DJ duo GLSS breaks into EDM scene with upcoming EP

Crowd roars pulse through the halls of Ackerman Union on an energetic Tuesday night. UCLA students rushed upstairs to discover GLSS, a duo consisting of UCLA’s Philip Scott and UC Davis’ Brandon Whitney, opening for popular Los Angeles DJ duo, Classixx.

“It was a truly surreal experience because we’ve opened for a fair amount of artists,“ said Scott, a third-year Design | Media Arts student. “But we have almost never opened for an artist that has made such a huge influence on us as music listeners.”

It’s not the first time that GLSS has opened for a popular DJ act. Scott and Whitney said they have consistently taken advantage of their geographical distance, performing sets at clubs across the state. For Scott, the experience opening for Classixx served as an inspiring culmination of tireless hours of sound experimentation in his Westwood apartment. The duo’s upcoming EP, “Break,” is set to release Saturday, featuring two original tracks.

“We are trying to emulate the material of glass, being really smooth and transparent.” Scott said. “The goal with this EP is to kind of combine the accessibility of these melodic popular songs into these underground genres.”

The duo met in San Francisco where they played together in a gritty, synthpop group featuring Whitney on drums and Scott on synthesizers. When this band dissolved, the two merged into a DJ duo, coining the name “BeardForce,” influenced by Scott’s beard-growing ability.

“We threw these (events) called ‘We Party in Parks,'” Scott said. “We would set up a table, generator and our DJ gear, and make a Facebook event, and we’d have about 600 kids come out to the middle of a park, just in the night, hidden.”

From parks to clubs, Scott and Whitney performed shows alongside experienced artists and developed their abilities throughout San Francisco.

“Whitney is this mechanical engineer and I think he draws a lot of inspiration from metalworking; really just this industrial vibe,” Scott said. “I am a designer, which is less of a function thing, so I draw much inspiration from nature and cityscapes and that sort of thing.”

Over the past years, the duo said their relationship has sustained constant production through Internet-based music communication. Their common roots within the San Francisco club scene unite their musical projects, despite attending different universities.

“It’s great because we get both of our styles separately, and through the whole process, we give each other feedback,” Scott said. “When we’re at our separate schools, it remains a pretty individual process until we get home,” Scott said.

Whitney embraces the ability of GLSS to mesh together the distinct idiosyncrasies of each member.

“I think part of us putting out a good product is understanding how to break up work between the two of us,” Whitney said.

Jeffrey Hsiao performed at the 2013 Bruin Bash in September after being selected as one of two student DJs to open for E-40 and Tyga. The second-year molecular, cell, and developmental biology student creates music in the same apartment as Scott.

“Our similar interests make the experience of living together an interactive exploration of music and collaboration,” Hsiao said.

Whitney said he believes that the EP is less about GLSS making one clear, concise statement and is more focused on defining its exploration of music over the past two years.

“There (are) two tracks on this EP,” Scott said. “‘All’ is this gliding arpeggio, deep house track that is very accessible and focuses on these melodic chord progressions. So that really emphasizes this smooth, flowing vibe.”

“On the other hand, “Break,” the title track, builds up that really smooth sound and then breaks it down,” Scott said. “You’ve got this kind of push and pull between this smooth, kind of breakdown-y, flowing rhythm.”

As a member of UCLA EDMC, the university’s electronic dance music club, Scott said he shares samples with other DJs and enjoys sharing the experience of a personal live set with all those involved.

“The DJ has a very big god complex right now in dance music. I’m very inspired by moving in the exact opposite direction where the night is not all about the DJ,” Scott said. “For me, the night is about people dancing and being interested in each other, and the music, and not so much who’s playing it.”