Zomboy et NERO

Zomboy is the stage name of Joshua Mellody (A name which in and of itself sounds like a stage name), who could become a poster boy for the way that music is released and careers are made in this modern age. Thanks to the internet and fast improving technology, it’s possible to create professional sounding music in one’s own bedroom, however, that’s not to say that it’s simple. Mellody cut his teeth in the U.S working in sound engineering at a recording studio and recording many different bands and artists. He also gained a cult following with some electro covers he released as Place Your Bet$ but his career didn’t truly take off until he moved back to his native country.

That was where Mellody used his experience in both songwriting and recording to create “Organ Donor”, a track that would get him signed to Never Say Die Records in 2011. His debut E.P, named after its lead track, would go on to be a massive success on the Beatport charts, staying in the top five for 8 weeks straight. Just like that, his music had been released by Ministry of Sound and Warner Brothers recordings by the end of the year. A lot of people could be understandably cynical about this, I mean, if anyone could create and release music on their own and in their spare time why should anyone get famous because of it?

However, Mellody is a perfect example of this as well, since he’s become a success thanks to his relentless work ethic and sheer talent rather than any luck or good fortune. He’s released E.P’s at a rate of knots and done official remixes for Skrillex, Modestep and Hadouken!, and in 2014, his debut album, entitled “The Outbreak” was also released. His high energy, dubstep influenced beats are going to take over the world in very short order, and chances are he hasn’t even reached his prime yet. To call Mellody one to watch is to sell him very short, but he still comes highly recommended.

The trio is composed of producers Daniel Stephens and Joe Ray, who formed the group back in 2004, and singer Alana Watson, who joined them after featuring on some of their early songs in 2008. Ray and Stephens met when they were 17 years old, at the specialist music school in Pimlico that they both attended. Both of them were pretty much musical prodigies, Ray playing classical guitar and Stephens the cello, but both of them composed electronic music on their laptops in their own time. By the age of 17 they had decided to create music together, setting up their studio in Stephens’ bedroom, and a year later, the duo met their future bandmate Watson.

By 2004, the band had signed to Formation Records and over the course of the next four years, they released a critically acclaimed series of 12 inches that started out as straight drum ’n’ bass but over time developed into their signature sound of pop-inflected dubstep. Watson guested on a couple of their 2008 releases, most notably their first attempt at straight dubstep “This Way”, released on the Audio Freaks label. By the end of the year was a fully-fledged member of the group, however, it was 2009 that saw them truly gain momentum.

Their single “Act Like You Know” started getting some genuine radio play, and their remix of The Streets’ “Blinded By The Light” was played in high profile sets by everyone from Skream to Diplo. Late 2010 saw the band listed on the BBC’s Sound Of 2011 list, one of the most on-point choices the list has ever made, as it turned out. Their debut album “Welcome Reality”, released in the same year, hit number one with a bullet in the U.K and reached the top ten of the US Dance albums chart and ever since then they’ve been one of the biggest names in EDM.

They’ve won a Grammy for a collaboration with Skillex and worked with the BBC Philharmonic Orchestra to bring the world “The Dubstep Symphony”, and have built up a reputation as one of the best live acts in electronic music. The best part is that they’re just getting started, and in their prime, they’ll be practically unbeatable. Highly recommended.