Mark Nieto applies a decade of bouncing around LA’s underground scene—as a DJ, guitarist, and producer—to his self-titled debut as COMBAT! next month. Due out September 16th through FoF Music, the restless effort was inspired by Nieto’s travels outside California—trips like the Tijuana gig that inspired today’s #selftitledpremiere. Here’s what Nieto had to say about its spry melodies, humid vocal hooks, and spring-loaded drum loops, along with the album’s previously released single…
Around the time I was finishing up the album, I found a box of my uncle’s old mixtapes. He used to record songs off the radio and I guess the tape recorder he used had a built in mic so on one of the tapes you can hear him walking around in the silence between the songs. He passed away when I was a kid, but it was because of his influence that I took an interest in music. I took some of those subtle sounds and added them to the record. You can hear him walking around and putting the cassette in the machine right before the drums start.
