We recently connected with Daniel Garner and have shared our conversation below.

Alright, Daniel thanks for taking the time to share your stories and insights with us today. Can you open up about a risk you’ve taken – what it was like taking that risk, why you took the risk and how it turned out?

Risk taking has never been my strong suit. In fact, I’d say I’m rather adverse to taking risks- but I’d like to tell you about my journey to Los Angeles and the risk of failure so many of us have felt when moving to a big city. At age 19, I was fresh out of high school and eager to learn more about audio and the music scene in general. I had started my dance music project – ‘Aurient’ about a year prior to moving to LA, with a bit of online notoriety and a signing to a small swedish label. My plan was to start an internship in a studio that could give me the hands-on experience I needed in order to move forward.
For two years I would wake up early and clean studios, run errands for talent, and if I was lucky- soak up valuable knowledge from the producers and engineers there. At times it felt pointless, as if I was only there to help with menial tasks- forever remaining an intern when I wanted so badly to be playing shows and working with other artists. Other times I felt like a valued member of the team, offering my skill where it counted. Ultimately I was let go, likely due to my being distracted with a new girlfriend or just lacking enthusiasm for the work, but I walked away from the internship having learned a lot and it felt good to get my feet wet in this industry.
Fast forward a decade or so and here I am, still in LA, doing this music thing. I’m now throwing weekly events and regularly releasing music with fellow artists who I call family. There is still so much I have yet to achieve- but without taking that initial leap of faith, I’m not sure I would have been happy. I wonder who I would be today had I not taken the chance and moved here for this crazy dream. If I had played it safe- stayed in college, gotten a real job- my material wealth and stability would likely be more impressive but what of the dream? The passion for creating? I guess what I’m saying is that I regret nothing, and I would take the same risk again if it meant living for music.

Daniel, love having you share your insights with us. Before we ask you more questions, maybe you can take a moment to introduce yourself to our readers who might have missed our earlier conversations?

Aside from making dance music that I can be proud of, the only goal with ‘Aurient’ is to create a sort of “sensitive euphoria” or a feeling of blissful melancholy; A duality of cute and dark, stylish and intimate. I’ve taken cue’s from artists like Crystal Castles, Porter Robinson, Overmono, DANGER, James Blake, etc. and more recently my sound has been heavily influenced by the UK rave scene. Over the last year I’ve released a good amount of bootleg remixes and originals mostly meant for the club, and I very much enjoy playing those songs out/hearing the response to these tunes. The two things in life that make me happiest are 1) making music and 2) playing it out. I think what I’d like people to know about me is that this project has been my life for the last 13 years and I have no intention of stopping.

My label and LA-based collective, Club Evil (@clbevl) is my home, my family. We throw events and help each other finish music, remix eachothers work, etc. What started as a DIY weekly mix series has become a friendly ecosystem of creators, as we push each other to move forward with our individual and collected efforts. If you’re in LA, come say hi at one of our events! We love to meet people and talk all things music/art.

In your view, what can society to do to best support artists, creatives and a thriving creative ecosystem?

Obviously going out to your friends events, buying tickets and drinks, reposting etc. helps a TON, but there are other more personal ways you can support your creative community. Don’t be afraid to reach out to your friends and ask how they’re doing outside of their craft. In LA it’s easy to feel like everybody wants something from you or that every interaction needs to be transactional in some way. This is NOT the case and I urge anyone who reads this to check in on the well-being of their creative friends from time to time, as this can sometimes be the most valuable form of support. The creative path is often ambitious and lonely, so receiving genuine emotional support from those around you is essential to our success and longevity in this industry.

What’s the most rewarding aspect of being a creative in your experience?

I’d have to say that the most rewarding feeling is when I create something new and am able to impress myself. When you specialize in a certain genre it’s easy to find yourself making the same decisions again and again, so breaking that habit and stumbling on an idea that sparks excitement is always a priceless feeling. I think something cool about genres is that they create these sets of “rules” for us to break; without Elvis there would be no S*x Pistols, etc

Contact Info:

• Website: https://clbevl.com
• Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/aurientmusic
• Twitter: https://x.com/aurientmusic
• Youtube: https://youtu.be/4N7D7pe8m1c?si=au1gCx4wcs6pct5b
• Soundcloud: https://soundcloud.com/aurientmusic

Image Credits

Brandon Showers