA45 make the SLC music scene feel like they have a seat at the table in terms of a music scene that’s ahead of the curve, while also focusing on their events being a safe space. One more I’ll shout out is Blaq Void. I played with them as X&G before lockdown, back when they were quite small. And to see them grow in size while still focusing on creating a safe space for all has been really impressive to see.

You recently announced you’re continuing your Bandcamp Edits series to support various social causes, even as you hold off on releasing new original music. What motivated you to take this path, and what do the causes you support mean to you?

The weight of the societal and political landscape in recent years has greatly affected us all across the world. We’re seeing so much bad happen, not just in America, but everywhere (not that this is new). Being a creative (to me) can sometimes feel selfish when promoting stuff, especially when perhaps the conversation needs to shift and the focus should be about current issues rather than promoting art. I’ve had a lot of conversations about this, and some other creatives have shared good perspectives with me, but also understand where I’m coming from.

As far as the edit series, I started these for fun, as a way to fall in love with music again (I almost quit prior to lockdown). I had some silly ideas bouncing around in my head, and there were days I didn’t have much time for creative work. So these were easy and very freeing to put together in under an hour or 2. I didn’t expect the DJ support I got on these, and they were being played everywhere. I planned to retire the series this year, for fear of becoming just an “edits producer”. But a friend shared with me, “If you want to use the platform you DO have for good, keep this going.” And I realized that my fear shouldn’t matter if I could use my platform to help how I can, even if just a little bit. People liked what I did, no one thought less of me because of what I was doing. I was putting these out for free (or very cheap), so I decided to charge more (for Vol. 7) and just donate what felt right to causes. I wanted to donate to a local cause (the wrongful arrest of Arturo Gamboa and the wrongful killing of Afa Ah Loo at the No King’s shooting in Salt Lake), support Gaza in any way I can, supporting Trans folks as they are still heavily fighting for just basic rights still such as healthcare, as well as donating to individuals dealing with ICE right now as their presence has been heightened since Trump took office. The music scene I now find myself in reflects majority of people being affected by the above issues, so I figure if I can’t be there to support in person all the time (ie. attending shows), I can support causes where I can. Not many people in Utah are fortunate enough to have a platform like I do, so again, I’m very thankful for the position I’m in and that I have the ability to contribute how I can.

If one of your edits could teach a new listener everything they need to know about Gaszia’s ethos, which one would it be and why?

Good question! I think if I were to choose one, it would be the Bikini edit. I truly threw all the rules out on that one, incorporating elements of UK grime, keeping the soft ambient synths of the original, capturing the energy of proper EDM in the build, and the drop, I wanted it to feel playful. I used a very obvious synth-y kick, nodding to some of AG Cook’s production, while using saw synths to nod to older electro house (think Zedd, Mord Fustang, older Porter, etc.). Lastly, I also incorporated some Baltimore Club breaks, as I love all of that East Coast club stuff. I’ve been incorporating a lot of rhythms inspired by all that stuff, even back in the X&G days. A quick, funny side note is that a lot of people tried to lump us into trap and bass, and while we evolved into that later on, the original inspiration with X&G was a lot of that East Coast club and minimal tech/dutch house stuff of the early 2010s. It’s kinda crazy seeing it come back again now. But yeah, that edit has gotten a lot of play, and is one that just incorporates elements of so many genres I love.

Earlier this year, you released your remix of Machinedrum’s “Rise” (feat. ROZET). Can you tell us how this collaboration came about and what the inspiration was behind your remix?

Yeah! Machinedrum played out some of my edits, and he asked me to do a remix. I tried a couple of different versions, but the idea was to make it club-friendly. I finally landed on the released version, which was me trying to capture the energy of this more uptempo club stuff that’s starting to enter the bass music space, mixed with the loud, overly harsh synth sounds found in a lot of the maximalist pop (hyperpop for lack of better term). I’m always interested in the idea of fusing two or more music spaces together, and right now I find myself at this crossroads of underground bass/club music and returning to the older EDM genres I found when I was in high school. It’s fun mixing the two, but making it feel like the “2025,” “2024”, etc. versions of said genres.

You’ve said your music isn’t meant to fit neatly into genre boxes. In today’s playlist-driven world, is that ambiguity a creative advantage or a discovery risk?

I think it can be a bit of both. I think the rules of the industry have drastically changed. You can create your own community without needing to utilize the music industry machine like how it was before. There are so many little niche pockets of music that are now building die-hard fanbases from just self-releasing nowadays. This might be a bit of a hot take, but I feel like labels don’t have the upper hand anymore like they used to. Being an independent artist is easier, but also harder than ever. There are so many tools and resources out there, but oversaturation has reached a new high. Social media, I think, is such an effective tool for discovery. I still have a bit of a funny relationship with it, but I’ve seen so many artists find success with social media and nothing more. That being said, because of the oversaturation, you have to stand out now more than ever. But it makes it exciting because so much creative music/art is being made right now. Of course, you can also just exist within an existing space and still have a unique edge about yourself. But I will definitely say I like not being boxed in. I make jokes all the time that, being an artist who can’t really be boxed in anywhere, can be extremely lonely. But it just is so much more satisfying from a creative perspective. I realized I’m okay with the journey being slow. I used to have such a bad relationship with the slow-burn idea. But I know that I love doing music. I’ll probably make it forever at this point in some form or another.

About your Adrenaline guest mix. Is there a track in there that stands out to you personally? Something with a story behind it, or a moment that hit differently?

There are a lot of fun ones in here! I think the track with MADI, Sober Rob, and Deffie came out so cool. It’s my perfect idea of extremely out-there club music paired with pop vocals. I really love all of them as people, and I love that they’re just down to try whatever. I love that she (MADI) was open to experimenting with it vocally. It came together so quickly, too. It’s part of a mixtape that I’m almost done with and hope to get out later this year.

Finally, what’s next for you? Any new projects or collaborations we should be watching for?

I’ve been having fun doing backend stuff. I have this mixtape to finish up, a couple of other projects I’ve been putting together, but I see myself getting into producing/writing with others more as time goes on. I never really stay in one place musically; there’s always new territory to explore. I think that’s what keeps music so exciting for me. A new chapter is always around the corner. That being said, there are some collabs in this mix that are really fun, most quite old now. But just know that they’ll come out when they’re meant to. Thanks for listening!