I first encountered RXM Reality (Mike Meegan) at the Empty Bottle last August in support of The Field. The rapid-fire triggering of samples took awhile to get used to, but then I was hooked. In my opinion, RXM Reality is one of Chicago's most exciting young musicians. His work reminds me of Black Dice when they were at their peak, and I often use the word "punk" to describe what he does. RXM’s new album, blood blood blood blood, came out in April on Hausu Mountain Records.
Hi, Mike. I've followed you online for awhile, and it seems like you're always making music. Is that true? If so, how did you decide what to put on blood blood blood blood? Did you write and record specifically for this release?
I am definitely constantly working on music in a pretty neurotic way. In the past, I would work on a live set with a certain bank of samples, then go on to craft songs after. That’s how blood was made for sure–just needling together the fragmented sequences from my sampler to Ableton and stacking layers and layers of patterns. That stuff from the Field show at the Bottle would go on to be the building blocks of blood. I recorded that release for Hausu between August and November of last year.
Lately, though, I’ve been focusing exclusively on production and song composition and making a lot of stuff with my new laptop. Obviously I’m not playing shows, but even if I were, I think it would be way different from the last release.
Coming from a "guitar-first" background, I've never worked on music that way. I remember obsessing over Panda Bear's Person Pitch in 2007 and thinking, "Maybe I should buy a sampler." Ha. When and how did you start making electronic music? And what artists got you started on that path?
I think it’s safe to say that album made me start sampling, too–along with Daft Punk, Madlib, and Burial. I’m also a guitar player first. My earliest sampling was plugging things other than guitar into my loop pedal. In high school, I used to watch as my buddy Corey made really sweet and funny music on Fruity Loops. We would pick the funniest harp and choir sounds we could find. Pretty ahead of its time to be honest, haha. I loved Daft Punk and Animal Collective, and I still do. Burial, Actress, and Aphex Twin were the big ones for me as far as electronic musicians go. I got into them in 2009 maybe.
What sources are you using for your samples? And when you talk about creating patterns, what exactly do you mean?
I like to keep what I sample a little secret ;) – just kidding. But it’s rarely about the source material for me. Like, pure white noise is enough for me to start chipping away and manipulating into a cool percussive sound. I don’t ever sample preexisting songs–just, like, sounds. Occasionally in the past, stuff from movie trailers, but lately i’m learning how to produce those big shiny sounds from scratch or close to scratch. I look for nice short sounds. They can be from a YouTube video or a sample pack or whatever.
By patterns, I mean sequences that I arrange in the Elektron Digitakt. That’s the drum machine/sampler I start all my music on. Its sequencer is huge for me; I’m learning more about it every day. I’ll pick any random sound and start doing these tricks I’ve learned on the Digitakt to make spastic and random loops that aren’t even really loops because they don’t repeat.
Without giving away too much, what does your music "mean?" A punk band might yell about how the government sucks, or a metal band might yell about how forests are cool, but your music doesn't telegraph its meaning like that. I suppose a lot of electronic/instrumental music doesn't. When I listen to your tapes or watch your live shows, it's all about the experience of hearing "pure sound." A barrage of sound. It's tactile. What I'm saying sounds cheesy.
When I play live, I enjoy being a bit confrontational, but also humorous. I enjoy chaos and absurdity in music. I love that you describe my music as tactile because I think about that a lot–like it’s sort of competitive. I treat music sort of like sports or a fighting video game. I love internal music that makes you feel things. I don’t think there’s ever too direct a message when it comes to my music. My favorite band is My Bloody Valentine. They’re so emotive and kind of androgynous without being clear about where they’re coming from. Outside of the music, I always play diverse bills and make sure the shows and venues I play align with the things I believe in.
My Bloody Valentine famously closes their concerts with the "holocaust section" – about 15 minutes of controlled feedback. I always hated the nickname, but it was fun to experience that in person. It felt kinda like being at an RXM show. Like MBV, you play really loud.
You've done three releases on Chicago’s Hausu Mountain Records. How do you all create the visuals for an RXM album?
I’ve seen MBV a few times. It’s loud, obviously–and you should wear earplugs–but it doesn’t necessarily hurt because the full frequency range balances out very pleasantly. Someone can be playing a guitar through some crappy amp at a low volume, and my ears will start burning, but at an MBV show, my ears feel totally fine. I’m striving more and more to be like that. I think I used to be really harsh live, but lately, I’m trying to keep the volume high but not be exhausting or shrill on the ears.
Early on, I did a lot more on the visual end of RXM. I would wear a mask and have my friends dance and stand next to me in the same mask. With the HausMo releases, Max Allison has done all the art work. He is the visual god of Hausu Mountain, along with Doug Kaplan. He has such a specific and focused aesthetic that runs through the entire label. The last tape’s cover was a collaboration between Max and his partner Emma. It’s my favorite for sure! I love it because it’s so weird. Like, some girls with their hands chopped off? Hausu Mountain is the very best label, and they do so much for all of their artists. It’s incredible.
I’m jealous you get to work with them! The tapes are so well done. I’ll check out anything HausMo does.
So what’s next for you and for RXM Reality? You going to livestream any more sets? Got any merch in the works? I do love a new t-shirt. What media have you been consuming during this brutal year?
I seriously have so much music I’ve recorded during quarantine, and it’s the best stuff I’ve ever done. I’ve learned a lot about production, and I’m really excited for people to hear it. It’s also my most emotionally resonant stuff. No solid plans for release yet, but I’m working on it!
I just released a new song for a Lillerne Tapes benefit compilation. I should make some shirts. I’m the worst at merch, but I should start doing that. I’d be down to stream a set, but to be honest, it’s not something I’m actively seeking out at the moment. I have stream fatigue for sure. I’m loving making music without having to show anything for it immediately.
I’ve read a few nonfiction books. One called Boys Like Us, which is a collection of gay writers talking about coming out from the ‘50s through the ‘90s. I read a book called Darkest Web that was a super pulpy collection of stories about the dark net. I love shit like that – somewhat stereotypically. I played through The Last of Us parts I & II. I think the second game in that series is the best game I’ve ever played. I was crying. I don’t watch much TV or many movies. I did watch Sinister on Netflix, which had a killer soundtrack and was creepy in a way that I enjoy. I watched the director’s cut of Batman v Superman, which fucking sucked in my opinion. Watched that new Spike Lee movie and really dug that. I listen to comedy podcasts just to escape the hellscape.
I try to stay off “hot take: the website” (Twitter) and the resentment machine that is Instagram. I think they serve a purpose when it comes to organizing, spreading awareness, fundraising, and promotion, but those websites are not a replacement for real life action. I’ve met so many great artists, but those relationships only flourish when I end up having a face-to-face encounter or at least a private message exchange.
I remember compulsively surfing Facebook shortly after my daughter was born (2015). Such a yucky feeling, holding a sleeping baby in my arms and scrolling mindlessly through digital garbage. So I deleted it. I'm still woefully addicted to Instagram, though. Fool me once...
Anyway, do you worry about losing your audience or failing to attract a new audience the more you disconnect? Now more than ever, we expect artists to be their own publicists.
That would be my only worry when it comes to deleting the apps. Literally every other thing about getting off social media would be positive for me. I haven’t made a hard decision about deleting Instagram. I’ll probably reactivate it when I have something coming out. I haven’t had Facebook proper for a few years, but I can’t delete the RXM fan page on there. So that’s a graveyard. Twitter seems to be the most useful for networking with other artists and journalists.
But yeah, social media is required for publicity, but I don’t even think my own page does that the best. Most of the coverage I’ve had is directly related to my association with Hausu Mountain. They’re badass and do a lot of work for their artists. I feel like I get new fans by opening for bigger artists. I get to do that from time to time because I straight up ask to via e-mail. I’m not shy about being ambitious even in such a niche form of music.
Right now, I feel like social media is superficial, and it just doesn’t agree with me. I don’t personally need to see what everyone thinks about everything, and that’s not some sort of ignorance is bliss type thing. In fact, I think it’s ignorant to act as though social media is the final form of connecting with people. It’s important to remember that though it seems like everyone’s on Instagram and Twitter, it’s just not true. And Facebook is just some right wing shithole nursing home full of wack conspiracy theories. I’m not opposed to social media as an idea, but these big companies are literally mining us to sell the data that we willingly share with them. They should be paying us for that shit.
It’s nice to get that hit of validation after posting something, but ultimately it’s empty calories.
Anything else you want to say to our readers?
Hang in there everyone. Take it one day at a time. Step up. Keep up the fight. Black Lives Matter. Support and respect trans people.
I’m also really excited about the music I’ve been stacking. It’s my best material yet. Please check out Hausu Mountain. All my stuff is on Spotify and everywhere else.