Today we’d like to introduce you to Adam Ganer.
Thank you so much for sharing your story and insight with our readers. To kick things off, how did you get started?
I have always been into music. I watched MTV when I was a kid and got my first guitar when I was eight. My favorite genres were grunge, punk, rap, and metal. So I would learn songs and mess around with writing stuff, but when I was in college, I got into writing songs and would play a bunch of open mics in Portland, Oregon, where I was going to school. I’d also do some recording with experimental electronic stuff. If I had free time in school, I was doing something on the guitar, recording or writing songs. Music has always been a part of me, but it was always a hobby. But when I was done with school, I would go out after work, and one night, I was out with my friends, and I heard this crazy music playing from outside a club, and I was like, whoa, I have to check this place out I’ve never heard anything like that. And dubstep music was playing, which, if people aren’t familiar, is like a rap beat with no lyrics, heavy metal synths, and a ton of bass. So from there, I was like, this stuff is fantastic. I’m going to make some dubstep music. And that opened many doors because the music sounded loose with the production. It is because you can be way creative with it, but you have to fine-tune everything from a production perspective, or it just sounds like a computer was in a bad mood and made a techno song. But I made a few songs, and with any electronic music, it isn’t like you can play the song on a guitar somewhere. You have to learn to DJ to play your stuff live. And DJing was natural for me to learn and a lot of fun because I like music, and you can be creative with putting sets together too. And I moved around a bunch, but I would play at clubs in Denver and Albuquerque and started doing different types of music. Still, I took a bit of a break from playing live because of COVID and moving around, but I post sets online, which is a lot of fun, and I am also recording some new stuff to release soon.
We all face challenges, but looking back, would you describe it as a relatively smooth road?
It could have been a smoother road; I wondered if pavement existed. On the most basic level, you get an idea for a song. It just doesn’t come together the way you want it to, so you have to scrap it, or if the song does fundamentally sound the way you like, you make recording after recording because it is like, oh, the treble is too high, or the bass is too loud, or I can’t hear that synth or that drum. Then there is the whole process of releasing stuff, and you can be hyped about some song you made and like nobody listens to it, or it doesn’t go over the way you thought. I’ve had to push back releases because of stuff with distributors and licensing or because it is a busy time of year to release stuff. I was going to release an album in December, and it was like, nope, everybody is releasing a holiday album—just random stuff. And finding venues that play my genre of music can be a challenge in and of itself because even with electronic music getting more popular, it still isn’t like a primary genre, even at clubs. So yeah, not a road with pavement, but basically, I keep it in four-wheel drive because when someone reaches out and is like I love that song, or that set was great, it makes the road worth it because I know how much music means to me and other people getting something out of my music makes it well worth the drive.
Can you tell our readers more about what you do and what you think sets you apart from others?
As I said, I got my production and DJ to start with dubstep. And most electronic music emphasizes being dance music, like when you are distributing something in stores, they categorize dance / electronic as one genre, but dubstep wasn’t necessarily danced music. Dance has more of a standard format where you don’t throw some random sound into a song or set when people are dancing because you don’t want to throw people out of their groove. So if I am doing a set at a club, I’m not going to throw too crazy of stuff in because most people are at a club so that they can dance. But my specialty, like my sets that went number one in the world and that people give a lot of good feedback on, are experimental, abstract sets with mixing styles that are more stuff to listen to than to dance to. When I have an opportunity, I like to go into another zone and get creative with mixing and stuff. That is what I am best known for and have the most fun with.
Can you talk to us about how you think about risk?
My perspective on risk would be to do so at your own risk. Whatever it is you are doing. Whether investing in a stock, going base jumping, or going to the grocery store on a Saturday. But am I a risk taker? Oh yeah. Some things I’ve done go beyond risk and are just dumb, and I am glad I am still here. For example, my friends and I were on a white water rafting trip, and the raft was over capacity by one person, so one of us would have to kayak. I had never been in a kayak, but I took the kayak, which was pretty risky, as I found when I got to the rapids. I was on a downhill mountain biking trip, and the chain on my bike broke, so I did two runs without a chain. I’ve done skydiving, bungee jumping. I was really into snowboarding and skateboarding. When I get on a wave runner, I will see if it will go as fast as it says. And with all that being said, I cut back on risk after a skateboarding injury. I broke my hand and had to have surgery on it. I am a guitar player, so I said ok; I had to choose between skateboarding and guitar playing. I am a professional musician, so I went with guitar playing. And while my hand was healing from surgery, I got really into running. And I love running because it is a way to let off steam and release those endorphins with a lot less risk. And I am generally more cautious now with things that I do after my hand surgery. So I’ve done a bunch of risky and dumb stuff, and I try to be smart, and I won’t ever tell someone to do or not to do something, but whatever you are doing, do so at your own risk.
Contact Info:
- Website: www.adamganer.com
- Instagram: instagram.com/adamganermusic
- Facebook: Facebook.com/adamganermusic
- Youtube: YouTube.com/adamganer
- SoundCloud: soundcloud.com/adamganer
- Other: mixcloud.com/adamganer
