Talk/Play/Collaborate is a project to connect musicians, singer-songwriters and musical artists in conversation and collaboration. We believe the fruition of the music industry in our country should be decided, first hand, by the people that make it.

The project is driven by the need to connect, share and collaborate across the musical community, from Stornoway to Stranraer, at a time of uncertainty and imbalance within the music industry. We endeavour to support musicians to continue to be inspired by one another, outside of their respective scenes and communities, as well as significantly contribute to the discussions facing the musical community amidst the COVID-19 pandemic. DMC is a musicians-first organisation that believes diversity and inclusion of voices from across the spectrum of genres and disciplines are vital in growing and maintaining a vibrant regional music scene.

Back in August, we invited applications from young musical artists from throughout Scotland to connect, chat and create, either together or inspired by one another on one of several questions and posed themes.

We’re delighted to share that the first two successful applicants are Euan Pattie and Alix Adair. Both Alix and Euan are originally from Dumfries but Euan now resides in Edinburgh and Alix is currently based in Ayr. Over the last week, they have been communicating via Zoom, posing questions to one another, leading to moments of inspiration which will contribute towards a creative outcome which will be shared on our social channels this Friday.

Find out more about Euan and Alix below, and what to expect on Friday!

Euan Pattie is a Scottish producer and live set DJ whose sound incorporates lo-fi house, techno, and breakbeat. Influenced by the likes of Fosur Tet, Bicep, Floating Points, Denis Sulta, and Daniel Avery, Euan produces music that is melodic and emotional, hoping to provide listeners with a sense of escape from the pressures of life. With that in mind, Euan’s creative process centres around the idea that a track has a life of its own – it is the artist’s job to tame and capture this life.

Euan began his career in music as a drummer, meaning that he has a solid understanding and love for groove. His passion for dance music evolved listening to artists such as New Order and Daft Punk, which sparked a fascination in producing sounds electronically.

Being highly emotive and with hints of mystery, his music makes for perfect listening both inside and outside the club.

Alix Adair, AKA Alix Apples, is a 24 year old "nu-folk" and experimental singer-songwriter from Dumfries & Galloway, although she is currently based near Glasgow. She has been involved in the music industries for a few years now, but only began to seriously focus on her own music in late 2016. Her debut EP ‘Them Apples’ came into creation in April 2017, after months of hard work with a variety of collaborating artists, and showcases some of her best early pieces. Her second EP ‘misplaced.’ was released in December 2017, featuring more recent and “honest” works focusing on place and purpose. Most recently she released a single in 2019 featuring the spoken word title track 'Autumn Yellow', and what she considers to be the best example of her current work; 'Fools' Gold'.

Songwriting has been Alix's strong suit from a young age. She was the sole recipient of the 2019 Paolo Nutini Songwriting Scholarship, and holds a Masters with Distinction in Music (Songwriting). She often ties her songs in with any activism work she is part of, and has won multiple lyric and songwriting awards with activist tracks. Her music often centres around women’s issues, and she is currently working on her band's debut album "Say Something" - a concept album about gender based violence.

Alix has been growing her musical network, playing venues across the central belt including Sneaky Pete's in Edinburgh, and Audio, the 13th Note, the Old Hairdresser's in Glasgow. She also played her first ever international gig at Das Blaue Haus in Finnentrop, Germany - before playing Scotch Corner at the 2019 Immecke Rock festival in Plettenberg.

However, she intends to keep connections with her hometown strong, working in radio with Alive107.3fm throughout 2016, hosting the main stage at Scottish Youth Music Festival ‘Youth Beatz’ in 2018, and playing the acoustic stage in 2019. Alongside this, she has worked as a Curatorial Team Member of Blueprint100 and focused on facilitating other young local musicians, and plays annually at the Maidens of Music Festival.

On Friday evening, we’ll be sharing the final outcome on social media from what has come out of Euan and Alix’s collaboration. Euan explains:

"Throughout this project myself and Alix Adair have connected through Zoom to discuss our thoughts on live streaming and the music industry. In a 'blind date' style conversation, we touched on various issues including how the Covid-19 Pandemic has impacted on the way musicians make and perform music. As a result, we have decided to use this project to collaborate on music, based on some shared thoughts on live streaming and the nature of wearing masks. We are very excited to be showcasing our creative outputs this Friday, along with snippets from our conversation and insights into our musical processes. All of this will be published throughout the day this Friday over on the DMC's socials."

Make sure you’re following us on Facebook, Instagram and Twitter to keep up to date with Alex and Euan’s work!

Talk/Play/Collaborate: Meet the Artists