A DJ From New Zealand Comes To Dubai. Meet Eden Burns

by Alexandra Mansilla

A DJ From New Zealand Comes To Dubai. Meet Eden Burns

6 Nov 2024

Eden Burns will be performing at The Crowd Test Festival — the first-ever Art and Music Festival by The Sandy Times — on November 16, 2024, at Monkey Bar, Dubai. So get ready for the best music experience of your life!

Tickets are available here

My introduction to Eden Burns started — believe it or not — with a remix he did for Xumba Xumba by Mainline Magic Orchestra. It was amazing, and from there, I was hooked; I just wanted to know everything he was working on.

Once, Eden described his music as "honest, funny, and pretty funky at times" — and honestly, that is 100% spot on. But I would add that it is not just about his music; it is about him, too!

And let us not forget the covers of Eden’s records — they are a whole art form in themselves. Some feature quirky characters (gnomes?), while others simply display the album name, each record in a different colour. Why is that? Read on to find out.

— Eden, first, a random question: you are from New Zealand, but in 2021, you moved to Australia. Why?

— I moved to Australia because, I guess, I just wanted something new. I wasn't really ready to make the move to Europe; I wanted to stay close to New Zealand and be near my family. So, Australia seemed like a good middle ground.

Also, in Melbourne, there is a lot happening, especially with music. A lot of my friends had already left New Zealand and moved to Europe or Australia. So, it just felt like the right thing to do. It is definitely more exciting here for now, but I think I will probably move back to New Zealand in a couple of years.

— Your dad introduced you to some great music from an early age — lots of “punk stuff”. What did he do for a living (and what does he do), and what kind of music played around the house growing up?

— My dad was in various bands and played at bars and stuff, doing covers. He was really into punk music. So, from a very early age, I listened to a lot of The Clash, Ramones, and The Jam. They are not really that punk, but still, it was a whole mix of different stuff.

My mom also loved Alice Cooper and The Cure, so I became obsessed with them really early on. The Cure might have been my gateway to more electronic stuff since they used a lot of synths. From there, I got into artists like Gary Numan and other artists.

— What music brings up nostalgic feelings for you?

— That is a tough one! I think maybe video game music from games I played, like the Tony Hawk series on PlayStation or even Grand Theft Auto — the songs from those games.

— On Bandcamp, it says that your EP Kelly touches on the topic of perception: “How do we perceive and how do we channel our out-of-body experiences?” Could you elaborate on that a bit? Why was this topic on your mind?

— That was just a write-up that Public Possession put together. The record itself was actually created with an idea in mind — I used four paintings as inspiration or reference points for the track. I kind of looked at each painting and tried to make a soundtrack for it. The description about “out-of-body experiences” was, I guess, just a promo write-up that Public Possession did.

— Okay, and what four paintings did you look at?

— The four paintings were works by Ellsworth Kelly, a painter, sculptor, and printmaker from the U.S. His work is pretty simple and bold in colour... kind of the complete opposite of what the Kelly record sounds like.

— I really love the cover of the Kelly EP! Why did you decide to do it that way?

— I just told Public Possession that I wanted a big text that simply said Kelly. They came up with the idea of doing each cover by hand. They used stencils, so every record is actually custom. Each one was stencilled and spray-painted in a different colour, which is pretty cool. That was, once again, one of Public Possession's ideas.

— Since 2021, you have been releasing the Big Beat Manifesto series with Public Possession. What is it all about, and how did it come together?

— This project started off as just one record. It came about because I was sending Public Possession so much music. This was during lockdown, so every day, I was sending them new dance tracks. I think the lockdown made me feel strange not having any clubs open or DJ gigs happening, but at the same time, it really inspired me to make dance music. I wanted to create the kind of tracks I would want to hear in clubs if they were open. And obviously, I had a lot of time on my hands, so I just kept sending them loads of tracks.

Eventually, they decided it would be best to turn it into a series. So now, Big Beat Manifesto is sort of a side project — a series that serves as an outlet for all my dance tracks.

— And about the covers — what are the characters on them?

— The drawings are all done by the Public Possession guys, who do amazing illustrations. I love them. A few people have even gotten them tattooed, which is pretty odd, but also very cool!

— By the way, if you were a cartoon character, who would you be?

— The first thing that comes to mind is Lorax! Or maybe the Tasmanian Devil.

— What is your favourite country to play in?

— It has got to be either Japan or Indonesia. Both are amazing for different reasons. I have really enjoyed Indonesia; Jakarta is incredible. The club there, Zodiac, is a fantastic spot I have played at a couple of times. It is an amazing venue with great energy and genuinely awesome people. The crowd there is super lovely, and you can get away with playing some pretty weird stuff, and they absolutely love it.

— Do you collect anything?

— Yeah, other than music, I collect Magic: The Gathering cards — these trading cards. I collect them on and off, and I have been into it since I was a kid. For those who don't know, it is a trading card game about wizards and magic. It is pretty nerdy, but I love it.

— I loved your remix of Xumba Xumba by Mainline Magic Orchestra. Why did you decide to remix it? Do you know those guys personally?

— Mainline Magic Orchestra does a lot of fun! I was friends — kind of like pen pals — with some of the guys, and I actually sent their music to Public Possession. They loved it and decided to put out their album, then asked me to do a remix. Now, they are really good friends of mine, and I have stayed with them in Barcelona a couple of times. They are heaps of fun and pretty crazy. I am very excited to catch up with them and play together in Dubai. I can't wait.

— Do you have any unreleased tracks that you are waiting for the right moment to drop? What is holding them back?

— I have been working on an album for almost three, maybe even four years now, slowly compiling tracks that aren’t necessarily club-focused. I have really been taking my time with it. Once it is finished, I send it off for mastering and try to get it released as soon as possible. These less conventional dance tracks are what I am building the album around, and hopefully, it will be ready to come out early next year.

— I have seen videos of you playing alone and also playing surrounded by tons of people. What is the best setup for you? I mean, ideally — name all the details: country, venue, crowd size, anything!

— For a club setup, I don’t think it really matters whether there are people behind me or where the venue is, what country, or even the size of the crowd. I guess I would typically prefer something not too massive — something a bit more intimate. But really, it just comes down to the people, the sound system, and, of course, the music.

I don’t really have an “ideal” gig situation. I think just having good people there, having a good time and being respectful, along with a nice sound system — yeah, that is pretty much all I can ask for.

— Lastly, what are you working on now?

— I have just got the masters back for the next Big Beat Manifesto release, and I'm chipping away at this album, which will hopefully come out next year.

I have also got some stuff going on with Christopher Tubbs again, so we are going to do another project together. That is about it at the moment!

by Alexandra Mansilla