Casual Encounters is made up of Shawn Mac of Houston and Chas Bronz of Boston. The duo teams up from afar to produce their flavor of casual Deep House/Disco music. The two have been working together for around three years, but only recently met face to face for the first time. In July 2012, they released their Casual Boogie EP on Skycreaker Records, which featured remixes from Drop Out Orchestra, Rocco Raimundo, and Andrew Clark. Check out clips of each track right here:
Shawn Mac, originally from Orange County, California, helped found SpaceWalker Recordings in 2009. The label has released original tracks from the likes of Toomy Disco, Claes Rosen, Honom, as well as Casual Encounters and Chas Bronz. Recently, he started his own record label called Dancefloor Encounters. The labels’ debut release, Welcome to the Dancefloor EP, will be out soon and you can preview it below. “The Welcome to the Dancefloor Sampler provides four tracks that will definitely have you moving after the first listen and help reminisce, plan, and for-see the act of moving our joints and bodies which we know as dancing.” It features a Casual Encounters collaboration with the Beat Broker and Evie titled “For the Win” (FTW!).
AFTER THE JUMP...
Chas Bronz is a man of many talents. In addition to being a producer he is a composer, DJ, and plays multiple instruments. He recently traveled to Columbia to play a Casual Encounters DJ set at a show put on by the Hindie Corporation. You can check it out below. Besides being in Casual Encounters, Chas has produced music as a solo artist, with Sare Havlicek in Trans-Atlantic Disco Alliance (NANG Records), with Curtis Black as Long Distance Analog (Mullet Records), and with Walter Jones as Graceful Exit (DFA). He is also in the process of launching a record label called TruTalk Records. Keep your eye out for upcoming releases.
The Casual Encounters guestmix for DPC kicks off with Karmon’s remix of Fabo’s upcoming release, “Where I Stand” featuring Lostcause. This song definitely sets the tone for the rest of the mix and lets you know that things will be getting deep. This mix features a bunch of new material including two of the tracks off of the aforementioned Welcome to the Dance Floor EP, as well as a new track from Debonair, “Rivage,” that will be released on Kolour Recordings tomorrow. The mix concludes with an acid jazzy outro called “Parisian Acid Rain” from Nacho Marco, Maxine Hardcastle & Paul Hardcastle Jr.
Shawn and Chas were kind enough to take some time from their busy schedules to answer some interview questions for DPC and our readers.
DPC: How would you characterize Causal Encounters' sound and how would you describe this mix that you put together for us?
CE: Well the name really says it all. Our sound is fun, groovy, and versatile, from house to deep house, or even disco and funk, we enjoy mixing it up and bringing about unexpected surprises. The mix brings about deep seductive vibes with a bit of soul and just an overall fun dancey feel to it.
DPC: I know that Chas lives in the Boston area and you live in the Houston area. How did you guys meet and how do you collaborate together over such a long distance?
CE: We actually hadn't met for about the first 3 years we worked together, until Chas was going over to play in Colombia and stopped by Houston. We got to know each other online at first, and had many mutual friends, and we kinda had a similar style and feel for the scene, so decided to start up on some tunes together which leads us to Casual today.The distance really hasn't been a problem when it comes to working on original and remix material. Obviously it can't compare to working together in the same city, but we enjoy what we do, and work on tracks by sending stems back and forth online and just feeding off vibes and ideas we both have. It's quite an interesting experience as we get two perspectives to an original/remix and then combine what we feels fits together, so it comes out being something really special.
DPC: Both of you guys have recently started your own record companies. You have started Dance Floor Encounters and Chas has started Trutalk Records. Can you talk a little bit about that process and what we can expect from your respective releases?
CE: Shawn has always been with the label side of things, as before Casual Encounters came to form, he was the Co-Founder, and Co-Owner of SpaceWalker Recordings. Shawn also ran Skycreaker Records with Mike Salta. After having partnerships for a few years, it kinda came down to taste and direction, where in Dancefloor Encounters, it will be more on the deeper tip, but there are no genre boundaries really. As long as it sounds good and you can get down to it, Dancefloor Encounters is on it! Expect the likes of Casual original and remix work, our buddy Rhythm Operator, The Beat Broker, In2Deep, Ejeca, Sergio Santos, Eric Timpleton, Need & Necessity, and many more in the coming months.
As For TruTalk Records, Chas plans on using his label to release some of his solo work. TruTalk Records will also serve to promote Chas's audio mastering company, Mastermind Audio Solutions. He has Mastered tracks by Sferro of Girlfriend Records, Wexxel and Sae, Drop Out Orchestra, The Beatbroker, Pretty Lights and Need And Necessity, just to name A few.DPC: What can we expect from Casual Encounters over the next few months? Any tour dates or releases you guys have planned?
CE: Our track "For The Win", in collaboration with The Beat Broker and Evie, will be coming out on Dancefloor Encounters in October, as well as a few remixes coming out on Something Different Records, as well as a remix of Amtrac and possibly a new Casual EP sometime soon as well.
DPC: What sort of music and which artists or labels have you each been impressed by as of late?
CE: Some of the producers we've been feeling lately are Eric Timpleton, Need & Necessity, Iron Galaxy, Ejeca, Disclosure, Grown Folk, The East Coast House Mob, And Christian Martin.
DPC: And our obligatory last question. What is your favorite dance move?
CE: The Casual boogie! Letting loose, and getting down and dirty
We would like to thank Casual Encounters for taking the time to create this guestmix for you all. We really hope you enjoy it!
Tracklist:
1. Fabo Feat. Lostcause - Where I stand (Karmon Remix) [Stranjjur)
02. Eric Timpleton - High Density (Original Mix) [Dancefloor Encounters]
03. Josh Kleyton - Night and Day (Manhattan Projject's Re Dub) [Stranjjur]
04. Urulu - Another Time (Original Mix) [Exploited]
05. Rhythm Operator - Take Me Back (Original Mix) [Dancefloor Encounters]
06. Debonair - Rivage (Original Mix) [Kolour Recordings]
07. Alex Jones - Higher Level (Original Mix) [Hypercoulor]
08. Nacho Marco, Maxine Hardcastle & Paul Hardcastle Jr. - Parisian Acid Rain (Original Mix)[Pacha Recordings]
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