Zedd
9.23.24 | by Karla Pacheco
From the stage to the screen, it’s Zedd’s world and we’re just living in it.
It’s been a while since we’ve been able to binge-listen to something new from our favorite producer, Zedd. 9 years, in fact! Of course, there have been singles, tours, and other projects in the interim (hello, VALORANT… we’ll talk about that later), but you can’t help but miss going on the trips that Zedd musically marks out. The good new, however, is that he’s returned to grace the Earth with his hit-making, Grammy-winning talent in the form of a new album.
Enter Telos, an auditory piece of art that truly cannot be described in any other way. With features from John Mayer to Muse, at no point in time, do you know where the story the music has to tell is going to take you. Are you at a rave? Are you at the symphony? Are you watching an action movie? You’ll have no idea, but you’ll love it all the same. Still, it has a certain eyes-closed, head-bopping touch that is unmistakably familiar so you know you’re in good hands.
On the topic of never knowing where you are when you’re listening to Zedd, you also never know where you’re going to encounter Zedd. I was surprised when the announcement dropped that he’d be collaborating with VALORANT for Riot Games. For the uninitiated, VALORANT is an FPS video game, popularly known for its creative in-game cosmetics and impressive musical features. Zedd popped up in few different ways, including a remix, a loop track that plays when you inspect a weapon skin from a certain collection, and even a corner of the map that was decorated to look like a recording studio. Personally, as an avid VALORANT player, I was curious to know Zedd’s thoughts on such projects. Thanks to °1824, I got the chance to ask him directly!
As luck would have it, I was actually in San Diego for TwitchCon. In celebration, I was going to be cosplaying as VALORANT’s coolest agent: Reyna. This obviously means I was sporting her full arm tattoo. I took the opportunity to use it as a segue for the conversation, and asked Zedd about his involvement with VALORANT. The skin collection covered 5 different weapons, and took over half a year to complete. It was a standout feat, because each weapon had its own custom variant of the audio track that played upon inspection. Obviously, it became massively popular - not just because it was Zedd, but because it was so cool. All players could have sworn the audio loop came with aimbot! Zedd himself said that his favorite part of the project was finding a way to make each unique track match the vibe of its corresponding weapon and the typical playstyle it’s used for.
Since Zedd himself is apparently a gamer (ranked Immortal… I asked), it makes sense that he’d be excited about a project like this. I also asked, now that Zedd has crossed over into video game music, where he sees himself going next. His answer was one that I was not expecting, but one that I will be looking forward to until it happens. The big scheme now is getting to soundtrack a full-length movie, full of whimsy and fantasy. For Zedd, the best part of music is making art, telling a story, creating a scene, and generally just using it in ways that are unforeseen. In the meantime, all we can do is listen to Telos, and imagine what that movie would look like.
The Troubadour Sanchez will return. In the meantime, let’s listen to the new details of his old tale. The Club Deluxe version of Angel Face features five (5) new songs for us to piece it all together.
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