Dipped in Dollars is proud to present our Mix of the Month series, where we ask an up-and-coming artist to present us with a mix/mixtape that will allow us to gain better perspective of their process/show us what we can expect to hear from them in the future. Martonomous is a versatile musician from New York who recorded the Dollar Dip mix exclusively for our site. I had the opportunity to interview Martonomous about his mix;

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Chief: What were your influences when making this mix?

Martonomous: There were a number of influences, perhaps most prominently some Thai and Cambodian sounds, which are very new to me. Ive recently been exploring a collection of tapes I bought last summer in the cities of Bangkok, Phnom Pehn and Siem Reap. Got some beautiful gems ’round those parts. This mix also features some samples of metallophones used in Gamelan, bringing a bit of an Indonesian influence. The Dollar-Dip Mix is intended to represent a broad span of my work, going back to 2002, an era which was more heavily based around synth programming. As for specific artists who influenced this work overall: DJ Shadow, Aphex Twin, Boards of Canada, Sin Sisamouth and Ros Sereysothea, among others.

C: What are your thoughts about sampling/the way you integrated samples in the piece?

M: This piece just sort of melted together during a snowstorm. I felt a sudden urge to do something new and different after finally finishing the ever-evolving 3-year album that is Epiphone Drones and Casio Tones. There was little hesitation in piecing the DID mix together; it was a very fluid process, which was refreshing. This was largely due to my excitement over working with the south-east Asian mystery sounds and in revisiting old electronic material of mine that I hadnt heard in years. Other than those elements, I used samples to reference various ideas, thoughts and events that were on my mind during the production of The Dollar-Dip Mix.

C: Is this a good indication of the stuff we’ll be hearing from you in the future?

M: Yes, although the sounds will evolve Im sure. I do plan on featuring guitar, keys, bass and hand percussion more prominently in the next larger project. Theres also a need for my music to be more international. Thats one beautiful lesson that sampling will teach you: with the proper manipulations, all sounds can be compatible with one another. Between cultural sounds, life sounds, earth sounds etc. lie endless possibilities.

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Recently Ive begun to appreciate the gorgeous quality of tape, in audio and in film, so thats definitely a source medium I want to explore more in the future.

C: What are your motivations behind making music?

M: I believe music is the highest, most potent form of communication and expression.

C: Anything else you’d like to say about the mix?

M: All artists who I sample, in this mix and in all of my work, are artists I deeply respect and admire.

Check out the rest of Martonomous‘ catalog at his bandcamp.